Ven Pongal | Khara Pongal | Pressure Cooker Ven Pongal

5 from 1 vote

Ven pongal - a South Indian traditional dish prepared with rice and yellow moong dal! It is also known as ghee pongal or khara pongal.

Prep Time10

Cook Time30

Total Time40

Course: Breakfast

Cuisine: South Indian

Keyword: ghee pongal, khara pongal, ven pongal

Servings:

Calories: 314kcal

Author: Srividhya G

¾ cup raw rice
¼ cup yellow moong dal
4 cups water divided ( 3 cups + 1 cup hot water), plus extra water for the pressure cooker
2 tsp black peppercorns divided (1.5 + ½ tsp)
10 curry leaves divided
¾ tsp salt or to taste
3 tbsp ghee
1 tbsp cumin seeds
1.5 tsp ginger chopped
1/16 tsp asafoetida a tiny pinch
15 cashews broken

Take the rice and the moong dal in the vessel in which you will make the pongal. Rinse the rice and dal thoroughly, and drain the water.
Add 3 cups of water, a few curry leaves, ½ tsp black peppercorns, and salt. Mix well.
In a pressure cooker or pan, add 1.5 cups of water and place the vessel with the rice and dal. Close the pressure cooker and put the whistle/weight. Pressure cook for four whistles and let the pressure subside naturally.
Open the pressure cooker and take out the inner pot with pongal carefully. Mix and mash the rice and dal. Now add ½ to 1 cup of hot water, mix well, and bring the pongal to your desired consistency.
In a separate tempering pan, add the ghee, and when it is hot, add the remaining black peppercorns, cumin seeds, curry leaves, ginger, asafoetida, and cashews. Roast until the cashews are light golden brown.
Add this tempering to the ven pongal and mix well. Serve hot with sides of your choice.

If you are not a big black pepper fan, instead of adding black peppercorns, add 1 tsp of black pepper and ½ tsp of ground black pepper, or adjust the pepper powder according to your taste.
If you feel the salt is less, add the required salt to a ¼ cup of hot water. Allow it to dissolve, and then add it to the pongal. Do not add the salt directly to the pongal.
I don't add the full measure of water while pressure cooking. I reserve one cup and always add it after the pressure cooking part is complete. Add hot water while adjusting the consistency of pongal.
Adjust the water according to the rice variety/quality and as per your liking.
While tempering, I don't add the ingredients one by one. I add them all at once, as we love the deep-roasted flavor of cumin and ginger. You can add them one by one too.
Adjust the ghee measure to your preference. You can reduce it to 2 tbsp or increase it to 4 tbsp too.
You can replace rice with quinoa or millets. (Check quinoa foxtail millet pongal recipe)