An introduction to Odisha cuisine

The project I'm working on, entitled "Drivers of Food Choice in Eastern India", is all about understanding the factors that drive consumer preferences and food pairings through the culture and socioeconomic lens. I think that the best way to easily understand the food culture of Eastern India is to get immersed into it; and I had to opportunity to do just that when I went on an expert elicitation workshop in Bhubaneswar, the capital of Odisha (one of the states in eastern India), with Matty, Jhoanne, Arindam, and Suva. In that workshop, we tried to understand the patterns based on the experts' in-depth knowledge on the topic.

And of course, we also got acquainted with the food the experts mentioned when we started to eat between sessions or outside conference times.

Most of the food we've tried were prepared by Hotel Mayfair Convention and Mayfair Lagoon, the conference venue of the workshop and the hotel where we stayed during the workshop. What can I say? My tastebuds were jarred with flavours and textures that are not typically found in combination in the Philippines. Indian cuisine has a certain attitude, a certain character, that is difficult to explain. Other people have tried to explain the flavour pairings in context with European standard... and they end up saying that Indian cuisine breaks the rules... 

I think that Indian cuisine has its own rules. It doesn't follow European or American norms of flavour combinations. It's so ancient that it is fully embedded in the culture of the nation. The food I've tried were all delicious! So despite the "illogical" nature of the cuisine, it works and makes Indian food distinct from all others.

Now that I've had a taste of Bhubaneswar food, I'm raring to try Kolkata food. I've heard that it's more cosmopolitan than what I've had so far.