How to Make Obbattu/Holige: A Karnataka Festival Essential

Obbattu in Karnataka, puran poli in Maharashtra, puran puri in Gujarat, bobbatlu in Andhra Pradesh, and boli in Tamil Nadu – one dish has many names, but it continues to grace festive spreads across India. In the Deccan region, it is not just a dessert, but symbolises a cultural legacy that is hundreds of years old. It is one of the few dishes that speaks a lot about history and helps historians study the culinary past when Kings and Emperors ruled the territories of the Indian Subcontinent.

The preparation of sweet stuffed flatbread can be traced to the 12th century, especially in South India. Sanskrit encyclopedia Manasōllāsa, written by King Someshvara III of the Western Chalukya dynasty, includes recipes of several traditional dishes, including Obbattu. The 14th-century Telugu encyclopedia Manucharitra, by Allasani Peddanna, has a guide to prepare bakshyam, a close cousin of the Kannada dish. The historic record makes one thing clear – this recipe in question is older than most of the standing monuments in India. It points towards the significance of the dish that has helped it survive wars and evolution over centuries.

Obbattu is usually associated with celebrations of festivals, like Ugadi (Karnataka and Andhra New Year), Diwali, and Gudi Padwa (in Maharashtra). The sweet is not prepared alone, but it’s a communal fare that brings families and friends closer together. However, in modern times, people recreate it at home to continue with traditions and experience nostalgia associated with it. The golden sweet flatbread is drizzled with ghee and makes a grand appearance at weddings and religious ceremonies conducted throughout the year.

The festive dish of Karnataka has many names, but its core recipe remains the same. In Karnataka, people use lentils and coconut for stuffing. The Maharashtrian variant has katachi amti, a spicy lentil curry. The sweetness comes from jaggery, and an irresistible aroma is infused using cardamom, cinnamon, and nutmeg. The preparation seems easy, especially when you are watching your elders swiftly working their way through the recipe. But creating Obbattu requires patience to achieve the nutty and sweet filling, pliable texture, and the fragrance of spices that fills the entire house, leaving the remaining family members reminiscing about the good old days. Today, people experiment with the filling. They add dates, mangoes, vegetables, and other ingredients. To impress kids, parents even stuff the flatbread with chocolates. Ahead is its traditional recipe that you must replicate in the upcoming festive season.