Haraka /Araka /Kodo Millet Methi Dosa

Harka/Arka /Kodo Millet is one of the millet family grain. I have tried varieties of recipes with almost all the millet grains. I have tried my favourite Menthy / Fenugrik dosa and it was fluffy, soft and yummy.

Millets have gain the stand once again and we all know the importance of these millets in our diets. It is said that even in Ancient period people used to grow and use millets and they were the source of food.
I have been using the millet since I got to know they are energetic, gluten free, fiber rich and slow in digestion. Not only these points there are so many reasons why you should use millet  in your daily diet. They help us to reduce the weight, they control our blood pressure and diabetic condition can be improved. They help in reducing the cholesterol level in our body. They help in reducing the obesity and rich in antioxidants.
Methi/Mentya/fenugrik seeds are rich in fibers, helps to control the sugar level in our body and good cholesterol maintainer.
Let us see the recipe now :
Remember : The batter should be fermented well to get soft and fluffy dosa.

 Ingredients :

Harka/Araka /Kodo Millet : 4 Cups
Methi Seeds : 1/3 Cup.
Urid dal : 1 Handful
Salt : As required

Method :

1. Clean and wash Harka and soak in water for 3 to 4 hours.
2. Wash and soak methi seeds/fenugrik seeds separately.

3. Grind it with required water and remove it from mixi jar.

4. Add salt and mix it well. Leave it for fermenting. (Overnight).Or 6 to 8 hours.

Remember the batter has to be fermented well just before preparing dosa.
5. Next morning Mix the batter nicely.

6. Keep the tava on a fire. Heat and clean it nicely. Sprinkle some oil on the tava and clean it again.
7. Add a ladle of batter and spread very little. Dosa has to be fluffy.

8. Sprinkle some oil and cook till it is done. Turn the other side and cook and remove it from the pan.

9. Dosa is ready to serve.
10 Serve with your choice of side dish.Jaggery goes well with Methi Dosa and is good for health.

Note : 

Add required water while grinding. The batter should be like dosa batter consistency. Remember the batter has to be fermented well to get good fluffy dosa.
Do not add any rice while grinding.
Time : Soaking time 3 Hours + Grinding time + 10 minutes ( Mixi ) + Fermentation 6 to 8 hours and preparing dosa : 30 Minutes.
Serves : 6 to 8 People.

Cucumber Sasive Chapati

Cucumber Sasive Chapati is done with using the left over of Cucumber Sasive which is prepared for lunch. The remaining Sasive is used for preparing chapati. It is yummy and soft. You will really enjoy having mild spice Cucumber Sasive Chapati.

I have used little Cucumber Sasive, jeera, salt and wheat flour for Cucumber Sasive Chapati or You call it as Parata.
We had this Cucumber Sasive for lunch. And then the remaining Sasive is kept it in the fridge. I did make use of it while mixing the chapati dough and added some garam masala and jeera powder to it.
Let us see the recipe now :

Ingredients :

Cucumber Sasive : 2 to 3 Tablespoons. (The left over portion).
Wheat flour : 2 Cups
Jeera powder : 1/2 Tsp
Garam Masala Powder  : 1/2 Tsp
Salt : As required
Ghee : 1 Teaspoon
Cooking Oil : 2 to 3 Tbs

Method :

1. Take a big bowl and add Southekai sasive, wheat flour, salt, garam masala, and jeera powder.

2. Add a spoon of ghee and mix all the ingredients well.
3. Add required water and prepare chapati dough.
4. Kneed the dough well and and divide them in to small portions.

5. Take a small portion and dip in dry wheat flour and roll them as chapatis.
6. Sprinkle some oil/ghee on the top and fold it again.
7. Dip the done and roll in dry flour.
8. Now roll as chapati again and put it on hot tava and cook.

9. Add oil on both sides while cooking and remove the partata when it is done.

10. Repeat the same and prepare all the parata /chapati and serve.

11. Serve hot chapati / parata with a cup of curd and the curry you have prepared.

12. You can have them with curd and pickle also.

Note :

Strictly do not add spoiled Cucumber Sasive. You might get sick or have some problems of stomach upset. Use fresh and good Sasive.
Adding any spice is your choice. Adding oil instead of ghee is optional. Use of more spice and oil is optional.
Cook parats on medium and low flame. You can take these paratas for travelling. It is tasty and healthy too.
It is good for people who are dieting. Use of less oil while preparing is a must.
Time : 30 Minutes.
Serves : 2 to 3 .

Avarekai Rava Rotti

ಅವರೆಕಾಯಿ /Field beans is a pod which is available during winter and its the season you get the best Avaekai. Here I have tried Rava rotti adding Avarekai and it is the yummy rotti and I assure you to try and enjoy.

All I used is  the normal ingredients, like Avarekai, onions, ginger, coconut, green chilly and Rava/Semolina.
It is one of the simple but yummy rotti that is good for breakfast, dinner or even as snack.
Rava /Semolina is filled with minerals and vitamins. It is a coarse powder of dhurum wheat.
Rava keeps you full for a long time because it is digested slowly. It takes care of your blood sugar and blood pressure.
Let us see the recipe now :

Ingredients :

Rava /Semolina : Medium sized : 2 Cups
Curd : 1 Cup
Onions : 2 Medium sized
Curry leaves : Handful
Coriander leaves : Handful
Green chilly : 2
Ginger : An inch
Cooked Avarekai : 1 Bowl : 250 gr.
Coconut : 1 Cup
Salt : As required
Normal water : As required
Cooking Oil : 3 to 4 Tbs

Method :

1. Wash curry leaves, coriander leaves, green chilly and cut into small pieces.
2. Wash and cook field beans and keep it ready.

3. Remove the outer cover of onions and wash it, Cut into small pieces.
4.Remove the outer layer of ginger and wash it again. Grate it and keep it aside.
5. Grate coconut and keep it aside.
6. Take a big bowl and put all the ingredients like coconut, cooked field beans, grated ginger, grated coconut, salt, cut onions, coriander leaves and curry leaves.
7. Add rava/semolina and curd. Mix it nicely. Add required water and prepare rotti batter.
8. Let it be bit liquid consistency. It helps in making thin rotti. Leave the batter for 10 minutes.

9. Keep a dosa pan on the fire. Let the flame be very low. Heat and put a tsp of oil. Spread the oil around.

10. Take a handful of rotti batter and spread it around the pan as a circle shape.
11. After spreading the batter increase flame to medium. Let the rotti cook for a minute.

12. Turn the other side and cook. Crispy rotti is ready to serve. Prepare the rest of the rotti.

13. Serve with the side dish you have prepared.

14. Add ghee or butter on the top just before serving.

Note :

Let the batter consistency be little thicker than idli batter. It should not be very watery. Adding more chilly or any other ingredients is optional. Use of more oil is optional. Use of cooked Avarekai is better to add since use of raw field beans do not cook fast.
Time :30 Minutes.
Serves : 2 to 3 .

Simple Laddu

Lovely laddus are good to have to boost your energy. I try and make it as simple as they are but a healthy way. These laddu is filled with soft dates, lots of raisins, almonds and cashew pieces with poppy seeds. They are real energy booster, healthy filler and delicious crave builders.

There is no cooking here to prepare these laddus. It is as simple as it is. No cooking on fire, no ghee, no jaggery or sugar or any other forms of sweets except the soft dates.
It is good for kids snack box, good to take it for travel, good energetic when you feel tired. It is good for people who diet and it is diabetic friendly.
Let us see the recipe now :

Ingredients :

Dates Soft and fruity dates : 500 Gr
Raisins : 2 Cups or 200 Gr
Almonds : 200 Gr.
Cashews : 100 Gr.
Poppy Seeds : 50 Gr.

Method :

1.Remove the pods from dates and keep it aside.
2. Cut almonds and cashews into small pieces and keep it aside.
3. Now put dates, almonds, cashews, raisins in a big bowl.
4. Kneed them together. Add poppy seeds/ gasgase to the dates mixture.
5. Mix all the ingredients nicely and prepare laddu.
6..Take a handful of the almond, dates, raisins and cashew mixture and make small round ball shape laddu.

7. Laddu is ready to eat /serve.

8. Keep them in a steel box or air tight container.

Note :

Use very soft dates. Smash them nicely and then add all the other dry fruits you use. You can powder the nuts instead cutting. But you can relish the bigger pieces. No sugar/jaggery or any other sweet content is not added. Use of more raisins helps to add the sweet to laddu and good for health. You need to kneed them well to get the perfect taste. no ghee or oil is added here.
 Time : 30 Minutes.
15 to 20 Laddus  or according to the size you prefer.

Baragu / Proso Millet Uppittu

Millets and Health goes hand in hand. Lots of people turning and adopting millet food in their daily life. Such a beautiful and healthy grains that they are loaded with benefits to our health.
Here I have prepared Baragu / Proso Millet Uppittu/ Upma and it is yummy to have for breakfast or as snack.

Long long ago before rice entering into Our Bharath people used to grow and eat millets. That has been a daily food grain. Even Very Famous Story Writer Shree S. L Byrappa, writes in one of his novel Uttara Kand that even during Ramayana Yuga, people used to grow millets. Even Lakshmana and Seetha used to grow millets in the land which it belongs to them.
Millets are gluten free, good for diet and diabetic people. It has minimum amount of carbohydrates.
They are full of fiber rich grains and easy to grow.

Millets are known as Siri Dhanya means wealthy grains, since it makes our life happy by taking care of our Health.

Let us see What do we call these millets In our language Kannada which we Kannadigas speak in the State of Karnataka.

         English                     -             Kannada
1. Barnyard Millet                  Oodalu (ಊದಲು)
2. Kodo Millet                        Araka / Haraka (ಹರಕ/ಅರಕ)
3. Little Millet                        Saame (ಸಾಮೆ)
4. Foxtail Millet                     Navane (ನವಣೆ)
5. Brown Millet                      Kooralu (ಕೂರಲು)
6. Finger Millet                      Ragi (ರಾಗಿ)
7. Proso Millet                       Baragu (ಬರಗು)
8. Pearl Millet                        Sajje (ಸಜ್ಜೆ)
9. Soghum/Millet                   Bili Jola (ಬಿಳಿ ಜೋಳ).
I have powdered Baragu /proso Millet into rava consistency and then I used the baragu rava to make uppittu.

No Onion or No Garlic is used in this Baragu / Proso Millet Uppittu.
Let us see the recipe Now :

Ingredients :

Proso Millet /Baragu : 1 Cup
Carrot . 1
Ginger : An inch
Coconut : 1 Cup
Salt : As required
Ghee : 2 Tablespoons
Lemon : 1 Tsp
To Season :
Oil : 3 to 4 Tablespoons
Mustard seeds : 1 Teaspoon
Urid dal : 1 Teaspoon
Cashew nuts : 1 Tablespoon
Curry Leaves : 10 to 12
Green chilly : 2 to 3
Water : 2 Cups

Method :

1. Wash and cut green chilly, curry leaves into thin. clean Baragu grains and keep it aside.

2. Wash carrot, scrape out the skin and grate it.
3. Wash ginger and remove the outer layer and wash it again. Grate it.

4. Grate coconut and keep it aside.
5. Keep water for boiling. Powder baragu into Rava consistency.

6. Keep a big pan on the fire and heat. Add oil and heat. Add mustard seeds and urid dal.
7. Let mustard seeds splutter.
8. Add cashews, green chilly and curry leaves.
9. Add powdered baragu and fry nicely on low flame till the raw smell disappear.

10. Fry nicely and then add boiling water. (Let the flame be very low while pouring water to rava).

11. Mix it well and cover and cook for 2 to 3 minutes on medium flame.
12. Add salt and grated carrot. Mix it well and let it cook on low flame.

13. Add grated ginger and 2 tablespoons of ghee. Mix it slowly
14. Let baragu/proso millet cook nicely. Let all the moisture disappear completely.
15. Now its time to add coconut. Add lemon extract and mix it and mix it. Shift it to a serving dish.

16. Serve with a cup of curd and enjoy eating healthy Baragu /Proso Millet Uppittu.

Note :

Baragu should be powdered properly into medium size rava. If it turns powdered completely Uppittu will not taste good. Adding more water makes Uppituu watery and it does not taste good.
Adding onion is optional. Adding more ghee is optional.
Time : 30 Minutes

Serves : 2 to 3.