Ready in 20 mins, this Coconut Millet Rice is a fast, simple and flavorful yet low-GI meal. Vegan. Gluten-Free.
Sometimes, even when you absolutely love something, it can eventually end up being forgotten. Unbelievable, yet sadly true. I was at a traditional South Indian baby shower recently and they served some gorgeous Coconut Rice for lunch (along with like a billion other dishes I cannot now count), but it brought back memories of how much I used to love it! I cannot believe I haven’t had coconut rice in at least 5 years now….
So when I came back home, I wanted to make some, coz well, it was due! But instead of using rice, I decided to use millet instead. It’s low GI, largely organic… well, just pretty awesome! I loved the Millet Fried ‘Rice’ I made last month, so I knew this was going to be perfect, even before I made it. And yes, it was.
South Indian cuisine has a lot of fried ‘rice’, except they’re locally called mixed rice. It’s just rice that’s been tempered and seasoned with flavors, usually coconut, tamarind, mint, coriander and yogurt. The tempering consists of mustard, cumin, curry leaves, peanuts/cashews and dry red chillies. It adds texture and taste to what is otherwise just rice.
Finally, stir in the cooked rice, or millet in this case. And you’re done! It’s as simple as that!
And dig in! It’s comforting, flavorful, crunchy, coconut-y and delicious! Not to mention that all it takes is just 20 minutes no matter how much you scale up the recipe. Serve with a side of chips or vegetables and there you have it: my favorite lunch all sorted!
When you make these (which I really think you SHOULD!), be sure to SHARE YOUR PHOTOS with me through Facebook, Instagram or Twitter. I’d love to see what you cook from here!
Coconut Millet Fried ‘Rice’
- Prep Time:5m
- Cook Time:15m
- Total Time:20m
- Serves: 2
- Yield: About 1 cup
Ingredients
- 1/2 c barnyard millet
- 1 1/2 c water
- 1 tsp. oil
- 1/2 tsp. mustard seeds
- 1/4 tsp. cumin seeds
- 1/2 tsp. Urad dal (split + skinned black gram lentil)
- 1 tsp. channa dal (split chickpeas)
- 1 -2 long dry red chilli
- 1 sprig curry leaves
- 1/4 c grated coconut
- Salt, to taste
- Cashews, broken to bits
Instructions
- Wash and rinse the millet until the water runs clear. Drain (on a fine meshed sieve) and set aside.
- Bring the water to a boil and add the washed millet to it. Cover and cook until soft, but still holds their shape. They should still be submerged in water.
- Drain and rinse through a fine meshed sieve. Spread out on a plate to cool. Set aside.
- In a medium sized pan, heat some oil and add one or two mustard seeds to it. When the mustard start spluttering, add the remaining mustard seeds and wait till it stops crackling.
- Reduce heat to medium-low and add the cumin seeds, urad and channa dal, dry red chillies, curry leaves and cashews. Stir until the curry leaves are crisp and the lentils and cashews are golden brown.
- Add the grated coconut and season with salt to taste. Stir in the cooked and cooled millet and combine.
- Serve hot!
![[V] Scrambled Tofu Curry Noodles](https://sp-ao.shortpixel.ai/client/to_webp,q_glossy,ret_img,w_150,h_150/http://loveisinmytummy.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/Scrambled-Tofu-Curry-Noodles-2-150x150.jpg)
Meg | Meg is Well says
Now I want to try this and everything else fried rice related with millet! Just imagining all the smells coming from the kitchen from tempering all those spices is making me hungry!
Tina Dawson says
It’s absolutely fragrant and delicious, Meg! I hope you try it and like it! 🙂
Beth @ Binky's Culinary Carnival says
That looks so delicious! I don’t believe I have ever made millet! I’ll have to give it a try!
Tina Dawson says
It’s so interesting and versatile, Beth!
Emily @ Recipes to Nourish says
I love how you start the dish, heating all of the mustard seeds, cumin seeds, curry leaves, etc. So many beautiful flavors in this!!! I can’t wait to try it.
Tina Dawson says
Thanks Emily! It’s how most Indian dishes start (or end) – with tempering!
Elaine @ Dishes Delish says
Mmmm. How delicious looking and healthy! I can just imagine what it would taste like. Can’t wait to try it!
Tina Dawson says
I hope you like it, Elaine!
Bintu - Recipes From A Pantry says
Yum this looks so good and adding extra flavour to the rice
Tina Dawson says
Thanks Bintu!
Molly Kumar says
That sounds so delicious and healthy too. I love quick dishes that can go both as entree or side and this would be perfect as both.
Tina Dawson says
Thanks so much Molly! It’s one of my favorites!