Tag: ragi

Ragi Rotti:

June 25, 2022

Ragi rotti, either you love it or hate it. It is one of the healthiest meals in the Mysore-Bangalore region. Unlike a dosa, where the fermented batter is poured and swirled, we pat the pliable batter by hand.

Even though it was a part of the rural part of Karnataka or in traditional cooking, it has now got its due credit by being considered “Superfood”, diabetic-friendly, calcium-rich, gluten-free, and what not!

Ragi rotti with peanut/Huchellu(Niger seeds) chutney is a healthy and authentic breakfast in Bangalore.

The Rotti and chutney, which I learnt from a couple of my friends, then adapted to make my version, according to my family requirement is here,

Ingredient:

Ragi/ finger millet flour – 2 to 3 cups

Cooked rice – ½ cup

Grated coconut – ¼ cup (optional)

Chopped onions – 2 to 3 (medium size)

Chopped green chillies – 2 to 3

Chopped coriander leaves – ½ cup

Chopped Curry leaves – 2 tbl sp

Chopped pudina – 2 tbl sp (optional)

Salt

Hot water – as needed.

Method:

-Take one wide steel bowl, dry mix everything from ragi flour, cooked rice, chopped green chillies, onions, coriander, curry leaves, pudina, coconut gratings and salt.

-Make a pliable dough by adding sufficient boiling hot water.Keep it aside for 5 to 10 minutes to absorb the seasoning and soak.

-When you want to make rotti, take one piece of banana leaf or butter paper.

-Take a little rotti dough in your moist hand, and start patting in a circular motion by wetting your hand in the water now and then.

-Make 3 or 4 holes here and there if you want the crispier version. Sprinkle one teaspoon of oil over this patted rotti and keep it ready.

-Heat iron skillet and cook oil sprinkled rotti by putting upside down on it. After 2 to 3 minutes, peel off a banana leaf or butter paper.

-Sprinkle little oil over it and flip. Cook and serve hot with peanut chutney or Huchellu chutney.

Note:

-Keep one bowl of water at a reachable distance to dip your hand in-between.

– wetting your hand will help avoid the dough sticking to your fingers while patting.

 

Sprouted Ragi Idli:

September 20, 2020

We all know, Ragi is extremely healthy plant-based grain, which is fibre rich, calcium rich and what not? It is a new age “Super food” which was earlier considered as a staple, poor man’s food, or farmer’s diet.

Ragi also known as finger millet or Nachni. Interesting part is, when we sprout the ragi, its nutritional benefits increases 10 folds.

Soaking and sprouting ragi is easy to digest, high in calcium, protein, low in glycaemic index as well as high in vitamin B12, which is a boon to vegetarians. Ragi has the natural property to balance sugar levels in our body, hence it is an extremely  good option for all the age groups, including diabetics.

 Some people do not like ragi for varied reasons, it may be due to its bland taste or something else. If that is the case, one can try to sneak in Ragi in various forms, combining with the other grains in cooking or while baking.

Here, I have tried to make sprouted Ragi idli with mixing rice. When it is combined with sambar or chutney it tastes delicious and my family likes it a lot.

Preparation goes like this-

Ingredients:

Whole Ragi -1 cup

Idli rice – 2 cups ( you can use normal rice as well)

Urad dal – 1 cup

Poha – 1 cup (loosely packed)

Salt

Method:

-Wash Ragi, soak overnight, drain and keep aside to sprout, In Bangalore weather it takes almost a day or day and a half. After sprouting it swells and becomes 1 ½ cup.

-Next day, wash , soak  Idli rice in one vessel. In another vessel, Urad dal and poha. Soak for 3 to 4 hrs.

-According to your weather, opt the timing to grind. Ragi batter ferments little quick, compared to normal idli batter. SO, keep that in mind as well.

-I normally opt for a wet grinder to make idli or dosa batter.

-While grinding, first grind urad dal into fine batter, then add sprouted ragi, it takes little longer to grind. While halfway through add soaked idli rice, salt and grind the batter into small rava consistency.

-Remove from the wet grinder, adjust the consistency of the batter, mix nicely, and keep aside to ferment.

-Next day morning, steam idlies like a Regular idli and enjoy with little hot coconut chutney or any vegetable sambar.

Mango Truffle Cake:

June 25, 2018

It is a ritual at our home to make mango stuffed chocolate cake every year when king of fruit is in season. This year, I had a lot of over ripe mangoes and wanted a way to utilize it in this cake itself. I tried mango sauce as a topping and it worked out wonderfully and kids gang liked it too.

Truffle cakes are melt in the mouth chocolate and cream cakes but when fresh fruit is added as a stuffing between the layers it tastes rich with a natural fruit flavour. I normally prefer less cream or high calorie stuff when I am baking for my family and friends. If you are looking out for healthy options for truffle cakes, this recipe is for you.

Now we will see the procedure, how I went ahead –

First – For the chocolate cake:

Ingredients:

Very fine semolina – 1 ¼ cup (Known as Chiroti Rava)

Ragi / finger millet flour – ½ cup

Cocoa powder – ½ to ¾ cup

Baking powder – 1 tea spoon

Baking soda – 1 tea spoon

Eggs – 2

Butter – 100 grams

Sugar – ¾ to 1 cup (if you want less sweet use ¾ th cup)

Milk – ½ cup

Instant coffee powder – 1 tea spoon

Hot boiling water – 1 cup

Method:

-Pre- heat oven @ 180 °C and line a baking tin with butter paper.

-Take one bowl, prepare dry mixture. Take semolina, Ragi, cocoa, baking powder and baking soda by using wire whisk or you can sieve all these twice or thrice.

-In another bowl we will prepare wet mix, beat egg one by one, add milk, sugar, butter and beat until frothy.

-Boil water, mix in coffee and pour this into wet mix and once again beat and make a homogenous mixture.

-Now fold in dry ingredients by using wooden spatula. Don’t over mix this content.

-Pour the batter to lined baking tin, bake for 40 minutes in a pre-heated oven.

-when it is done, remove, cool and keep it ready for stuffing.

Second – Mango filling:

Ingredients:

Mango – 1 or 2 (depending on the size)

Icing sugar – 2 tea spoons

Method:

-Peel the skin, hold the mango flat on your left hand. Mark so many cuts in horizontal and vertical manner and make tiny square pieces. Finally squeeze the seed to extract remaining pulp.

-Add icing sugar or sugar powder, mix nicely and keep this in the fridge until you are done with the sauce making and slicing the cake.

Third- Mango sauce for dressing or to drizzle:

Ingredients:

Mango – 1 or 2

Icing sugar – 1 or 2 tea spoons

Butter – 1 table spoon

Juice of Lemon – 1 tea spoon

Method:

-Remove outer skin of mango, chop and make a puree.

-Take one sauce pan, add mango puree, butter, icing sugar, lemon juice and boil it nicely and switch off the gas.

Fourth: Now Comes the assembling part:

Step 1: Take the cake (completely cooled one) and slice it horizontally. You will get 2 discs.

Step 2: Take out mango filling, equally spread this on one of the flat disc.

Step 3: place another halved disc on mango filling.

Step 4: If you like mango, go ahead and pour the sauce as a dressing to cover the top of the cake and slice it or you can drizzle the sauce while serving as well.

NOTE:

-One can use 2 cups of All purpose flour as well in place of 2 combined flours OR Use 1 ½ cup of All purpose or whole wheat and ½ cups of Ragi as well.

– To substitute eggs, use flax gel and recipe is here.

-I have used is ¾ cup of brown sugar. Cake was less in sweetness and it tasted more like coffee and was chocolatey.

-You can use less or more chocolates according to the quality of brand which you use.

 

 

Protein rich Millet Health Mix:

January 25, 2018

Millet health mix is a wholesome breakfast solution for people who leave their home very early in the morning and yet they can get goodness of wholefood by preparing quick porridge. Once the powder is ready, it is super easy and quick to prepare and consume. One can even prepare this drink and carry it in their bag and have it at their convenience as well.

Health benefits of millets and sprouts are numerous. They are filled with nutrients, vitamins and minerals. It really boosts immune system and overall health of human body.

I prepare this porridge specially for my husband, who started following Naturopathic diet after staying and enjoying this simple diet in a Naturopathic centre. Gradually my niece who leaves home by 6:45 AM from home, started carrying this drink as her mid-morning “meal”. It is very tasty, and at the same time, healthy, filling and nutritious too.

DSC03935_Fotor

At first, we will prepare the powder and the procedure goes like this-

Ingredients to sprouts and Roast:

Whole wheat – 500 grams

Finger millet / Ragi – 500 grams

Pearl millet/ Bajra – 100 to 150 grams

Green gram / whole moong – 250 grams

Black Chana – 250 grams

Ingredients Only to roast:

Fox tail millet – 50 grams

Sorghum / Jowar – 50 grams

Organic Red rice – 50 – 100 grams

Sago – 100 grams

Roasted Chana – 50 to 100 grams

Almonds – 100 grams

Flax seed – 25 grams

Other ingredients:

Cardamom – 10 (whole)

Method:

-First wash all the ingredients under “Ingredients to sprouts” one by one.

Ribbet collage 1

-Soak all these for 6 to 8 hours or Overnight.

-Drain and keep it covered to germinate.

-Next day morning, spread these on a clean cloth separately, and dry under partial or direct sunlight.

-It takes 2 to 3 days to perfectly dry.

-Now you can start roasting all these dried items one by one, as well as ingredients under “Only to roast”.

-After roasting each ingredient, spread this on a newspaper or clean cloth and cool.

-Add cardamom.

– Powder this mixture in a flour mill.

Ribbet collage 2

-Store this ready flour in an air tight container and use as needed.

How to make the porridge:

I make it in two ways. One is plain and another one is with oats.

For the plain one:

Ribbet collage 3

Take 4 spoons of porridge powder, add 450 ml of water, or as much as you want, according to the required consistency, and boil until it is cooked properly.

At that time, mixture will become glossy.

My husband likes this porridge with a little rock salt and a tinge of sweet (usually I add sugar free Natura)

You can either add plain sugar or Jaggery or brown unrefined sugar as well.

With Oats:

DSC03932_Fotor

Take 2 spoons of porridge powder, 2 spoons of Oats and proceed with the above procedure.

Manni / Porridge-Initial Baby Food:

November 23, 2017

Regarding baby food lots and lots of notions are there. What to feed, when to start solids, which age is ideal etc. According to me, each situation or each baby is different than the other. In my condition, it was twin babies and almost 20 days pre-mature too.

With two babies, breast feeding was not sufficient, and I started this porridge in a very diluted form (For 200 ml of water, I used to use 1 tsp of powder) as early as 40 days of their birth. Yes, my father who is a doctor himself, advised me to start this instead of any packaged milk powder or cow’s milk. I used to feed them this a couple of times in a day (100ml at a time) as a top food to suffice their needs.

Jaggery is very good for infants and this is the only way they get their iron supplement, if they are on top food. This is what our paediatrician told me. According to her suggestion, I used to add tiny jaggery piece while preparing porridge.

When days passed by I did increased the quantity of porridge powder and when they became 4 to 5 months old, I started feeding them one small bowl of porridge by using spoon.

If you are raising your brows while reading this, Yes!!! My daughters are healthy grown up teenagers now. I personally never ever recommend readymade food over natural food.

How to Prepare Porridge Powder:

pic 1_Fotor

Ingredients:

Finger millet / Ragi – 500 gms

Whole wheat – 500 gms

Almonds- 100 gms

Method:

  • Clean Ragi and whole wheat by rinsing couple of times with water.
  • Drain water completely.
  • Spread this on a clean cloth and dry in the shade.
  • When it is dry, take little by little and dry roast for a couple of minutes to remove any remaining moisture.
  • You can use almond by roasting or without as well.
  • Cool this by spreading it again.
  • Take a mixer jar and powder it, sieve it and collect the fine powder and proceed.
  • Cool this and store this powder in an air tight container.
  • If you want to store this for too long, keep it in a fridge.

How to prepare porridge:

  • Take water according to your requirement, add powder and mix thoroughly.

Ribbet collage 2

  • If you are feeding for two to three-month-old, by using feeding bottle, take ½ to 1 tsp of powder,100 ml of water and boil. (adjust according to the requirement)
  • If you want a little thicker consistency, take 2 tsp of powder and 100 ml of water and boil.

Ribbet collage 3

  • Add jaggery or rock candy (kallu sakkare)
  • Boil this by stirring in a low flame, when it is cooked, it becomes a little shiny and transparent (top becomes glossy).
  • Remove from the fire. If you are okay with addition of milk, add couple of spoons of milk and adjust the consistency, or adjust with water and feed the baby either by feeding bottle or spoon.

 

 

 

Millet and Oats porridge:

March 23, 2017

A low calorie Diet is very difficult to manage. You feel constantly hungry and can’t concentrate on your work. To attain fullness, we should think of adding millets in our diet as it is very nutritious, gives strength and increases immunity. It is low on starch, high on minerals and fibre.

This is a 3 spoon miracle filling diet. If you have this porridge in the morning, you will surely not feel hungry until your lunch.

ragi porridge

Ingredients:

Mixed millet flour – 1 spoon

Finger millet flour – 1 spoon

Oats – 1 spoon

Water – 1 ½ cups

Salt- ¼ teaspoon

Cardamom powder – ¼ teaspoon

Sugar free natura – 1 teaspoon

Method:

  • Take one thick bottomed vessel, mix all the ingredients.
  • Boil this mix by stirring in-between.
  • While boiling, mixture becomes glossy, when it is done.
  • Switch off the gas and serve.
  • It is a very good breakfast option for weight loss or diabetic patients.
  • Adjust the consistency by adding extra water if you want a runny texture.