It’s a festival, it’s a breakfast dish, it’s an infinitely better version of
Come at me, North Indians.
It might seem odd to start your day off with a seemingly heavy rice-based dish, but that’s how it’s best enjoyed in South Indian households across the world. Rice for breakfast is the standard in South India, Idlis, Dosas
Accompaniments
Chutney and sambhar. Nothing more and nothing less. The ‘correct’ way to enjoy Pongal, according to several members of my family is to mix all three together till the separate components are
The chutney we make is a standard chutney, but the sambhar that goes along with the pongal is a ‘tiffin sambhar’ – sambhar lite, a quick and easy version that uses
The Ghee
The key to a great Pongal is the quality (and let’s be honest, quantity) of ghee you add to it. Pick a good brand of ghee because the flavour really comes through. As several of the pictures will tell you, this isn’t exactly low-calorie, you could definitely cut down on the ghee but I’d suggest making Pongal on an indulgent day, you won’t regret it!
To Pressure Cook or Not to Pressure Cook?
Always pressure cook if possible. Pongal is incredibly fast and easy with a pressure cooker. Add your rice and dal to a pressure cooker and it’s ready by the time you gather and prepare the rest of the ingredients. However, in case you don’t have a pressure cooker, you can definitely make this in a pot, it’ll just take a little longer.
So there is it! A quick and easy pongal recipe that you’ll hopefully make and love!
Pongal
Equipment
- Pressure Cooker
Ingredients
- ½ cup Raw Rice Basmati, White, Indravani, Biriyani Rice etc
- ¼ cup Moong Dal
- 2¼ cup Water*
- 1-1½ tsp Salt Adjust as required
- 1 tsp Chopped Ginger 1 inch piece chopped
- 3 Tbsp Ghee
- 7-10 no Cashews
- 1½ Tbsp Whole Black Peppercorns
- 1 tsp Cumin Seeds
- 2 sprigs Curry Leaves
- ½ tsp Black Pepper Powder
Instructions
- Wash your rice and dal thoroughly and add to a 2 litre pressure cooker.
- Since the rice and dal make up 3/4th of a cup, take 3 times that amount of water (2 & 1/4 cup) and add to the pressure.
- Finely chop your ginger and add to the pressure cooker along with the salt and asafoetida.
- Close the cooker, add the weight and set on high heat until the first whistle, about 5 minutes.
- Turn the heat down to low after the first whistle and cook for 4-5 minutes.
- Take the cooker off the heat and set aside for the pressure to release naturally.
- In the mean time heat the ghee in a small kadhai.
- Halve the cashews and add to the hot ghee.
- Crush the whole black peppercorns in a mortar. It doesn’t need to be perfect, I like to leave a few whole.
- Add the crushed peppercorns to the ghee and sauté.
- Add the cumin and sauté for 30 seconds.
- Once the cashews are brown, turn the heat off and add the curry leaves and black pepper powder.
- Add your tadka directly to the cooked rice and dal in the pressure cooker and mix very well.
- Fill up a small bowl with the pongal and up-turn onto a plate for that signature pongal look!
- Enjoy!
