Happy Pongal!
Also called Sankranti, Pongal is an annual harvest festival celebrated in mid-January in India on the Hindu calendar, especially by the Tamil community and among the Tamil diaspora including in the U.S. In 2026, the four-day festivities begin Jan. 14. According to the Indian Heritage Center, it is “a celebration to thank the Sun, Mother Nature and the various farm animals that help to contribute to a bountiful harvest.”
Along with rice, fresh produce can feature heavily in celebrations.
Easan Katir, national programs director for the Hindu American Foundation, describes the holiday as both a cultural and religious festival “that expresses gratitude to nature, the Sun God (Surya), the earth, cattle and all forces that support human life.” He also explains that, while the celebration usually happens outside in India, the cold of January often requires some alteration when Pongal is celebrated in the U.S.
“In the United States, Pongal celebrations are typically simplified due to urban lifestyles and space limitations,” he says. “Most families primarily celebrate Thai Pongal, the main day of the festival.”
Still, the focus on celebrating the coming harvest with family is the same. Katir explains that celebrants traditionally wear new clothes, clean and decorate their homes, and cook jagarry-sweetened rice with milk in a new pot and allow the recipe — also called pongal — to boil over the edge of the pot.
“We watch which way it boils over. If it boils over toward the sun, it is a blessing and a good omen for a good harvest,” he tells The Packer. “Along with the sweet rice, the householder serves fruit — mangoes, jackfruit, other seasonal fruits — to all the guests, friends and family.”
The Importance of Produce
Katir says that fresh, local produce is central to Pongal celebrations, “symbolizing gratitude toward the land and the cycle of cultivation.” In India, these often include rice, jaggery and sugarcane, as well as produce such as sweetpotatoes, pumpkin, beans, greens and sweet fruits.
“Traditionally, the emphasis is on consuming food grown from the same soil and nourished by the same water that sustains the community,” he says.
Unfortunately, many of the staples — either specific varieties or entire produce items — that Pongal celebrants might want can be hard to find in U.S. for the festival, such as sugarcane and jackfruit in January. Some produce items can be found in Indian grocery stores as imports in the U.S., but part of the point is to celebrate with locally grown produce.
“Ideally, Pongal emphasizes using food cultivated in one’s own backyard or local environment. However, limited access to locally grown traditional crops makes it difficult to fully follow this practice in the U.S., especially for those living in apartments or urban areas,” Katir explains.
He adds that U.S. produce retailers can better support Pongal celebrations by understanding its agricultural and cultural significance and even displaying items in a Pongal kiosk.
“If retailers or local farmers can grow and supply items like sugarcane, sweetpotatoes, fresh turmeric and traditional vegetables locally in the U.S., it would greatly benefit the community,” he says. “Stocking these items ahead of the Pongal season, labeling them clearly and educating staff about their cultural importance would help retailers serve Tamil and South Indian customers more effectively.”
Local cultivation efforts of traditional crops also aligns well with sustainability and farm-to-table movements, Katir adds.
