As traditional as it gets this paal pongal is THE MOST popular dishes made during pongal festival. Traditionally it's made from fresh harvested rice. Farmers offers thanks to the nature for the bountiful rice harvest they do on a particular month called "Thai Maasam" and in the form of festival. Rice cooked in cow's milk and a bit of salt, ghee and fried cashews is all needed for this paal pongal.
1cupraw rice(preferably fresh harvested rice if possible to source)
2tablespoonyellow moong dal
4cupswater
1 ½cupsmilk (pure cow's milk preferred)
1 teaspoonghee
few cashews
Instructions
Rinse and soak rice for about 20 minutes. Dry roast yellow moong dal on low flame until a nice aroma is released from the dal.
In a pressure cooker add roasted moon dal, rice and water. Pressure cook for 3 whistles. Switch off flame and wait until the pressure is released. Open the pressure cooker lid, mash the rice-dal mix well.
Place the cooker back on stove and add milk in slow streams while stirring. Make sure no lumps are formed. Once all milk is added and it blends well with rice, remove from flame. Remember as the pongal cools, it will turn dry.
In a small pan heat ghee. Roast cashews until golden brown in ghee. Turn off flame and add the roasted cashews to pongal. Mix.
Serve with 7-kari kootu
Notes
If you can source fresh harvested rice and pure cow's milk this pongal will be the ultimate one. In cities it's hard to imagine sourcing fresh harvest rice, raw rice like ponni and sona masoori will work.
I have used water and milk to cook this pongal, you can also use just milk to cook pongal. Use about 5 cups milk.