Ragi is a healthy grain and nutritious food for babies. It’s known as finger millet in English, ragi in Kannada, nachni in Marathi & Gujarati, mandika in Hindi, panji pullu in Malayalam, ragulu in Telugu, Marwa in Bengali & Nepali and kelvaragu or Keppai in Tamil. Check more information about giving ragi to babies and kids with the nutritional information of ragi.
Health Benefits of Ragi to baby:
- It is rich in calcium hence strengthen the bones.
- Rich in dietary fiber so helps in healthy weight gain.
- Cures anemia as rich in iron.
- It has proteins & minerals, easily digestible for babies.
Advantage of soaking and sprouting Ragi:
Though soaking and sprouting the ragi takes a lot of time, it is highly recommended for babies and toddlers. Here is the advantage of the same: Soaking and sprouting help to absorb iron content as the level of Vitamin C increased during the process. Also sprouted ragi is easily digestible for babies and increase the nutritional values.
When to introduce ragi to babies & how to cook ragi
Ragi can be given to babies of age six months plus after introduced with few veg or fruit purees and rice. Please check this how to make ragi porridge for babies. Begin with 1 tbsp of cooked ragi porridge and check whether the baby shows an allergic reaction. Check it for three days, and if the baby is not allergic to it, you can increase the amount gradually. For toddlers above one year, ragi porridge can be made with milk. You can also make ragi dosa for toddlers.
Recipes to Try with this Sprouted Ragi Flour
- Ragi Porridge (6 Months+)
- Ragi Apple Halwa (6 Months+)
- Instant Ragi Dosa (8 Months+)
- Ragi Pancakes (8 Months+)
- Ragi Kheer (1 Year+)
- Ragi Puttu (1 Year+)
- Ragi Rava Idli (8 Months+)
- Ragi Idli (8 Months+)
- Ragi Kozhukattai (1 Year+)
- Ragi ButterMilk (1 Year+)
- Ragi Cookies (1 Year+)
- Ragi Muffins (1 Year+)
- Ragi Cake (1 Year+)
- Ragi seeds - 1.5 cups
- Measure the ragi seeds using a measuring cup as mentioned in the ingredients table & keep it ready.
- Take ragi in a vessel and wash it by rubbing well with your hands. It has lots of mud so repeat the process 2 to 3 times unless it is clean and get rid of all dirt.
- Then soak the ragi in clean water for 12 hours. Keep it covered (with provision to some air to enter) while soaking. After 12 hours, open. The color of the ragi will be changed after soaking.
- Then drain the water completely. Transfer the drained ragi to a clean white cloth or cheesecloth for sprouting. Place the cheesecloth with ragi in a colander.
- Tie it up with all four corners and keep it undisturbed for another 12 hours for sprouting. After 12 hours, open the cloth carefully. You could see the tiny sprouts in ragi. Transfer the sprouted ragi to a plate and sun dry it for 12 hours.
- After sun drying the ragi, dry roast the ragi in a pan in low flame for 5 minutes or until it's toasted. Remove from the pan and cool it down.
- Take the roasted ragi to a dry mixer jar and blend it to a smooth powder. Sieve the powder well. Cool it down and store in an airtight container.
METHOD :
Notes :
- You can store this sprouted ragi powder in an airtight container and keep it in the refrigerator. It stays well 2 to 3 months.
- Sprouted ragi would have tiny sprouts. If you can’t see the small sprouts, sprinkle little water and sprout it for another couple of hours or more.
- Make sure you cool down thoroughly after roasting & blending. Otherwise, it will let out moisture.
- You can also grind the ragi in mill if you’re preparing larger quantities.
- If grinding at home, do it in intervals to avoid overheating of the blender.
- Always check with your pediatrician before introducing any new food.
Jenifer Juliya says
May 30, 2016 at 3:03 amWhen to keep ragi under sun dry?
gkfooddiary says
May 30, 2016 at 4:30 amAfter sprouting
Preeti says
May 16, 2019 at 5:56 pmWhat if there is not access to sunlight? Can it be air dried under fan?
Kalyani says
May 16, 2019 at 10:19 pmyes under fan or shade or even in the oven with just lights on
Jyoti Garg says
June 1, 2016 at 7:27 pmHi.. My baby is 6 months old….the flour is to be sieved in a normal fine mesh sieve or a muslin cloth.
gkfooddiary says
June 2, 2016 at 2:03 pmNormal fine mesh sieve would do
Diya says
October 11, 2016 at 10:20 amThank you for sharing your method.. I used a normal mesh (finest available) and the brown husk pieces did come down from the sieve..If I used a fine cloth then this would not come down.. My question is is it ok for this brown powdered husk to be present in the final powder?
gkfooddiary says
October 11, 2016 at 2:34 pmRepeat sieving 2 to 3 times until the flour is husk free.
Tejashri says
February 9, 2017 at 5:26 pmHi..Thank you so much for all the recipes, I am a diligent follower of your food blog. My baby will be 7 months soon and I have started this ragi porridge for him. But I am not able to get the proper consistency for porridge with this powder.. it’s like all powder deposits at bottom and watery stuff on top
I am pro at making it the other way by soaking overnight and grinding next day but that won’t give me benefit that I get from sprouts.
May be my water to powder ratio is wrong? Can you tell me how to prepare it with powder?
gkfooddiary says
February 10, 2017 at 5:42 amAm glad you like my recipes:) if the ragi powder is settling at the bottom you may have added more water to cook. Try to reduce the water amount and see (try with 2 tbsp of ragi 3/4 cup to 1 cup of water) .Once the ragi is cooked and porridge consistency is reached, switch off. Later you can adjust the thickness by adding water/milk if it is too thick. Hope it helps!
Shiksha says
February 24, 2017 at 2:51 pmSo we should make the regular porriadge with malted Ragi ?
Kalyani says
February 24, 2017 at 4:07 pmAny ragi powder you can use to make ragi porridge , the method is same!
Antony says
March 26, 2019 at 11:03 amHi
Thank you for your technique And recipes
One cup means how much ml approximately
Will sprouted ragi powder get spoiled if kept more than 3 months? I feel using personal grinder Is more hygienic. Don’t husk has some nutritional value?
Kalyani says
March 27, 2019 at 2:05 amI use standard US Cup measurements. 250 ml. Store the sprouted ragi powder in an airtight container and use dry spoon always. Store in refrigerator if the weather is humid. Yes, the husk has nutritional value, and you can use a personal grinder if it is affordable.
Kavita says
February 23, 2017 at 4:50 pmNice recipes
Useful for us
Kalyani says
February 24, 2017 at 12:06 amThanks Kavita:) Glad you found our recipes useful!
Priti says
September 3, 2017 at 2:44 pmHi,
Thank you for such healthiest recipes. I used a fine cotton cloth to sieve the powder. Now should we trash the thick leftover powder though i grinded it several times.
gkfooddiary says
September 4, 2017 at 12:54 pmuse a fine sieve instead of cloth …
Visal says
October 19, 2017 at 4:16 pmHi thank you for the useful tips. Here in my place winter is started and is it ok to dry the sprouted ragi in fan or is there any option.
gkfooddiary says
October 20, 2017 at 12:12 amyes you can dry it inside the room and dry roast in a pan..if you get sunlight
Visal says
October 20, 2017 at 9:25 pmThank u for ur reply, then i will try to dry inside room. I would like to Thank u for ur website which is very useful for new mommies.
gkfooddiary says
October 21, 2017 at 12:36 amglad you found our website useful!
Shailaja says
October 28, 2017 at 1:24 amCan I add almonds and chaswenuts powder to do mix my baby is 15 months old
gkfooddiary says
October 28, 2017 at 1:28 amyes you can add
sunitha says
November 15, 2017 at 11:05 pmhi dr,
can i extract ragi milk from this sprouted ragi and make porridge for my baby (6 month old). if so, is it possible to store the sun dried sprouted ragi in fridge? will it affect its nutrition content..?
thanks
gkfooddiary says
November 16, 2017 at 8:49 amYes you can take milk from sprouted whole ragi and you can store the sprouted ragi in refrigerator.. but not sure how long it stays good
sunitha says
November 18, 2017 at 12:38 amhi dr,
i followed ur method to sprout ragi..seeing that tiny sprouts in ragi was an awesome moment….thanks for ur well detailed post …:)
gkfooddiary says
November 18, 2017 at 7:52 amMost welcome and Yes its a treat to eyes:)
Krishna says
June 28, 2018 at 12:43 amI do not get sunlight where I live….is there any other option? Can I dry it under the fan n then roast it?
Kalyani says
June 28, 2018 at 1:26 amyes, you can dry under a fan or keep it in an oven with just light on.
Firthos says
July 23, 2018 at 12:29 amCan v soak ragi for more than 12hours…..if v soak more than 12hours it will be any issues…..
Kalyani says
July 23, 2018 at 7:35 amit might give a bad odor if soaked for more than 12 hours. also there is a chance that it may get spoiled.
Firthos says
July 23, 2018 at 6:54 pmCan v use that I tied n ketp tiny sprouts r der…..not much v can use it na
Kalyani says
July 23, 2018 at 9:53 pmif no bad odor, you can use it.
Pallavi says
October 8, 2018 at 10:48 pmHi, I made ragi powder at home, but I can still see some small ragi particles after cooking it, what should I do to make it more fine and also my baby’s poop has rahi particles, so is it normal?
Kalyani says
October 9, 2018 at 12:37 amSieve it two to three times and see.
also, make sure to cook the ragi powder at least for ten mins. undigested foods come out in poop and its common in the first few months as the baby’s digestive system isn’t fully developed.
Meena says
December 26, 2018 at 10:05 pmI have prepared this sprouted Ragi powder.. But while cooking once it reaches thick consistency it is releasing water and not able to get porridge consistency again.. Please let me know what can I do
Kalyani says
December 26, 2018 at 11:50 pmHomemade ragi powder porridge will not become thick like pudding and will be in slightly thick consistency. Try to reduce the water amount and see (try with 2 tbsp of ragi 3/4 cup to 1 cup of water). Once the ragi is cooked, and porridge consistency is reached, switch off. Later you can adjust the thickness by adding water/milk if it is too thick. Hope it helps!