Sakkarai Pongal/Sweet Pongal

Sakkarai pongal meaning sweet pongal is generally prepared in temples as a prasadam, (an offering made to a deity, as a thanksgiving). This type of pongal is prevalent in pongal festivals such as Thai Pongal in Tamil Nadu, India. Ingredients can include rice, coconut and moong bean. Sakarai pongal is traditionally sweetened with jaggery, which gives the pongal a brown colour, though it can be sweetened with white sugar instead. This is what I got form Wikipedia.
Recently my better half was literally forcing me to prepare this dish and I was like why he had developed this craving for sweet pongal. He also was very much particular about the recipe I followed. He didn't want me to use sugar instead of jaggery and also he told me that he will get from Indian stores edible camphor. He wanted that flavor too in his sakkarai pongal. I was telling him that camphor doesn't alone play any great role, it is all fine to prepare it with the flavor of cardamom alone in it. His search was in vain for edible camphor though. He finally relied on my statement and asked me to add more of cardamom and prepare this dessert. He loves to eat sweets and also particular that the sweets should have good quantity of sweetness in them. When he eats savory items he would not like any kind of sweetness in them. Phew, at times it is real tough time for me making him feel satisfied.
So I followed my own recipe with good amount of sweetness using both jaggery and sugar to get it right moreover as desired by him. Here goes the recipe.

Ingredients:
Split skinned green gram/moong dal- 1/2 cup
Raw rice(Sona masoori)- 1 cup
Jaggery- 6 2'' cubes
Sugar-1 cup
Dry coconut scraps-2 tbsp.
Milk-3 1/2 cups
Cardamom-3-4 pods crushed
Cashewnuts and raisins- 1/4 cup
Ghee-6-8 tsp
Water-3 cups+1/2 cup
Salt-a pinch
Powdered edible camphor(optional)- a pinch( I didn't have hence didn't add)

Recipe:

1. In a pan add jaggery and 1/2 cup water to it. Heat it on a low flame till jaggery melts and then add sugar to it.
2. Pressure cook cleaned rice and moong dal together with 2 cups water and 2 1/2 cups of milk for 4-5 whistles.
3. Now transfer the cooked rice and dal to another pan and add 1 cup water and 1 cup milk to it and give a good mix to get the mushy texture and on a low flame cook it further.
4. Fry the cashews and raisins in ghee till they are golden brown. Keep aside.
5. Cook the jaggery sugar mixture in step 1 till it comes to boil.
6. To the mushy rice and dal mixture add dry coconut scraps and mix well and cook for a while.
7. Crush the cardamom pods.
8. Add them to the mushy rice and mix well. Add a pinch of salt (just a pinch, mind it, not more than a pinch). If available add edible camphor too.
9. Now using a ladle transfer the sugar jaggery mixture little by little to the mushy rice mixture and keep mixing till it gets fully incorporated with continuous stirring and cooking in low flame.
10. Now add the fried cashews and raisins along with the ghee to the hot mixture and mix well. Sakkarai pongal is ready to serve.

 

Enjoy the dish! n don't forget Eat and Eat little MORE.. :)

 

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