Ven Pongal & Kotsu

Ingredients [For Pongal] : 

Good quality of raw rice - 1 glass

Moong dal -1/2 glass [nisely boiled ]

Water - 4 glasses

Salt - as per taste

Ghee - 1/4 cup

Ginger - 1 inch piece

Asafoetida - 1/2 sp

Black pepper - 1/2 sp

Cumin seeds - 1 sp

Cashewnuts - 10 [broken]

Curry leaves -little

Oil - 2 tbl sp.

Method :

Wash the rice nicely. Then take a pressure pan, keep it on the gas & put the boiled moong dal along with rice. Add 4 glasses of water, salt, asafoetida, ginger piece, black pepper, jeera powder & mix well. Close the cooker & wait for around 4-5 whistles to come. Wait for a while till the steam comes out fully & then heat the ghee & oil together in kadai. Fry cashewnuts, little black pepper, 2 sp of cumin seeds & curry leaves & pour it to the pongal. Your ven pongal is ready. Serve hot with kotsu. This type of pongal I learned from my mother who is also an expert cook.

                         

Vegetable Kotsu :

Ingredients :

Brinjal - 1/4 kg

Big onion - 2 peeled & chopped

Big tomatoes - 2 finely chopped

Slit green chillies - 2

Big potato - 1[cut into dices]

Carrot - 1 [cut into dices]

Fresh peas - 1/4 cup

Tamarind paste - 1 sp

Salt - as per raste

Turmeric powder - 1/2 sp

Red chillie powder - 1 sp

Sambar powder - 3/4 sp

Sugar or jaggery -1 tbl sp

Oil - 2 tbl sp

Mustard seeds - 1 sp

Broken black gram dal - 1 sp

Bengal gram dal - 1 sp

Boiled moong dal - 1/2 cup

Crushed pepper jeera powder - 1 sp

Curry leaves - little 

Cut fresh coriander leaves - little.

Method :

Take one small pressure cooker & pour oil. Add mustard seeds, broken gram dal, bengal gram dal. When the mustard seeds splutters add onion, green chillie & curry leaves. When the onion turns to light pink colour, add other vegetables one by one & fry for 2 mins. Then add salt, turmeric, red chillie powder, sambar powder, little sugar or jaggery, tamarind paste & mix well. Add enough water along with boiled moong dal & chopped tomatoes. Put the crushed pepper jeera powder & mix well. Close the cooker. After 3 whistles, remove the cooker from the gas. After the pressure comes out, open the cooker & garnish with the coriander leaves. Serve with ven pongal.