Gorakhpur: Purvanchal’s traditional cuisine is set to gain a wider audience as signature dishes from the Gorakhpur division will be showcased at the Uttar Pradesh International Trade Show (UPITS) 2026, scheduled from Sep 25 to 29 at the India Expo Centre and Mart in Greater Noida.Under state govt’s One District One Cuisine (ODOC) initiative, selected food products from Gorakhpur, Deoria, Kushinagar and Maharajganj will be featured through dedicated stalls at the event. Officials said the move aims to promote local food culture, create market opportunities for traditional food entrepreneurs and boost food tourism in UP.According to Gorakhpur joint commissioner of industries Gaurav Mishra, a special cluster for dishes from the Gorakhpur division is being created in the trade show’s food court. Visitors and business delegates from India and abroad will get an opportunity to sample regional delicacies such as litti-chokha, garlic-flavoured chhole-samosa, Ramkatori sweet, red peda, chhena khurma, banana chips and malpua.Among the featured items, litti-chokha—prepared with sattu stuffing and traditionally cooked over cow-dung cakes—remains one of eastern UP’s most recognisable dishes. Garlic chhola-samosa from Chauri Chaura has also gained popularity for its distinctive flavour.Selected to set up stalls are six entrepreneurs from the four districts, including Gangadhar Dubey and Chandrakesh Prajapati from Gorakhpur, Sudis Kumar from Maharajganj, Ved Prakash Rai from Deoria and Sunny Maddheshiya and Anurag Tiwari from Kushinagar.Participants said the platform would help take Purvanchal’s culinary heritage to a global audience while creating new business opportunities for local food artisans.
