Sakkarai Pongal / Chakkara Pongal | Pongal Recipes

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Sweet or sakkarai pongal is my fav - Rice with moong dhal cooked in jaggery and milk simmered and then garnished with ghee roasted cashews and raisins....who will say no to it. I have already posted the recipe for sweet and milk pongal using the traditional pot method. The best combination with sweet pongal is medu vada - Both are like match made in heaven :)

Sakkarai Pongal Recipe

Ingredients:

• Raw Rice - 1/2 cup
• Moong Dal - 3 tbsp
• Milk - 3/4 cup
• Jaggery - 3/4 cup + 2 tbsp (crushed or grated)
• Cardamom powder - a small pinch
• Saffron - 2 to 3 strands (optional)
• Ghee - 2 tbsp
• Cashews- 1 tsp broken
• Raisins - 1/2 tsp
• Water - 2 cups(for pressure cooking moong dhal)

Method:

1. Dry roast moong dhal until nice aroma rises, Keep aside. Add safron strands in warm milk and set aside. In a pan add little ghee and roast cashews and raisins until golden brown.

2. Pressure cook moong dhal, rice with water for 3 whistles in medium flame, mush it up a laddle once and set aside.Add jaggery in warm water(just till immersing level) and mix it well. Then strain to remove impurities and add it to the pan.

3. Bring it to a boil, then add the cooked rice monng dhal and mix well with the jaggery syrup. Then add milk with saffron and mix well.

4. Combine well, add cardamom powder, ghee and roasted raisins and cashews and give a quick stir. Once its semi thick switch off and serve hot.

Serve hot with medu vada or paruppu vada. We make sweet milk pongal often when there is leftover rice and excess milk and I used to finish half of it :)

My Notes :

• Switch it off in semi running consistency as it tends to get thicker with time.
• Adding saffron is purely optional but will give a richer taste.
• Adding more milk and cooking the pongal in milk gives a yummy taste.