| Origin | |
|---|---|
| Place of origin | India |
| Region or state | Tamil Nadu, South India |
| Dish details | |
| Main ingredient(s) | Rice |
| Variations | Sakarai pongal, Ven pongal |
Pongal (Tamil: பொங்கல்,Telugu: పొంగలి) is a popular rice porridge dish based in South India. Pongal is unique to Tamil cuisine, but many other widely consumed Indian dish Khichdi.
There are two varieties of pongal, namely, sakarai pongal (sweet pongal) and ven pongal (spicy pongal). The unqualified word ponga usually refers to spicy pongal, and is a common breakfast food in several parts of India. The rice boiled with milk and jaggery during the Pongal festival is also called pongal - this is sweet pongal made specially in earthenware pots with a wood fire.
Contents |
Sakarai pongal (sweet) is generally prepared in temples as a prasad, i.e., offering to God. This type of pongal is also prepared during the Pongal festival (similar to Thai Pongal) in Tamil Nadu,South India.
Sakarai means sugar in the Tamil language. It tastes sweet and contains ingredients like rice, sugar/jaggery, coconut pieces or moong daal. The sweetening agent in sakarai is traditionally jaggery, but sometimes candy sugar can be added. This makes a white looking pongal, but adding jaggery makes a darker brown coloured pongal.
Ven(White) pongal is a popular dish in South Indian homes and is typically served as a special breakfast in Tamil Nadu.
Melagu pongal is a spicy variant made with pepper, rice and moong daal.
Puli pongal is a variant that is made with tamarind and boiled rice. It is not specifically associated with the Pongal festival and is often eaten for dinner in Tamil Nadu.
Every January, Tamilians celebrate Pongal, a harvest festival. The name itself is derived from the fact that pongal (the dish) is cooked in the morning and offered to the gods, thanking them for the harvest.
Traditionally ancient Tamil people cook pongal before pooja and offer it to the deities.