Usually Pongal is made with rice and dal. Chakkarai Pongal is the sweet pongal made with rice, dal and jaggery. This is the savoury version of the pongal made with rava.
Ingredients:
Roasted Bombay Rava/Semolina – 1 cup
Water – 3 cups
Moong dal – 1/2 cup
Seasonings:
Whole Pepper – 1 tsp
Jeera – 1 tsp
Curry leaf – 1 sprig
Turmeric – a pinch
Asafoetida – a pinch
Ginger – 1 inch piece chopped finely
Ghee/Oil -1/4 cup
Preparation:
Roast the rava in a hot kadai until it is very slightly brown in colour (if the store bough rava is not a roasted one). Remove it from the pan and cool it. Though some people like to dry roast the moong dal, I prefer not to roast it. Boil the moong dal separately with 2 cups of water and a pinch of turmeric, until it is cooked. Do not overcook it. Heat kadai and add the seasonings and keep aside. In another pan, boil 3 cups of water. (Measure the water in which the moong dal has been boiled). Adjust the water accordingly. To the boiling water, add salt as per taste and add the rava and keep stirring to ensure lumps are not formed. Continue stirring for 2 minutes and then add the seasonings, stir it again and close and cook for another 2 minutes. Serve with spicy tomato chutney and add a little ghee before serving.
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