Pongal

  • Servings: 2
  • Difficulty: Simple
  • Print

Pongal is a breakfast favorite in Chennai and Tamil Nadu. Every 'hotel' serves pongal in the morning with fresh coconut chutney or a spicy vegetable sauce of some kind. The key to good pongal is getting the rice cooked to a mushy texture and plenty of ghee. This is not a dish for the faint of heart.

Pongal

Making pongal is a snap if you have a pressure cooker. Equal parts of jasmine rice, brown rice and moong dal cooked with three or four parts water. Add a 1/4 tsp of hing to the water. While this cooks heat 1/2 cup of ghee in a big pot. Add 1 tsp whole peppercorns, 1 tsp cumin seeds, 2 tb minced ginger, 1 tb minced curry leaves 2 chopped chilies are optional. Add 1/4 cup of raw cashew pieces or pine nuts or both and sauté till golden. Add the cooked rice and quickly stir in another 2 cups of hot water and salt to taste. Serve garnished with chopped curry leaves and a tsp of ghee. And lime pickles or vegetable chutney on the side.

Ingredients

  • Rice – 1 cup
  • Moong dal – 1/2 cup
  • Water – 3 cups
  • Asafoetida (hing) – 1/4 tsp
  • Ghee – 1/2 cup
  • Pepper corns – 1 tsp
  • Cumin seeds – 1 tsp
  • Cashew halves – 1/4 cup
  • Curry leaves – 6-8
  • Fresh ginger minced – 1 tbs

Directions

  1. Equal parts of jasmine, brown rice and moong dal cooked with three parts water.
  2. Add a 1/4 tsp of hing to the water.
  3. While this cooks heat 1/2 cup of ghee in a big pot. (canola may be substituted but add a stick of butter later for flavor.)
  4. Add 1 tsp whole peppercorns, 1 tsp cumin seeds, 2 tb minced ginger, 1 tb minced curry leaves 2 chopped chilies are optional.
  5. Add 1/4 cup of raw cashew pieces or pine nuts or both and sauté till golden.
  6. Add the cooked rice and stir in another 2 cups of hot water and salt to taste.
  7. Serve garnished with chopped curry leaves and a tsp of ghee. And lime pickles or vegetable chutney on the side.

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