Panta bhat

Panta Bhat
Panta Ilish - a traditional platter of Panta bhat with fried Ilish slice, supplemented with dried fish (Shutki), pickles (Achar), dal, green chillies and onion - is a popular serving for the Pahela Baishakh festival.
Alternative namesbore basi poita bhat (Assamese), ponta bhat (Assamese, Kamta), zokra bhat (Kamrupi Assamese), zokora bhat (Central Assamese), Pazhaya Sadam (Tamil)
CourseMain course
Place of originIndia
Bangladesh
Region or stateBengal region
Assam
Associated cuisineBengali cuisine
Assamese cuisine
Main ingredientsRice, water
VariationsPakhala

Panta Bhat or Poita Bhat (Bengali: পান্তা ভাত Pàntà Bhàt; Assamese: পঁইতা ভাত Poĩta Bhat or পন্তা ভাত Ponta Bhat) consists of cooked rice soaked and fermented in water. The liquid part is known as Toraṇi.[1] It is a rice-based dish prepared by soaking rice, generally leftover, in water overnight. Traditionally served in the morning with salt, onion, chili and Aloo Makha/Alu Pitika (mashed potato).[2] It is consumed in eastern Indian states of West Bengal, Odisha (Pakhala), Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Assam, Tripura and in the country of Bangladesh. Panta Bhat with Ilish (Hilsha) is the National Dish of Bangladesh. It is a popular dish on the day of Pahela Baishakh or Bengali new year. It has been described in documents from 17th century. Panta bhat has more micronutrients than fresh rice. It is traditionally considered as beneficial in conditions.

  1. ^ Tharu, Susie J.; Lalita, Ke (1993). Women Writing in India. Vol. II. Feminist Press. p. 688. ISBN 9781558610293.
  2. ^ Rao, Ranjini (2019-06-11). "A Scrumptious Affair: Why Aloo Sheddo/Mashed Potato is Dear to Me". TheQuint. Retrieved 2020-07-31.