Ven Pongal, also known as Khara Pongal or Ghee Pongal, is one of the most popular South Indian breakfast recipes made with rice, moong dal, black pepper, cumin seeds, ginger, curry leaves, cashews and generous amounts of ghee. I usually follow my MIL’s method and make ven pongal in pressure cooker as its easy and tastes the best. Sometimes we make this using leftover cooked rice too. This savory Pongal is commonly served in Tamil Nadu homes, temples, restaurants and during the Pongal festival.
To me, this pressure cooker ven pongal recipe is a very easy one pot, one shot meal for breakfast and dinner. So I usually make this pongal in busy mornings & mostly for my guests adding more ghee ;). The taste and softness of pongal depends not only in the quantity of ghee but also on the quality of rice and quantity of water, rice and moong dal ratio.
In Tamilnadu, we get pongal rice (Raw rice/Pacharisi) in grocery shops. We use it for making sakkarai pongal and ven pongal. Here in Bangalore, I buy the costliest, good quality Sona masoori raw rice also known as kolam rice.
I have used moderate quantity of ghee in this recipe. If you are planning to try for your guests, add more ghee before serving otherwise just follow this recipe for the first time and adjust the amount of ghee if you wish.
Check out my mom’s ven pongal recipe too. Do try any method based on your liking. Remember pongal should be served hot to enjoy its best taste. As you all know the best side dish for pongal are coconut chutney, Tiffin Sambar and brinjal gosthu! Ok, Lets see how to make ven pongal / ghee pongal with step by step pictures and a video. Soon I will share hotel style ven pongal recipe.
Table of contents
What is Ven Pongal?
Ven Pongal is a traditional South Indian savory dish prepared using rice and yellow moong dal. The word “Ven” means white in Tamil, referring to its pale appearance.
It is commonly served as breakfast alongside coconut chutney, tiffin sambar or brinjal gothsu. Ven Pongal is also offered as prasadam in many temples across Tamil Nadu.
Unlike Sakkarai Pongal, which is sweet and made with jaggery, Ven Pongal is savory and flavored with black pepper, cumin and ghee.
Why This Recipe Works
- Soft and creamy texture
- Easy pressure cooker method
- Beginner friendly recipe
- Perfect balance of pepper and cumin
- Detailed tips to avoid common mistakes
Ingredients Needed
Main Ingredients
- Raw rice – 1 cup
- Yellow moong dal – ¼ cup
- Water – 4 to 5 cups
- Salt – as needed
For Tempering
- 2 to 4 tbsp Ghee
- 1/2 tsp Black peppercorns
- 1 tsp Cumin seeds
- 1 Green chilli
- 1 inch Ginger
- Few Curry leaves
- 10 Cashews
- 1/4 tsp Asafoetida
Ingredient Notes
Which Rice is Best for Pongal?
Raw rice, ponni rice and sona masoori rice work best for soft Pongal. Avoid aged basmati rice as it produces a different texture.
Why Roast Moong Dal?
Lightly roasting moong dal enhances its aroma and improves flavor. But this step is optional.
Why Use Whole Pepper?
Whole black pepper releases flavor slowly and provides the traditional Pongal taste.
How to make Ven pongal in pressure cooker
Take 1 cup raw rice & 1/3 cup moong dal in a bowl and wash it twice. Set aside. Chop 1 inch ginger and take it along with 1 tsp pepper, 1 tsp cumin seeds & few curry leaves.
Heat 1 tbsp of ghee in a pressure cooker base. When the ghee starts to heat, add the pepper corns and saute well till it starts to splutter. Keep the flame medium to avoid burning of ghee. As soon as the pepper splutters, add 1 slit green chilli, cumin seeds, curry leaves, hing, cashews and ginger bits. Mix well quickly without changing the color of cumin seeds. Add 4.5-5 cups of water and required salt.
When the water starts to roll boil, add the washed rice+dal mixture. Close the cooker. When the steam comes from the nozzle, put the whistle and simmer the flame. Cook till one whistle. It takes 12-15 minutes. Switch off the flame and let the steam release.
Open the cooker and mash everything well with a ladle. Lastly add 1 to 2 tbsp of ghee, mix well and serve immediately. Enjoy with coconut chutney or gosthu ! Add more ghee if making for guests :))
Expert Tips for Perfect Ven Pongal
- Use fresh moong dal.
- Do not reduce water quantity.
- Use good quality ghee.
- Serve immediately for best texture.
- Add hot water while reheating.
What to Serve with Ven Pongal
Ven Pongal tastes best with:
- Coconut chutney with roasted chana dal
- Hotel-style white chutney
- Tiffin sambar
- Brinjal gothsu
- Medu vada
Storage and Reheating
Store leftovers in an airtight container for one day and refriegerate it. Do not freeze it.
Pongal thickens as it cools. Add hot water and a teaspoon of ghee while reheating to restore the original consistency.
While serving for parties and get togethers, boil water in a pot and keep the pongal over the pot in a vessel.
Trouble shooting tips
Why Did My Pongal Become Hard?
Insufficient water is the most common reason. In that case, add hot water and mix well.
Why Is My Pongal Dry?
Rice and dal were undercooked or not mashed enough. So add enough water or milk, mash well.
Why Does Pongal Become Thick After Cooling?
Rice naturally absorbs moisture during cooling. So add more hot water and a tsp of ghee while reheating to make it soft.
How Do I Make Pongal Creamy Again?
Add hot water or boiled milk and mix thoroughly while reheating. You can also add more ghee at the end to make it creamy.
FAQ
For 1 cup of raw rice, 1 /4 cup to 1/3 cup of moong dal works the best. If you like more dal based pongal, you can add 1/2 cup of moong dal. Some people also add equal ratio of rice and dal.
Pongal becomes hard when the quantity of water is less. It also hardens when it cools down. So you can add some boiled water and double boil it till serving to maintain its consistency. You can also keep it in a vessel inside the hot water.
Restaurants & hotels use more ghee or dalda, more water and more dal to make it soft.
Yes. Cook on High Pressure for 8 minutes and allow natural release.
Raw rice, ponni rice, or sona masoori work best.
Recipe Card
Ven pongal recipe in pressure cooker
Equipment
Ingredients
Main Ingredients
- 1 cup Raw rice
- ⅓ cup Moong dal ( Use 1/2 to 3/4 cup for hotel taste )
- 4.5 – 5 cups Water (depends on rice)
- 2 – 3 tbsp Ghee ( Use 1/2 cup for hotel taste)
- ½ tsp Pepper corns
- 2 tsp Jeera
- 1 inch Ginger ( finely chopped)
- 1 small Green chilli
- pinch Hing/Asafetida
- Curry leaves few
- 5 Cashew (break into half)
- 1 Green chilli (small) Optional
Instructions
- Wash the raw rice and moong dal. Set aside.
- Finely chop ginger, curry leaves and keep aside. Slit green chilli if using.
- Heat 2 tbsp ghee in a pressure cooker. Keep the flame low.
- Add Pepper corns firstly and saute till it starts to splutter, Make sure ghee should not burn.
- Then add ginger, green chilli, cashews, hing and curry leaves. Saute for few seconds.
- Lastly add the cumin seeds and mix well. Add the measured water immediately.
- Add salt, mix well and close the lid of pressure cooker. Cook for one whistle in low flame.
- Open the cooker after the steam is released.
- Mash well and lastly add 2 tbsp of ghee.
- Mix well and serve hot with chutney, sambar or gosthu.
Notes
- If you are making for guests, add one to two more tbsp of ghee at the end before serving.
- No matter how much ghee you add at the beginning, ven pongal absorbs everything. So I always add at the end.
- To keep the pongal soft and hot, double boil it before serving. It helps to make the pongal super soft and flavorful.
- You can also add a tbsp of flavorless cooking oil like refined oil along with ghee while tempering pepper and cumin seeds.
- Usually vanaspati / Dalda is added in restaurants. But we all know its bad for health.. So its better to use ghee or cooking oil & ghee combination as it is low in calories too.
- The quantity of water completely depends on the quality of raw rice.
- My mom adds roasted pepper powder on top of pongal along with jeera and other things to get more spicy taste. As we don’t eat whole pepper corns, she follows this way to include pepper in our food.
- Adding hing and ginger gives a restaurant touch. U can replace ginger bits with ginger paste or grated ginger too.
- Some people add a cup of milk along with water. In that case, shelf life of pongal will reduce. But Pongal tastes more creamy and rich.
Sharing is caring
Enjoy this easy and yummy South Indian breakfast recipe with your favorite side dish !
my husbands all time favourite he wll have it for thrice a day ! And as u mentioned i generally reduce the ghee and increase the oil :) have seen people using dalda :) not sure about the taste !
Lovely photos ! esp the first one rocks !
looks yummy….
pongal looks very inviting….love to have some
Love ven pongal a lot..I too add a mix of oil and ghee while tempering and an extra dollop of ghee just before serving..
super yummy
nice clicks
Lovely venn pongal. I like the sweet one as usual the rest of the family loves this. Think I will give your MIL version a go one day. Seems quick. I never add salt when cooking, since the rice does not get the mushy texture.
Tasty Ben pongal, mine is also a similar version but I just coarsely crush the peppercorns. Nice click, loved the cute balti.
Sorry, that was supposed to be ven pongal instead of Ben pongal, sorry for the typo.
yumm and delicious:)
Looks fab ….tht platter is very tempting ….
wow akka, its made me very drooling, am so so addict to ven pongal n its so appealing…
yours looks perfect dear, yummy too
Pongal looks like how we get in restaurants.Perfectly done.
wow, love your step by step pics :)
Pongal looks absolutely divine, makes me hungry.
Looks fab ….so yum and beautiful
yummy dish.
beautiful and a fav at my place. Lovely clicks.
looks perfect and very tempting chitra :)
Perfectly made and delicious!
Delicious!
delicious and yummy..
i make ina similar way but adds little milk with water to boil the rice n daal..looks super delicious..
Looks really good and perfect.. love the presentation too.. Love it :)
First time to your space and nice to see the recipes with many tips and ideas. Healthy and mouthwatering Pongal..
Slurrp….am drooling here…looks yum
Super Mouthwatering pongal! What more should one look out for ???????????? :)
Thanks Annapoorni :)
maiden attempt came well'nga. super. thanks
Happy to know it.Thanks :)
tried this recipe..very easy n tastyyyy😊
Thank you so much for the feedback 😊😊
Lovely venpongal,moretaste
If I want to make this ahead of time and want to serve for guest what is the best and good day to warm it so it remains soft and not dry out or burn out
Hi, Yes you can make ahead and serve but its shelf life is maximum 12 hours based on the weather in your place. Based on your plan for breakfast, lunch or dinner, you can make ahead accordingly. If you are making in pressure cooker, take the pongal, add some ghee, mix well and keep in a vessel. Keep the vessel above water in another pot (double boiling method) and sim it for 10 to 15 mins before serving. Switch off and keep the vessel covered over the boiled hot water to keep it soft. In hotels, this method is followed. If you use, instant pot or electric rice cooker, keep in warm mode. Add some ghee before serving. It stays warm and soft for hours. Hope its clear. Please let me know which one you followed so that it would be helpful for all.