Ragi
is one of most nutritious millet and is easy to digest as well. Since it does
not contain gluten, it is a wonderful grain
alternative for people who are gluten-sensitive. It is a low fat cereal and
most of the fats are in the unsaturated form. It
is called Kelvaragu or aariyam in Tamil, Ragi in Telugu and Kannada, and
Madua or Mangal in Hindi.
Health Benefits
·
Aids in Bone Development: An excellent
source of calcium.
·
Acts as a Relaxant: The
amino acid called Tryptophan acts as an excellent natural relaxant and helps
to fight anxiety, insomnia and depression, also helps in treating migraine
headaches.
·
Aids in Weight loss: Tryptophan reduces excess
appetite & Fibers gives you a feeling of fullness.
·
Reduces High Glucose Levels in the Blood
·
Acts as a Good Source of Protein/Amino Acids
·
Lowers Blood Cholesterol
Levels
·
Prevents and Treats Anaemia: Being a
good source of iron.
·
Good in Milk allergies: Ragi malt can be a good
substitute for people suffering from milk allergies.
·
Acts as Remedy for Various Health Conditions: Such
as malnutrition, premature ageing and the
development of degenerative diseases. Green ragi is a remedy for blood
pressure, heart weakness, liver disease, asthma and lack of milk
production during lactation period.
Is there any
Downside Associated with the Consumption of Ragi?
High intake of ragi can increase oxalic acid in your
body. Hence, it is not recommended for people suffering from urinary calculi
(kidney stone).
Prudent ways to include Ragi in diet
·
Ragi can be ground and use in baking and making
puddings.
·
Porridge made with Ragi powder is very healthy
refreshing breakfast.
·
Soups and vegetable broth can be prepared using Ragi
flour.
·
Many Indian desserts such as Halwa and Barfi can be
made with Ragi.
·
Idlis and Dosas of Ragi flour is a nourishing
breakfast.
·
Mix Ragi flour with whole-wheat flour and make
chapattis or Indian breads and can make dosas & upmas.
·
Sprout the ragi grains and use them in your salads.
·
Ragi Puttu a traditional a healthy recipe is a great
addition to the meal.
·
Ragi is rich in calcium. Instead of popping a pill, you
can as well substitute that with ragi kanji. Boil a glass of water, put a spoon
of ragi flour into boiling water, add a little salt and let it cool. Drink it
with a pinch of salt and butter milk. This will not just cool your body, but
also gives you strength.
·
Ragi is best for weight loss. Make ragi balls and
substitute this for rice. You will soon notice the difference.
·
Ragi cherry is one of the best semi-solid
foods that you give your kid before you get him used to solid food. It's the
best baby food in India to give make kids strong.
You can enjoy the taste of Ragi by including it in
various meals. Come out with your own recipes to enjoy the goodness of this
cereal!
# Ragi Cherry (from Musicas Kitchen)
Ingredients:
Ragi -1kg
Wheat -100gms
Green Gram-100gms
Almond-50gms
Sabudana-50gms
Method
Soak wheat, ragi, and green gram in a large vessel
overnight
Wash 2 to 3 times all the ingredients until you
are sure that its clean.
Transfer them to a large sieve to remove excess water
after washing.
Tie ragi, wheat, green gram in a thin cotton cloth.
The sprouts start to appear after about a day.
Make sure to open the cloth and see it at least once a
day, so that no fungus develops.
Keep it for another day so that you see a few
centimeter long sprouts.
Now dry the sprouted ingredients in shade, that is
inside the room for a day or until you are sure that there is no wetness.
Roast, almonds, and sabudana .
Grind everything into a fine powder. It should be
almost white fine powder.
For the baby
Mix one teaspoon of ragi Cherry into 200 ml of cold
water stir so that there are no lumps.
Add 1/4 spoon of ghee.
Heat the water until it boils and the ragi is
cooked. Ragi Cherry should be of semi liquid consistency.
Tips: Initially for first few days feed the baby just
one spoon of ragi cherry only once a day. Only after you are sure that the baby
has no allergy you can increase the quantity.
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