What are Millets?
Quoted in BakerandSnacks: 75% of human food comes from 12 plants and 5 animal sources. Only 3 crops make up 60% of the total plant-based diet of humans. The top cereal crops are corn, wheat, barley, sorghum, and millets (1).
WholeGrainCouncil: Millet is not just one grain, but the name given to a group of several different small-seeded grains from several different genera of the grass family Poaceae. …… Four different millets are mostly commonly cultivated worldwide, listed here starting with the most widely produced: 1) Pearl millet [Pennisetum glaucum], 2) Foxtail millet [Setaria italica], 3) Proso millet, also called hog, common or broomcorn millet [Panicum miliaceum], 4) Finger millet, also called ragi in India [Eleusine coracana], Fonio [Digitaria exilis].
In many areas of the world, millet is critical to survival of humans and animals.
- Raw millet Is very nutritious, it has 73% carbs, 11% protein, 9% water, and 4% fat.
- Studies show Millets in general are proved to possess low Glycemic index, values ranging from 54 to 68.
The World of Millets
India has seen a 60% decline in the growth of millets over the last 50 years. So India proclaimed 2018 as the Year of Millets, hoping that it would spur renewed interest in growing the seed. The United Nations, followed up that idea with making 2023 the Year of Millets world wide (1). The UN hopes that this attention will cause various peoples and countries to also focus on nutrition and alternative cereals, seeds, flours, and grains. From the UN perspective, easier-to-grow millet could assist with improving world wide nutrition given it can grow in areas with little water.
Where Grown: Africa and Asia grow 97% of the millets available for world consumption. The WorldAtlas prints that the leader in growing millets is India, followed by by the African countries of Nigeria and Niger, and then China.
MotherEarthNews: Millet is grown in the United States mostly for pasture and hay. Only proso millet is grown seriously for grain. It is used for animal feed, flour for humans, and birdseed mixtures.
Why are they important?
Nutrition
In general, millets are more nutritious and have a better balance of amino acids than wheat or rice. Generally, they are also less expensive to grow. They are gluten-frees and contain lots of antioxidants and fiber. For a detailed breakdown of its nutrition and health benefits, please see WHFoods website.
MotherEarthNews: [Millet] is nutritionally superior to many of our common grains, containing more essential amino acids than wheat, oats, rice, barley, and rye. It lacks only lysine, the amino acid buckwheat is high in, making buckwheat and millet a good combination in your diet.
Wikipedia: In a 100 gram serving, raw millet provides 378 calories and is a rich source (20% or more of the Daily Value, DV) of protein, dietary fiber, several B vitamins and numerous dietary minerals, especially manganese at 76% DV (USDA nutrient table).
MotherEarthNews: Also, while most grains form acids in your stomach, millet, with its high alkaline mineral content, counteracts acids and is more easily digested. Millet, not rice, is the basic carbohydrate food in China, especially northern China. The Hunzas, whose reputation for health and longevity is well known, eat millet regularly.
Issue of Climate
Farming Land
You can grow millets within a variety of dry and arid environments so this is one food-plant that might do well as we experience global warming. I read that millets grow relatively fast, so in some areas with some types of millets it is possible to have 2 harvests. Additionally, since the seeds are small, it is possible to sow a whole field with a handful or two of seeds.
WorldWildlifeOrg: Half of the topsoil on the planet has been lost in the last 150 years. In addition to erosion, soil quality is affected by other aspects of agriculture. These impacts include compaction, loss of soil structure, nutrient degradation, and soil salinity. These are very real and at times severe issues.
FAO: Millets are better adapted to dry, infertile soils than most other crops, and are therefore often cultivated under extremely harsh conditions – for example, high temperatures, low and erratic precipitation, short growing seasons and acidic and infertile soils with poor water-holding capacity.
Water Shortage
DownToEarth tells stories about the effect of water shortages, droughts, and waste uses of water and its effects on food. Many nations are turning to millets to help with the changing availability of water.
The wheat, corn, and rice that is used all around the world is not as flexible when it comes to changing climate conditions as millets. While we are also facing water shortages, using higher levels of water-requiring food staples may be a mistake. Millets are very drought tolerant.
Grain/Seed Variety
The lack of food variety is critical to our diets personally, but also in terms of agriculture overall. Rather than focusing on just one source for nutrition, we need to increase variety to assure maximum nutrition. Additionally, repeatedly growing the same crop in the same fields depletes our soils. Millet has 500 variations (2) and should be in our diets as one of many cereals we can eat.
Issues of Medical Concern
Several websites and some research documents indicate that millets contain nutritional concerns as well as benefits. Since I am not a medical doctor, nutritionist, or dietician, I have provided links to those who feel millet should not be exclusively consumed, so you can read their logic.
Iodine Deficiency + Goiter:
NBCI : We conclude that in areas of iodine deficiency in which millet is a major component of the diet, its ingestion may contribute to the genesis of endemic goiter. But of course the large qualifier is “in areas with iodine deficiency,” so if iodine foods (seaweed, fish, eggs, and prunes) are provided along with millet the concern about goiters goes down.
TheHealthyHomeEconomist eat millets in moderation and use another grain that is both gluten free and non-goitrogenic such as rice, oats or teff.
Lybrate is a medical site created and monitored by doctors in India. They certainly have more experience with millet than I do, and have a page describing millets benefits. But they also have a caution.
- Millets are safe when consumed in a moderate amount. It has been consumed as staple food by millions of peoples in the past thousands of years.
- However, excessive consumption of millet might cause an adverse effect. Millets contain goitrogen, a substance that interferes with the production of thyroid hormones and inhibits iodine uptake and utilization by the thyroid gland. Deficiency of iodine is a significant health problem which leads to the development of enlarged thyroid gland, known as goiter. Goitre causes dry skin, anxiety, depression and slow thinking.
My own opinion is that I do not live in an iodine deficient world, and have a varied diet, so I am not worried about goiter or thyroid disruption.
Cooking Millet
WGC Culinary Advisor Lorna Sass, in her book Whole Grains Every Day, Every Way recommends three ways to cook millet, to which I have added my techniques and recommendations.
In all cases I rinse and pre-soak millets like I do rice. I rinse them under running water and then soak ~4x the amount of water (1C millet + 4C water). I do this for ~1 hour, but if I had time I might do it overnight. Then drain in a sieve and rinse again. Then cook. Soaking will make the grains expand.
While cooking, I stir occasionally so the water is distributed to every grain and it does not clump. Also, have additional water or stock at hand in case it needs more liquid while it cooks.
- Unsoaked Fluffy: Toast 1C millet for ~5min in a dry pan, then add 2-1/2C boiling stock, 1/2t kosher salt, mix and simmer ~15min. Then let stand without heat ~10min with the lid on. Then take the lid off and fluff with a fork.
- Presoaked Moist: Soak 1C millet. Discard the water and rinse, then add 2C boiling stock with 1/2t kosher salt to a pan, cover and cook stirring occasionally. Cook ~10min then let stand with lid on. Remove lid and taste.
- Sticky: Boil 1C millet in 2¾C water, simmer for ~15min, then let stand 10min.
- Creamy: Grind 1C millet and slowly whisk into 5C boiling water. Cover, lower heat and simmer, for ~20min until tender. Stir often to make sure it does not burn on the bottom and heat and water is well distributed.
We should be including millet in our diets, provided we do not have thyroid conditions (check with your doctor or dietitian if you do). I use millet as a porridge with fruit, and make a kale millet bowl.
— Patty
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NEWS: MedicineNet 9/24 An ongoing salmonella outbreak first traced to peanut butter sold at Trader Joe’s stores now has expanded to include peanut and almond butters sold at Target and other stores. Trader Joe’s Creamy Salted Valencia Peanut Butter comes from Sunland Inc. in Portales, N.M. Sunland now has recalled all of its peanut butter and almond butter products made from May 1 to Sept. 24. The outbreak so far has sickened 29 people in 18 states.
I am updating the recipes with more details and nutritional counts so I will repost them here as they get updated: Sweet Potato Peanut Salad, Winter Veggie Roast, Horseradish Sauce and Lemony Walnut Brussel Sprouts.
Tip: At Kitchen on Fire we have a blue hand towel which is usually damp to wipe our tools, or the work site and keep things free from debri. But we also have a dry white towel to use as hot pads, dry our hands, and such. At home I have my wet towel and use a dry kitchen towel for the other things. These two towels are handy to have readily available to prevent messes or injuries.