Ven Pongal
Super satisfying and comforting ven pongal recipe! It’s made with rice and moong dal, cooked till porridge consistency. Then flavored with cumin, black pepper, curry leaves, and ginger.
Ingredients
- 1 cup raw rice
- 1/2 cup moong dal mung lentils — the tiny, yellow ones
- 4 cups water
- 1 tbsp ginger grated
- 2 tsp black peppercorns you can use more or less based on your preference
- 2 green chillies
- 1 tbsp ghee
- 1 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
- 1/4 cup raw cashews
- few curry leaves
- Salt to taste
Instructions
- Wash and soak the raw rice and moong dal for 15 mins.
- In a pressure cooker,add the soaked rice, dal, ginger, green chillies, peppercorns and salt with 4 cups of water.Cook for 5 whistles and allow to naturally release the pressure.
- Once the rice and lentils are cooked, they should have a slightly runny, creamy consistency. Stir with a ladle, mashing the rice and lentils a bit, and add a little more water if needed to get to this consistency. If you add more water, do it over medium heat so the rice warms through.
- Make the tempering by heating the ghee in a skillet. Add the cumin seeds, curry leaves and stir for a minute.
- Add the nuts and stir until lightly golden.
- Add the tempering to the cooked rice and lentils. Mix well.
- Serve hot with coconut chutney and sambhar.
Notes
- You can lightly crush the peppercorns if you want your Pongal to absorb the flavor well.
- The ratio of water is according to your preference. Usually, Pongal has a porridge-like consistency, but if you like a dry version, just reduce the quantity of water.
- For the best tasting Ven Pongal, don’t skimp on ghee. If you are vegan, coconut oil is a good option.
- Ven Pongal tastes best when had immediately because the porridge thickens quickly (in less than 30 minutes). To bring it back to its original consistency, add water and mix well. The amount of water depends on the quantity of Pongal. For instance, use a couple of tablespoons of water for a small bowl of Pongal.