Photo: Gannu03 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Tamilnadu · Breakfast

Sakkarai Pongal (சக்கரைப் பொங்கல்)

Traditional 41. Sakkarai Pongal recipe

🧺 Ingredients

• ¾ cup raw rice (sona masoori or short-grain)
• ¼ cup split yellow moong dal (pasi paruppu)
• 1 cup jaggery powder (tightly packed — about 160 g) — adjust for sweetness
• 3.5 cups water + ¼ cup for jaggery syrup
• ½ cup whole milk (added after cooking)
• ¼ tsp cardamom powder (4 pods, freshly ground)
• Pinch of edible camphor (pacha karpooram) — optional, traditional
• ¼ tsp dry ginger powder (sukku) — optional
• 4 tbsp ghee (divided — 2 tbsp during cooking, 2 tbsp for finishing)
• 10 cashew nuts, halved
• 2 tbsp raisins
• Pinch of nutmeg powder (optional)
• Traditional Thai Pongal uses slightly more milk (1 cup) and extra ghee (6 tbsp) — festival versions are richer

👩‍🍳 How to make Sakkarai Pongal

1. In a heavy-bottomed pot or pressure cooker base, dry roast moong dal on medium heat for 2–3 minutes, stirring continuously, until it turns light golden and emits a nutty aroma.
2. Remove and set aside.
3. In the same pot, combine roasted moong dal, rinsed rice, and 3.5 cups water.
4. Bring to boil on high heat, then reduce to medium heat and cook for 20–25 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes, until both rice and dal are completely overcooked — mushy and merged.
5. The mixture should be thick and porridge-like, almost like a paste.
6. Pressure cooker: 5–6 whistles.
7. Add ½ cup milk and stir — this gives creaminess.
8. While rice cooks, melt jaggery in ¼ cup water in a small pan over low heat, stirring until completely dissolved.
9. Heat until it just begins to simmer — do NOT boil to hard-ball stage, just melt and dissolve.
10. Strain through a fine sieve to remove grit/impurities.
11. Set aside.
12. Reduce heat to low.
13. Pour the warm jaggery syrup into the cooked rice-dal mixture gradually, stirring vigorously as you pour.
14. The mixture will initially look like it's separating (jaggery can cause the mixture to seize momentarily) — keep stirring.
15. The heat from the jaggery will blend everything together within 1–2 minutes.
16. Add cardamom powder, dry ginger powder, and edible camphor.
17. Stir well.
18. Cook on low heat for 3–4 minutes, stirring continuously, until the pongal thickens to a scoopable consistency.
19. Add 2 tbsp ghee and stir in.
20. In a small pan, heat remaining 2 tbsp ghee over medium heat.
21. Add cashew halves — fry for 1 minute until golden-brown.
22. Add raisins — fry 30 seconds until they puff up and plump.
23. Pour entire contents (ghee + cashews + raisins) over the pongal.
24. Mix the garnish lightly into the pongal or leave on top for visual appeal.
25. Serve hot in a clay bowl for traditional presentation, or a steel katori.
26. Must be served immediately — sakkarai pongal thickens as it cools.

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