Ragi Kuzhi Appam (Finger Millet Sweet Dumpling)

Ragi Kuzhi Appam (Finger Millet Sweet Dumpling)


Here is a nice story I read about rice (akki) and ragi. Lord Indra once found akki and ragi fighting over who is powerful. The Lord told them to go away and work until he summons them back. When they eventually got back, Lord Indra was surprised to see that ragi was still fresh while akki was wilting. And that is why it is considered a shame that rice became more popular than rice. It can also be attributed to the colour of the ragi which it not the most appealing. It is thought that the public distribution system’s pricing did not help ragi sustain its market as rice was sold at a much cheaper rate.

Ragi is superior than rice and wheat nutritionally. It is rich in fibre, calcium, iron and minerals and ofcourse proteins. It is suppose to be an alkaline food and helps neutralise acidity. Ragi is usually the first food offered to babies when they are weaned on solids. I needed no more reason to try and give my child more ragi and this recipe was great for that. As I keep saying, I believe that we should encourage them to eat the same food that we eat and this recipe is one such. You can enjoy this as a snack along with your child.

¼ cup ragi flour (preferably sprouted ragi flour)

¼ cup rice flour

2 tablespoons jaggery

1 medium size banana

Cooking oil

Roast ragi flour until you get a nice aroma

Pinches of cardamom powder

Add some water (not more than a cup, start with little) to the jaggery and boil until it thickens slightly (you will find it sticky between fingers and you do not have to wait for strings to form). Filter this jaggery water.

Mix rice flour, ragi flour, cardamom powder. Mash the banana and mix. Add the jaggery water and make a batter not too thick.

Put the kuzhi paniyara koodu on the stove and heat. Add few drops of water in the holes and put a spoonful of batter. Fry all sides of the appam.

I was pleasantly surprised how little oil this dish needed. I almost had the same amount of oil I started with when I finished the dish.Pierce a skewer to check if the appam is done.

This is a nutritious dish with two grains, rice and ragi and a fruit as well!