Tamil Nadu x France

Sakkarai pongal brûlée

Jaggery pongal set in ramekins and torched for a glassy top. Pongal festival meets the bistro.

70 minTime

5 gProtein each

mildSpice

Make it your way

Grandma's wayThe original. Handle with reverence.

The original

355kcal

5 gprotein

1 gfibre

70minutes

Per serving, worked out from the ingredient table. Grandma's way is the starting point the other versions are compared with.

Rice½ cup

Moong dal (split yellow mung beans)2 tbsp

Water1¼ cups

Milk1⅔ cups

Jaggery1 cup, grated

Ghee3 tbsp

Cashews10

Raisins1 tbsp heaped

Cardamom½ tsp

Nutmega pinch

Salta pinch

Sugar4 tbsp, for the top

6 steps

1Dry roast the moong dal 2 minutes, then wash with the rice.
2Pressure cook with the milk and 250 ml water for 4 whistles. Let the pressure release naturally and mash.
3Melt the jaggery in 50 ml water and strain. Pour into the rice and cook, stirring, 5 minutes.
4Fry the cashews and raisins in ghee and pour everything into the pongal with cardamom, nutmeg and salt.
5Spoon into 6 ramekins, smooth the tops, cool and chill 1 hour.
6Sprinkle sugar evenly over each and caramelise with a kitchen torch, or under a very hot grill for 2 to 3 minutes, watching closely. Rest 2 minutes.

Serve it like this

Serve the ramekin on a small plate with a banana leaf square underneath and a single fried cashew on top.

Bloom picks tonight's dinner for your diet and allergies, then cooks it with you step by step.