Pongal - Spicy and Sweet versions

                       Spicy/ Kara Pongal: Easy and tasty breakfast or snack

Ingredients:

White Rice – 1 cup
Split green gram/Moong dal – 1 cup
Red onion – 1 medium size, finely chopped
Green chillies – 5 long and medium spice, vertically slit
Dry red chillies – 4, broken into two
Cashewnuts – 6, split
Cumin seeds – 1.5 tsp
Pepper corns – 1.25 tsp
Mustard seeds – 1 tsp
Turmeric powder – 1 tsp
Pepper powder – 1/4 tbsp
Ginger garlic paste – 1 tsp
Grated coconut – 1 tbsp
Clarified butter/ Ghee – 1 tbsp for flavor enhancing
Curry leaves – 4 sprigs
Coriander leaves – 1 small bunch, finely chopped for garnish
Salt as per taste
Oil for tempering

Instructions:

       In a thick bottomed pan add split green gram and saute on medium flame until the gram starts to slightly change the color to brown. At this stage, nice aroma fills up your kitchen.

       Add water into the moong dal along with rice and rinse well. Soak the dal and rice for 10 minutes or you may also cook it immediately. Generally, we prefer Pongal to be soft and so we add water little more than double the quantity of measurements used. In this case, for 2 cups of dal and rice, i am using 7 cups of water. You may also cook the green gram and rice with 4.5 cups of water and then, add the additional water while making Pongal. It’s up to your preference. Pressure cook this mixture of rice and dal for 3 whistles.

      In a thick bottomed kadai, add a table spoon of oil, a tablespoon of ghee and heat it. Once the oil is heated and the ghee has melted, add mustard seeds and let them splutter. Now, add pepper corns, broken cashewnuts and saute. When the cashewnuts slightly change the color to brown add cumin seeds and let them sizzle. Add dry red chillies, slit green chillies, curry leaves and saute. Add chopped red onions, turmeric powder and saute until onions turn translucent. Add some coriander leaves, grated coconut and saute for a minute. Now, add 1/2 the quantity of cooked rice + dal, water and mix well. Add pepper powder, salt, ginger garlic paste and mix well. If required, you may add more water as per the consistency you prefer and stir well. Let it cook for 2 to 3 minutes under medium flame. Stir occasionally. Once done, garnish with coriander leaves and mix well. Serve hot. Delicious spicy Pongal is ready!

       I have added mild spice so that my kids can eat. You can make it more spicier based on your preference by adding more green chillies and black pepper. You may also use freshly ground black pepper for garnish. Enjoy this delicious breakfast or snack with family and friends :)

Sweet /Sugar Pongal

Ingredients:

Sugar – 1/2 cup

Cashewnuts – 12, split

Golden raisins - 12

Green cardamom – 3, crushed

Grated coconut – 1/2 tbsp

Clarified butter/ Ghee – 1 tbsp

Milk – 1 small glass, boiled and pre-cooled to room temperature

Instructions:

       In a thick bottomed kadai, add a table spoon of ghee and heat it. Once the ghee has melted, add broken cashewnuts and saute. When the cashewnuts are slightly changing the color to brown add raisins and saute. The raisins slowly start to puff up. Now, add the remaining 1/2 quantity of cooked rice + dal, milk and mix well. Add sugar, grated coconut and mix well. Once the sugar dissolves, add crushed cardamom powder and mix. Cook this for 2 to 3 minutes under low flame. Slowly, the mixture will start to thicken. Switch OFF the flame and serve hot! Super quick, easy and tasty dessert is ready within minutes.

      You can make different combinations of sweet pongal like 100% sugar pongal, 50% sugar + 50% jaggery pongal or 100% jaggery pongal. My choice is 50% sugar and 50% jaggery. Try out these variations and let me know your comments.

      Makara Sankranti is a festival where we South Indians especially Kannadigas celebrate making Pongal on the previous day of Sankranti and a non-veg dish on the day of Sankranti. Sweet and Spicy Pongals are generally served in most temples as prasadam.

      It is also an easily digestible food with a mix of proteins, carbohydrates and fats. Typically, this dish is served for breakfast and during snack time. Spicy and Sweet Pongal are always served together. If only Spicy Pongal is served, it is served along with peanut chutney. This dish tastes the BEST when it is hot. As it cools down, the mixture of dal and rice starts to thicken. Keeping this in mind, always adjust the consistency by adding enough water while cooking.

     Enjoy this delicious breakfast or snack with family and friends :). Happy Pongal!