Some popular millet varieties
Saamai – Little millet
Varagu -Kodo Millet
Thinai -Foxtail Millet
Kuthiravaali -Barnyard millet
Kezhvaragu-Finger millet
Kambu-Pearl millet
Ingredients needed
Millets – samai or varagu or kuthiravaali or thinai – 1 cup
Water -3 cups
1. Clean millets and remove grits if any.
2.Wash and add 3 cups of water and switch on the heat.
3.When water starts boiling, reduce the heat to low, close it with a lid and cook for 10 minutes.
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| Soya Beans Sambar-Cabbage Potato Curry-Curd- Millet (Barnyard millet-Kuthiravalli) |
You can reduce the water to 2 1/2 cup for 1 cup of millet for preparing variety rice but personally I prefer 3 cups of water for 1 cup of millets. Once it cools it becomes fluffy and is suitable for any variety rice also.
Note -You can pressure cook millets in the same way as you cook pressure cook rice. For 1 cup of millets, add 2 1/2 -2 3/4 cup of water depending upon your personal preference.
Thank you padhu… I jus got all these in this month shopping as i simply wanted to use these in my fod intake but was wondering what to do with this? thanks a lot u started to write on Millets:) By the way am learning cooking only from your blog:)
Lovely and very informative post. I know only kambu,kezhvaragu and thinai and good to know about the other three millets too.
thanks for a healthy recepie padhu ,ippo than brown rice try panni iruken next will be a kuthiraivali
Can we cook these in the pressure cooker, if so pls tell me the number of whistles and water measurement. Thanks
Slight risk in doing in the PC. The grains are so small, they can shoot into the nozzle of the cooker and cause all the water to spray out through the weight that you place on the lid. Can be messy, not to mention, scary.
Have had this experience with dals that have skin – moong dal with green skin on one sde and urad dal with black skin. The skins detach and fly into the shaft.
Same principle can apply here.
For most grains/pulses/millets where there is a risk of blocking the nozzle, can be avoided by placing them in a vessel with lid on it.
Delicious and lovely looking millets. Very healthy as well.
Deepa
Wat an useful and informative post, i love thinai and using it very much.
very useful.how to differntiate between saamai and varagu?
Though they look alike, varagu will be noticeably bigger in size than samai
There are four varieties. The first is the whole grain, the one in which the outer skin is.There. this is only used for dosa, idli batter. The second is the unpolished which would look brownish yellow. Then there is semi polished and polished varieties. There is also boiled category in unpolished, semipolished, polished varieties. So the cooking time varies based on that. When you use unpolished or the whole grain, it takes longer time. But remember thinai will not be mushy (kozhayathu in tamil). Soak them longer before cooking to cook faster. I usually cook in mud pot as it is much faster and healthier.
Wow. Really? ? Very innovative.
Sorry, but i have not heard of these millets or may be they are known by some other names in north India. I am more than eager to include millets in my meals but how do i learn about them ?
Check Google for their Hindi names. All of them are available in every supermarket
Pearl Millet(Eng) – Kambu(Tamil) – Bajra(Hindi)
Finger Millet – Keppai,Ragi – Nachani, Mundua, Mandika, Marwah
Foxtail Millet – Thinai – Kangni, Kakum, Rala
Kodo Millet – Varagu – Koden, Kodra
Little Millet – Saamai – Kutki, Shavan
Barnyard Millet – Kuthiravali – Jhangora, Sanwa
Sorghum – Cholam – Jowar
Kamakshi Pande – Happy to know that you want to include millets in your diet. Even if one person changes, I feel happy and satisfied.I got the hindi names for you -Source millets India
Barnyard millet -Jhangora
Finger millet – Mandua
Foxtail Millet – Kangni
Kodo millet – Kodra
Little millet – Kutki
Pearl millet -Bajra
Sorghum – Jowar
kindly let me know what is jowar in tamil..
Jowar is cholam in Tamil.
Hi, I am very much interested using these millets in our daily food, can i have there names in kannada s in live in bangalore. one or two i found in one shop, but would like to buy everything and use it in kanji powder which we have it regurlarly, thank u so much for such good and informative post
Thanks for the info .cooking tips on kelvaragu and kambu.
Hey padhu
Can I use hulled millet formaking millet rice
Thank u so much…. useful info mam.
Hi Padhu, thanks for this info.. You have a great blog that I visit often. Can you share where you source varagu and kuthiravali in Bangalore? Thanks.
Dear Friend thank you so much. After having great effort finally I got all the millet a month before but could not know how to prepare food. Now after seeing your blog I am very happy to proceed to cook myself. Thanks a lot very kind of you.
Hi Padhu, thanks for your millets recipes. post more recipes.
Hi Padhu,would you be kind enough to share where you source varagu and kuthiravali in Bangalore? Thanks.
Priya – I am not in Bangalore but you will get it in all organic food stores in Bangalore. When I can get it in Chennai, why not in Bangalore.I am getting timbaktu organic brands or Parambaryam organic Brand. You will get it online also.
Thanks Padhu. I thought you live in Bangalore (thought I read it somewhere on your blog). I've found the other varieties of millets but not varagu and kuthiravali. Shall check these brands and see.
You have a fab blog full of interesting recipes. Whenever I am wondering about any recipe, I quickly come over here and search and voila I find it here. Thanks.
Love the way you present the food too. Extremely creative.
Hi Priya, let me know the place where u get these from bangalore pls
U get these in Nilgris.
Hi Padhu.. I tried cooking foxtail millet with 1:3 water ratio.. I gave nearly 7 to 8 whistles but it was not cooked at all.. The outer skin remained crunchy n in same shape.. Water was not absorbed as well.. Pls help me..
Meenu -Foxtail millet alone needs to be soaked for 1 hour in hot water. Other millets does not require soaking. If you soak foxtail millets and cook, it gets cooked very well. It is very soft and delicious.Check out my Foxtail millet khichdi
i just want to know that how to convert ordinary thinai into thinai rice ? plse help me ha i have lot's of thinai as fresh not as a rice what to do ?
Thank you for ur great info padhu.. I love all ur dishes… Keep on posting… Whether these millets reduce weight..
Very interesting
thanks for the wonderful post…….how to clean millets?whether there would be dirt in every millet?how to remove it? arisi pudaikkira madhiriya?
Samba- You have to clean millet just the way you clean rice. But if you buy it from health stores, you do not have that work as the millets are cleaned and then packed. I buy millets from Organic stores.
Vp – you can use hulled millets also. You get both- with hull and without hull. You can use any variety
hi, thanks for your information, i am in need to finding stores where they sell these millets as flours, please let me know
hi, it's very useful to me. thank u very much. the kuthiravaal millet increases the hemoglobin. please share it in your fans……
thank you for valuable information.
Hi, Suppose thinai is bought like rava texture ..does it still have to be soaked for 2 hours.
Indirani -If you have bought thinai rava, then it is not necessary to soak for 2 hours. May be 10 minutes is enough.
thank you for this very useful information…please let me know the tamil name for sorgham…jowar in hindi….so far i know they are sold in powder form and i mix with doas batter and cook…good now i can completely switch over…i was told they cause constipation..but to know they are not am very happy…thanks again
Jowar is irungu cholam in tamil
It will be more helpful if you can indicate how the grains look with and without husk, and if if we need to remove it, and how. For ex, the thinai I bought at nilgiris supermarket is mustard coloured. They say it can be cooked as such. But I feel its with a layer of husk similar to paddy. Pls enlighten. Thanks.
Rani – You can cook millets with husk and without husk in the same manner. You do not have to remove the husk. For eg- you get varagu with and without husk. The one with husk will have more fiber. That's all. Wash well and cook it in the same manner. The yellow one in the first picture is thinai.
Hi pads,
I have a doubt in this,whether we can eat all the millets by cooking it with husk,does not the husk cause any harm to our stomach?
Valuable information, thank you so much
Hi
Your blog is nice and informative. I have a basic doubt. How to clean these millets before cooking? Since they(thinai) are smaller than rice , its getting difficult to rinse with water.
Thank you so much. Yes, they are very tiny. I wash it using a strainer so they do not get washed away with the water. .
Thank you Padhu for a very useful post. what would be the taste of kudiraivalli/ varagu arisi… would it taste similar with our traditional sambar with rice?
Not much of a difference. You will get a nutty flavor if you buy it with hull, otherwise I do not find much difference as I have it often with our regular sambar, rasam and curd.
Very useful info
Dear padma
I am 62yrs and i am 90 kg Doctors adviced me to take only millets. Which is best Srirangam is very hot place. I hope none if the millets produce lots of heat.Which is the best way to cook like dosa or kichadi.
I want to use unpolished rice also How to cook that.
Here i dont get broken what i got sarbhati wheat, how to make broken wheat
Kindly guide me I am suffering with back pain due to big tummy
which developed after uterus remonva.
You just give a miss call or mail your number i will call you my nu
08807076277
Mail to me at [email protected] I will see, if I can guide you. Unpolished rice is brown rice. Check out How to cook brown rice.
Thanks for the recipe. Good to start with my millet cooking 🙂
hi, thank u for your guideline but i would like to know how to remove the husk for the millet like thinai and cholam at home
hi padhu am finding difficult to clean pearl milllet,after cleaning it in running water also while eating am finding stones. am buying it in good super market. please guide me how to clean it….
Subha and Saranya – I buy millets only from health stores. The thinai they give (yellow color) can be cooked as such. Since I buy from health stores,I cook everything after washing. I do know how to remove husk as I buy only cleaned ones as you can see in the first picture above. Varagu alone-we get both white and light brown color and we can cook both as such. Regarding cleaning millets, you have to clean just as you clean and wash rice. If there are stones,I pick it up manually or I use a sieve or strainer to wash the milllet so that the fine sand particles and other small stones get washed off. Hope I have made it clear as I get questions frequently as to how to remove the husk from millet.
I prepared thaval dosai by samai rice instead of usual rice . It is excellent
Vijaya – I have given the millets names in Kannada
Millet names in Kannada
Little millet -Same
Finger millet -ragi
Foxtail millet -navane
Kudo millet -Harka
Pearl millet -sajje
Sorghum – Jola
Proso millet – baragu
Thank you for your relevent information about our healthy old foods , i am very happy . you pls provide information regarding how to get this millets.
Mahesh kumar
Hi Ms. Padma
Your blog is simple, elegant and socially very essential with dependable information presented aesthetically from entirely your own inputs thanks to your all-rounded creativity. Be it so, my first stop for any culinary consultation is your website. My request is that you may expand this blog or start a new blog sharing your skills and experiences in ORGANIC kitchen gardening. Hope you find time.
On another aspect, some of your fans here have wanted to know how to dehull foxtail millet (thinai). One may soak it with little water just to wet it sumptuously (in tamil called "pesari vekkirathu"). After 15 20 minutes, put in a mixie jar and using WHIPPER mode pulse-run a few times until you feel the husk has considerably be removed by visual inspection. Then use a winnow (tamil"muram") and shake-separate the lighter husk out very much like grandmas used to do with flattened rice ie "aval" (in tamil "kozhikkirathu and pudaikkirathu"). Repeated exercises from step 1 may be needed for a thorough job if preferred. One can also pour water and remove husk by floatation technique. I have done this successfully with thinai.
Thanks to your efforts and this information age is made productive only through such untiring interest in sharing knowledge by people of your ilk. Keep it up and Best wishes.
Regards
Prof. Dr Ravichandran
hai padhu pls post some millets ready mix recipes its very useful forpeople like me. pls consider my request
Hi, am a great follower of your blog. I refer to your recipes almost everyday.ur recipe on thinai adai is a classic. I just wanted share a recipe with bajra/kambu. Its kambu dosai and for this you need the proportion is 8portions of kambu: 1 portion of urad dal: 1tsp fenugreek : 1portion of boiled rice. The rest of the process is exactly how dosai batter is made.
U are doing a great job indeed!!
Thank you very much for liking my blog and recipes Akila.Refer my
Easy Kambu/Bajra dosa recipe.
Loved your post on millets… Thank u tag blessed
where can i get these kambu,thinai,varagu and kudhiraivali in chennai?
can you specify any specific departmental store?
How to remove the husk
good posting about the millets,but for beginners why don't you throw light on identifying those millets!!!
Excellent work
mam, when i prepared thinai porridge, it was well cooked but the outer grain like layer was very crunchy, seems like not cooked well. how to overcome this problem.
My apologies for the late reply. I had been on a vacation to UK. Try dry roasting thinai until it is hot to touch. Then cook as usual.
hi padhu , i love ur presentation very neat one.
Clarify my doubt pls. thinai need soaking ? cant we cooking with out soaking????
Hi Padhu,
As a beginner cook, I refer to your recipes mostly. You have done an amazing job. I first read about the word millets in your site. For the current generation, it is a word that is never heard of. Since then, I did a lot of research on millets and for the past 9 months, me and my husband have been having millets instead of rice. I advocated it to all my friends and I was overwhelmed by the benefits that I even thought of writing a research paper.
However, I was recently diagnosed with hypothyroid and I read that millets slow down thyroid activity. In fact, millets is a strict no-no for thyroid patients.I request you to please highlight this in ur web page in BOLD so that people who are switching partially/fully to a millet diet will make informed choices. Millet consumption will worsen thyroid condition and should be consumed in moderate quantities. People who are wanting to lose weight by switching to millets will actually gain weight if they have hypothyroid.I am only writing this because your site has a large following and better reach. Keep inspiring people!!! Thank you so much for ur amazing and simple recipes…
Does it his apply to all millets or only foxtail (thinai) since that's the one named millet in other countries.. Are we still OK with ragi and kannu?
As far as I read, it applies to all millets. Anything in excess is not good. Having millets in moderation is good for our health.
Hi padu i have panivaragu can u tel me how to cook
Can we add samai and varagu arisi with sathu maavu ingredients. Pls help me
Kala – you can cook panivaragu also in the same manner.
Sridevi -Do not add .Today I made sathu maavu – I will post that recipe soon. I drink only that sathu maavu kanji everyday.
Thank u. Thanks a lot. Awaiting for ur recipe
hi I prepared idiyappam flour as u said but after some time it became rotten why like that …
Kala – there is nothing wrong with the recipe as I have just ask to soak raw rice for few hours, drain and dry on a cloth. Then grind it to a fine powder and roast it. You would not have roasted properly. If there is moisture in the flour, it will get spoiled. Even after roasting, you have to spread it in a plate to cool and then only store it.
Hi Padhu, your recipes are great. BTW, I have these millets shipped here(US) in the form of powder.. can I use them instantly ( without soaking for 5-6 hours) for making idlis just like rava idlis( 30 mins) ?
hi padhu… how r u.i am a great follower of your blog. plz tell me how to prepare kozhukattai with raw kelvaragu….
Thanks a lot for the receipe. I bought these millets 15 days ago and am wondering how to prepare. I asked my wife to learn from neighbours. However, I got these now to prepare. I will come back once I prepare and eat for feedback.
Cooked thinai rice today. Put a little more than two cups water. Guess should've put more cos it didn't seem as cooked as I'd want it to be. Also, are millets safe/good for those with digestive issues?
Hi Padma. Nice healthy recipes. If u don't mind can u post some diet lower colesterol recipes. Thank u very much.
Hi is this also known as Quinoa. Tia
Hi Padhu, your recipes are great.
Hi,
I have been making dosa and idli using varagu and kuthiravali arisi for some time now. I just wanted to know if it is ok to give them to my 2 1/2 year old son, he is used to having ragi porridge along with milk, are these millets ok for toddlers? Please advise
You can give idli but start with very less quantity. Do not give millets regularly. You can alternate between various food grains.Also consult your pediatrician before starting any new food for the baby.
Padma, a very good post indeed, I have got bajra grits, barely grits do i cook the same way, I am a bit confused as they are not whole grains but in grit format
Thank you Anitha. In fact, grits are more easy to cook and takes less time than whole grains. Follow the same procedure for cooking.
Hi Padma ,
Very Useful Post . I just want to know how best i can include these grains in my kids Diet . One is about 4 years old and other is just 1 year .thankyou
Thank you Aishwarya for liking this post. For the 4 year old you can give idli , dosa with millets. You will find the recipes in my millet page. For the 1 year old, you can give idli (start with less quantity -like just 1/2 or 1 idli ) .Also use millets in moderation.
Thanks Padma. I have started to include Millets and hope to find a difference soon . thanks for the inspiring recipes.
Hi Padhu..Is Quinoa and Pearl millets same ..Because I am getting telugu word as Sajjalu for both..Please let me know..I want to introduce healthy recipes to my family with Millets/Quinoa/couscous 🙂
Quinoa and pearl millet are not the same. You must ask for quinoa. It is available online and in big supermarkets. Quinoa is a seed and not a grain.
Is non-stick cookware okay to be used to cook any millet rice?
Thanks.
Yes, you can use it to cook millets. Discard non stick pans, if the coating comes off.
i found your site by accident, but nothing is an accident, maybe it was time, thanks , just shared it with a friend too.
I have tried some your recipes its excellent. I am planning to try all of them but this perticular one is very good. I even checked if my amma knew these. Guess what she did, but all these years she only used some of it in our pourage which I never new. But we are going to start using in our daily meals. Keep up the good work. Awaiting for more such informative blogs from you.
Hi! Can you please tell me the best way to remove excessive starch from varagu or kuthravali ? I always end up having too much starch even after i cook? Where could i be going wrong ? I do soak it for quite somtime before cooking it
HI Padhu,
Can we eat above millets every day in small quantities(each variety for one day),like replacing Curd rice with Curd millet..?
I am not sure but have read that we can have 5 times in a week (which means if you have for breakfast, it counts as 1 time). Anything in moderation is fine.
Ok,Thank you for the reply..
You are a great guide to me,thanks a lot..
After d rice is prepared can we use it for lunch box only d rice
Yes. If you want to take it for lunch, cook with little more water as it tends to dry as it cools.
Thankyou for this healthy recipe. Are all the varieties of millet easily available in the market? I stay in Mumbai. Could you suggest some good sources?
In Tamil Nadu, it is easily available. I do not know about Mumbai. But you get all millets online. Just google and find.
hi pads, read your reciepes. good and useful pl clarify if we can have these millets for dinner. some says that it is not good for dinner as it takes time for digestion. other clarification required is can we use millet on the same day when we use wheat flour
Thank you. You can have millets for dinner as long as it does not give you any problems. It is not a problem, if you use millet and wheat flour on the same day provided you do not have any problem. I have had millet for lunch and rotis for dinner and have not faced any problem so far. Depends on the individual.
hello everyone, I am from the Philippines and foxtail millet is one of our traditional crops which was forgotten because of the cultivation of some other important and highly commercialized cereals like rice and corn… with the dedication to bring back this crop in agriculture sector as another food option… I am currently working on a research production and utilization of this crop, however due to limited reviews and experience there are some vague areas about the processing of this crop… like the milling and the threshing… does anyone of you has idea how to do it either traditionally or in conventional method… It would be a great help… thank you very much…
Thanks for sharing these olden days information.
Will helpful for the needy people….
I am surprised at fhe amount of comments here that say that they have not heard of millet. Very sad our education failed so much. Most of our traditional practices are mixed with religion and when those religious poetry are removed from language education and also when more and more students are shying away from learning Tamil in school, it is worrying what will be left of for the younger generation to learn as google and internet are not everything. It is in my Tamil class that I learnt about thenum thinai maavum 25 years ago may be in high school. Hope somehow our education is preserved along with tradition.
Hi pls tell me the shops to buy, approx what will be price per kg of all these grains
As usual you are a saviour. I have learnt so many recipes from your posts here. Millets now have to become an integral part of my diet as I am diagnosed with diabetes now that too high counts!
Thank you.
Hi Padhu, I tried thinai veg rice today by pressure cooker with 1:3 ratio. I soaked it in normal water for about 3 hours..but it didn't expanded at all and while cooking also it didn't get cooked..its outer skin was crunchy like eating thavidu and its size was also as it is…I am totally disappointed..help.pls..
I am really sorry to hear that. I suggest that you buy millets which has been cleaned of the husk and packed. It is available in all health stores. For thinai alone, dry roast it and try cooking it. Hope this helps.
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In north Karnataka Jowar Roti is still a staple , we used to grow them, not any more.
Making Jowar roti is harder than making Chapati,Phulka or any wheat/maida based roti. Unfortunately , people are slowly switching to easier option of making and eating wheat and rice based recipes.
I have done away with rice for few months now and was using Foxtail Millet but trying Finger Millet for the first time..I purchased Finger Millet (as substitute for rice) – Is it required to soak it in water overnight before keeping in Electic Cooker next day or is it enough if we soak just before keeping in Electric Cooker? ….Tried keeping in the ratio of 1:3 and 1:2 but the boiling is not coming correctly – please share how should I cook it. I use this for my lunch and dinner…
Dear madam,
Can we use all the 4 millets along with ragi and bajra together to make idli/dosa batter? Can we use a little bit of parboiled rice to this?
Yes, you can do with or without rice. Use urad dal (soak and grind it separately). You can check my mixed millet panirayams.
Love your recipes, hats off to you! Thanks
Thank you Padhu very useful info
Enjoyed the post, and your replied Padhu. Excellent work. Thanks for the post. Just what I need as I am experimenting with millets now.
Fantastic. I refer to your recipe for cooking. I enjoy cooking. Pls give me a method to prepare Millet pongal Thanks
Thank you for liking my recipes. Millet pongal is already there. Use the search box to find it.
THANKS A MILLION for all your recipes!
Your site is my go-to place for Tamil style food. I want to learn our traditional food which is very healthy instead of gulping down supplements.