Anarsa or Hilsa is an

Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...

rice-based biscuit. It is commonly associated with the

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

festival of Diwali in Maharashtra and

Bihar Bihar (; ) is a state in eastern India. It is the 2nd largest state by population in 2019, 12th largest by area of , and 14th largest by GDP in 2021. Bihar borders Uttar Pradesh to its west, Nepal to the north, the northern part of West ...

, along with other special occasions. Its ingredients include jaggery (unrefined cane sugar),

rice Rice is the seed of the grass species '' Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice) or less commonly ''Oryza glaberrima'' (African rice). The name wild rice is usually used for species of the genera '' Zizania'' and '' Porteresia'', both wild and domesticat ...

, poppy seed and ghee (clarified butter).

Preparation

Anarsas are made from soaked powdered rice, jaggery or sugar. To prepare anarsa, rice is soaked and the water is changed regularly for a few days. Then, the rice is drained, ground, and mixed with jaggery to create a dough. The dough is covered and left to mature for 4-5 days. The dough is then rolled in white poppy seeds, pressed into rounds, and fried until golden. The disks are fried poppy-coated side first. In a variation from the standard recipe, a banana is added to the

-flour base. The Bihari variation of anarsa tends to be rounder and ball-shaped as opposed to the flatter one in Maharashtra.

References

Indian desserts Bihari cuisine Maharashtrian cuisine {{india-cuisine-stub