Makar Sankranti Recipes you can try easily. This is a collection of pongal festival or makar sankranti recipes which covers both South Indian and North Indian food.
The collection includes sakkarai pongal, paal pongal, vellai pongal, kalkandu pongal and more varieties of sweet pongal recipes and few snacks like vadai and lunch recipes too.
Check more pongal recipes here.
Sakkarai Pongal – Harvest’s 1st Meal
Sakkarai Pongal is made traditionally during Pongal festival or Makar Sankaranti as the first meal with the first harvested rice of the year. Pongal is made in the east direction facing Sun which symbolizes thanks giving & dedication of the first meal from the harvest to Sun God for a bountiful harvest.
The significance of using raw rice instead of boiled rice for making Pongal is that first cooking with the harvest is celebrated & dedicated to Sun God.
Sweet pongal can be made using 2 methods the traditional pot method or pressure cooker method. I have shared both the methods for making sweet pongal.
Sweet pongal or sakkarai pongal is my most favorite and I make it atleast once a month.
Sakkarai pongal recipe a delicious Indian sweet made with rice, jaggery, moong dal, ghee and nuts. Easy sweet pongal recipe made in pressure cooker. Traditionally sweet pongal is made with just jaggery rice and moong dal as main ingredients. Milk is optional to add or not. We serve sakkarai pongal in vazhailai(banana leaf).
During poojas or any auspicious days we can make this sweet pongal and offer as neiveidhyam for god. Many south indian household have the custom of making sweet pongal on fridays apart from festival days like pongal.
Pongal can be made using pressure cooker or bronze pot. The traditional method of making sweet pongal in villages is to use brass or mud pots, they use viragu adupu(woodfire) to make it.
Sweet Pongal – when to make?
Apart from Pongal festival, Sweet Pongal is made for occasions like
- house warming
- baby shower
- anniversary, birthday
- prasad in temples
- annadhanam
- aadi month, auspicious Fridays
- sweet craving
Sweet Pongal is delicious, yummy dish made by cooking rice & moong dal in milk, water & jaggery syrup and then flavoured with ghee and cashews. How to make Sweet Pongal / Sakkarai Pongal is explained in this post with step by step pictures.
During poojas or any auspicious days we can make this sakkarai pongal and offer as neiveidhyam tor god. Many south indian household have the custom of making sweet pongal on fridays apart from festival days like pongal.
What is Makar sankranti?
Makar sankranti is a festival in Hindu calendar which falls on January 14th or 15th every year. Makar Sankranti festival is dedicated to Sun God. We call it by many names and is a multi cultural festival celebrated all over India.
Makar Sankranti is celebrated in the month of January every year to mark the winter solstice. It is one of the popular and largely celebrated festivals in India.
Pongal Festival Recipes
Sweet Pongal | Sakkarai Pongal
Sweet Pongal also called Sakkarai Pongal or chakkarai pongal in tamil is a delicious Indian sweet made with rice, jaggery, moong dal, ghee and nuts. Easy Sweet Pongal Recipe made in pressure cooker explained in this post with step by step pictures and video.
Sweet pongal | Sakkarai pongal - Pressure cooker method
Sweet pongal recipe a delicious rice based sweet dish made with rice, jaggery, moong dal, milk, ghee and nuts.
Sakkarai Pongal Recipe
Sakkarai Pongal is made traditionally on Pongal festival or Mahar Sankaranthi with the first harvested rice of the year and offered as a thanks giving dish to Sun God before consuming. Sweet Pongal is delicious, yummy dish made by cooking rice & moong dal in milk, water & jaggery syrup and then flavoured with ghee and cashews. How to make Sweet Pongal / Sakkarai Pongal is explained in this post with step by step pictures.
Paal Pongal | Milk Pongal
Paal Pongal is made on Pongal festival or Mahar Sankaranthi along with Sweet Pongal or Sakkarai Pongal with the first harvested rice of the year. Paal Pongal is offered to Sun God and traditionally cooked in open space facing sun in mud /brass pots. Paal Pongal is a buttery delicious pongal made by cooking rice & moong dal in milk & water.
Kalkandu Pongal | Kalkandu Sadam
Kalkandu Pongal also called as Kalkandu Bath & Kalkandu Sadam is a yummy sweet pongal made using rice, moong dal and kalkandu or sugar candy as sweetener instead of jaggery. Kalkandu Pongal is a good alternative to kesari, sweet in a breakfast menu and very easy to cook in large batches for parties & functions. Kalkandu Pongal Recipe is presented in this recipe with step by step pictures.
Varagu Samai Inipu Pongal
Varagu Samai Inipu Pongal is a healthy delicious sweet pongal made with a mix of millets like kodo millet and little millet. How to cook Varagu Samai Inipu Pongal is featured in this post with step by step pictures.
Aval Inipu Pongal
Aval Inipu Pongal is an instant easy sweet pongal made with flattended rice, moong dal, jaggery and milk. How to cook Aval Inipu Pongal is described in this post wiht step by step pictures.
Pongal Kulambu
Pongal Kulambu is a traditional tangy & delicious side dish for sweet pongal and milk pongal. Pongal Kulambu is commonly made on Pongal Festival and made by cooking at least 5 vegetables with spices, onion & tomato. Pongal Kuzhambu is also called Pongal Pulicurry.
Karupatti Pongal
Karupatti pongal is a native version of pongal made with rice, dal and palm jaggery to sweeten. Karupatti Pongal is healthy as it is rich in iron content & aids in digestion too. How to cook Karupatti Pongal is described in this post with step by step pictures.Sweet pongal | Sakkarai pongal - Pressure cooker method
Sweet pongal recipe a delicious rice based sweet dish made with rice, jaggery, moong dal, milk, ghee and nuts.
Lemon Rice Recipe
Lemon Rice is a flavourful tangy rice meal made by tempering spices, flavouring with lemon juice finally mixing it with cooked rice. Lemon rice is easy and quick to cook that you can make in no time. How to cook lemon rice recipe is explained in this post with step by step pictures and video.
Mango Rice
Mango Rice is a flavourful, tangy rice made by tempering grated raw mango & spices and blending it with cooked rice. Mango Rice is a perfect meal for lunchbox & travel and is savoured by tangy taste lovers.
Coconut Rice | Thengai Sadam
Coconut rice is a popular South Indian variety rice made by tempering grated coconut with spices and then mixing them with cooked rice. Coconut rice or thengai sadam is easy to make and at the same time flavorful and delicious.
Sabudana Vada
Sabudana Vada is a crispy & delicious snack made by frying sago pearls mixed with peanuts,potato, herbs and spices.
Coconut Ladoo
Coconut Ladoo is a quick instant ladoo made using just 3 ingredients coconut, condensed milk and cardamom powder. Coconut Ladoo is a flavourful, flaky sweet made by roasting grated coconut & blending it with condensed milk & cardamom powder. Coconut Laddu is a right choice for a mini celebration at home as it is very delicious & could be made in minutes.
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