Rava Gasagase Pongal or Semolina Poppy Seeds Pongal

Pongal, Makara shankranti, Lohri, Bhogali Bihu, Sukarat are the various names of harvest festival in the first month of New Year throughout India. In Karnataka it is celebrated in the name of makara sankranthi the mark of sun entering makara rasi. Rice lentil pongal in pots is traditionally prepared from first harvest in Tamil Nadu. In Karnataka rice payasam without lentil is prepared as prasadam for the sun god. In recent times there are many varieties of pongal prepared like broken wheat pongal, millet pongal, fruit pongal, avalakki pongal. Rava pongal is one such festive delicacy prepared to celebrate and share the happiness. In this recipe I have added extra flavor of gasagase or poppy seeds. It is mainly prepared using rava, gasagase, moongdal and jaggery. It’s a very simple preparation and tastes delicious topped with some ghee roasted dry fruits and dry kopra.

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: Karnataka

Preparation time: 5 mins

Cooking time: 40 mins

Serves: 5 nos

Ingredients:

Bombay rava or Semolina – 1 cup

Hesaru bele or Moong dal or split green gram – ¼ cup

Gasagase or Poppy seeds – 2 tbsp

Dry kopra or kobri – 2 tbsp + 1 tbsp for garnishing

Jaggery powder – 1 ½ cup

Ghee – 4 tbsp

Salt a pinch

Water as required

Dry fruits chopped – ¼ cup (cashew, almonds, raisins)

Lavanga or Clove powder – 1 tsp

Method:

1. Fry moong dal until you get nice aroma. Pressure cook moong dal with required quantity of water until they become soft.
2. Take a pan, add jaggery powder, little water and dissolve jaggery. Keep this aside.
3. Take another pan, add gasagase and dry kopra, fry until you get nice aroma, cool this mixture and powder it.
4. Take a pan add 2 tablespoon of ghee, half of dry fruits and fry well. Now add rava and fry well until you get nice aroma.
5. Add the gasagase and dry kopra mixture to this.
6. Boil water in another vessel (approximately 4 cups), add this hot water to roasted rava with continuously stirring, add salt a pinch at this stage.
7. Cook rava, when it’s three fourth done, add cooked moong dal and cook again (if required water can be added).
8. Now add the jaggery solution, remaining amount of ghee, clove powder, mix well. Cook this mixture and required amount of water can be added to get right consistency.
9. Ghee roasted remaining dry fruits can be added at this stage or used for garnishing.
10. Serve this rava gasagase pongal hot or warm garnished with dry kopra and dry fruits

My Notes:

The amount of water should be adjusted to get right consistency of final dish, because as they cool, rava tends to absorb more water.

Before adding jaggery, care should be taken that rava, gasagase are cooked well.

The other way is by mixing rava and moong dal directly and preparing by slow cooking method.