Puli Pongal

Ingredients 

• Raw rice - 1 cup
• Green gram (Moong) dal - 3/4 cup
• Asafoetida - a pinch
• Salt - to taste
• Ginger - 1" piece (grated)
• Tamarind - a little piece (marble sized, soaked in water)
• Water - 5 cups
• Cashew nuts - 6-7
• Ghee/ Sesame oil - 2-3 tbsp 
• Curry leaves - 6-7
• Whole black pepper - 1 tsp
• Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
• Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
• Dry red Chillies - 2-3
• Coriander Seeds - 1 tsp

Method

1. In a pressure cooker, take the rice, moong dal, water, required salt, grated ginger, Asaefoetida and cook for 3-4 whistles.
2. Wait till the pressure is released. The rice should be little overdone.
3. Heat ghee in a small pan, splutter the mustard seeds, cumin seeds, black pepper, curry leaves.
4. Add this to the cooked rice dal mixture after the pressure is released.
5. Fry the cashews in some ghee and add that too.
6. In the mean time, make a powder of the ingredients under 'to powder' and add that to the pongal too.
7. Add the tamarind juice also to the pongal.
8. Mix everything together and cook the rice for another 5-7 minutes for the tamarind to get cooked.
9. Add a spoon of sesame oil/ ghee and Serve piping hot with sambar.