Sakkarai Pongal is made along with Paal Pongal or Ven Pongal & Special 5 Vegetable Kuzhambu on Pongal festival. Sakkarai Pongal is a sweet treat for the family and is shared with family & friends on the festival day. This sweet pongal temple style recipe is one of our family staple for any special occasion.
Roasting rice and moong dal
1.Crush cardamom and edible camphor together and set aside. Dry roast 1/4 cup moong dal until nice aroma comes. Pongal means overflowing or bubbling up by boiling and Sakkarai or Chakkara means jaggery / country sugar in Tamil. Water and milk is boiled and then raw rice, jaggery, dal, dry fruits, ghee are added to make Sakkarai Pongal. Pongal is celebrated for four days, and on the second day, known as Surya Pongal, Sweet Pongal is traditionally prepared as an offering to the Sun God as a gratitude. The significance of using raw rice instead of boiled rice for making Pongal is that first cooking with the harvest is celebrated and dedicated to Sun God. The use of jaggery in Sweet Pongal symbolizes sweetness and prosperity. Sweet Pongal is also known as Sakkarai Pongal or Chakkara Pongal or Festive Sarkkarai Pongal made during Pongal festival in South India. In some households, the preparation of Sweet Pongal is considered auspicious and is often done as a ritual during festivals or special occasions. Sakkarai Pongal is made traditionally during Pongal festival or Makar Sankaranti as the first meal with the first harvested rice of the year. Pongal is made in the east direction facing Sun which symbolizes thanks giving & dedication of the first meal from the harvest to Sun God for a bountiful harvest.
Sweet Pongal Video
Sweet Pongal in cooker
Sakkarai Pongal in Pot – Traditional method
Similar Recipes
Paal pongal Millet sweet pongal Kalkandu pongal Pongal kuzhambu Medu Vada
Sweet Pongal Ingredients
Rice : Use raw rice for making Pongal. At stores it is available as Pongal Raw Rice / Pongal Pacharisi. Dal : Use moong dal half the quantity as that of rice. Jaggery: If you have access get paaguvellam or achuvellam which is slightly darker, else you can use mold jaggery. Milk : The temple style sweet pongal doesn’t use milk however we add milk to give it a rich taste. Use full cream milk if possible else you can use regular toned milk. Flavors : Use bountiful cashews, raisins, cardamom powder and ghee for Pongal.
Sweet Pongal – 2 methods
Traditionally Pongal is slow cooked in pots with firewood and as times changed we are cooking in pressure cooker nowadays. I have presented the cooking of Sweet Pongal here in both these methods.
- Sweet pongal – Pressure cooker method: Cooking Pongal in pressure cooker is easy, convenient and less time consuming.
- Sakkarai pongal – Traditional pot method: Traditionally Sakkarai Pongal is made in bronze pot as shared here.
How to make sweet pongal step by step
Preparing jaggery syrup
2.Add 1/3 cup water to 3/4 cup jaggery and heat it up for few minutes until jaggery melts completely.
Cook rice and dal
3.Rinse 1/2 cup rice and dal well and add it to pressure cooker. 3.Measure and 3 cups add water to it. 4.Pressure cook for 5 whistles in low medium flame. Let the pressure release by itself. 5.Once pressure releases, open and mash it well. Strain and add jaggery syrup.
Add jaggery syrup to rice, dal
6.Strain and add jaggery syrup to it. 7.The syrup should be slightly thick but no consistency needs to be checked. 8.Mix well and let it boil in sim to thicken. Of adding milk add 1/2 cup milk at this stage
Add flavoring
9.Add 2 tablespoon ghee. Mix well and cook in low flame. 10.Add cardamom powder made from 2 cardamom and a tiny pinch of crushed edible camphor.
Frying nuts and raisins
11.Heat 2 teaspoon ghee in a pan – add 10 cashews broken first fry until golden then add 1 tablespoon raisins and let it bubble up. Fry until golden brown.
Making sweet pongal
12.Add it to pongal, mix well.Switch off. Sweet pongal ready!
Sakkarai Pongal in Pot
Sakkarai pongal is traditionally made in pot. Sakkarai pongal is not only made for Pongal festival but can be made for various other small occasions at home. We make sweet pongal or sakkarai pongal for aadi velli, auspicious days, or even for small pooja at home. Sakkarai Pongal is made traditionally on Pongal festival or Makar Sankaranthi with the first harvested rice of the year and offered as a thanks giving dish to Sun God before consuming.
How to make sakkarai pongal step by step
2.Let it dissolve completely then set aside. 3.Add 1/2 cup milk to a traditional bronze pot. 4.Add 7 cups water to it. 5.Let it boil. 6.Keep in medium high. Let it overflow. 7.Stir well. 8.Rinse 1 cup raw rice, 1/4 cup moong dal and add it to the pot. 9.Cook in medium high until rice is 3/4th cooked and water is almost absorbed. 10.Now strain and add jaggery syrup. 11.Mix well and cook until it becomes thick. Now add ghee fried cashews,raisins. 12.Heat ghee in tadka pan – fry 2 tablespoon cashews then add 1 tablespoon raisins fry until golden. 13.Add ghee fried nuts, raisins, remaining 3 tablespoon ghee and cardamom powder made from 2 small cardamom. Mix well , cook for a minute then switch off. When it cools down it gets thick so switch off when it is still goey.
📖 Recipe Card
Generally sweet pongal keeps well for 2 days in room temperature. However if refrigerated you can consume next day.
1.What is Sakkarai Pongal?
Sweet Pongal is a delicious, yummy rice meal made by cooking rice &moong dal in jaggery syrup, milk, water and then flavoured with ghee and cashews.
2.How to make Sweet Pongal?
Add jaggery and water to a pan, boil till jaggery is dissolved completely. Dry roast moong dal and add it to rice. Add water and pressure cook for 5 whistles in low medium flame.Let the pressure release by itself. Strain and add jaggery syrup. Mix well and let it boil in sim to thicken. Add cardamom powder and dry fruits sauteed in ghee. Serve hot with ghee drizzled.
3.Can I make jaggery syrup the previous night and store in fridge?
Yes very well – That saves quite some time on the festival day!
4.I do not have raw rice – Can I cook with boiled rice or brown rice?
Raw rice is preferred when it is offered as Neivaidhyam. However you can cook Sweet Pongal with all types of rice given that taste may slightly vary based on the type of rice. For Brown rice cook extra for 20-30 minutes.
5.At what step I need to add milk and will milk get curdled?
In traditional method, milk is boiled with water and then rice, dal & other ingredients are added. In the pressure cook method, add boiled milk before jaggery syrup is added.
6.Can I add coconut to Pongal, edible camphor?
Yes very much – Add grated coconuts, edible camphor and other flavours along with dry fruits.
7.What is the ratio of rice to dal? Can I use toor dal?
Use half the quantity of moong dal to the amount of rice! Do not use toor dal and if you do not have mong dal, you can skip it.
8.Why does rice gets stuck to pot?
You have to stir well and quite often to prevent a layer of rice getting stuck to pot. If you have any more questions about this Sweet Pongal Recipe do mail me at [email protected]. In addition, follow me on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, Youtube and Twitter . Tried this Sweet Pongal Recipe ? Do let me know how you liked it. Also tag us on Instagram @sharmispassions and hash tag it on #sharmispassions.
