Mains

Millet Porridge

Posted on by Vijaya Venkatesh
Cooks in: 20 Minutes Serves: 2 People

Porridge or Kanji as it is called, is best suited when you are unwell or want to have some light food. An excellent energy food, suited for all ages.  My mother and grand mother used parboiled rice and I replaced it by  Barnyard millet, but other millets like Little or Kodo can also be used.

Ingredients:

  • 1/4 Cup Barnyard/Kudhiraivali Millet.
  • 1/8 Tsp Ajwain/Carom/Omam Seeds
  • 1/8 Tsp Jeera/Cumin/Jeeragam Seeds
  • 2 Black Pepper Corns
  • 1/8 Tsp Salt
  • A Pinch of Asafoetida
  • 2 Tbsp dried night shade berries/manathakali vathal
  • 1 Tbsp Melted Ghee

Directions:

  1. Dry roast millet, ajwain, jeera and pepper corns for 5 minutes on low flame and make grits using a mixie. Use 2  tbsp of grits for making 2 cups of porridge.
  2. In a 2 Ltr. Pressure Cooker, add 1.5 cups water, 2 tbsp girts, salt and asafoetida.
  3. Cook on low fire for 15 minutes. You may get a whistle or two. Ignore that. Cooking on low flame prevents spewing. Open after pressure settles down.
  4. In a small pan add ghee and roast the berries. Transfer it to the porridge. Serve warm.

14 Comments

  1. Thanks for this awesome recipe. Came out very well and my family loved it. I fried some chopped pearl onions along with manathakkali vathal in ghee for garnishing and also diluted with buttermilk.

    1. Hi Jyothi,
      Adding fried onions and buttermilk gives a nice taste. Glad that it came out well. Thanks so much for sharing your experience.

    1. Hi Sangeetha,
      For porridge you can use Kodo, Little, barnyard and Foxtail millets.

  3. Hi VV,
    I tried this recipe for my baby today.. he liked and had.. thank you so much

    1. Hi Prathima,
      Thanks for validating the recipe. Happy to know that your baby liked it. This porridge is suited for all ages!

  4. Made it for dinner as a substitute meal. Had a heavy lunch. Made it with Foxtail millet and diluted it with buttermilk. But it still had the hint of flavours of Hing, ajwain, jeera n spice of pepper. Loved it. Going to keep it as a staple for those days when you are in two minds about dinner.

  5. Tried it and the porridge was full of flavours (jeera n omum).Its so easy to make ,it will definitely be a regular menu.

    1. Hi Jacqueline,
      Thanks for trying and validating the recipe! Happy to know that you loved the taste! I also love this as my dinner during cold winters! A healthy light dish!!

  6. Light on stomach, easy to digest and easy to make… Special dish for super senior citizens…tried… Grany liked it very much… Tasty .. thanks again for Vijaya mam for this recipe…

    1. Hi Suman,
      Thanks again for trying and validating the recipe. As you said, this porridge is a healthy one best suited for kids as well as senior citizens. Happy to know that your grandma liked it very much.