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Chitoi Pitha (Rice Flour Pan Cake)

Name: Chitoi Pitha (Rice Flour Pan Cake)
Total time: 260 min
Yield: 6
Ingredients: 300 g Rice flour; to taste Salt; 50 g Rice, cooked rice, mashed, to help fermentation; 100 g Jaggery, date palm jaggery syrup, for serving

260 min Medium 6 servings

Serves 6 · Total 260 min · Prep 240 min · Cook 20 min

Updated on 20 October 2026

Photo: Manaswini sahu / CC BY-SA 4.0

A fermented rice flour batter poured into a small lidded clay or non-stick pan and cooked covered until it sets into a thick, soft disc with a slightly tangy taste. Usually dunked in date-palm jaggery syrup or eaten alongside a meat curry, especially duck curry, in winter.

Quick answer: 260 min in total · serves 6 · main ingredients: Rice flour, Salt · amounts in metric and US

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Ingredients

Metric US

300 g 2.4 cup Rice flour
to taste to taste Salt
50 g 0.25 cup Rice, cooked rice, mashed, to help fermentation (Optional)
100 g 0.5 cup Jaggery, date palm jaggery syrup, for serving (Optional)

Steps

Timers run only while this tab is open. The Degchi app keeps them running on a locked phone.

Blend the rice flour, mashed cooked rice, salt and water into a smooth, pourable batter slightly thinner than pancake batter.
Cover and leave the batter to ferment lightly at room temperature for at least 4 hours or overnight.
⏱ Fermenting the batter · 240 min
Heat a small lidded non-stick pan over medium heat.
Pour in a ladleful of batter to form a thick disc.
Cover immediately and cook on medium-low heat until the pitha sets fully and the edges come away cleanly from the pan.
⏱ Cooking the pitha · 10 min
Lift out with a flat spatula and serve warm, dipped in date-palm jaggery syrup or alongside a meat curry.

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Frequently asked questions

How long does Chitoi Pitha (Rice Flour Pan Cake) take to make?

Chitoi Pitha (Rice Flour Pan Cake) takes about 260 minutes in total. That is about 240 minutes of prep and 20 minutes of cooking.

How many people does this Chitoi Pitha (Rice Flour Pan Cake) recipe serve?

This version serves 6. The Degchi app has a servings scaler if you need more or fewer portions.

What ingredients do I need for Chitoi Pitha (Rice Flour Pan Cake)?

You need Rice flour, Salt. Optional: Rice, Jaggery.

Is Chitoi Pitha (Rice Flour Pan Cake) difficult?

Degchi rates it Medium, with 6 steps in the method; steps that need timing have a built-in timer in cook mode.

Is Chitoi Pitha (Rice Flour Pan Cake) halal, vegetarian or eggless?

It is marked halal in our recipe data. It is vegetarian. It has no egg. It has no beef. Check the labels on any packaged ingredients for your own needs.

What will I probably need to buy for Chitoi Pitha (Rice Flour Pan Cake)?

Everyday staples that Degchi counts as pantry basics: salt. Lentils, grains and other dry goods: rice flour.

Any tips for making Chitoi Pitha (Rice Flour Pan Cake)?

A splash of the previous day's batter works as a natural starter if you want a faster, more reliable ferment. Mould or no mould: the classic way is a clay chitoi pan with small round hollows, greased and heated, with a spoon of batter in each hollow and a lid on top. If you have no mould, a lidded non-stick pan makes the same pitha as a flat disc; use less batter per pitha so it cooks through.