Make fluffy and tender millet every single time and use it in place of rice or quinoa! When I shared my meal plates with millet instead of rice and lemon millet rice on my Instagram, many asked me how I cook my millet soft yet not mushy. I wanted to share a detailed millet cooking post with different millet varieties and with different brands. But it’s a long project, and I need to start somewhere, and here I am starting with barnyard millet. I will be updating this post when I test with different millet brands. So please bookmark this post. For other millets, it will be a new post! PS – This is not a sponsored post. I have tested this timing with Ethnic Manna brand barnyard millet. Like rice and beans, every bag of millet is different. Please refer to my notes for timing and millet to water ratio variations.
Millets
Millets or tiny grains are small-seeded cereal crops popularly known as siru dhaniyam or siru thaniyam in Tamil. There are different millets like barnyard millet, kodo millet, foxtail millet, proso millet, little millet, pearl millet, finger millet, and sorghum. In the US, we get only one variety which resembles more like foxtail millet. I usually get my millet from my local Indian grocery stores. You can find them online as well. Millets are very nutritious, and they are a good source of micronutrients, minerals, protein, and fiber. It’s a good replacement for rice, and you can serve it along with curries or use them in salads, soups, and stews.
Instant Pot Barnyard Millet
If you are getting started with millet, I would suggest starting with little millet or barnyard millet. You can easily get acquired to the taste. Today let’s talk about barnyard millet. In Tamil, we call this millet kuthiraivali, in Kannada oodhalu, and Hindi Sanwa. You can find the names in languages here. Soaking: I always rinse and soak my millets for one hour before cooking. It aids in digestion, and while some say it is not necessary, I always soak it for atleast 30 minutes. Instant Pot delayed start: The Instant Pot delayed start/timer comes in handy. I rinse my millet and add water and do a 1 hour delayed start. Again there is a difference in opinion on whether we should discard the water used for soaking or not. I have tried both ways – discarding the water used for soaking and using the same for cooking. So far, no issues. You can go with your comfortable option. Release: I always opt for natural pressure release as we don’t babysit or worry about releasing the pressure quickly. It’s very convenient and hands-free.
Yield and serving suggestion and dietary specifications
Millets are gluten-free and vegan by nature. One cup of uncooked millet yields 4 to 5 cups of cooked millet, but it depends upon the brand. You can store the cooked millet in the refrigerator for 4 to 5 days and reheat the required amount as needed. You can serve millet with sambar, kuzhambu, rasam varieties or use them instead of rice for “variety-rice” dishes like lemon rice, tomato rice, tamarind rice, etc. Or you can also serve it with dal, chole, etc. Alternatively, you can use it in salads, soups, and stews. Note: For the pot-in-pot method, I used a half cup of millet and ¾ cup of water.
Cooking barnyard millet in the main pot
Rinse the millet at atleast 4 to 5 times. Make sure you wash the millets until the water becomes clear. Add the millet to the inner pot, followed by 1.5 cups of water and ¼ tsp gingelly oil. (optional)
Place the inner pot inside the Instant Pot. Now close the Instant Pot. Make sure the sealing ring is in place and set the vent to the sealing position. Press the pressure cook / manual button and set the cooking time as 2 minutes at high-pressure.
Now press the delay start/timer and select 1 hour. You can soak the millets separately also. When the cooking is complete, release the pressure naturally.
When the pressure is all released, carefully open the lid.
Let the millets cool and fluff it with a fork. Initially, it will look clumpy and sticky, but as it cools down, it becomes grainy and not sticky. Once it’s cooled down, feel free to fluff the millets with hand.
Transfer it to a serving bowl and serve it warm. As we add oil, nothing sticks in the inner pot.
Cooking barnyard millet using the pot-in-pot method
Rinse the millet at atleast 4 to 5 times. Make sure you wash the millets until the water becomes clear. Add the millet to a small vessel and add water and let it soak for 1 hour. Then drain the water and add the water and ¼ tsp gingelly oil. (optional)
Add 1 cup of water to the inner pot and place the trivet and then place the vessel with the millet.
Now close the Instant Pot. Make sure the sealing ring is in place and set the vent to the sealing position. Press the pressure cook / manual button and set the cooking time as 3 minutes at high-pressure.
When the cooking is complete, release the pressure naturally. When the pressure is all released, carefully open the lid.
Let the millets cool, and you can easily transfer the millets to a plate before fluffing. Just flip the millet bowl into a plate, like below.
Fluff the millet and serve it warm.
Recipe Notes
The timing and water ratio mentioned here yields soft and fluffy millet perfect for “variety-rice” recipes. But if you prefer a soft texture, increase the water to 2 cups and cooking time for a couple of minutes more.Let the millets cool: It’s essential to let the millets cool before fluffing. Once it’s cooled down, use a fork or hand and fluff the millets. Initially, it will look clumpy and sticky, but as it cools down, it becomes grainy and not sticky. Instead of water, you can use vegetable broth for added flavor.Oil is optional, but it helps the millet not to stick to the pot/vessel. If using the stove-top pressure cooker, you can follow the same water ratio but cook for 2 whistles.
More millet recipes
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📖 Recipe
