Creamy Ven Pongal (Rice and Lentil ‘Risotto’)

Tamil people of South India celebrate Pongal in January. During this harvest festival we combine two of south India’s staples, rice and lentils, into a luscious, comforting and creamy risotto like dish. The day of Pongal is one of worship and thanksgiving  where we make offerings to the Sun god and thank him for the year’s harvest. The day after pongal is maattu pongal, literally ‘cow pongal’, honoring cows and other working animals.

A Pongal Tradition

When I was a child, pongal was always a much anticipated festival day. We woke early, dressed up and headed downstairs to a smokey open wood fire. Two decorated brass pots of pongal would already be bubbling away – one sweet (with coconut, cardamom and jaggery), and one savory (recipe below).  My grandmother the matriarch, was in charge of making the pongal. My father would always scold her for using too much ghee in pongal, and the second he turned away, shed add another dollop!

Pongal in India – sweet and savory pongals in brass pots on an open fire in my grandmother’s house

The trick to a creamy pongal is to cook it in whole milk, rather than water. If you’d rather keep the dish light, substitute the milk with water. Remember that the amount of water you’ll need in this recipe will vary depending on the rice you are using.


 

More pongal recipes..

Chef in you’s pressure cooker pongal recipe

Ven pongal recipe by Archanas kitchen

Another ven pongal recipe on a life time of cooking blog

Kara pongal or khara pongal recipe using chillies and coconut on Aayi’s recipes

Creamy Ven Pongal Recipe

serves about 4

1 cup short grain rice (substitute with basmati)
½ cup split moong dal (mung beans)
½ teaspoon oil
4 tablespoons ghee (clarified butter) or butter
½ teaspoon black mustard seeds
½ teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon peppercorns
6oz fresh ginger, peeled
1/8 teaspoon asafoetida
4 curry leaves
3 cups whole milk
2 cups water
Salt
2 tablespoons cashewnuts, lightly roasted in a few drops of oil or ghee

Rinse and drain the rice and dal and set aside.

You will need to use a large, deep pot or saucepan for this recipe. If you use a small pot, the milk will boil over and make a mess.

Heat oil and ghee in the pot . Add mustard seeds to oil & ghee. When they splutter, add cumin and peppercorns, and stir 30 seconds. Cut the peeled ginger into 2 or 3 chunks. Add ginger chunks, asafetida, and curry leaves to the oil and stir about 30 seconds or till the ginger and curry leaves are fragrant.

Add the rinsed rice and dal, and stir well. Pour in the milk, water and salt and bring to a boil. If the milk begins to froth and boil over, stir it till it settles down.

Once the milk boils, reduce heat to low, cover the pot with a lid and simmer for about 30 minutes. Stir occasionally so that the milk doesn’t boil over and make a mess.

Pongal is done when the rice is very soft and creamy. Depending on the rice you are using, cooking times may vary. You may also need to use more water, depending the rice you are using.

If most the liquid gets absorbed, but the rice still isn’t cooked, just add more water and continue cooking till rice is soft.

Serve hot, topped with roasted cashews and sambar on the side.

Happy Pongal!

Paella Style Spiced Tomato Rice

If you’ve been reading my blog for sometime, or you have been following me on twitter, or facebook, you know I have a great love for traveling.  Travel opens up the mind, gives me different perspectives and squashes prejudice. I learn so much through the things I see and the people I meet my travels.

One such person was Monika, whom I met in Melbourne. (More about my Australia, New Zealand, Fiji trip in later posts!). Both Monika and I were staying with a host family for the weekend. Our lovely hosts were Hungarian, lived in New Zealand, and then moved to Australia. Monika is Polish, grew up in Germany, and studied in Spain. Then there was me – grew up in India, studied in the UK and now live in the US. We were all representing at least 3 countries each, and combined, have traveled to over a 100. So you can imagine all the international conversations we had!

Monika and I were roommates for the weekend. We chatted through the night, lying on our bunk beds, discussing life, love, marriage and men in our respective countries. We both learnt so much from each other that weekend.

I decided to cook an Indian meal for Monika and our hosts. I was more than thrilled to find out that our amazing Hungarian hosts had a pantry full of Indian ingredients, including asafoetida and curry leaves!

When I finished making tomato rice (which Monika loved!) and pumpkin curry, the aroma of curry leaves, turmeric and fragrant basmati filled the kitchen. I was nearly transported back home. Only, I was in Australia, happily finding curry leaves in a Hungarian fridge!  

This is for you Monika ♥

A good paella always has a crusty bottom called socarrat. To me, thats the best part of the dish. I’m always scraping up the delicious crusty rice! This dish is tomato rice, not paella, so we wont call its crust soccarat. But in any case, the bottom layer of caramelized basmati rice is just wonderful.

First, cook onions, garlic, and tomatoes, along with a little turmeric and paprika.

The tomatoes will break down, and the sauce will thicken and reduce to about half its original volume. Now add rice.

Stir the rice and let it toast a little. Then add water, cover, and simmer.

caramelized bottom layer – the best part!

How to get a paella style crust (socarrat) – when the rice is done, crank up the heat to high just for about a minute. This will make the rice in the bottom toasted and crispy. Thats it! Be careful not to burn the rice, you just want it browned a little.

You must use a wide skillet, preferably non stick, to achieve the crispy bottom layer. If you dont plan on creating the crust, a saucepan will do.

Tomato Rice with a Paella Style Crust: Recipe

serves 2-3

2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/4 teaspoon mustard seeds
1/4 teaspoon cumin seeds
6 curry leaves
1 medium onion, chopped fine
3-4 cloves garlic, peeled
4 medium tomatoes (1 lb) chopped fine (about 2 cups when chopped)
1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder
1/2 teaspoon paprika or chilli powder (adjust according to taste)
1/2 teaspoon sugar, optional
1 cup bastmati rice
1 cup water
3/4 teaspoon salt (adjust according to taste)

Use a 10 inch non-stick skillet thats about 1 1/2 inches deep and has a lid. Heat oil in the skillet, and add mustard seeds. When they pop, add cumin seeds and let sizzle for a few seconds. Then add curry leaves and chopped onion. Cook on medium heat till the onion is lightly brown. Add garlic cloves to the oil, and stir for about a minute. Dont let the garlic brown.

Now add chopped tomatoes, turmeric and chili powders to the skillet. Add sugar if using (I like to use a little sugar if the tomatoes are too sour).

Cook on medium high heat, stirring occasionally, till most the liquid is gone, the tomatoes have broken down, and the sauce reduces to about half its original volume. This will take 10-15 minutes. You will land up with just over one cup of tomato-onion sauce.

To the reduced sauce, add rice, and salt. Stir on medium-high heat for about 4 minutes. Add water to the rice and bring to a boil. Reduce to low, cover the skillet and simmer for about 15 minutes, or till the rice is cooked and fluffy. Start checking the rice after 12 minutes to ensure it doesnt over cook.

When the rice is done, increase the heat to high. Let the rice sit on high heat for about one minute. This will form a tasty rice crust on the bottom, much like in a paella.

Serve tomato rice with my grandmother’s multi coloredvegetable raita.

Optional garnishes for tomato rice - roasted cashews, roasted peanuts, crispy fried onions, or chopped cilantro

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