Kambu (in Tamil ) is also known as Bajra in Hindi and Pearl millet in English.

Kambu thayir sadam is a healthy, filling , cooling and delicious rice recipe, made with the combination of cooked kambu and curd along with vegetables and herbs. It is a great lunch box recipe, which can be made easily without any hassle.

Now a days, I started to include more millets in our diet than white rice. Millets tastes excellent when making variety rice than just cooking as like white rice. Pearl millets are the excellent source of fiber and protein. Amino acids in pearl millets are easily more digestible than one in the wheat. Regular intake of pearl millets lowers the blood pressure, reduces the risk of heart diseases and provides protection against breast cancer.

INGREDIENTS:

1 cup Kambu (Bajra)

1½cups curd

3 tablespoons grated carrot

2 tablespoons chopped coriander leaves

Salt to taste

Water as required

TO TEMPER:

2 tablespoons oil

½ teaspoon mustard seeds

½ tablespoon urad dhal

2 green chilies finely chopped

1 tablespoon finely chopped ginger

A pinch of asafoetida (hing)

Few curry leaves

INSTRUCTIONS:

Take kambu in a bowl, wash well and soak in water for half an hour. Drain the water and pulse it once using a blender, to make it as rava consistency.

Heat 3 cups of water in a pan. When water begins to boil, add the broken kambu , salt and mix well. Cook it in medium flame, till it is soft , thick and cooked well. Check the consistency and add more hot water, if required.  Stir in between, to prevent it from getting burnt.

Switch off the flame and let it cool down completely.

Then add in the curd, grated carrot, chopped coriander leaves and mix well. Add more salt if required.

Heat oil in a tempering pan and add all the ingredients given under “to temper” one by one.

Add this tempering to the curd rice and mix well.

Transfer to serving plate, garnish with grated carrots and serve with pickle or milagai vathal.

NOTES:

Grinding the kambu, is suggestible only if you cook in open pot. If you cook in pressure cooker, add 2 cups of water for 1 cup of kambu and pressure cook it for 3 whistles.