Is it possible to cook millets without having to grind it into a powder?
Am considering Ragi as a substitute to rice to avoid the spike in blood sugar each time I eat rice. Purchased 1kg of Ragi seeds and found that every single recipe makes use of Ragi flour. Even friends in India say they are unaware of recipes that directly use the seeds.
Is it really necessary to grind/mill millets? On searching, I found one lemon millet rice recipe, but I'm not sure if it can be applied to Ragi, since Wikipedia says the bran is bound tightly to the endosperm. Am hoping it would be possible to cook it like in the lemon millet rice recipe at least if the Ragi seeds are sprouted?
Best Answer
Millet in general is perfectly cookable as a whole grain. It functions pretty interchangeably with other grains and pseudograins, except where you need very specific qualities (e.g. you probably won't be able to make sushi out of it because you can't get the right amount of stickiness).
I don't know about Ragi specifically, as opposed to the generic food sold as just "millet", but I don't see any reason for it to behave differently. In the worst case, just give it a try - there is little reason to think it could fail.
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Quick Answer about "Is it possible to cook millets without having to grind it into a powder?"
Millet in general is perfectly cookable as a whole grain. It functions pretty interchangeably with other grains and pseudograins, except where you need very specific qualities (e.g. you probably won't be able to make sushi out of it because you can't get the right amount of stickiness).What is the best way to consume millets?
The easiest way to eat millet is by toasting 2 cups of grains in a couple of tablespoons of oil in a heavy bottomed pan. Once the grains turn golden brown, lower the heat and add in 3 cups of stock and some fresh parsely or coriander and let it simmer for 20 minutes till the liquid is soaked up.Can we cook millets without soaking?
Millet is wonderfully low maintenance to prepare. Simply rinse before cooking, no soak time needed. If you want a nutty flavor from the millet, toast it for a few minutes in advance, either in a bit of oil or butter, or in a dry pan.How do you make millet powder at home?
How to Make Homemade Millet Flour (Step by Step):Do you need to soak millet for porridge?
Millet is an an important African heritage grain that can be eaten at every meal. Try this porridge as a satisfying and healthy breakfast option. Pre-soaking the millet overnight, or at least for a few hours, is recommended to give the porridge a creamier texture.How to make Millet Flour at Home from any Millet| Homemade Millet flour| Atta | Foxtail Millet Flour
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Answer 2
Rumtscho is right. There is a recipe called Ragi Risotto that doesn't require grinding it to a flour.
Ingredients
1.5 cups ragi
3 cups water
2 onions, minced
1 carrot, minced
1 celery, minced
1.5 cups fresh green peas
0.5 cup unsalted butter
0.5 cup grated Parmesan
0.5 cup olive oil
Salt to taste
Method:
Rinse the ragi under hot water. Sauté the vegetables in oil and add three cups of hot water and place it together with the ragi in a pot.
Set the pot to medium high heat and when it starts boiling, turn the heat down to the lowest level and cover the pot.
Add minced onion, peas and butter to the ragi (but don’t stir too much), as well as the cheese and salt. Leave the ragi to cook on the lowest flame until ragi has absorbed all the water.
Answer 3
There are a lot of millets and each of them have different cooking time if using whole. Few millets also need to be soaked in hot water and few hours before cooking to reduce the cooking time.
If Ragi is to be considered, it can be used whole as well as in flour form, depending on the recipe. If you need to use whole for making upma, biryani, risotto or salad just soak and boil it open or pressure cook it. Ragi won't take much time and can be cooked in an open vessel.
Also the recipe you shared, any millet can be used there. But millets have their specific taste, so you need to try it!
Happy Cooking!!
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