Since the Pongal/Makar Sankranti festival is around the corner and the start of the new year, I am starting with a sweet recipe. I have beautiful memories of enjoying the vella sadam that my patti (grandmother) makes. She would quickly make this for an evening snack when there is leftover rice from the afternoon lunch. She will have hot vellam sadam waiting for me right when I return from school. I love Indian sweets made with jaggery/vellam. And my Patti and Amma make the best ones. Amma’s chakkara pongal is world famous and is the fail-proof best recipe for sakkarai pongal.
Difference between chakkara pongal and vellam sadam
Both chakkara pongal and vellam sadam are made with rice and jaggery, but this is very different. We don’t use moong dal/payatham paruppu in vella sadam as well as we don’t use milk to cook the rice. I like to keep the rice mushy for sakkarai pongal whereas for vellam sadam, I like it separated like we would make it for lemon rice, coconut rice, and, tomato rice. This is the best recipe to make with leftover rice and it is so quick and easy to make.
Ingredients needed
Rice - I make sweet jaggery rice with sona masoori rice. Use any variety of raw rice or basmati rice. Jaggery/vellam - We can use the Indian block jaggery (grated) or brown sugar as well. If using brown sugar, increase the quantity slightly as they are less sweet than the jaggery. Coconut - Use grated or tiny chopped coconut pieces. Cashew nuts/mundhiri - Cashews add a crunch and a flavor to the vellam sadam. Ghee/nei - We will be using just a little ghee to fry the cashews and the coconut. Cardamom powder/elaichi - I used just cardamom powder today to flavor the vellam sadam, but we could also include a small pinch of nutmeg and/or edible camphor.
Step-by-step process
Expert Tips
I used Indian-style jaggery to make the vella sadam. If you don’t have the jaggery, use brown sugar. I make jaggery rice with sona masoori rice. We could use basmati rice as well. Adjust the jaggery according to your sweetness. This measurement yields medium sweetness. I have used grated coconut in the vellam sadam recipe. Patti and Amma use tiny chopped coconut pieces that taste amazing and give a crunch. Add a pinch of salt as it elevates the flavor and sweetness of the vellam. If not making for neivedhiyam, this is a wonderful recipe to make dessert from leftover rice.
Frequently asked questions
More easy rice recipes
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Recipe
Cook the rice and keep it aside to cool. I usually spread it on a plate and apply a little ghee. I cook it just as I would cook rice regularly. For the sona masoori rice, I use about 2 ½ cups to 3 cups of water. We could use the same for this vellam sadam as well.
Heat about a teaspoon of ghee/nei in a pan and roast the cashew nuts and coconut until they are golden brown. I start with frying the broken cashew pieces and then when they are almost done, add the coconut pieces or grated coconut.
Remove the fried cashew and coconut on a plate and in the same pan, add the measured jaggery. I used about ¾ cup of jaggery for ½ cup of uncooked rice.
Add about ½ cup of water and let the jaggery melt. Once the jaggery has melted, strain it to remove any impurities. The jaggery I use does not have dirt, so I skip the straining. Let it come to a boil.
Once the jaggery syrup boils for a couple of minutes, add the cooked and cooled rice. We don’t need to watch for any kind of jaggery syrup consistency. We will boil it well and then add the rice.
The jaggery syrup will liquefy once we add the rice. Keep mixing and break down any lumps. Cook this mixture on low to medium heat until they all combine and start to thicken (about 5 to 7 minutes).
I added a pinch of salt to the vellam sadam. Amma always adds a little salt to sweets made with jaggery as it elevates the flavor and makes the sweetness stand out. I also added a little edible camphor. This is completely optional.
Once the rice and jaggery come together, add the fried cashews and coconut along with cardamom powder and mix well. Vellam sadam will continue to thicken as it cools.
Variations of Vellam sadam
As I mentioned, anything made with jaggery is my favorite, there are many similar recipes that I make. Try to mix it up a little and make a different one each time.
Vellam aval - Instead of using rice, we make this with aval or poha/beaten rice. Aravanai - This is the temple prasadam that is served at Srirangam temple just before the temple closes at night. Narali Bhath - This delicious sweet coconut rice recipe is popular in Maharashtra and made on Shravan Poornima day as an offering to the ocean God. Hayagreeva Maddi - This is made with chana dal/kadalai paruppu and jaggery and is a Udupi special recipe that is offered as a prasadam/neivedhiyam for Lord Hayagreeva.
