What Is Ponk? the Viral Winter Delicacy Taking the Culinary World by Storm

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Ponk is young, tender sorghum (Sorghum bicolor), known across India as green jowar. While English food menus occasionally describe it as roasted green millet, true ponk comes specifically from sorghum varieties cultivated for high moisture and low tannin content, most notably the Vani cultivar grown in South Gujarat.

Timing the harvest requires exceptional farm precision. Farmers test the sorghum ears daily when the crop approaches maturity. If squeezed between the thumb and forefinger, a prime grain yields a milky, sweet liquid without snapping.

Wait five days too long, and starch replaces sugar. The kernel turns solid white, destined for the grain mill. Harvest five days too early, and the yield turns to unusable watery mush under roasting heat.

Neighboring regions celebrate their own variations. Across Maharashtra, the exact same crop stage goes by the name hurda. While the agricultural raw material is identical, the cultural presentations diverge sharply. Maharashtrian hurda parties feature green sorghum paired with spicy dry garlic chutneys (lasun chutney) and ground peanut powders. Surat, by contrast, treats ponk as an elaborate street snack dressed with fine crisp noodles and confectioner's sugar.