Pongal - Ven Pongal/Milagu Pongal

Ingredients:

Raw rice - Pacharisi - 1 cup
Green gram - Pachai parupu - 1/3rd cup
Asafoetida - Perungayam - a pinch
Ginger - Inji - 1 spoon
Pepper - Milagu - 1 spoon
Cumin seeds - Jeeragam - 2 spoons
Cashew nuts - Munthiri parupu - small quantity
Curry leaves - Karuvepillai - small quantity
Ghee - Nei - 2 spoons
Butter - Vennai - 1 spoon
Salt to taste

Method:

1. Wash and keep rice and green gram (Dhal) and pour 6 cups of water, add asafoetida, salt and ginger to it in a pressure cooker. Let it boil for 20 minutes.
2. Then add ghee to a pan and fry pepper, cumin seeds, cashew nuts and curry leaves and add this to boiled rice and dhal. Now add butter to the content. Mix it well.

Pongal is delicious and ready to be served. Enjoy with any chutneys/sambhar. It can be served for 2 people. It takes hardly 30 minutes.

Note: Pongal has to be served hot, else it will not taste nice. It should be cooked only in a medium flame, else all water will be exhausted and pongal will not be cooked well. 6 cups of water will be sufficient so that rice and dhal will be cooked nicely.

Optional: Cashew nuts and butter can be added/removed according to taste.

The discovery of a new dish does more for the happiness of mankind than the discovery of a star.

Anthelme Brillat-Savarin