Desserts/Festive/Other Desserts

Sweet Pongal

Posted on by Vijaya Venkatesh
Cooks in: 15 Minutes Serves: 2 People

The name Chakkarai Pongal or Sweet Pongal suggests that the dish is made with some sweetner. This dish is prepared in all Tamil houses for Pongal festival. Pongal is a four days long harvest festival celebrated in Tamil Nadu. This festival of thanksgiving to nature takes its name from the Tamil word ''pongudhal'' meaning ''to boil'' and is held in the month of Thai (January-February) during the season when rice and other cereals, sugarcane, and turmeric are harvested.

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 Cup Barnyard Millet/Kudhiraivali
  • 1/2 Cup Moong dal
  • 1/2 Cup Powdered Jaggery
  • 1/8 tsp Cardamom Powder
  • 3 tbsp Ghee
  • 1 Cup Milk
  • 2 cups Water
  • 2 tbsp Ghee fried cashews, raisins
  • 3 tbsp Water for jaggery syrup

Directions:

  1. Dry roast the millet and dal separately till nice aroma on medium heat.
  2. Once cooled, wash and add them to a 3 Ltr Pressure Cooker.
  3. Add water, milk, cardamom powder in the cooker, close and cook for 5 whistles on medium heat. Switch off and let the pressure settle down.
  4. Meanwhile, heat a pan and add jaggery and water. Make a thick syrup.
  5. Once pressure settles down, open, mix the jaggery syrup with the cooked dal and millet.
  6. Mix thoroughly adding ghee.
  7. Garnish with cashews and raisins.

13 Comments

  1. Can I PIP jaggery with water and mix on opening the cooker? Will it interfere with the cooking of millet or the milk curdle if jaggery happens to mix?

    1. Hi Pk,
      Thanks so much for sharing your experience. Glad that it came out well !!

  4. Hi mam,
    I am not sure if the Jaggery is pure or not.. In that case how?
    And can the Jaggery syrup be added directly in hot mixture, it won’t curdle?

    1. Hi Gayathri,
      If you are not sure about the purity of jaggery, filter the syrup before mixing.

  5. Hi Viji
    Tried sweet pongal with varagu/ little millet tiday came out creamy and yumm, thank you for the recipe

  6. Hi,
    I made this today, was so good. We really enjoyed this. I was very skeptical about using millet instead of rice as I was concerned about the millet smell but this recipe turned out to be delightful. I’m encouraged to try more millet recipes now. Thank you.
    BTW, I love your website design, clean and organized.

    1. Hi Kavitha,
      Happy to know that you loved the millet Pongal. Please try other recipes and share your experience.
      The website was designed by my son who worked very hard to give a clean uncluttered mobile friendly look! Credit goes to him.