Pongal is a South Indian dish that is made with rice and moong dal. Dad and Arun love ven pongal much that it is their usual whenever we have breakfast out. It can be either sweet or savoury. And both are traditionally made on the day of Pongal – harvest festival celebrated in Tamil Nadu. Ven Pongal is the savoury version where the rice and moong dal are cooked to a smooth consistency almost like porridge and is tempered in ghee with cumin and peppercorn. It is best when served with sambhar, coconut chutney and vadas made out of urad dal. That is one rich breakfast. And almost everyone likes ven pongal. I have not come across anyone who does not like ven pongal. This is another recipe I learnt from Mompa.
Ingredients:
- 1 cup Rice
- 1 cup Split and skinned green gram/Moong dal
- 5 cups Water(*refer notes) + more for washing and soaking
- 1 teaspoon Salt or as needed
- 1/4 teaspoon Asafoetida
- 1/4 cup Clarified butter/Ghee
- 1/4 cup Cashew nuts
- 2 teaspoons Cumin seeds
- 2 teaspoons Black peppercorns
- 3 sprigs Curry leaves
Preparation:
Wash and soak rice and moong dal together for 30 minutes. Take in in a pressure cooker and add salt and asafoetida with 5 cups of water. Cover and cook on medium-high heat for 6 whistles. Meanwhile, break the cashew nuts and coarsely powder cumin and peppercorns using a mortar and pestle or pulse it in a blender.
Let the steam settle. The cooked pongal will be soft and smooth.
In a pan heat ghee over and fry cashew nuts to a golden colour. Add ground cumin and pepper. Add curry leaves. Make sure to not burn any of them.
Add the fried nuts and spices to the pongal. Mix them through.
Serve hot with sambhar and coconut chutney.
Notes:
- Use at least 4 cups of water so that the pongal won’t be dry.
- Add more ghee if you prefer.
