KARADAIYAN NOMBU ADAI RECIPE | SWEET ADAI, SALT ADAI

Karadaiyan nombu adai recipe - Learn how to make Karadaiyan nombu sweet adai (vella adai) and salt adai recipes (uppu adai) with step by step pictures and video. This adai can be prepared with homemade rice flour or store bought rice flour/ idiyappam flour. Only difference lies in the quantity of water used to make adai. Here I have discussed vella adai and uppu adai recipe using homemade rice flour. Usually for making this adai , we make processed rice flour at home. U can also use good quality store bought idiyappam flour. I have tried using both and they came out equally well in softness & texture. Usually people make a hole in adai like urad dal vada for even cooking. As my MIL don't do that, I too don't put a hole in my adai ;)

Karamani /black eyed peas is the main ingredient for this adai. But my MIL adds other grains like ragi , mochakottai ,chana , green gram , black gram , unpolished rice (nel) , wheat germs , toor dal to make it a mix of nine grains in very little quantity, roast and cook it. But many people use only karamani / thatta payaru for this adai. So its our choice finally! Below you can find a picture of adai with hole in the center. The color of sweet adai depends on the color of jaggery you use. Ok, lets see how to make karadaiyan nombu adai recipe with step by step pictures and video.

Please click THIS LINK for Karadaiyan Nombu Pooja Procedure with more details!

SIGNIFICANCE OF KARADAIYAN NOMBU

Karadaiyan Nonbu or Savitri Vratham is a traditional Tamil nadu festival of fasting wherein married women pray for the wellness and long life of their husbands. This nombu should be done in the time when tamil month 'Masi' ends and the next month 'Panguni' starts. The reason why this fasting is carried out is that “ Savithri fought with yema (the God of Death) to save her husband's (Satyavan) life", the same way the married women should fast on this auspicious day for long life of their husbands. Unmarried woman can also observe Karadayan Nombu and pray to Goddess Shakti to get good men as their husband.

Source : http://chandra.subramanianfamily.com/2009/03/karadiyan-nombu.html..

Before marriage , I have not celebrated this festival as my mom don’t have this practice. I heard about this celebration from my MIL only after my marriage. Initially I used to watch my MIL making nombu adai. She makes Sweet adai/Vella adai and Salt adai/Uppu adai for neivedyam. But now I can confidently make it on my own. It comes out very well. What I love in this festival is tying the yellow rope. More than me, my daughter is more curious about tying the yellow rope in her hand ;) Also we chant a few lines/sloka in front of the lamp while tying the rope.

"Urugadha Vennaiyum oru adaiyum vaithu nonbu notren oru naalum en kanavar enai piriyamal iruka vendum".

Please click THIS LINK for Karadaiyan Nombu Pooja Procedure with more details!

Karadaiyan nombu adai video ↓↓

HOW TO MAKE PROCESSED RICE FLOUR

Raw rice / Maavu arisi / Dosa rice – 1 cup (250ml) Wash & soak raw rice for 2 hours and drain all the water completely. Spread the rice in a news paper or white cloth to absorb all the excess water. Grind in mixie to make a fine powder. Sieve & dry roast the flour in low flame till you get light fumes from the flour. After roasting, try to draw a small kolam with it. If you able to draw it without cutting, flour is roasted well ( Kolam maavu padham). Sieve or grind once in a mixie if there are lumps after roasting. This is called processed rice flour. We use this flour for making adai.    Usually I make the flour in the previous day and make adai the next day . For 1 cup of raw rice , we get approx 1.75 - 2 cups of flour. You can also use store bought idiyappam flour instead of homemade processed rice flour. ** For store bought rice flour/idiyapam flour,  you don't have to roast the flour.

Karadaiyan nombu vella adai / sweet adai and Salt adai / Uppu adai

Karadaiyan nombu special adai recipe using rice flour, karamani as major ingredients. Both sweet adai and salt adai recipes are discussed below.

Cuisine: Indian

Category: Karadaiyan nombu recipes

Serves: 4

Prep time: 20 Minutes

Cook time: 20 Minutes

Total time: 40 Minutes

Chitra Ganapathy

INGREDIENTS

FOR SWEET ADAI (1 cup = 250ml)

• Homemade Rice flour  or store bought idiyappam flour – 1 cup
• Grated jaggery – 1 cup
• Cooked karamani / Lobia / Black eyed peas – 1/4 cup + 1 tbsp navadhaniyam (optional)
• Water – 1.5 cups ( Some Store bought rice flour may take just 1 cup too )
• Cardamom seeds – few
• Coconut bits – 2 tbsp
• Ghee - 1 tsp ( to prevent drying)
• Oil - to grease the palm

** For store bought rice flour/idiyappam flour, you don't have to roast the flour.
** Its completely optional to use navadhaniyam. 

FOR SALT ADAI / UPPU ADAI

• Homemade Rice flour – 1 cup ( you can also use store bought Idiyappam flour)
• Cooked Karamani / Lobia / Black eyed peas – 1/4 cup + 1 tbsp navadhaniya (optional)
• Water – 2 cups (adjust as per the flour)
• Coconut bits – 2 tbsp
• Salt – As needed

To temper

• Coconut oil or Cooking oil – 1 tbsp
• Mustard seeds – 1/2 tsp
• Urad dal – 1 tsp
• Hing - 2 generous pinches
• Curry leaves – few
• Green chilli – 2 - 3 nos
• Ginger – 1 inch piece (finely chopped)

**Use a mix of white or brown chana, ragi, green gram, urad dal, toor dal  (Navadhaniyam )along with black eyed peas (karamani). But it is completely optional. You can use only karamani which gives nice flavor to this adai. Quantity of karamani can also be adjusted as per your taste.

** For store bought rice flour/idiyapam flour, you don't have to roast the flour. For homemade processed rice flour, please check it above.

HOW TO MAKE KARADAIYAN NOMBU ADAI 

1. In a pressure cooker base, roast karamani in 1 tbsp oil till it emits nice aroma. Add water and pressure cook in low flame for one whistle.
2. Divide the karamani into 2 portions.
3. FOR SWEET ADAI / VELLA ADAI : Melt jaggery in water and strain the syrup.
4. Add cooked karamani, coconut bits and cardamom powder in jaggery water. Let it roll boil. Lower the flame and add the rice flour (Homemade or store bought idiyappam flour).
5. Mix well in low flame to make a soft dough. Switch off the flame. Let it become warm. Grease hands and make shapes. Make a small hole in the middle and arrange the sweet adai in a plate.  Make salt adai next. We are going to steam both sweet and salt adai together. 
6. FOR SALT ADAI / UPPU ADAI : Heat coconut oil in a kadai and splutter mustard, urad dal, curry leaves, hing, green chilli and ginger. Add water, salt, coconut bits and cooked karamani.
7. Let the water come to roll boil. Lower the flame completely. Add rice flour and mix well to make a soft dough. Grease hands and make shapes after it becomes warm. Keep in a plate.
8. Boil water in a idli pot and arrange the sweet adai and salt adai in greased idli plate. Steam it for 15 to 20 minutes till adai becomes non-sticky to touch.
9. Switch off the flame. Remove the idli plate. Keep in the counter.  Let it rest for 5 minutes before removing the adai. Take the adai carefully and arrange in a plate. PLEASE WATCH THE VIDEO FOR BETTER UNDERSTANDING. 

KARADAIYAN NOMBU ADAI - STEP BY STEP PICTURES

Roast Karamani and other grains in 1 tbsp oil till nice aroma emanates.  You can roast in a pressure cooker base. Roast in medium flame for 6-8 minutes. Pressure cook the grains adding 1.5 cups of water. Drain the water and keep the grains aside. Alternately, you can roast and soak the Karamani over night, pressure cook and add to rice flour.                           HOW TO MAKE SWEET ADAI / VELLA ADAI : Take water & grated jaggery in a wide bowl. Heat it and melt the jaggery completely. Strain the jaggery syrup using a metal strainer to remove the impurities if any. Wash the bowl and again transfer the syrup to same bowl. Allow the syrup to boil for 3 minutes till the jaggery smell leaves. Now add the cooked karamani, coconut bits, cardamom powder, ghee and boil for sometime. Keep the flame completely low & add the rice flour in one hand while mixing with a ladle in other hand. Make sure to mix well without lumps. The mixture will thicken and will become a dough. After the dough is warm , grease your palm with oil and take a small ball lime sized ball of dough. Flatten it like masala vadai. Make a hole in the center if you like. We don't put a hole generally. Arrange the adai in a greased idli plate. We are going to steam both sweet and salt adai together in the last step.  HOW TO MAKE SALT ADAI / UPPU ADAI : Heat oil in a kadai and temper mustard, urad dal, cumin seeds, green chilli, ginger, curry leaves and hing. Add water, required salt, coconut pieces, cooked karamani.  Mix well and allow to boil for sometime. Then add the rice flour and mix well in low flame to make a dough. After the dough cools down , make small balls. Pat it like vada and arrange them in a greased idli plate. Arrange the sweet adai and salt adai in a greased idli plate. Roll boil water in an idli pot and place the idli plate with adai. Steam it for 10-15 minutes. Switch off the flame , remove the idli plate and let it rest for 5 minutes. Remove it carefully to avoid breaking. Enjoy this festival day offering sweet n salt nombu adai. Ladies,don't forget to tie the rope ;) Please click THIS LINK for Karadaiyan Nombu Pooja Procedure ! Enjoy !

Note

Instead of roasting karamani, you can soak it overnight or 4 hours and then pressure cook it. You can also use good quality idiyappam flour instead of homemade processed rice flour. For variations, you can grind green chilli, ginger to a paste and add to water in salt adai.

Try this easy, yummy Karadaiyan nombu sweet adai and salt adai. Offer with unmelted butter to GOD. Enjoy the festival !

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PAKODA KUZHAMBU RECIPE

 

Blogging has helped me to get many good friends. One such friend is Sudha. We became friends recently.  We discuss so much about varieties of recipes. She always encourages me to post unique dishes. Last week when we were chatting, she asked me about pakoda kuzhambu. Though I have not tasted or tried it , I remembered the recipe I wrote in my cookbook long time back. She told its a famous gravy in Chennai & asked me to try and post here. I quickly referred some websites to compare with my cookbook recipe and tried it. I loved it very much. The procedure and the taste is very similar to vada curry. 

After I surfed , I came to know this is a Chettinad famous dish and it tastes good for rice, idli & dosa too. This gravy can be made with or without coconut as per our taste. I added little coconut paste for thickness. Also the pakoda recipe I’ve given here is an instant version. I have not used chana dal for making pakoda like Chettinad recipe. Instead I used besan flour and made it like our onion pakoda. Usually Onions are chopped finely and added. I sliced it and used. Pakoda was very crispy. So this recipe has many variations from the authentic Chettinad pakoda kulambu. Still it tastes great. Do try this version and let me know how you liked it.

INGREDIENTS

FOR PAKODA Gram flour/ Besan flour – 6 tsp Rice flour – 2 tsp Big onion – 2 nos ( thinly sliced) Red chilli powder – 1 tsp fennel – 1/4 tsp Cooking soda – A small pinch Curry leaves - Few Salt & Water – As needed FOR GRAVY Cooking oil – 2 tbsp Mustard seeds – 1/2 tsp Urad dal – 1 tsp Cinnamon – 1 piece Cloves – 2 nos Fennel seeds – 1/2 tsp Small onion – 10 nos (finely chopped) Whole Garlic cloves – 10 nos Curry leaves - few Red chillies – 1 no Tamarind – A big goose berry size Sambar powder – 2 to 3 tsp (as per taste) Salt & water – as needed Grated coconut – 1.5 tbsp (to grind)

How to make pakoda kuzhambu  - METHOD

Take a wide bowl and mix all the ingredients given under “For pakoda” adding little water to make a thick paste. Pinch small balls and deep fry the pakoda till onions turn golden brown. Set aside.              In a kadai, heat oil and add cinnamon, mustard seeds, urad dal, fennel seeds, red chillies .. Once they are sautéed add onions, garlic cloves, curry leaves. Saute till onions turn transparent. Now add the tamarind extract, sambar powder, a piece of jaggery and required salt & water. Allow it to roll boil for sometime. Grind the grated coconut to a smooth paste adding little water. Mix the paste in the tamarind mixture. Add some more water if necessary and boil for few minutes. Finally add the pakodas, mix well and switch off the flame. Garnish with coriander leaves. Serve hot !

Note

• If you want to make chana dal pakoda, soak chana dal for 1 hour and grind it coarsely along with other ingredients given above. Finally sprinkle coriander leaves, mix well and deep fry it.
• If you do not add coconut paste, the gravy tastes more like vatha kuzhambu.
• While grinding coconut, you can also try adding fried gram dal/pottukadalai, khus khus for variations.
• Some people adds one small onion and jeere while grinding coconut..

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POORI MASALA RECIPE WITHOUT POTATO |SIDE DISH FOR POORI

This Poori masala recipe may be new to some of u.I learnt this from my mom.Like all,i too make Puri masala with potato & onion.I’ll post that recipe soon.Yesterday i made poori for breakfast.As i had no potatoes in my pantry,i asked my mom to make masala using onions.It was very nice and my husband liked it very much.Bachelors can also try this method.I hope most of u would have tasted this recipe somewhere.Here comes the simple recipe …

Poori masala recipe

Poori masala recipe without using potatoes.Simple to make yet yummy

Cuisine: Indian Category: Side dish Yields: Serves 3

Prep Time: 10 Mins Cook Time: 15 Mins Total Time: 25 Mins

INGREDIENTS

For masala Big onion – 3 nos Green peas – 1/4 cup Green chillies – 4 nos Ginger – 1.5 inch piece Curry leaves – Few Besan flour – 1 tbsp To temper Cooking oil – 2 tbsp Mustard seeds – 1/2 tsp Urad dal – 1 tsp Channa dal – 1 tbsp Coriander leaves – To garnish Lime juice – Few drops Salt & water – As reqd

METHOD

Slice cut big onions , slit green chillies & finely chop the ginger piece. Set aside. Heat oil in a kadai and splutter mustard seeds , urad dal , channa dal . Saute till dals turn golden brown. Then add the onions , green peas , green chillies , ginger & curry leaves.Saute till onions turn transparent..Add salt , turmeric powder. Then add water & cover cook till onions & peas cooked well.. Dilute besan flour with little water,make it without lumps and add to the masala. Mix well & add more water if necessary..Allow it to roll boil till the raw smell of besan flour emanates. The masala will thicken.Add little water & bring it to semi gravy consistency.. Check for salt . Add coriander leaves , give a boil and switch off the stove. Add lime juice and serve hot !! Enjoy !

Note

Lime juice is optional. U can use tomatoes too. U can also add mashed potatoes & try the same recipe. Adding too much of besan spoils the recipe.So please add the mentioned quantity and also dilute besan without lumps..

Tastes the best with poori !!

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Badam Cashew Burfi Recipe - Easy Diwali Sweets Recipes

March and April are the celebration months for me because my daughter Raksha’s birthday, my husband Sendhil’s birthday and Our wedding day falls in these two months. So I make sweets very often. Last week when I was going through a cookbook, I got this recipe. I found it very easy and thought of preparing it for my daughter’s birthday as she is very much fond of kaju sweets. But yesterday morning my daughter asked me to prepare some sweets.

Without any second thought, I tried this and when she came back from school , I surprised her with this sweet. She was very happy and ate it heartily.She told “ Its awesome mamma”. What else I need, I was very happy & this recipe was a instant hit in my home. Just try this burfi. It melts in your mouth. 

Generally for any burfi, we need to make single string or two string sugar syrup and then we proceed further.But in this recipe,there is no need to check the consistency of sugar syrup and the final stage of the sweet can be easily identified. So beginners can easily try. 

One more good thing it takes only 1/2 tsp of ghee and that too it is used to grease the plate. In this recipe, your one & only job is mixing. You have to keep on mixing till you get correct consistency. Even if you miss the consistency, it is easy to trouble shoot. I have given step by step pictures to my best for easy understanding and all possible tips for troubleshooting. 

Hope you’ll try this recipe and let me know how it turned out. Please go through the “Notes” section for additional tips. You can follow this recipe,use either Cashews or Badam alone and make it as cashew burfi or badam burfi.

Almond cashew burfi recipe

Easy almond cashew burfi recipe that can be made under 15 minutes !

Cuisine: Indian

Category: Sweet

Serves: 10

Prep time: 5 Minutes

Cook time: 15 Minutes

Total time: 20 Minutes

INGREDIENTS

Cashewnuts – 1/4 cup Badam/Almond – 1/4 cup Milk or water – 1/2 cup Sugar - 3/4 cup ( paste & sugar ratio is 1:1.5) Cardamom powder – 2 Pinches Ghee – 1/2 tsp (to grease the plate)

METHOD

Soak cashews in hot water for 10 minutes. Heat 1/2 cup of water till it roll boils. Add the badam and boil for a minute. Let the badam be in hot water for 2 minutes.Then remove and show it under running tap water.Now you can peel the skin easily. Now grind almond and cashews in a mixie to a coarse powder without adding water or milk. Then add little milk say 1/4 cup & grind it to a smooth paste.(Please don’t add more milk because burfi will take more time to cook. U can add maximum 1/2 cup of water or milk to grind). Measure the paste and add sugar 1.5 times of the measured quantity. I got 1/2 heaped cup of paste. So I added 3/4 cup of sugar. Grease a plate with 1/2 tsp of ghee & keep it ready . Now take the badam, cashew paste, sugar, cardamom powder & little water say 1/4 cup ( I just washed the mixie jar with 1/4 cup of water and added it to the paste). Switch on the flame and keep it medium. Mix the paste till all the sugar is completely melted. Wipe the sides every now & then because sugar particles will deposit in the sides of pan. The mixture will become liquid after all the sugar is melted completely. Now simmer the flame to low( If you are a beginner) and keep mixing.  When the mixture starts to boil, big bubbles will appear all over the paste. Keep mixing. Increase the flame to medium if you want the process to be quickly done else continue in low flame. Keep mixing till the mixture becomes thick.Wipe the sides of the pan every time while you mix. It will take nearly 10 minutes to start thickening. Small bubbles will appear now. When you keep on mixing,mixture turns thicker and it will leave the sides of pan. Wipe the sides & again mix it. At one stage, the mixture will become really thick and at that time, simmer the flame completely. Wet your fingers and take a pinch from the dough.Try to make a small ball. If you are able to make a soft,round ball. Your mixture is done. Switch off the flame immediately and mix the mixture again for few seconds to make it even more slightly thick. The heat of kadai is sufficient to make your mixture thick. When you feel the mixture is completely thick but not crumbly,remove and put in the greased plate. Immediately level it with a polythene sheet or butter paper. Scrape the sides of kadai & taste it. U will get to know the taste and consistency of burfi. Leave the burfi & let it cool down completely. Do not try to remove the burfi now. It wont come out easily, it may break. Allow it to cool completely. Then remove using a dosa flipper carefully. Once it cools down, burfi will become hard. But it melts in mouth. Remove the extras in the sides when it is still warm and make a ball with your hand  Press it and again make shapes out of it. So there will be no wastage. The color of burfi improves as it cools down. To find out whether the burfi is well set, after you levelled the burfi in tray with butter paper, try to remove the butter paper after 5 minutes. If it comes out clean, your burfi is perfect and you can make pieces & enjoy . If the butter paper doesn’t come out clean or if it sticks to the burfi mixture, then the consistency is not reached. So transfer the  mixture to the kadai,add little water, melt the mixture and again start mixing till you get it right ! Suppose if you over do the mixing and if burfi becomes crumbly, take the crumbled burfi in a mixie jar, add milk and make a smooth paste. Again keep it in flame and mix well till it reaches the right consistency.

Note

Here is a quick tip for blanching almonds : Boil badam in hot water for1-2 minutes. Drain the water and keep the badam under running cold water.. By doing this way, the skin comes out very easily.. Cardamom powder is not mentioned in the actual recipe but I used it. If you want you can add saffron or badam essence. I made the entire process in very low flame to medium to be in safer side. U can see the white bubbles as soon as you start mixing. Bubbles will appear till the mixture becomes thick. So keep mixing until the mixture becomes a whole mass and you should be able to gather them in one place. Test the dough by taking a small ball in your wet hands. If you are able to roll a soft ball with it, its the right consistency. U can also try this recipe using Badam OR cashew alone. To find out whether the burfi is well set, after you levelled the burfi in tray with butter paper, try to remove the butter paper after 5 minutes. If it comes out clean, your burfi is perfect and you can make pieces & enjoy.  If the butter paper doesn’t come out clean or if it sticks to the burfi mixture, then the consistency is not reached. So transfer the  mixture to the kadai, add little water, melt the mixture and again start mixing till you get it right ! Suppose if you over do the mixing and if burfi becomes crumbly, take the crumbled burfi in a mixie jar, add milk and make a smooth paste. Again keep it in flame and mix well till it reaches the right consistency.

Burfi after a bite by my daughter. I used orange food color in this.

 TRIED & TASTED BY READERS

Our lovable blogger Radha Natarajan mam tried this burfi & shared this picture with me :) Thank you so much mam !

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Pepper Idli Recipe - Leftover Idli Recipes

I tasted this pepper idli in Salem “Lakshmi hotel” . They served mini idli flavored with pepper masala. It was served with onion raita. As my husband is fond of pepper recipes , we ordered this recipe to try. It was very simple and yet very tasty. Though the idlies are not deep fried , I felt it was too oily. I tried the same recipe at home with moderate quantity of oil and it was a success . If  yu have left over idli batter at home , you can try this recipe.This recipe is a nice replacement for kaima idli and chilli idli..If  you r a pepper lover,do try this .. U’ll love its flavour for sure .. Even if you can’t make button idli, you can use the left over idli by cutting them into bite sized cubes and try the same. Recently my MIL told me after reading a magazine that eating 10 pepper corns per day helps better digestion , prevents stroke and heart attack.. So friends lets try to eat the whole pepper corns in ven pongal and include more pepper powder in our cooking .

INGREDIENTS

Mini idli / button idli ( small idli) – 15 nos Big onion – 1 no Tomato – 1 no ( I used Bangalore tomato) Garlic cloves – 8 nos Curry leaves – few Coarsely ground pepper powder – 1.5 tsp (adjust) Salt – As needed Cooking oil – 2 tbsp Coriander leaves – To garnish Ghee - 1 tsp ( to garnish)

METHOD

Make mini idli ( small idli) and keep in a separate plate.Let it cool down. Grind the pepper corns coarsely and set aside. Chop the tomato into big cubes. Its better if  you use bangalore tomatoes ( less pulpy ones) .. Slice half of the big onion and finely chop the remaining half . Chop the garlic cloves finely in round shape.. In a wide kadai  , heat oil and add the big onions , garlic cloves and whole curry leaves.. Saute till curry leaves turn crispy. Saute well and then add the tomato pieces.Saute for a minute.Tomato should not turn mushy.It should be visible. Finally add the pepper powder & salt. Mix well and then add the idli pieces.Give a quick mix and make sure the pepper powder coats the idli well. Sprinkle coriander leaves, drizzle a tsp of ghee and serve hot immediately !!

Technorati Tags: Pepper idli recipe,Pepper idli,hotel style,kids snacks recipes,evening snacks,idli varieties

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Pineapple Juice Recipe | Summer Drinks Recipes

I am a big fan of pineapple.I love to eat it sprinkling salt& red chilli powder.My in-laws knows it very well.Last week when i went to salem , my FIL bought me a pineapple..I had half of the pineapple ..I made this juice with the remaining half for Sendhil (my husband).He liked it very much. This is a very simple recipe which u may know it.. I wanted to start summer special drinks with this simple recipe.Also i wanted to click (test) liquid pouring effect with my Dslr .. Hope it looks good. Here u go..

INGREDIENTS
 1 cup - 200ml

Pineapple cubes – 1.5 cups ( half of medium size pineapple) Sugar – 1.5 tbsp Salt – A pinch Water – 1/2 cup

METHOD

Remove the skin of the pineapple using a sharp serrated knife. Please click here if u need step by step pictures of how to remove the skin.. Now cut the pineapple into cubes and take them in a mixer. Add sugar , salt and water and grind it well. Strain the juice and serve immediately..

NOTE: Please adjust the amount of sugar as per the sweetness of pineapple..

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Ven Pongal Recipe Using Pressure Cooker ( With Step By Step Pictures & Video )

Ven pongal also known as ghee pongal / khara pongal is one of the most popular South Indian breakfast recipes especially in Tamil nadu. My Mom and MIL makes it very well. Though they follow different methods, I like both the versions. I usually follow my MIL’s method as my husband Sendhil is fond of it. She makes it directly using a pressure cooker. Sometimes we make this using leftover cooked rice too.  To me, its a very easy one pot 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 ratio. In Tamilnadu,we get pongal rice (Raw rice/Pacharisi). 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. 

In this post, I have shared my MIL’s method. It’s a very easy and quick method using pressure cooker. 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 u 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.

Ven pongal recipe video

Ven pongal recipe

How to make Ven pongal/Ghee pongal recipe easily using pressure cooker - One pot method

Cuisine: South Indian

Category: Breakfast Recipes

Serves: Serves 3

Prep time: 5 Minutes

Cook time: 15 Minutes

Total time: 20 Minutes

INGREDIENTS

Raw rice – 1 cup Moong dal – 1 tbsp ( Use 1/4 cup for hotel taste) Water – 4.5 - 5 cups (depends on rice) Ghee –  2 to 3 tbsp Pepper corns – 1/2 tsp Jeera – 2 tsp Ginger – 1 inch piece ( finely chopped) Hing/Asafetida - a pinch Curry leaves – few Cashew – 5 nos (break into half)

HOW TO MAKE VEN PONGAL IN COOKER - METHOD

Take raw rice & moong dal in a bowl and wash it twice. Set aside. Chop the ginger and take it along with pepper, cumin seeds & 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 the cumin seeds, curry leaves, 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 :))

Note

If you are making for guests, add one more tbsp of ghee at the end before serving. 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 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.

Enjoy this easy  and yummy South Indian breakfast recipe with your favorite side dish !

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