mayurisjikoni

Super Healthy    Navratri and Dussera are over, all the feasting is over..for now. After all the rich snacks and desserts, Saturday meal was a simple khichdi made using bajri (bajra, pearl millet) and moong dal.        The 112th theme for  FoodieMonday/Bloghop suggested by Amrita who blogs at The Food Samaritan , was #1Tsp Oil . This theme couldn't have come at a better time. Saturday meal was definitely light on the stomach and yet full of nutrition. Thanks Amrita for encouraging us to cook with little or no oil.     On my 'to do list' was this bajra khichdi ever since Sapana of Cooking with Sapana posted the recipe for the protein rich dishes theme. Sapana thank you so much, the khichdi turned out really delicious.    I made a few changes to the original recipe. I used moong dal with the skin and mixed vegetables. This is one dish that I know I'll be making often. My other really light on the stomach and healthy w...

Millet is not just for birds    Millet, an ancient grain is the least popular of all the other ancient grains in spite of having so many nutritional benefits. Millet is not actually a grain but its a grass seed. In ancient times millet was more widely used then rice in Asia and Africa. Slowly this ancient grain got replaced by other grains. Millet actually does not require that much water and can be grown in semi arid areas too. No wonder places like semi arid Rajasthan have bajra rotla as a part of their staple diet.  Why you should include millet in your diet: Its gluten free It is alkaline Digests easily Helps lower the effects of Diabetes 2 Its rich in magnesium and potassium, both which help to keep your heart healthy Its high in fiber therefore good for your digestive system reduces bad cholesterol high fiber content prevents onset of breast cancer prevents premature ageing. It has amino acids methionine and lysine both which help to build collagen Helps you to rela...

remembering the children Getting young kids to eat fresh fenugreek and millet flour is not an easy task. When we would make bajri na dhebras (millet flour parathas) my kids would just screw up their nose and make yucky sounds. However, the fried version went down very well. Was it because it was fried or because they were able to fill the puffed up dhebras or vadas with yogurt, I really don't know. But at least we got them to eat some gujarati food and millet flour. My mother in law came up with the brilliant idea of frying them. the kids loved these dhebras and would sometimes carry them to school to share with their friends. I made these dhebras after a very long time and they stayed soft for a couple of days unlike the maizemeal dhebras which tend to become a bit hard after a few days. Patels tend to call the bajri parathas and vadas dhebras. The rest of Gujarat tends to call them vadas. They are quite different from the vadas of the south. Whatever they are called, they are yum...

Travel food Bajri dhebras (millet parathas) is a common snack for Gujaratis. Train, car, plane, bullock cart or ship, however one travelled, bajri dhebras were carried to have on the way. I remember my mum packing a pile of the dhebras for our train journey to Mombasa. We would take them along for picnics and sometimes instead of handvo had dhebras while watching a movie at the drive- in cinema. The very first time I made bajri dhebras was when I was around 14. My mum had gone to Kericho for a wedding and my grandmother insisted that she wanted to have some dhebras for dinner. I did try and convince her that she could wait till my mum got back but she was pretty adamant. 'I will teach you how to make them', she insisted. So under her watchful eye and guidance, I made horrible dhebras. They were shapeless, broken and a few got stuck on the tawa. Basically granny dear walked away with thick, thin, raw, overdone dhebras and I was left to clear the mess I had created in the kitche...