Panta bhat, or poita bhat, is cooked rice, generally leftover, soaked and fermented overnight in water, with the resulting liquid known as toroni in Odia; it is traditionally served in the morning with salt, onion, chili, and mashed potato. Panta bhat with ilish, or hilsa fish, is the national dish of Bangladesh, and the dish is eaten across Bangladesh and the eastern Indian states of West Bengal, Odisha, where a related dish called pakhala is documented as far back as the tenth century, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Assam, and Tripura.
Facts
Partially Attested
Origin RegionEarliest documentation is from the 17th century in Bengal and the related Odisha dish pakhala is documented to the 10th century; no exact origin period is given Origin Period, From (Year) Connections
Expresses Tradition
Source Panta bhat, Wikipedia
Uses Ingredient
Source Panta Bhat (Wikidata)
In the Other Atlases
- Also in Geography Atlas: Bengal, originated there.
- Also in Geography Atlas: India, originated there.
Sources
1. Panta Bhat (Wikidata)
P31 (instance of): Main course
Main course
- Uses Ingredient: Water, Infobox main_ingredient field: Rice, water
View the Source2. Panta bhat (Wikipedia)
Wikipedia 'Panta bhat' 2026-09-27: the dish 'was included in the recipe of Lord Jagannath Temple of Puri circa 10th century.'View the Source 3. Panta bhat, Wikipedia
History
It has been described in documents from 17th century, while the dish Pakhala from Odisha documents back to 10th century CE, and is known as the origin of this dish.
Expresses Tradition: Fermentation, lead paragraph
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.
View the SourceWikidata: Panta Bhat
Wikidata Q3350783, class allow-list match (w-wdresolver-0926)View the Source Reader Challenges (0)
No disputes yet. Spotted an error or a better source? Open the first one.
Sign in to dispute this or suggest a correction.