RAG Demo

Tag: Jaggery

  • Sakkarai Pongal

    Sakkarai pongal, or sweet pongal, is the dish at the centre of the Tamil harvest festival of Pongal. Freshly harvested rice is cooked with moong dal and jaggery in a new clay pot, often outdoors in the sun, and the moment it boils over is celebrated with shouts of pongalo pongal. It is also a common temple offering.

    The flavour is rich and sweet, with the earthy depth of jaggery, the fragrance of cardamom and a hint of edible camphor. Generous amounts of ghee give it a glossy, soft texture, while fried cashews and raisins add crunch and bursts of sweetness. It is festive and rich. Ghee is never measured sparingly here.

    Sakkarai pongal is eaten as a festive dessert or offering. It is best served warm, and a small spoonful of ghee on top makes it even richer. On the festival day, families cook it in a decorated clay pot outdoors, offering it to the sun god before sharing it. Leftovers are eaten cold the next day.

    At a glance

    RegionTamil Nadu
    CuisineTamil
    DietVegetarian
    CourseDessert
    Prep time10 minutes
    Cook time35 minutes
    Total time45 minutes
    Serves4
    Spice levelMild
    DifficultyEasy
    Gluten-freeYes
    Key ingredientsrice / moong dal / jaggery / ghee

    Ingredients

    • 1/2 cup raw rice
    • 2 tbsp moong dal
    • 2 1/2 cups water
    • 1/2 cup milk
    • 3/4 cup (150 g) grated jaggery
    • 1/4 cup water for jaggery
    • 4 tbsp ghee
    • 10 cashews
    • 1 tbsp raisins
    • 1/2 tsp cardamom powder
    • A tiny pinch of edible camphor (pachai karpooram)
    • A pinch of nutmeg

    Method

    1. Dry roast the moong dal on low heat for 2 minutes until fragrant. Wash with the rice.
    2. Pressure cook the rice and dal with water and milk for 4-5 whistles until very soft. Mash lightly.
    3. Melt the jaggery in 1/4 cup water on low heat, strain to remove impurities, and simmer for 2-3 minutes until slightly thick.
    4. Add the jaggery syrup to the cooked rice and dal and stir on low heat for 5 minutes until combined and thick.
    5. Add 2 tbsp ghee, cardamom, camphor and nutmeg and stir.
    6. Fry the cashews and raisins in the remaining ghee until golden and plump, and pour over the pongal.

    Tips

    • Use a very tiny pinch of edible camphor; too much is overpowering.
    • The pongal thickens on cooling; add warm milk to loosen.
    • Dark jaggery gives a deeper colour and flavour.

    Serve with

    Served warm on its own or alongside ven pongal and vada.

  • Unniyappam

    Unniyappam, literally small appam, is a sweet fritter made in Kerala homes and temples for Vishu, Karthika Deepam and Krishna Jayanthi. It is also a common offering at temples like Kottarakkara, where it is the main prasadam. The batter is made from rice, jaggery and ripe banana and fried in a special pan with round cavities.

    A good unniyappam has a thin, crisp, dark brown shell and a soft, spongy, almost custardy centre. Flavours of jaggery, banana and cardamom come through, and fried coconut bits add little bursts of crunch. They keep for two or three days, which made them a traditional travelling snack. In many homes the first batch is offered at the pooja room before anyone eats.

    At a glance

    RegionKerala
    CuisineKerala
    DietVegetarian
    CourseSnack
    Prep time20 minutes
    Cook time30 minutes
    Total time50 minutes
    Serves6
    Spice levelMild
    DifficultyMedium
    Gluten-freeYes
    Key ingredientsrice / jaggery / banana / coconut / ghee

    Ingredients

    • 1 cup raw rice, soaked 4 hours
    • 3/4 cup grated jaggery
    • 1/3 cup water for melting jaggery
    • 2 small ripe bananas (palayamkodan or poovan), or 1 robusta
    • 2 tbsp wheat flour or rava (optional, for softness)
    • 1/2 tsp cardamom powder
    • pinch of salt
    • 1/4 tsp baking soda
    • 3 tbsp thin coconut bits (thenga kothu)
    • 1 tsp black sesame seeds
    • ghee and coconut oil for frying, about 1 cup

    Method

    1. Melt the jaggery with 1/3 cup water on low heat until dissolved. Strain to remove impurities and cool.
    2. Drain the rice and grind with the bananas and jaggery syrup to a thick, slightly coarse batter, like idli batter. Add water only if absolutely necessary.
    3. Transfer to a bowl, stir in the wheat flour, cardamom and salt, and rest for 2-4 hours. The batter will become slightly airy.
    4. Fry the coconut bits in 1 tsp ghee until golden and add them to the batter with the sesame seeds. Stir in the baking soda just before frying.
    5. Heat the appam pan on medium heat and fill each cavity half full with ghee or a mix of ghee and coconut oil.
    6. When the fat is hot, pour batter into each cavity until three-quarters full. Fry on medium-low heat for 2-3 minutes until the base is deep brown.
    7. Turn each unniyappam with a skewer and fry the other side for 2 minutes until evenly brown.
    8. Lift out, drain on a rack, and repeat. Serve warm or at room temperature.

    Tips

    • The batter should be thick; a thin batter absorbs too much fat.
    • Overripe bananas give the softest and sweetest unniyappam.
    • Keep the heat moderate so the centres cook through before the shells darken too much.

    Serve with

    Black tea or coffee in the evening; also offered as temple prasadam.