Odisha; the Jagannath temple in Puri has been producing dalma as part of the mahaprasad (temple food) for over a thousand years; it is a protected recipe tradition
Dalma (ଡାଲ୍ମା) is the daily staple of Odisha and the emblematic preparation of the Jagannath temple (ଜଗନ୍ନାଥ) kitchen in Puri: toor dal (pigeon peas) cooked together with a variety of seasonal vegetables — raw banana, yam, pumpkin, raw papaya, drumstick — in a single pot until everything is tender, then tempered with a ghee-based tadka of cumin, dried red chilli, and grated coconut. Unlike North Indian dal preparations that separate lentil from vegetable, dalma is a unified entity where the vegetables mellow in the lentil's starch and the lentil absorbs the vegetable's sweetness. It is the original Odia one-pot.
Eaten with rice as the primary daily meal across Odisha. The dalma is poured over rice and mixed; no separate dal or vegetable is needed when dalma is well-made. Papad and raw onion alongside are traditional.
{"Vegetables must be added in order of cooking time — dense vegetables (yam, plantain) first, tender ones (drumstick, raw papaya) later, or all will not cook evenly","The dal-to-water ratio should be generous — dalma is meant to have a thick, porridge-like consistency, not a thin soup","The ghee tadka is added at the final stage only — ghee added early loses its fragrance entirely","Grated coconut in the tadka is the Odia distinction — it adds sweetness and texture not found in other regional dal preparations"}
Temple dalma (ଭୋଗ ଡାଲ୍ମା, prasad dalma) uses no garlic or onion — the Jagannath temple adheres to strict sattvic cooking principles. Home-style dalma can include both. The inclusion of raw banana is the primary identifier — it gives the dal a starchy, slightly bitter backbone that distinguishes it from other Indian dal-and-vegetable preparations.
{"Adding all vegetables simultaneously — dense vegetables are mushy before lighter ones are cooked","Under-seasoning — dalma without the coconut-cumin tadka is incomplete; the tadka is the flavour bridge","Making it too thin — a thin dalma is considered poorly made; it should have the consistency of a thick stew"}