Millet Pongal | Little Millet Recipes | Millet Recipes | Millet Recipes for weight Loss

Are you looking for millet recipes for weight loss? Here is a nutritious millet pongal using little millet.

Millet pongal or little millet pongal is a healthy and tasty recipe. Pongal is one of the comfort food for all season. Little millet is also called as ‘saame’ in Kannada, ‘samai’ in tamil, ‘sama’ in telugu.

Which millet is best for making pongal?

You can use any type of millet for making this pongal. But little millet, barnyard millet and kodo millet goes well for making pongal recipe. As they combined well with the recipe and are easily digestible. While cooking these millets they become soft and smooth in texture compared to other millets like foxtail millet.

The procedure of making pongal is same for all types of millets. This samai pongal is filling, protein rich and mainly diabetic friendly too. Millet pongal is one of the ideal recipe for diabetic patients and also good for growing toddlers. As millet contains healthy nutrients which are necessary for growing kids, as well as adults too. More over millets are great choice for weight loss. It keeps you full for longer time and avoids over eating.

Usually pongal recipe is specially prepared during the harvest festival called Sankranthi, which is celebrated in Karnataka. Further little millet pongal is a healthy variation to sankranthi pongal. Usually sankranthi pongal is prepared by rice and yellow moong dal, with aromatic ginger and black pepper tadka in ghee. It’s so simple to make and tastes delicious. I love to make this pongal more often for breakfast or lunch/dinner. This millet pongal is a complete meal which is filling and nutritious. Also this pongal goes well with chutney, pickle or papad.

Even more the making of millet pongal is similar to the ven pongal or khara pongal recipe. Only the thing is replace rice with millet. Certainly this pongal is protein rich. Because we have used moong lentis, which are very good source of protein. Also in Ayurveda moong lentils are considered as “tridoshic”, means it balances all the 3 doshas.

Further millet contains healthy nutrients and make a perfect breakfast cereals. They are high in fiber, low in calories and mainly low in G.I(glycemic index). Thus millets are highly beneficial for diabetes. Both moong lentil and millet helps in weight loss

Health Benefits of Little Millet

• Millets are good for coronary diseases.
• Helps in managing the sugar levels.
• It promotes digestion.
• Helps in detoxification.
• Nutritious as fruits and vegetables.
• Fights heart diseases.
• Helps in preventing gallstones.
• Promotes weight loss.
• It controls cholesterol levels.

Finally do visit our other recipes also

• Diabetic friendly recipes and desserts
• Moringa juice for weight loss
• Millet dosa without rice
• Foxtail millet vangibath
• Healthy weight loss recipes

Here is the healthy & nutritious little millet pongal with step by step photos and a detailed video.

Millet Pongal Recipe Video

1. Firstly take a small bowl and add 3/4 cup little millet. Add water and soak for 30 minutes. Drain off the water.
2. Heat a pan and add split yellow moong dal. Dry roast the moong dal for 2 to 3 mins.
3. Turn off the heat and wash the roasted moong dal and keep it aside.
4. Meanwhile heat a cooker pan and add washed moong dal, little millet. Mix it well.
5. Now add 3 cups of water and cover the lid. Pressure cook this for 3 whistles.
6. Once the steam settled down on its own, carefully open the lid and mix again. keep this aside.
7. Now heat another pan on medium flame and add a tbsp of ghee. Once the ghee is melted up, add cumin,turmeric powder and black pepper.
8. Similarly add green chilli, grated ginger, cashews. Saute well until it splutters and cashews are golden.
9. Likewise add curry leaves and hing. saute it for a min.
10. Then add cooked moong dal & millet mixture. Add required amount of water.
11. Mix everything well. Now add salt and give a quick mix.
12. Turn off the heat and add grated dry coconut and ghee. Gently mix once.
13. Now the tasty, healthy little millet pongal is ready to serve