Ven Pongal
Ven Pongal, also called as Khara Pongal is a popular South Indian breakfast dish made with rice and moong dal. Mildly spiced with pepper and cumin, this is comfort food at its best.
Servings: 4
Calories: 389kcal
Equipment
- 1 six quart Instant Pot
- 1 Frying Pan
- 1 set measuring cups and spoons
Ingredients
- 1 cup Raw rice preferably Sona Masoori or Ponni
- 1/2 cup yellow moong dal
- 1 tsp finely chopped ginger
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- 1/4 tsp asafetida
- 2 tsp salt or to taste
- 4.5 cups water
To Temper
- 2 tbsp ghee
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- 3 tbsp cashew halves
- 1 tsp grated ginger
- 12 curry leaves
- 2.25 tsp coarsely crushed black pepper
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- 1/8 tsp asafetida
Instructions
Cook Rice and Moong Dal with spices
- Place the inner pot into your Instant Pot. Add 1.5 cups water to the inner pot of your Instant Pot. Now, insert a trivet and place the rice pot on the trivet.
- Ensure that the sealing ring is fitted properly into the lid of the Instant Pot. Plug in the Instant Pot. Close the Instant Pot and turn the Valve to SEALING.
Instant Pot Pot In Pot Cooking for Ven Pongal
Instant Pot settings and timings
- Press PRESSURE COOK and set it on HIGH PRESSURE for 12 minutes. Allow the cooking cycle to complete. Once the cooking cycle is complete, wait for the pressure to release naturally.
Temper Ven Pongal
- While we wait for the pressure to release, we can get the other ingredients ready. Chop the cashews roughly or halve them. This helps in even and quick roasting.
- Crush the pepper, finely chop ginger and assemble other ingredients.
- Also, bring 2 cups of water to a boil. Use your tea kettle to do this. This cuts down time to a great deal.
- When the pressure has released, heat a pan with ghee and oil.
- Once the oil and ghee has heated up, add the cashews and roast them in this until they turn golden. Drain and set aside.
- To the same pan, add the crushed pepper, chopped ginger, cumin seeds, asafetida, curry leaves and cook on low heat for 30 to 40 secs. Tip in the cashews to this and mix well. Remove the pan from heat.
- Open the Instant Pot and remove the Pongal pot out. Add the tempered ingredients to the Pongal.
- If you find the Pongal is not mushy or gooey, add 1 cup boiling water. Go in with a potato masher and mash everything well. This will adjust the consistency and texture.
- At this stage, you can check for seasonings and add salt if required. When done, serve hot.
Notes
Raw rice - medium grained Ponni or Sona Masoori is your best bet here.
To bring out the nuttiness in the dal, you can roast it for a few mins on low heat before washing it and adding it along with the rice.
I recommend adding the roasted cashews just before serving. This helps keep their crunch intact.
Many kids do not like finding whole black peppercorns. Adding coarsely crushed pepper is a practical way to get the kids to eat the pepper.
Curry leaves play a vital role in any savory Pongal. Highly recommended but in case you cannot source them, feel free to use dried curry leaves or skip.
Asafetida is not gluten-free. For this reason, I will not call this dish gluten free. If you are using compound asafetida (Kootu Perungayam in Tamil), then this is gluten free.
The rice to water ratio is key to nailing the consistency here. But in case your Pongal does not cook to a mush, you can adjust the consistency by adding boiling hot water once its done and bring it to a gentle simmer.
My top tip to avoid clumpy Pongal is to use a combination of oil and ghee while cooking. This helps keep the Pongal mushy and without clumping up even after it becomes warm.
To bring out the nuttiness in the dal, you can roast it for a few mins on low heat before washing it and adding it along with the rice.
I recommend adding the roasted cashews just before serving. This helps keep their crunch intact.
Many kids do not like finding whole black peppercorns. Adding coarsely crushed pepper is a practical way to get the kids to eat the pepper.
Curry leaves play a vital role in any savory Pongal. Highly recommended but in case you cannot source them, feel free to use dried curry leaves or skip.
Asafetida is not gluten-free. For this reason, I will not call this dish gluten free. If you are using compound asafetida (Kootu Perungayam in Tamil), then this is gluten free.
The rice to water ratio is key to nailing the consistency here. But in case your Pongal does not cook to a mush, you can adjust the consistency by adding boiling hot water once its done and bring it to a gentle simmer.
My top tip to avoid clumpy Pongal is to use a combination of oil and ghee while cooking. This helps keep the Pongal mushy and without clumping up even after it becomes warm.
For Instant Pot & Air Fryer Recipes
Instant Pot timings may vary based on your geographic location. Air fryer settings and timings may vary based on the capacity and the model of the Air fryer.
Disclaimer
Nutrition values are provided here as a courtesy and are only a rough guide. Please consult a health care provider if you have any concerns.
Nutrition
Calories: 389kcal | Carbohydrates: 60g | Protein: 12g | Fat: 12g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 19mg | Sodium: 1188mg | Potassium: 144mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 190IU | Vitamin C: 60mg | Calcium: 57mg | Iron: 4mg
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