Thinai Pongal
- 45 min
- mild
- Serves 4
Thinai pongal, a Tamil Nadu breakfast of foxtail millet and moong dal with a ghee, pepper, cumin and cashew tempering. Mild, vegetarian, serves 4, 45 minutes.
You’ll need: Pressure Cooker
Good for: Pongal
Ingredients
Thinai Arisi (Foxtail Millet), For Rinsing1 cup
Moong Dal, For Rinsing½ cup
Water, For Rinsing500 ml
Salt1¼ tsp
Ghee3 tbsp
Cashew (half)10
Cumin1 tsp
Black Peppercorns, Crushed2 grams
Ginger, Finely Chopped6 grams
Curry leaves2 grams
Asafoetida0.5 grams
Contains: milk, cashew or other tree nuts, wheat.
Nutrition
Per 1 person, and for all 4 people. Worked out from the ingredients, so treat it as a close guide.
| Nutrient | Per 1 person | All 4 people |
|---|---|---|
| Energy | 363kcal | 1452kcal |
| Protein | 13g | 50g |
| Carbohydrate | 47g | 189g |
| Fat | 15g | 60g |
| Fibre | 7.7g | 31g |
| Sugar | 0.6g | 2.4g |
Cookd masalas for thinai arisi (foxtail millet)
Method
Rinse the foxtail millet and moong dal together two or three times using 500 ml water, then drain well. Crush the pepper and finely chop the ginger. Rinse the curry leaves.
Add the rinsed millet and dal to a pressure cooker. Pour in 900 ml water and add salt. Cook uncovered on medium flame for 5 minutes until the water comes to a steady boil.
Close the cooker and pressure cook on medium flame for 4 whistles, about 12 minutes. Let the pressure release on its own for about 10 minutes. Open the cooker and check that the millet and dal are soft and mash easily.
Mix the pongal well. Simmer on low flame for 3 minutes until it becomes soft and spoonable.
Heat 2 tbsp ghee in a small kadai on medium flame for 1 minute until melted and hot. Add the cashew halves and fry for 1 minute until light golden. Add cumin, crushed pepper and ginger and fry for 30 seconds, then add the curry leaves and asafoetida and switch off after 10 seconds.
Pour the tempering over the pongal and add the remaining 1 tbsp ghee. Mix and cook on low flame for 2 minutes until the pongal is hot and the ghee is mixed in, then serve.
Before you start
- How long does Thinai Pongal take?
- 45 minutes from start to finish. That is 10 minutes of preparation and 35 minutes of cooking.
- How many people does Thinai Pongal serve?
- 4. The ingredient quantities on this page rescale if you are cooking for a different number.
- Is Thinai Pongal vegetarian?
- Yes. No meat, no fish and no egg.
- Is Thinai Pongal spicy?
- It is mild: 1 on our scale of 3. Chilli scales gently when you change the servings, so doubling the recipe does not double the heat.
- What do I need to make Thinai Pongal?
- 1 cup Thinai Arisi (Foxtail Millet), ½ cup Moong Dal, 10 Cashew (half), 2 grams Black Peppercorns, 6 grams Ginger, 2 grams Curry leaves, and a few more listed on this page.
- Do I need a pressure cooker for Thinai Pongal?
- Yes, this one is cooked under pressure.
- How many calories are in Thinai Pongal?
- About 363 a serving. The full nutrition table is on this page, per serving and for the whole batch.
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