VENN PONGAL / VENNPONGAL

Venn Pongal (Rice Pongal) is delicious traditional south indian breakfast. No visit to Tamil Nadu or Karnataka is complete without tasting a plate of piping hot venn pongal with Sambar & Chutney.  This is another famous perumal koil prasadam.

INGREDIENTS:

• Raw rice: 3/4 cup
• Moong dhal - 1/4 cup
• Water - 31/2 cups
• Grated ginger - 1/2 tsp.
• Salt 
• Hing - a pinch
• Pepper - 1 tsp.
• Cumin seeds - 1 tsp.
• Curry leaves - few
• Ghee - 1 ladle
• Cashews - 2 tsp.

METHOD:

Pressure cook rice and dhal without adding salt.

In a pan, heat a spoon of ghee and fry cashews till golden brown. Keep aside.

In the same pan, heat a tablespoon of ghee, add pepper. When pepper splutters, add cumin seeds, curry leaves, grated ginger and hing. Pour it over the rice. Add salt as per taste and mix well. Garnish with cashews. Add the remaining ghee while serving.

Have it with coconut chutney or kothamalli chutney.