Category: Fasting Recipes, Festive Recipes, Traditional
Cuisine: Tamilnadu
Cooking Method: Frying, Pressure Cooking, Roasting, Sauteing
Yields: 4 Servings Difficulty: Medium Prep Time: 10 Mins Cook Time: 30 Mins Total Time: 40 Mins
Sweet Pongal or Sakkara Pongal (சக்கரை பொங்கல்)is a famous sweet in south India, especially Tamil Nadu. This is cooked with newly harvested rice from the field at the juncture of the Pongal/harvest festival, which is predominantly celebrated in all parts of the state with great pomp and show.
Marking the commencement of the year to be filled with happiness, this recipe is popular throughout the state and can be prepared very quickly. This is prepared with rice occupying the major part of the dish with a spoon of moong dhal, symbolizing rice to be Lord Shiva and Dhall to be Goddess Parvati, marking the festive occasion with happiness by the addition of jaggery and ghee.
Ingredients
Adjust Servings
- Tempering Ingredients
Instructions
- Wash rice/dhal, add 3 cups of water and pressure cook for 3 - 4 whistles.
- Smash the rice/dhal mixture gently, add jaggery slowly( Refer Notes for Pure jaggery). Stir contents and slow cook until the jaggery dissolves completely and forms a soft mixture.
- Add Ghee at regular intervals to avoid the sweet Pongal stick to the vessel. Add Cardomom powder and Saffron.
- Heat a pan and add ghee to it and roast the to temper items. Garnish with roasted Cashews and raisins and serve hot.
Notes
- The Jaggery I used was pure and hence I added them directly to the cooked rice. If you suspect your Jaggery has impurities, let the jaggery soak in half a cup of water for about half an hour and heat it for 5 mins. Use a strainer to filter the jaggery syrup and then add to the cooked rice.