Restaurant style Pongal / Ven pongal - Lemon n Spice Kids Lunch box ideas

Pongal, carrots, grapes, protein bar and apple jack loops

Another busy Monday morning!!!

Hope you all had a wonderful Vinayaka Chathurthi. Today I packed -   Lunch: Pongal, Snacks - Bar, grapes, carrots and Apple Jack cereal loops

How to make Pongal / Ven Pongal / Ghee Pongal at home using a Pressure cooker?

Cooking time: 15minutes Serves: 2 kids / 1 adult

Ingredients :

Sona masoori rice / Pachari : 1/4 Cup

Moong Daal / Cherupayaru parippu : 1/4 cup

Salt : 1/2tspv v    

For Tempering :

Mustard seeds: 1/4 tsp

Cumin seeds: 1/4 tsp

Pepper corns: 10

Ginger: a thin slice or 1/2 tsp, finely chopped

Curry leaves: 1 spring, finely chopped

Cashews: 10, broken into pieces

Asafoetida powder: 1/4 Tsp

Green chilly: 1, finely chopped (I don't add it if it is for lunchbox)

Ghee: 1 tbsp (My homemade ghee became a bit dark this time, so the color of ven Pongal was not white ;) )

Pongal, carrots, grapes, protein bar and apple jack loops

Directions to make Pongal at home :

1. Transfer the rice and moong daal to a pressure cooker. Wash and clean the rice and pressure cook with 2 cups of water and 1/2 Tsp of salt. When the pressure releases, open the lid and mash the pongal with the back of a spoon or potato masher.

2. In a tadka pan, heat the ghee and add the mustard seeds. When it splutters, add the cumin seeds along with cashews and pepper corns. Fry till the cashews are golden and then add the curry leaves, ginger, green chilly and asafoetida powder. Turn off the flame and add this to the pongal. Combine everything together and serve warm with pickle or sambhar.

Happy cooking,

Lena