Sakkarai pongal made with nattu sakkarai

Rice, moong dal, ghee and jaggery, cooked down until a spoon stands in it. The Pongal festival sweet, written out step by step.

Pongal, mid-January · Prep 10 min · Cook 30 min · Total 40 min · Makes 4 servings · Tamil dessert

In Tamil Nadu jaggery is nattu sakkarai, and in mid-January it goes into the one dish the whole festival is named after. Sakkarai pongal is made in temples by the vessel-load and at home in a single pan, and it is offered before anyone eats it.

It is a forgiving recipe with one strict rule, which is about the order things go into the pot.

Cook the rice first, always

Jaggery syrup stops rice from softening any further. If the gur goes in while the rice is still firm, it stays firm, and no amount of extra cooking will fix it. Mash the rice properly, then add the syrup.

Ingredients

• ½ cup Raw rice (pacharisi)
• 3 tbsp Split yellow moong dal (payatham paruppu)
• 2 cups Water
• ½ cup Milk
• ¾ cup (about 150 g) ShuddhGaon jaggery, nattu sakkarai
• ¼ cup Water, for the syrup
• 4, powdered Cardamom
• A tiny pinch Edible camphor (pachai karpooram)
• 4 tbsp Ghee
• 10, broken Cashew nuts
• 1 tbsp Raisins
• 1 tbsp Fresh coconut, chopped small

Method

1. Roast the dal Dry-roast the moong dal in a pan on a low flame for about 2 minutes, until it smells nutty and turns a shade golden. This is what gives pongal its aroma.
2. Cook the rice and dal together Wash the roasted dal with the rice, then pressure cook both with the 2 cups of water and the milk for 4 to 5 whistles. You want it overcooked, not al dente.
3. Mash it Open the cooker, add a splash of hot water if it looks dry, and mash the rice and dal together with the back of a ladle until it is soft and slightly runny.
4. Make the jaggery syrup In a separate pan, melt the jaggery with ¼ cup water on a low flame until it is dissolved. Strain it if there is any grit at the bottom.
5. Bring the two together Pour the syrup into the mashed rice and cook on a low flame for 5 minutes, stirring, until the mixture thickens and pulls away from the sides of the pan.
6. Add the ghee in stages Stir in the ghee a spoon at a time, letting each one disappear before the next goes in. This is what gives pongal its gloss.
7. Temper and finish In a small pan, fry the cashews in a little ghee until golden, then the raisins until they swell, then the coconut. Tip the lot into the pongal with the cardamom powder and the pinch of edible camphor, and stir.
8. Serve warm Take it off the heat while it is still a little loose. Pongal thickens as it stands, and a pan that looks perfect on the stove will be stiff on the plate.

With our jaggery

Nattu sakkarai is the Tamil name for exactly what is in our jars: unrefined sugarcane jaggery, kolhu-crushed and slow-cooked. Traditional recipes tell you to strain the syrup because village gur often carries field grit. Ours is skimmed by hand and filtered before it sets, so there is usually nothing to strain out, but hold the sieve over the pan anyway. It costs nothing. Powder makes the syrup in about a minute, cubes in three or four.

Tips from our kitchen

• Ghee is not optional here It is what keeps the pongal from setting into a block as it cools. Four tablespoons for half a cup of rice is the traditional proportion, and reducing it changes the dish.
• If it thickens too much Loosen it with a few spoons of hot milk or hot water on a low flame. Cold liquid makes it seize.
• Reheating the next day Add a splash of milk and warm it gently, stirring. It will come back to the texture it had on the first day.

The jaggery this recipe is made with

• ShuddhGaon Jaggery Powder — Fine gur shakkar that melts into tea, coffee and milk
• ShuddhGaon Jaggery Cubes — Pure sugarcane jaggery, cut into ready-to-use cubes
• ShuddhGaon Jaggery Combo — Cubes for the cup, powder for the kitchen

More recipes with gur

• Til gur ke laddoo for Lohri and Makar Sankranti
• Gur ki chai, made so the milk never splits
• Thekua, the Chhath prasad made with atta and gur

All jaggery recipes