The Goodness Grocery
How to cook every millet, grain by grain
Most people buy their first packet of millet, cook it like rice, and end up with something either soupy or stubbornly hard. The grains are not interchangeable. Here is what we tell customers across the counter.
The short version
Rinse twice. Soak if you have twenty minutes. Use the water ratio below, bring to a boil, then cover and simmer on low until the water is gone. Rest it off the heat for five minutes before you open the lid — that last step is what makes the grains separate.
The table
| Millet | Water | Time | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Foxtail (thina) | 1 : 2 | 15 min | Pulao, upma, pongal, lemon rice |
| Little (chaama) | 1 : 2 | 12 min | Curd rice, upma, kanji |
| Kodo (varagu) | 1 : 2½ | 20 min | Biriyani, pulao — holds its shape |
| Barnyard (kuthiraivali) | 1 : 2 | 10 min | Upma, kichadi, fasting-day meals |
| Proso (panivaragu) | 1 : 2 | 15 min | A plain bowl beside curry |
| Brown top | 1 : 2½ | 20 min | Upma, kanji |
| Pearl (kambu) | 1 : 3 | 25 min | Kanji, porridge, rotis once milled |
| Sorghum (jowar) | 1 : 3 | 30 min | A rice substitute; rotis once milled |
| Finger (ragi) | 1 : 3 | 30 min | Kanji; more often used as flour |
Three things worth knowing
Soaking changes the timing. Twenty minutes in water and most of these cook a third faster and more evenly. If you soak, hold back a little of the water.
The bigger grains want more water. Pearl millet, sorghum and ragi are the three that catch people out. Think of them as unpolished rice rather than as rice.
A pressure cooker works, with less water. Drop the ratios above by about half a cup and give it two whistles for the quick millets, three for the slow ones.
If you are starting with one
Start with foxtail or little millet. They cook quickly, behave most like rice, and will not surprise anyone at the table. Barnyard is the one to reach for when you want upma on a weekday morning and have ten minutes.
Come and ask at the shop if you are unsure which to try — it is a quicker conversation than a web page, and we would rather you enjoyed the first packet.