Pongal & Vadai- Go hand in hand!

This is one combo which is a big favorite for a lot of people in South India, especially in Tamilnadu. Most of us make just the vadai or pongal but the combo of these two, served with some sambar & chutney will give you a feeling as though you are eating in one of the restaurants in India. And once in a while when nostalgic of home, it definitely would be nice to make these things as weekend brunch and enjoy them.
I have always wanted to know how to make pongal that is close to temple style pongal. And the best pongal I have had so far is my sis Karthika's pongal. So, I got the recipe from her and made pongal which tasted very much like temple pongal. So here goes the recipe for Pongal & Vadai.
Pongal:
Ingredients:
1.Rice- 1 cup
2.Moong dhal- 3/4 cup
3.Water- 5 cups (for rice ratio is 1:3.5, for dhal 1:2)
4.Turmeric powder- 1 tsp
5.Asafoetida- a pinch
6.cumin seeds- 1 tsp
7.Black Pepper-1 tsp
8.Ginger- small piece- chopped
9. pepper powder- 1/2 tsp
10. Salt to taste
For tempering:
Ghee- 2 tbsp
Cashewsnuts- 10
Curry leaves- few
Black pepper- 1tsp
Cumin seeds- 1 tsp
Method:
Wash rice and moong dhal nicely. Pressure cook ingredients 1 thro 10 for 4-5 whistels. When pressure is released, open the pressure cooker and mash the pongal slightly with the back of a ladle. (Note: If the pongal is too thick, add some (boiled) hot water to adjust the consistency. especially when the pongal cools down, it can get thick). Temper the ingredients listed above in ghee and add to the pongal and mix well.
Vadai:
Ingredients:
Urad dhal(whole)- 1 cup
Green chilly-4
Salt to taste
Onion- chopped - 1 (optional)
curry leaves - few
Asafoetida- a pinch
oil for deep frying
Method:
Soak the dhal for about an hour and then grind it with green chilly, very little water & salt. (Sprinkle water as needed, if more water is added you wont be able to get the vadai shape). If u have a grinder, use that instead of mixie but mixie can be used too. And remember to add the salt at the end while grinding the batter for vadai. In the meantime heat some oil in a deep frying pan. To the batter, add curry leaves, hing and onion(optional) & mix it well. When oil is hot, take some batter and place it on a banana leaf or ziploc plastic sheet, flatten it with slightly wet hands, make a hole in the centre and take it from the sheet & slowly drop it in the oil. cook on both sides in medium flame until crisp & light brown. drain in a paper towel and serve hot.

This is my entry for Asvadha's Made for Each Other event.