Karuppu Kavuni Rice Sweet Pongal - Karuppu Kavuni Arisi Sweet Pongal - Black Rice Sweet Pongal - Pressure Cooker Recipe

Rice being a staple food of Asia, this deep Black Rice has an interesting story behind it. Black Rice or Karuppu Kavuni Arisi is also known as the Emperors Rice or Forbidden Rice. It was called so because, in ancient China,  this unique rice was grown in very limited quantities and consumed only by the Emperor to ensure his health and longevity and was forbidden to any common man, due to its enormous nutritional benefits. 

This rice when soaked or cooked turns blackish purple. This is due to the presence of a pigment called Anthocyanin, present in the outer layer of the grains which has potent antioxidant properties. Anthocyanins are a group of flavonoid plant pigments that are responsible for the purple color. The amount of Anthocyanin contained in Black rice is higher than any other grain including brown rice, red rice or other colored whole grain varieties. Studies say that anthocyanins have strong anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, anticancer effects and also rich in Vitamin E. Furthermore, it is said that eating foods high in anthocyanins may help protect against several chronic diseases, including heart disease, obesity, and some forms of cancer.

Research says that black rice contains over 23 types of antioxidants and has the highest antioxidant activity of all rice varieties. The high amounts of Lutein and Zeaxanthin, the two types of carotenoids supports our eye health.

Black rice is low in calories, which makes it great for people who wants to reduce weight without giving up on rice. It is also a great source of plant-based protein (which is a great news for vegetarians and vegans) and provides minerals like iron and copper.

Here's a comparison of different rice varieties (100gm serving)

• Polished white rice – 6.8g protein, 1.2g iron, 0.6g fiber.
• Brown rice – 7.9g protein, 2.2g iron, and 2.8g fiber.
• Red rice – 7.0g protein, 5.5g iron, and 2.0g fiber.
• Black rice – 8.5g protein, 3.5g iron, 4.9g fiber.

Other health benefits of this naturally gluten-free rice includes; helps in treating asthma, aids weight loss, natural detoxifier, maintains sugar levels, maintains cholesterol levels, aids healthy brain function, improves digestive health and also an excellent source of good fat.

I’m sure all these interesting facts about black rice have made you want to include this in your  routine. Kavuni arisi is a popular sweet recipe in Chettinad region. It is served in all Chettinad wedding feast. We can also use this rice for making idly/dosa, kanji/porridge, kuzhipaniyaram etc. Or instead of white rice, you can just have this for your meal with the regular sambar or rasam. Since black rice is unrefined and denser than brown rice, the way we cook it is also slightly different. It has a mild nutty taste and a chewy texture. And it has to be soaked well enough before cooking. With enough heads-up here's a yummy recipe for making Pongal using Black Rice. Let me know how this turned up for you :-)

 

 

Ingredients

Karuppu Kavuni Arisi/Black Rice - 1/2 cup (this will yield more than double the quantity of cooked rice, as we are soaking overnight)

Moong dal - 1 or 2 tbsp

Water - 1.5 cups (2 cups of water for 1 cup of rice. Here I have used extra water as I had used moong dal)

Powdered Jaggery/Country Sugar - 1/2 cup

Cardamom - 3 or 4 pods, powdered

Cashews - as per taste

Ghee - 1 tbsp or as per taste

Milk - 1/4 cup (optional)

Method:

1. Take 1/2 cup of Black rice in a bowl. Wash it couple of times and add water and soak it overnight or atleast for 6 hours.

Karuppu Kavuni Arisi

 

 

Soak Overnight

2. Next morning, the soaked rice and the water would have turned pink. Do not discard this water, measure this and use it along with more water for cooking the black rice.

 

 

 

Rice and water turns pink upon soaking

The soaked water which has turned pink, reserve it for cooking the kavuni arisi

3. In a pressure cooker, add the soaked rice and water. Close the lid and cook for 1 whistle in high and simmer for 10 mins.

Add it to the Pressure Cooker

4. Once the Pressure settles, open the lid, try to mash it a little. This rice wouldn't mash up. If you have added moong dal that would help to stick the rice grains together and give a pongal like texture. If you haven't added moong dal, the rice grains would look seperate. But still they would have a sticky texture.

5. Add the jaggery, powdered cardamom and milk and simmer it for few minutes until all the ingredients binds together.

6. Take a small pan, add ghee and fry the cashews and add it to the Black Rice Pongal. 

7. That's it.. Yummy Karuppu Kavuni Arisi pongal is ready to be tasted.