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    Home Β» Recipes Β» Breakfast & Dinner Ideas

    Samai pongal | Little millet pongal recipe

    September 19, 2014 by Raks Anand 16 Comments / Jump to Recipe

    samai-millet-pongal

    Millet pongal, with samai / little millet with step by step pictures. Healthier way by swapping rice. You will never know it's not rice.

    Of the millets my parents gave me, samai (Little millet in English, Kutki in Hindi, Sama in telugu, Same in Kannada, Chama in Malayalam) is the last one to try. One day I was craving to have pongal, but wanted to make it healthier.

    little-millet-samai-recipes

    So tried my hands with samai also known as little millet. It came out really superb. I used to make our regular pongal this way, i.e; temper directly in pressure cooker and cook all together for pongal – my mom’s way.

    Its been a long time since I made this way. My mom never adds turmeric anyways. But I added. If you want to replace rice in your diet with millets, this is one of the best option to make pongal. You hardly will know its not rice.

    samai-millet-pongal
    Print Pin
    4 from 3 votes

    Millet pongal

    Millet pongal, with samai / little millet with step by step pictures. Healthier way by swapping rice. You will never know it's not rice.
    Course Breakfast
    Cuisine Indian
    Prep Time 5 minutes
    Cook Time 20 minutes
    Servings 2

    Equipments (Amazon Affiliate links)

    • pressure cooker
    Cup measurements

    Ingredients

    • Β½ cup Samai / Little millet - Β½ cup
    • 2 tablespoon Moong dal / Payatham paruppu - 2 tblsp
    • 1 tablespoon Ginger crushed/ chopped
    • β…› teaspoon Turmeric
    • Ghee - As needed

    To temper

    • 2 teaspoon Ghee
    • 1 teaspoon Pepper Black whole pepper
    • ΒΎ teaspoon Cumin seeds
    • 1 Green chilli
    • 1 Sprig Curry leaves
    • β…› teaspoon Asafoetida/ Hing
    Prevent your screen from going dark

    Instructions

    • Heat a small pressure cooker with ghee.
    • First pop pepper, add cumin seeds the other ingredients together (green chilli slit) and give a stir.
    • Add ginger, moong dal and fry for a minute. Wash samai, add it into the cooker. Mix well.
    • Add 2 cups water, salt and mix well.
    • Bring to boil and close the cooker, give 4 whistles in medium flame.
    • Once done, let the pressure release by itself. Open and mash well.

    Notes

    For Β½ cup samai, 2 cups water is perfect, so do not hesitate to add. If its too dry, mix β…› cup hot water and mix.
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    Millet pongal method

    1. Heat a small pressure cooker with ghee, first pop pepper, add jeera the other ingredients together (green chilli slit) and give a stir. Add ginger, moong dal and fry for a minute. Wash samai, add it into the cooker. Mix well. 1-temper
    2. Add 2 cups water, salt and mix well. Bring to boil and close the cooker, give 4 whistles in medium flame. Once done, let the pressure release by itself. Open and mash well. 2-cooked

    Notes

    • For Β½ cup samai, 2 cups water is perfect, so do not hesitate to add.
    • If its too dry, mix β…› cup hot water and mix.

    Serve hot with ghee topped if desired, with sambar and coconut chutney.

    samai-pongal-recipe
    « Kashmiri Pulao recipe | Kashmiri pulao
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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Sindhujabalaji

      September 19, 2014 at 5:25 am

      Happily finish tat full bowl....thnx for sharing

      Reply
    2. Kurinji

      September 19, 2014 at 7:34 am

      healthy pongal...looks yum...

      Reply
    3. MANE ADIGE

      September 19, 2014 at 2:34 pm

      hi is it the same as rajgira.if not can i try with rajgira ?..want to try this..really your family is blessed..you keep teaching us more and more healthy yummy recipes.

      Reply
    4. bagirathidevi senthilkumar

      September 19, 2014 at 3:03 pm

      It's tempting

      Reply
    5. Thava

      September 23, 2014 at 10:02 am

      Nice one. Can you please post recipes using cholam

      Reply
    6. Kanniammal Viswanathan

      July 21, 2015 at 4:31 am

      Lovely raks tempting tempting tempting ....tomorrow breakfast decided

      Reply
    7. Leelavathy

      August 05, 2015 at 5:38 pm

      Going to try this tomorrow.

      Reply
    8. Nagarathinam Vijay

      November 29, 2015 at 9:05 am

      Tried this today..came out best...all of us loved d flavour...thnx...

      Reply
    9. bhuvana

      January 13, 2019 at 4:49 am

      Do we have to soak the little millet overnight?

      Reply
    10. Raks Kitchen

      January 13, 2019 at 11:44 am

      Dehusked millet is just like rice. No need to soak

      Reply
    11. Sethu

      May 21, 2019 at 11:57 am

      Made samai pongal for breakfast today by following your recipe. It turned out excellent. The proportions and cooking time are perfect. Thanks for another terrific recope

      Reply
      • Raks Anand

        May 21, 2019 at 12:22 pm

        Thanks a lot for your feedback πŸ™‚

        Reply
    12. Mythili

      May 27, 2020 at 11:06 am

      Hi Raji,
      I tried this recipe, it turned out nice and automatic. Everyone loved it.

      Reply
      • Raks Anand

        May 27, 2020 at 9:57 pm

        Thank you for your feedback Mythili πŸ™‚

        Reply
    13. KALA

      January 19, 2021 at 2:54 am

      Hi Raks, where do buy these millets? look forward for your reply, thanks.

      Reply
      • Raks Anand

        January 19, 2021 at 7:07 am

        I buy in Mustafa or Sri Murugan stores

        Reply

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    Raks anand

    Hi, I'm Rajeswari Vijayanand! I am the person behind Rakskitchen, sharing recipes with pictures & videos.

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    Raks anand

    Hi, I'm Rajeswari Vijayanand! I am the person behind Rakskitchen, sharing recipes with pictures & videos.

    More about me β†’

    Popular

    • Medhu vadai, Ulundu vadai recipe - With video
    • Panakam recipe, Panagam, Rama navami recipes
    • Eggless doughnut recipe, Basic donut, soft & light
    • Rose milk recipe - With homemade rose syrup

    Summer recipes

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