My child loves only idli, so I need to learn more varieties!
How to make a healthy idli healthier?
What can I do with ragi flour I prepared for my child?
All these questions are answered through this post - ragi idli recipe for babies and toddlers.
Healthy and tasty!
Not many foods are blessed to have such a description attached to it and yet the humble idli fits the bill. Idli is one of the traditional savory foods, which is steam cooked and is easily digestible.
In South Indian households, mainly in Tamil Nadu, most of the mommies give idli as the first solid food for their babies. I think all babies will love idlis.
I started idli with warm milk to Rithvik around the age of seven months. And he just loved it!
For babies above 7 months, ragi idlis can be served as breakfast. For toddlers and older kids, these serve as evening snacks as well.
How to add variety to idli with ragi?As my son started growing, his taste buds started looking for variety. Thus I ended up with a different idli using ragi flour. Nachni or Kora(ragi flour in hindi) is a good source of iron and calcium.
You can also refer to the article on homemade sprouted ragi flour.
Why do I love ragi so much? Because it is healthy and is versatile and can be used to make a variety of yummy treats! Don't believe me?
Try out the stuffed ragi paratha, ragi almond cookies, ragi puttu, ragi cake, ragi soup and prepare to be amazed!
Ragi idli batter preparation is quite easy. Those who don't have a grinder can also make this batter. I used to prepare the ragi idli/dosa batter in mixie.
The ragi idlis or finger millet idlis are very soft and very good choice for your little ones tummy. I used to prepare this very soft ragi idli weekly once or twice for him.
To be frank, I don't like ragi idlis but my son just gobbles them up! You can also use this batter to prepare crispy dosas.
Step by step ragi idli recipe for babies and kids:
This is a ragi idli recipe without rice flour and we use aval/beaten rice instead.
Wash and soak separately whole urad dal for 8 hours and aval, flattened rice, beaten rice or poha in drinking water for 3 hours.
After soaking it for the required amount of time, grind urad dal in mixie or grinder. For grinding you can use the water used for soaking. Add in aval to this and grind again.
Take ragi flour in a vessel and add water to make it a paste. Pour aval-urad dal batter to this ragi paste and mix everything well with sufficient salt.
Cover it and let it ferment overnight.
In the morning, add a pinch of baking soda to this batter. You can add any grated vegetable of your choice if you wish to increase the nutritive value.
Coat idli moulds with oil. Pour a spoonfull of the ragi idli batter into each section of the idli mould. Steam cook this in idli cooker for 10 -15 minutes.
Notes:
- You can also use this batter to make crispy tasty ragi/ nachni dosa Try to use a non-stick tawa while making dosas.
- For babies, salt is not required in these ragi idlis or ragi dosas
- Ragi idlis or dosas can be served along with any chutney of your child's choice
- You can skip the baking powder altogether in this recipe if you are making it for babies less than 11 months old
Do try this ragi idli recipe for babies and kids.
Mommies, do you have any ragi flour recipes/ idli recipes that your kiddo loves? Let me know in comments.