Sakkarai Pongal – Sweet Pongal

Sakkarai Pongal – Sweet Pongal –

Sakkarai Pongal! in Tamizh Sakkarai means Sugar and Pongal means boil over. In short, cook rice and lentils in sugar and allow them to rise and boil over the pot. Create a mess and spend the next few hours cleaning your kitchen, while wondering, why did I perceive the term literally.

Sakkarai pongal is a popular festive dish from Tamizh Nadu, usually made during the Tamizh harvest festival. The occasion also happens to be known as ‘Pongal‘. Anyway, we have eaten many versions of sakkarai pongal, ranging from “yuck, get it out of our sight” to “can we have another serving please”. Our sakkarai pongal recipe has evolved out of experience. Experience not only made our recipe wiser, but smarter too. As always, we will take wholesome ingredients and retain them wholesome until the end.

Cook this sweet pongal only with ghee. Don’t have ghee? No problem. Substitute with butter. But remember, even the mighty butter will not cut it like ghee. Should anybody lecture you about ghee being bad for you. Give them a stare of dumbness and land a virtual punch. For motivation, watch Gypsy Danger taking on a Kaiju in Pacific Rim. Ghee is healthy fat when enjoyed responsibly. Say it!

Our recipe will yield 4 servings of sakkarai pongal, with 546 kilocalories in each. This is a high calorie dish, hence we recommend you to mind your portion. To follow our sakkarai pongal recipe, you will need the ingredients listed below.

Ingredients, Measurements & Nutritional Values

To Pressure Cook
Brown rice	100 grams
Mung dal (Mung bean)	100 grams
Fresh sugarcane juice	650 ml
Everything Else  For Pongal
Ghee	10 grams
Cardamom	10 pods
Grated copra	40 grams
Palm jaggery	15 grams
Fresh sugarcane juice	100 ml
Salt	A pinch
For Garnish
Ghee	10 grams
Cashew nuts	50 grams
Raisins	40 grams

Click on the nutritional chart below to zoom

Video Walk Through – Sakkarai Pongal – Sweet Pongal –

Instructions – Sakkarai Pongal – Sweet Pongal –

Prep Rice & Lentil

1. Set a pan on medium heat.
2. Add equal quantities of brown rice and mung dal. Toast them for a minute or two. Pay close attention so that you don’t burn them.
3. Once toasted, wash and sort the brown rice and mung dal thoroughly.
4. Transfer the washed brown rice and mung dal to a pressure cooker.
5. Add 650 ml of freshly pressed sugarcane juice. Liquid should usually be three times the quantity of solids.
6. Pressure cook for 6 whistles on medium heat and allow the pressure to release naturally.

Prep Garnish

1. Set a pan on medium heat.
2. Add ghee and allow it to melt.
3. Add cashew nuts and raisins. Toast them for a minute or two and set aside.

Make Sakkarai Pongal

1. Set a pot on medium heat.
2. Add ghee and allow it to melt.
3. Add green cardamom pods, grated copra, crushed palm jaggery and a pinch of salt. Saute for a minute or two. If you cannot find copra, use unsweetened desiccated coconut or freshly grated coconut. If you can’t find palm jaggery, use coconut jaggery or cane jaggery. You may also substitute with brown sugar, however palm jaggery is the healthier option.
4. Add 100 ml of freshly pressed sugarcane juice and bring it to a simmer.
5. Add the pressure cooked brown rice and mung dal. Mix well and bring it to a simmer.
6. Once the mixture reaches a simmer, cover the pot with a lid, reduce the heat to low and cook for 15 to 20 minutes.
7. 20 minutes later, uncover the pot and mix well. Should some liquid be left in the pot, set the heat to  medium and reduce for another 5 to 10 minutes.
8. Once all the moisture is reduced to a bare minimum, add the toasted cashews and raisins. Mix gently and turn off the heat at once.
9. Serve hot or at room temperature.

Sakkarai Pongal – Sweet Pongal, another healthy recipe, the hissing cooker way.