Dalma Kebab: The Kebab of the Gods

Although the word kebab first appeared in the Turkish script Kyssa-I Yusuf in 1377, the concept of a kebab seems to have been conceived further back in antiquity. Ibn Battuta mentions it as a staple of Indian royalty as far back as 1200 AD, after being imported from the Afghani invaders. But even further back, a yuga or so, we find evidence of it in the Mahabharata!

Divine Delight! (Image credit: https://odishabytes.com/a-kebab-that-owes-its-origin-to-odisha/)

While there is no real consensus on when the events narrated in the Mahabharata took place or even if they took place; we can definitely agree that any recipe mentioned in the epic would be real - the stuff of legend- the Dalma kebab. That this recipe is for a vegetarian kebab, originating in Odisha, is just spectacular! So much for ancient kebabs being the domain of carnivores alone.

During their 13-year exile, as a consequence of their humiliating loss to Duryodhana, the Pandavas sought refuge in sympathetic benefactors. During the thirteenth year, Bheema took refuge in the Kingdom of Viraat. He entered the royal kitchens to not succumb to hunger. Instead, the royal head cook put the valiant Pandava to work. Bheema had very little to work with, no oil, and barely any spices. He recalled Hobiso Dalma, a dish favoured by Lord Krishna, which his wife Draupadi would prepare. He set the pot on boil and threw into it whatever he could find. The resulting dish was finished with ghee. And this dish, born out of scarcity, started a new style of cooking known as Bheemo Rasiya - a staple of the Puri temple.

But there is yet another legend that vies to be the true origin of the Dalma kebab. And for this story, we look to the Savaras.

This ancient Odisha tribe was the first to worship Lord Jagannath as Mahadeva. The Savara king, Viswavasu, first found the idol of Lord Jagannath in a cave, located deep in Odra desha. The idol’s colour seemed reminiscent of Vishnu or Krishna. Viswavasu began to make daily offerings to it. By evening, he would find rice, dal, and bhaja waiting for him. The King would then distribute it as prasad.

King Indradyumna of the Ganga dynasty heard of this benevolent deity and wished to seek the blessings of Lord Jagannath, a benevolent diety. He appointed his priest, Vidyapati, to locate the Despite wandering through the dense forest of Odisha on many failed attempts, Vidyapati did not give up. He sought the hand of Viswavasu’s daughter, Lalita, in marriage and asked to be taken to the deity, as his dowry. Viswavasu blindfolded his son-in-law and took him to the sacred site. Vidyapati had surreptitiously dropped mustard seeds along the way determined not to misplace the deity’s location.

These seeds, thus planted, grew into plants, allowing King Indradyumna to finally access the shrine. But alas! He was met with an empty cave. Determined still, the King refused to return to his kingdom and fasted until he was blessed with a meeting with Lord Jagannath himself, leading to the establishment of the famous Puri temple, and even grander offerings being made to the Lord. The resulting prasad consisted of 30 (eventually 100) dishes, one of which was an earlier rendition of the Dalma kebab.

Dalma kebab, considered the epitome of Odisha cuisine, is made of dal (mostly yellow dal or chana dal) cooked with an array of vegetables, typically local to Odisha, such as brinjal, radish, pumpkin, raw banana, gourd, taro, sweet potato, beans, jackfruit, and drum stick. Though tomatoes and potatoes are used, they are not considered part of the traditional recipe. All ingredients are added in specific proportions and boiled till all the water has seeped into the dal, along with the juiciness of the vegetables and added spices like green chilli, mint, cumin, turmeric, coriander, and garam masala. After cooling, the mixture is ground to a fine paste, shaped into tikkis, and grilled with ghee being used for basting.

This delicious preparation is considered a favourite of Lord Krishna, and ISKCON offers it as part of Rajbhog.