Millet Ganji (Porridge) Recipe

Rajan loves cooking dishes from his native Indian cuisine. He likes to share his favourite recipes with his online readers.

Ganji is a South Indian porridge-like dish that is typically served as a complete meal. You can also serve it with pickle and either dahi, buttermilk or even a gravy dish. Sometimes vegetables and/or meat are added, as well, to make it an even more healthy and satisfying meal.

Although ganji is usually prepared with rice as the main ingredient, in this recipe, we will be using foxtail millet to replace the rice.

For millet ganji, the usual ratio of water to millet is between six to 10 times. In this recipe, I used eight parts water to one part millet in order to achieve the right consistency.

Cook Time

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup kutki (foxtail millet)
• 4 cups water
• 2 tbsp cold-pressed groundnut oil
• 1/2 tsp jeera (cumin seeds)
• 1/4 tsp rai (mustard seeds)
• 1 medium onion, finely chopped
• 1 green chilli, finely chopped
• 1 tsp ginger-garlic paste
• 8-10 kadhi patta (curry leaves)
• 1 medium tomato, chopped
• 2.5 tbsp chopped French beans
• 2 tbsp chopped carrot
• 2 tbsp diced bell pepper
• 1/2 tsp/to taste sendha namak (rock salt)
• 1-2 tsp chopped hara dhania (cilantro)

Instructions

1. Wash the foxtail millet once and then soak it in water for 8 hours before you wish to prepare the ganji.
2. To start preparing the dish keep an earthen pot or steel pot on low-medium heat. Add oil and let it heat up; then reduce the heat to low, add the jeera and mustard seeds and let them crackle.
3. Add the chopped onion and saute until light pink on low-medium heat.
4. Add the chopped green chilli, ginger-garlic paste and kadi patta. Saute for about 2-3 minutes until the ginger-garlic paste and onions are well roasted.
5. Add the chopped tomato and stir-cook until it turns soft and mushy.
6. Add the chopped French beans, carrots, diced bell pepper and salt. Stir well and saute for 4-5 minutes.
7. Reduce the heat to low. Add the water used for soaking the millet (but don't add the millet yet). Raise the heat to medium, stir and let the water come to a boil.
8. Reduce the heat to low, add the soaked millet and stir well. Cover with a lid and cook for 20-25 minutes or until it reaches a porridge-like consistency (refer to video). Keep stirring and checking at regular intervals.
9. Add the chopped cilantro and turn off the heat. Stir well and serve with buttermilk or dahi (yoghurt) and pickle.

Millet Ganji (Porridge) Recipe

© 2021 Rajan Singh Jolly