sama ke chawal ka bhakka | barnyard millet porridge

A few foods we start loving just because our parents are always raving about those. I have witnessed this tendency of kids even in recent times when I see them following their parents in the choice of foods, especially the junk type. There is no other way small toddlers would start loving junk carbonated drinks and instant noodles.

We had no such influence in my times, the only choices we had were home cooked food as our parents always preferred home cooked food unless we were traveling. I would add that my parents were very fond of good food and since they kept traveling a lot and we all lived in many cities all across the country, the food repertoire at home was quite rich.

One of the dishes I remember we all loved just because my father was too fond of it, is this sama ke chawal ka bhakka. I had never seen it being made in other homes till then, not even now, and the name sama ke chawal ka bhakka was so uncool that we never talked about this dish outside of our home. The taste was nothing special as it tasted just like any other daliya or porridge we ate for breakfast, nothing to feel elated about.

Same ke chawal ka bhakka was not even garnished before serving like we do for sama ke chawal ki kheer, though I felt like garnishing this time when I made it just for the sake of pictures.

ingredients 
(2 breakfast servings)

1/2 cup sama ke chawal (barnyard millet)
600 ml full cream milk 
1 tbsp sugar or more to taste
garnish of choice

procedure 

Soak the sama ke chawal in the milk overnight, preferably in the same pot you will use for cooking the porridge in the morning.

Place the pot on gas stove and bring to a soft boil while stirring in between. Lower the gas and let it cook for 10 minutes. Add sugar, mix and cover for 15 minutes till it absorbs all moisture.

Serve hot, warm or cold. Make ahead if you want to serve it chilled.

Garnish if desired.

It tastes like a porridge that has a hint of kheer. The sama ke chawal ki kheer is a richer version of sama ka bhakka, which was served either as a breakfast dish or a snack any time of the day.

Such a healthy snack for anyone who has a sweet tooth.

fasting recipes | sama ke chawal ki tahiri | vrat wali tahiri

 Sama ka chawal or Samak chawal is actually a millet called Barnyard millet that is mostly consumed during Navratri fasting. Barnyard millet cooks really fast when soaked and can be made into sama ka Jeera rice, Sama ka Upma, Sama ki Idli and Sama ka Dhokla easily. Making sama ka Dosa is also easy once you know how to use this millet. We love sama ki kheer too.

Sama ki tehri or tahiri cooks quickly once you have soaked sama in the fridge. Yes it is advisable to soak sama overnight either in water or thin buttermilk and refrigerate so it can be used to cook meals quickly as the soaked sama ke chawal lasts about 3-4 days. It is particularly convenient in Navratras if you are fasting.

ingredients 
(2 servings)

1/3 cup sama ke chawal (Barnyard millet) soaked in 1.5 cup thin buttermilk overnight
2 cups mixed vegetables chopped into small cubes
1 tomato pureed
one small potato chopped in small cubes
1 tbsp ghee
1 tsp cumin seeds
pink salt (sendha namak) to taste
pepper to taste
chopped green chilies and chopped ginger if required
chopped dhaniya patta to garnish

preparation 

Heat the ghee in a wide stockpot (or pan) and tip in cumin seeds. Let the cumin splutter a bit.

Add the potatoes and stir and cook for 2 minutes. Now add the pureed tomatoes and all the chopped vegetables, salt and pepper. It will be better to add the other vegetables one by one according to the time they take to cook. I added carrots first and then zucchini after the potatoes and carrots were done. Toss and cook them all together.

Now add the soaked sama ke chawal, mix everything well and cook covered on low flame. No need to add any additional water as there is enough water in the ingredients to get cooked. It takes about 5 minutes for this quantity to get cooked after adding the soaked sama ke chawal.

Fluff up once cooked, sprinkle with chopped dhaniya patta and chopped green chilies and ginger if using. Serve with cucumber raita.

Green chilies and fine julienne of ginger taste really good in this tahiri but you can avoid if you like it a little plain. You can always add some roasted nuts or paneer cubes on top to add some proteins. I normally like it lighter but it also depends on how hungry you are for the meal or whether you are serving this sama ke chawal ki tahiri for lunch or dinner.

sama ke chawal ka dhokla | vrat wala dhokla | a healthy fasting recipe that can be a regular snack too

Dhokla used to be my go to snack few years ago when I would steam an instant dhokla every other day. It was always for our evening tea or when my brother came who loves dhokla. And then our evening tea changed as we started having early dinners. So the evening tea was just tea and nothing else with it most of the times.

I had bought some 2 kilos of sama ke chawal (Barnyard millet) during navratri a couple of weeks ago and have been using the millet for my breakfast or dinner sometimes. And then I was reminded of the dhokla I used to make of this millet. I couldn't stop myself and steamed a plate of sama ka dhokla, later I realised the husband had forgotten about a white dhokla. But he loved it all over again. Yes, I am telling you grudgingly because I got way too less than I wanted to have for myself :-(

This recipe of sama ka dhokla was suggested casually by a senior of mine during my research days and I used to be my experimental best regarding cooking in those days. So I played with this idea of a recipe and made a significant change. Instead of using whole sama ke chawal as suggested by her, I made it into a batter and the dhokla turned out much better. I like the sama ki idli steamed with whole soaked millet.

ingredients..

for the dhokla..
sama ke chawal (Barnyard millet) 1 cup
sour buttermilk or sour yogurt diluted with equal amount of water 3 cups
salt to taste

for the tempering...
green chilies 3-4 slit length wise
dry red chilies 1-2 broken
rai seeds (small mustard seeds) 1 tsp
hing (asafoetida) a pinch
curry leaves 3-4 springs
peanut oil 2 tsp
sugar 1 tbsp
lime juice 1 tbsp or a little more
water 1.5 cup

procedure...

Soak the millets in the buttermilk and salt overnight, but keep it refrigerated if you are using sour curd in summers, it could get too sour for your liking. But if you like khatta dhokla, you would like it really sour. Go with what you like. Also, this soaked mixture can be refrigerated for up to week if you are a bad planner. It happened with me so I thought I should add it to your convenience.

Make a batter of the soaked millet by blending it in mixie or food processor when you are about to steam the dhokla. Add 1/2 tsp pf soda bi carb to the batter, mix well and pour into a greased plate or steaming vessel. Steam till set and cooked. I used an opal ware plate and microwaved it for 5 minutes covered with a dome lid. Let it cool completely. Then cut in desired shapes.

For the tempering, heat oil in a pan, tip in the hing and rai seeds and let them crackle. Add the chilies and curry leaves and stir them to let them cook and release their aroma. Pour water and add the sugar, let it come to a soft boil.

Take off the heat, add the lime juice and pour over the steamed dhokla. Let the sweet and sour water soak in, it will all disappear within 5 minutes. The dhokla will swell up so make space for them by removing a few from the plate.

Serve at room temperature.

Soft and spongy, hot, sour and lightly sweet and completely bursting with flavors of the tempering. This makes a very pleasant snack or meal, or part of an elaborate meal. You just can't stop at a couple of these. This millet has a nice nuttiness to it when cooked and that comes out really nice with this dhokla tempering. Those fried and then boiled chilies become so yummy I gobble them all up.

We had it with our evening chai as I mentioned. But the chai was given a royal ignore as the dhokla took center stage  I had to reheat the chai later to finish it. The dhokla is that good.

 Vrat ka khana or fasting food can be fun if you use the ingredients to full potential. I keep cooking these ingredients whenever possible as all alternate grains do taste great and provide a good opportunity to bring variety to my meals every day.

sama ke chawal aur moongphali ki kadhi | Fasting recipes for Navratri....

 Jeera rice made using sama ke chawal or Barnyard millet is as tasty as jeera rice cooked with any short grain rice. You have to try it to believe it. And if it is served with a kadhi, it becomes a comforting meal that is light on the system. The kadhi I am talking about is made using peanuts. Fasting foods are made using a limited number of ingredients but that doesn't mean it has to be boring and bland, or repetitive by any means.

So now you can enjoy kadhi chawal during fasting days as well, this recipe of peanut kadhi makes yummy kadhi and the tempering doesn't make you realize it is not the real thing. You would end up slurping the last bits believe me.

Recipe of sama ke chawal ka jeera rice...

ingredients...
(2 meal servings)
3/4 cup sama ke chawal
2 tsp cumin seeds
1/2 tsp or more black peppercorns
pinch of salt
1 tsp ghee
1.5 cup hot water

procedure...

Heat the ghee in a pan and add the cumin and black peppercorns. Add the pinch of salt and the washed and drained rice. No need to soak the rice.

Dry fry the rice just for about 30 seconds stirring constantly, add the water, cover and simmer for about 5 minutes. It gets cooked quickly.

The sama looks slightly sticky at this stage, is al dante too, cover and let it cook further in it's own heat after taking the pan off heat. After about 10 minutes you can fluff up the rice using a folk. It fluffs up nicely with each grain looking separate. Khila khila as we call it.

Do start with the kadhi as soon as you cover the lid to simmer this jeera rice.

recipe of the peanut kadhi....

ingredients...
(for 3 servings)
3/4 cups soaked peanuts (I used sprouted)
2 green chilies
an inch piece of root ginger
salt (pink salt or sendha namak) to taste
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
3/4 cup very sour yogurt

Tempering to be done to finish the kadhi.. 
1 tbsp ghee, 1 tsp cumin seeds and 1/4 tsp red chilly powder.

procedure...

Make a paste of the kadhi ingredients without adding any water, no need to peel the peanuts.

 Pour this paste in a kadhai or deep pan. Add 3 cups of water and start simmering on medium heat, stirring all the while till the first boil comes. Lower the flame to very low and simmer for about 15 minutes.

For tempering, heat the ghee in a ladle or small pan, add cumin and wait till the cumin splutters. Add the red chilly powder and take the pan off heat. Pour the tempering ghee into the cooked kadhi.

This would make a yummy meal for navratri, vary satiating and filling and yet light on the system, detoxifying and cleansing in properties.

I served it with a quick stir fry of potato wedges, carrot batons and zucchini slices that I cooked while the kadhi was simmering. Just with a seasoning of salt and pepper.

I have won accolades for these two recipes and for this particular meal. Have served it on non fasting days too and people have ended up taking third and fourth helpings.

The leftovers reheat well if you are wondering how you will manage if you are fasting alone. Make it for 2-3 days refrigerate in portions, reheat in microwave and serve with different vegetable stir fries on the side. This is what I used to do when I was in research eons ago.

Hope you enjoy having kadhi chawal for your fasting days. I am enjoying a few fasting recipes though I am not fasting and have been eating my fish fries on the side...

Please do let me know if you try the recipe.