Why are 56 types of Mahaprasad served in Jagannath Puri everyday

Lord Jagannath is often described as the ‘Lord of the Universe’. A form of Lord Krishna, Lord Jagannath has big eyes, small arms, a wide smile on his face, and his eyes could just melt devotees hearts. The idol of Lord Jagannath is made of wood, and he is worshipped along with his elder brother Balabhadra and younger sister Subhadra.
And for people of Puri, Lord Jagannath is not just a God they fear, but a brother, a father, a son, and a member of the family they worship and love.

In Puri, the food offered to Lord Jagannath is called Mahaprasad. The food is cooked in a rather unique way, the kitchen is one of the largest temple kitchens in the world, and the food is completely Sattvic.
The food is first offered to Lord Jagannath and then it becomes spiritually sanctified and blessed. Thousands of devotees are offered and fed the Mahaprasad every single day.
It is said that to cook the food, earthen pots are kept one on top of the other, and slowly cooked with fire.

Many devotees wonder why Lord Jagannath is given 56 bhog everyday, and does he not get tired of eating so much?
Well, to answer this, Spiritual orator ‘Srishtika Sriram’ uploaded a beautiful video on her Instagram page. In the video, she talks about how Lord Krishna was known for his enormous appetite and his mother, Yashoda, used to feed him eight times a day, covering every meal and snack possible.
For Lord Krishna, every meal was lovingly prepared and varied. From butter and curd to sweet rice, fruits, and other items, the meals were a preparation of joy.

Then one day, Lord Krishna had to lift the Govardhan mountain.
It is said that when the people of Gokul were preparing for their annual offerings to the rain god Indra, Krishna advised them instead to worship Govardhan Hill, the source of their crops and cattle. Angered by this, Indra sent forth a devastating storm to punish the villagers. To protect them, little Krishna lifted the Govardhan on his little finger and held it up like an umbrella for seven days, shielding people and animals from the raging rain.

In this while, Lord Krishna went without food for seven full days, holding the mountain, and not resting at all. And so the people of Gokul then made it a point to feed him all the meals that he missed. As Lord Krishna used to eat 8 times a day, and he went without food for 7 days, they made a 56 bhog for him on the 8th day, and the practice is followed even today.

There are many different types of dishes served to the devotees and to Lord Krishna in the Mahaprasad. There are rice items with plain rice, vegetable rice, rice with ghee, and there are also types of seasonal vegetables all presented in small plates. There are also sweets like Khaja, rasabali, chhena, and more, and there are snacks and pithas too, which are kept on a banana leaf and then served to Lord Krishna.