Chakkara Pongal is a traditional sweet offering made with rice, moong dal, jaggery, milk, ghee and garnished with cashews and raisins. It needs no introduction for the South Indian soul! In this post, I share three methods of making chakkarapongal – the festive way of using a brass pot, the convenient method of making it in the instant pot, and the quick, easy method to make it in a pressure cooker.
The recipe itself is the same, no surprises there. But, there are simple and specific methods to follow depending on how you choose to cook it. So, read the post and pick what works for you. I assure you – all of them are absolutely delicious.
Recipe for Chakkara Pongal
Chakkarapongal
Sakkarapongal or Chakkarapongal is a sweet porridge made with rice, dal, jaggery, milk and garnished with ghee roasted nuts and fruits. There are many methods to make it using a traditional brass pot, in the instant pot or a pressure cooker.
Servings 4
Ingredients
- ½ cup raw rice
- ⅛ cup moong dal
- 1 cup milk
- 2 cups water
- 4 tbsp ghee
- 1 tsp cardamom powder
- a pinch of edible camphor
- 2 tbsp cashews
- 2 tbsp raisins
- 1.5 cups jaggery
- ¼ cup water for making jaggery syrup
Instructions
Vengala Pannai / Brass Pot Method
- To a pan, add 2 tbsp ghee and roast cashews and raisins. There should still be some ghee left. Remove the cashews/raisins and set aside.
- To a vengala pannai, add one cup each of milk and water and let it come to a boil
- As it boils, keep stirring and once it comes to a full rolling boil – scream Pongalaooo pongal! ( or you don't have to as well)
- Now, add the washed and drained rice and dal and keep stirring.
- Ensure the pot is in low to medium flame and not high.It will take about 30 minutes to cook.
- Add a tbsp of ghee in between. The ghee helps to reduce over boiling.
- Keep stirring and add water as required to cook the rice and dal.
- In a seperate pan, make a jaggery syrup with 1½ cups jaggery and ¼ cup water. Stir until it dissolves fully, filter and add the jaggery syrup.
- Once the rice and dal is fully cooked, add the jaggery syrup. Make sure the jaggery syrup is cooler than the pongal mixture. Else, it may curdle if you add hot jaggery to hot milk.
- Finally, add one tsp cardamom and a pinch of edible camphor. Mix all and let it simmer for ten minutes before serving. Add the fried nuts on top and serve ( to God or to yourselves!)
Instant Pot Method ( I use a 6qt )
- In a IP, turn to Saute mode. Add 2 tbsp ghee and roast cashews and raisins. There should still be some ghee left. Remove the cashews/raisins and set them aside.
- Now, add more ghee if you need and add the drained rice and dal.
- Add the milk and water. Mix well. Cancel saute, and IP on high pressure cook mode 12 minutes.
- It does not matter if you do natural or quick release at this stage.
- Add 1.5 cups of powdered jaggery and mix well. ( or make a jaggery syrup as explained in the pressure cooker/brass pot method).
- Pressure cook mode again 5 minutes. Finally, add one tsp cardamom and a pinch of edible camphor. Mix all and let it simmer for ten minutes before serving. Add the fried nuts on top and serve ( to God or to yourselves!)
- If you are not using readily cleaned and powdered jaggery, make a syrup with the jaggery and ¼ cup water, filter and add to the cooked rice and dal. Make sure the jaggery syrup is cooler than the Pongal mixture. Else, it may curdle if you add hot jaggery to hot milk.
Pressure Cooker Method
- In a pressure cooker ,ad 2 tbsp ghee and roast cashews and raisins. There should still be some ghee left. Remove the cashews/raisins and set them aside.
- Now, add more ghee if you need and add the drained rice and dal.
- Add the milk and water. Close and pressure cook in medium to low flame for 4 whistles.
- In a seperate pan, make a jaggery syrup with 1½ cups jaggery and ¼ cup water. Stir until it dissolves fully, filter and add the jaggery syrup.
- Once the rice and dal is fully cooked, add the jaggery syrup. At this stage, if the dish requires more water add hot water.
- Make sure the jaggery syrup is cooler than the pongal mixture. Else, it may curdle if you add hot jaggery to hot milk.
- Finally, add one tsp cardamom and a pinch of edible camphor. Mix all and let it simmer on a low flame for ten minutes before serving. Add the fried nuts on top and serve ( to God or to yourselves!)
Notes
Cooking in Vengala Pannai/Brass Pot notes
- Always cook in low to medium flame to prevent sticking at the bottom of the pot. Adequate ghee also ensures there is no sticking/burning.
- At at stage, if you feel the pongal is drying – add more water to adjust consistency.
- The whole process ( for 1/2 cup rice) takes about 35-40 minutes. I reccomend staying around in the kitchen and stirring it to ensure it cooks well.
- The amount of liquid used will be lesser in closed pot cooking ( IP/PC) as compared to a open pot. It is also possible to add liquid after opening the cooker.
- At any point, ensure that the pressure cooker is never more than half full. Otherwise, the liwuid may overflow and cause a mess.
- Pongal will thicken as it cools and can be simmered to be thickened.
Chakkara Pongal is a really simple dish and honestly, you do not need to wait for Pongal to make it. If you own an IP/PC, it is literally child’s play.
Ratio of Rice to Dal for Chakkara Pongal
- The ratio of rice: dal is 4:1. So, if you are scaling this recipe, add four parts of rice to one part of dal.
- In some versions, a teaspoon of channa dal is added along with rice and moong dal. My amma never did that, so I dont. If you like it – do add it.
Ratio of Jaggery for Chakkara Pongal
- The ratio of rice+dal: jaggery can be between 1:2 to 1.3, depending on how sweet one likes it. So, use the same measure for all ingredients.
Tips on using Jaggery
- If making a jaggery syrup instead of using powdered jaggery – cut/slice jaggery into thin strips and add to water ( about 1/2 cup) and let it fully dissolve. Strain using a filter for any impurities and let is cool a bit. It does not have to be at room temprature, but it should not be boiling hot either. Else, it may curdle if you add hot jaggery to hot milk.
- Make sure the pongal is fully cooked and mushy before adding jaggery in any form ( either as it is or as syrup). There is no ‘cooking’ after that stage – it is just mixing and simmering.
- The colour of chakkarapongal largely depends on the kind of jaggery used. Pick a dark coloured hard jaggery ( at indian stores in australia, these are usually from brands in kerala)
- I prefer adding powdered jaggery over making jaggery syrup for the ease and convinience. However, some believe that making a syrup enhances taste. In my experience, I cannot say that definitevely. If you are not sure about the cleanliness of the jaggery used, make a syrup, filter and use.
Making Chakkara Pongal Vegan
- To make this recipe vegan – cook the pongal in only water ( no need to use any plant based milk), and substitute ghee with a neutral oil. If you have access to it – try and use a plant based butter for creaminess. I also reccomend adding a little sesame oil in the end, this mimics the nuttiness of ghee. Ensure you don’t add too much and to use the Indian variety of sesame oil ( the asian ones may be too strong).
Making Chakkara Pongal grain free
- To make this recipe grain free – use quinoa in the place of rice. The cooking time and method for IP and pressure cook remain the same. It may take slightly lesser time in the pot. Alternate grains like millets, wheat rava can also be used. Thinai is a popular choice in millets.
Making Chakkara Pongal using alternative sweeteners
- Alternative sweetners – coconut sugar/palm sugar can be used instead of jaggery. Add it to cooked rice and dal mixture and simmer.
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