Thinai Arisi or Foxtail Millet Venn Pongal

Thinai Arisi / Foxtail Millet Venn Pongal

Pongal is a popular rice dish in Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Sri Lanka. In Tamil, the root pong or pongu means to " boil over" or "spill over". We know that we do two types of Pongal, Cahkkarai Pongal, which is sweet made of using Jaggery and Venn Pongal, which is salty made of using pepper, ginger and salt! Here I'm giving a healthy Millet Venn Pongal, made with Thinai Arisi or Foxtail Millet, instead of regular Pacharisi or Raw Rice!

Ingredients

Thinai Arisi / Foxtail Millet - 1 cup
Pasi Paruppu / Green Gram Dhall - 1/2 cup
Milagu / Black Pepper - 1/2 tsp
Jeerakam / Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp
Asafoetida powder - 1 pinch
Ginger (finely chopped) - 1 tsp
Salt - As required
Ghee / Oil - 2 tbsp
Cashew nuts - few

Method

Heat ghee or oil in a thick bottomed pressure cooker.

Add black pepper and cumin seeds one after another and when it splutters add chopped ginger to it saute for few seconds.

Add green gram shall to it and sauté for few minutes.

Add millet to it and sauté for few minutes.

Add asafoetida powder and salt to it and mix well.

Now add water to it in the following proportion.

1 tinai : 0.5 dhall : < 4.5 water (1 thinai + 1/2 dhall = 1 and a 1/2 cup. So more than 4.5 cup water. Rice and dhall must be so soft that it must be mashed!)

Mix the millet, dhall mixture to water well and close the lid. Pressure cook up to 3 whistles.

Season with Cashew nuts.

Thinai pongal is ready.

Serve hot with sambar and coconut chutney.

Will revert soon with another halthy dish. Have a great day! Bye!