Ven Pongal

Preperation time : 5 minutes

Cooking time : 25 minutes

Ingredients

2 cups raw rice

1 cup moong dhal

1 tbsp oil

2 tbsps ghee

1 tsp mustard seeds

1 tsp cumin seeds / jeera

3 green chillies slit

A few curry leaves

Coarsely ground black pepper corns

A handful of cashews broken into small pieces

Salt to taste

Method

1. In a frying pan, add the raw rice and heat. Do not roast to change color. Just heat the rice.
   
2. Transfer the rice to a pressure cooker.
3. In the same frying pan, add moong dhal and heat it.
   
4. Transfer the moong dhal to the pressure cooker.
5. Add enough water to cook the rice and moong dhal until mushy.
   
   
   
   
6. Cover the lid and pressure cook. Set the pressure cooker aside to cool.
   
7. In a mortar pestle coarsely grind the black pepper corns and set aside.
   
8. Heat the oil and ghee in a frying pan.
9. Add mustard seeds and jeera and allow to crackle.
10. Now add the black pepper corns, chillies, asefotida and cashew nuts and allow to roast for 2 minutes. Be cautious not to burn any of the ingredients.
    
11. Transfer the cooked moong dhal and rice to this pan and mix immediately so that the tempering doesn't burn.
12. Now add salt and turmeric.
    
13. Add a little water so that the salt and turmeric mix evenly with the pongal.
    
14. Stir the pongal well and turn off the gas. Transfer to a plate.
    

Tasty ven pongal is ready to serve.

Notes

1. Ven Pongal can be served with coconut chutney or tamarind gojju.
2. You can make ven pongal as a one-pot-cooking too.
3. Best eaten when hot.

Tips to speed up cooking the ven pongal

1. While the rice and moong dhal is pressure cooking, prepare the tempering and set aside.
2. Decide the accompaniment and prepare it while the rice and moong dhal are getting cooked.
3. Preparing the pongal and an accompaniment (chutney or gojju) will take 25-30 minutes.
   

Here is the recipe to the Tamarind Pachi Gojju.