27 Feb 2014
Sweet Pongal
This is a classic sweet dish made for many south Indian festivals and poojas. It is of course traditionally made during the festival of Pongal.
Ingredients:
- Raw Rice – 1 cup
- Moong Dal – 1/2 cup
- Jaggery (crushed) – 1.5 cups
- Ghee – 1/4 cup
- Water – 4 cups (to cook the rice and dal)
- Tip :- You can substitute 4 cups of water with 2 cups water + 2 cups milk or 2 cups
- water + 2 cups coconut milk.
- Water – 1 cup (to melt the jaggery)
- Cardamon Powder – 1/2 tsp
- Cashews, Almonds, Raisins or Coconut Pieces – about 1/4 cup (Use as per your preference or whatever you have on hand)
- Saffron Strands – a pinch (optional)
Method
- Take a pressure cooker and dry roast the moong dal for about 5 minutes.
- Add the rice to this. Now add the 4 cups of water (with milk if adding) and 1 tsp ghee.
- Pressure cook for 3-4 whistles till the rice and dal is cooked soft. You can also cook the mixture in a rice cooker or an open pot.
- In the meantime, heat 1 tblsp of ghee and fry the nuts and raisins. Keep this aside.
- Next, melt the crushed jaggery with 1 cup of water in a heavy bottmoned pot/pan.
- Once the jaggery has melted, you can strain it to remove any dirt. This step can be skipped if the jaggery is pure.
- Return the strained jaggery back to the pot. Bring it to a boil, reduce the heat and let it simmer for about 5 minutes.
- Mash the cooked rice-dal mixture partially and add it to the simmering jaggery syrup.
- Add the remaining ghee, cardamon powder, saffron strands and the roasted nuts. Mix together and let it simmer for few minutes till everything comes together into a gooey pongal consistency.
- Switch off. The pongal continues to thicken as it cools. Serve as a snack, dessert or a meal.
