Finger millet

Finger Millet

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Finger millet

Finger millet (Eleusine coracana, Amharic

Amharic language

Amharic is a Semitic languages spoken in North Central Ethiopia by the Amhara people. It is the second most spoken Semitic language in the world, after Arabic language, and the official working language of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia....
??? "Dagusa" or ??? tokuso), also known as African millet or Ragi), is an annual plant

Annual plant

An annual plant is a plant that usually germinates flowers and dies in one year. True annuals will only live longer than a year if they are prevented from setting seed....
widely grown as a cereal

Cereal

Cereals, or cereal grains, are mostly Poaceae cultivated for their edible brans or fruit seeds . Cereal grains are grown in greater quantities and provide more energy worldwide than any other type of crop; they are therefore staple foods....
in the arid areas of Africa

Africa

Africa is the world's second-largest and second most-populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km? including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area....
and Asia

Asia

Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent. It covers 8.6% of the Earth's total surface area and, with over 4 billion people, it contains more than 60% of the world's current human population....
. Finger millet is originally native to the Ethiopian Highlands

Ethiopian Highlands

The Ethiopian Highlands are a rugged mass of mountains in Ethiopia, Eritrea , and northern Somalia in the Horn of Africa. The Ethiopian Highlands form the largest continuous area of its altitude in the whole continent, with little of its surface falling below 1500 m , while the summits reach heights of up to 4550 m ....
and was introduced into India

India

India, officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and outlying territories by total area country by geographical area, the List of countries by population country, and the most populous liberal democracy in the world....
approximately 4000 years ago. It is very adaptable to higher elevations and is grown in the Himalaya up to 2,300 metres in elevation.

er millet is often intercropped

Intercropping

Intercropping is the agricultural practice of cultivating two or more crops in the same space at the same time . A practice often associated with sustainable agriculture and organic farming, intercropping is one form of polyculture, using companion planting principles....
with legume

Legume

A legume is a plant in the family Fabaceae , or a fruit of these specific plants. A legume fruit is a Fruit#Simple fruit that develops from a simple carpel and usually Dehiscence on two sides....
s such as peanut

Peanut

The peanut, or groundnut , is a species in the legume Fabaceae native to South America, Mexico and Central America. It is an annual plant herbaceous plant growing to 30 to 50 cm tall....
s (Arachis hypogea), cowpea

Cowpea

The Cowpea is one of several species of the widely cultivated genus Vigna. Four cultivated subspecies are recognised:*Vigna unguiculata subsp....
s (Vigna sinensis), and pigeon pea

Pigeon pea

The pigeon pea is a perennial member of the family Fabaceae. Other common names are arhar , Rohor , red gram, toovar/toor , tuvaram paruppu ,toovara paruppu ,'togari , Kandi , gandul, guandul, guandu, Congo pea, Gungo pea, Gunga pea, and no-eye pea....
s (Cajanus cajan), or other plants such as Niger seeds (Guizotia abyssinica).

Although statistics on individual millet
Millet

The millets are a group of small-seeded species of cereal Crop or grains, widely grown around the world for food and fodder. They do not form a scientific classification group, but rather a functional or agronomic one....
species are confused, and are sometimes combined with sorghum
Sorghum

Sorghum is a genus of numerous species of Poaceae, some of which are raised for grain and many of which are used as fodder plants either cultivated or as part of pasture....
, it is estimated that finger millet is grown on approximately 38,000 square kilometres.

harvested, the seed
Seed

A seed is a small Plant embryogenesis plant enclosed in a covering called the seed coat, usually with some Food storage. It is the product of the ripened ovule of gymnosperm and angiosperm plants which occurs after fertilization and some growth within the mother plant....
s keep extremely well and are seldom attacked by insect
Insect

Insects are the biggest class of arthropods and the only ones with wings. They are the most diverse group of animals on the planet. They are most diverse at the equator and their diversity declines toward the poles....
s or moulds.

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Encyclopedia

Finger millet (Eleusine coracana, Amharic
Amharic language

Amharic is a Semitic languages spoken in North Central Ethiopia by the Amhara people. It is the second most spoken Semitic language in the world, after Arabic language, and the official working language of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia....
??? "Dagusa" or ??? tokuso), also known as African millet or Ragi), is an annual plant
Annual plant

An annual plant is a plant that usually germinates flowers and dies in one year. True annuals will only live longer than a year if they are prevented from setting seed....
widely grown as a cereal
Cereal

Cereals, or cereal grains, are mostly Poaceae cultivated for their edible brans or fruit seeds . Cereal grains are grown in greater quantities and provide more energy worldwide than any other type of crop; they are therefore staple foods....
in the arid areas of Africa
Africa

Africa is the world's second-largest and second most-populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km? including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area....
and Asia
Asia

Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent. It covers 8.6% of the Earth's total surface area and, with over 4 billion people, it contains more than 60% of the world's current human population....
. Finger millet is originally native to the Ethiopian Highlands
Ethiopian Highlands

The Ethiopian Highlands are a rugged mass of mountains in Ethiopia, Eritrea , and northern Somalia in the Horn of Africa. The Ethiopian Highlands form the largest continuous area of its altitude in the whole continent, with little of its surface falling below 1500 m , while the summits reach heights of up to 4550 m ....
and was introduced into India
India

India, officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and outlying territories by total area country by geographical area, the List of countries by population country, and the most populous liberal democracy in the world....
approximately 4000 years ago. It is very adaptable to higher elevations and is grown in the Himalaya up to 2,300 metres in elevation.

Cultivation
Finger millet is often intercropped
Intercropping

Intercropping is the agricultural practice of cultivating two or more crops in the same space at the same time . A practice often associated with sustainable agriculture and organic farming, intercropping is one form of polyculture, using companion planting principles....
with legume
Legume

A legume is a plant in the family Fabaceae , or a fruit of these specific plants. A legume fruit is a Fruit#Simple fruit that develops from a simple carpel and usually Dehiscence on two sides....
s such as peanut
Peanut

The peanut, or groundnut , is a species in the legume Fabaceae native to South America, Mexico and Central America. It is an annual plant herbaceous plant growing to 30 to 50 cm tall....
s (Arachis hypogea), cowpea
Cowpea

The Cowpea is one of several species of the widely cultivated genus Vigna. Four cultivated subspecies are recognised:*Vigna unguiculata subsp....
s (Vigna sinensis), and pigeon pea
Pigeon pea

The pigeon pea is a perennial member of the family Fabaceae. Other common names are arhar , Rohor , red gram, toovar/toor , tuvaram paruppu ,toovara paruppu ,'togari , Kandi , gandul, guandul, guandu, Congo pea, Gungo pea, Gunga pea, and no-eye pea....
s (Cajanus cajan), or other plants such as Niger seeds (Guizotia abyssinica).

Although statistics on individual millet
Millet

The millets are a group of small-seeded species of cereal Crop or grains, widely grown around the world for food and fodder. They do not form a scientific classification group, but rather a functional or agronomic one....
species are confused, and are sometimes combined with sorghum
Sorghum

Sorghum is a genus of numerous species of Poaceae, some of which are raised for grain and many of which are used as fodder plants either cultivated or as part of pasture....
, it is estimated that finger millet is grown on approximately 38,000 square kilometres.

Storage
Once harvested, the seed
Seed

A seed is a small Plant embryogenesis plant enclosed in a covering called the seed coat, usually with some Food storage. It is the product of the ripened ovule of gymnosperm and angiosperm plants which occurs after fertilization and some growth within the mother plant....
s keep extremely well and are seldom attacked by insect
Insect

Insects are the biggest class of arthropods and the only ones with wings. They are the most diverse group of animals on the planet. They are most diverse at the equator and their diversity declines toward the poles....
s or moulds. The long storage capacity makes finger millet an important crop
Agriculture

Agriculture refers to the production of food and goods through farming and forestry. Agriculture was the key development that led to the rise of civilization, with the animal husbandry of domestication animals and plants creating food surpluses that enabled the development of more Population density and Social stratification societies....
in risk avoidance strategies for poorer farming communities.

Nutrition
Finger millet is especially valuable as it contains the amino acid
Amino acid

In chemistry, an amino acid is a molecule containing both amine and carboxyl functional groups. These molecules are particularly important in biochemistry, where this term refers to alpha-amino acids with the general formula H2NCHRCOOH, where R is an organic substituent....
methionine
Methionine

Methionine is an a-amino acid with the chemical formula HO2CCHCH2CH2SCH3. This Essential amino acid is classified as nonpolar....
, which is lacking in the diets of hundreds of millions of the poor who live on starchy staples such as cassava
Cassava

The cassava, cassadaIn page 25, Darwin says "Mandioca or cassada is likewise cultivated in great quantity."See it also in ,yuca, 'manioc, 'mogo...
, plantain
Plantain

The plantain is a crop in the genus Musa and is generally used for cooking, in contrast to the soft, sweet banana .The population of North America was first introduced to the banana plantain, and colloquially in the United States and Europe the term "banana" refers to that variety....
, polished rice
Rice

Rice is a staple food for a large part of the world's human population, especially in tropical Latin America, and East Asia, South Asia and Southeast Asia, making it the second-most consumed cereal grain, after maize....
, or maize
Maize

Maize , known as corn in some countries, is a cereal domesticated in Mesoamerica and subsequently spread throughout the American continents....
meal. Finger millet can be ground and cooked into cakes, pudding
Pudding

Pudding most often refers to a dessert, but can also be a savoury dish.In the United Kingdom and some Commonwealth of Nations countries, pudding refers to rich , fairly homogeneous starch- or dairy-based desserts , or informally to any dessert....
s or porridge
Porridge

Porridge, or porage, is a simple dish made by boiling oats or another cereal in water, milk, or both. It is eaten in a flat bowl or a dish....
. The grain is made into a fermented
Fermentation (food)

Fermentation in food processing typically refers to the conversion of sugar to alcohol using yeast under anaerobic conditions. A more general definition of fermentation is the chemical conversion of carbohydrates into alcohols or acids....
drink (or beer
Beer

Beer is the world's oldest and most widely consumed alcoholic beverage and the third most popular drink overall after water and tea. It is produced by the brewing and Fermentation of starches, mainly derived from cereal?the most common of which is malted barley, although wheat, maize , and rice are widely used....
) in many parts of Africa. The straw
Straw

Straw is an agricultural by-product, the dry wikt:stalk of a cereal plant, after the grain or seed has been removed. Straw makes up about half of the yield of cereal crops such as barley, oats, rice, rye and wheat....
from finger millet is used as animal fodder.It is also used for as a flavoured drink in festivals

Nutritive value of Ragi per 100 g

Protein 7.3 g
Fat 1.3 g
Carbohydrate 72 g
Minerals 2.7 g
Calcium 3.44 g
Fibre 3.6 g
Energy 328 KCal

Preparation as food

In India, finger millet or ragi is mostly grown and consumed in Karnataka
Karnataka

Karnataka is a States and territories of India in the southern part of India. It was Unification of Karnataka on November 1, 1956, with the passing of the States Reorganisation Act....
,Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh , abbreviated A.P.,is a state situated on eastern coast of India. It is India's List of states of India by area and List of states of India by population....
and Maharashtra. Ragi flour is made into flatbreads, including thick, leavened dosa
Dosa

The Dosa or Dosai is a South Indian culture#Cuisine delicacy made from rice and urad s. Dosai is a typical South Indian food, eaten for breakfast or dinner, and is rich in carbohydrates and protein....
and thinner, unleavened roti
Roti

Roti or Phulka in general, is defined as an Leavening agent flat bread in Urdu, Hindi language, Punjabi language, Pashto, Assamese language, Indonesian language, Malay language, Bengali language, and Somali language languages....
. Ragi grain is malt
Malt

Malting is a process applied to cereal grains, in which the grains are made to germinate by soaking in water and are then quickly halted from germinating further by drying/heating with hot air....
ed and flour from the malted grain is consumed after mixing with milk
Milk

Milk is an opaque white liquid produced by the mammary glands of female mammals . It provides the primary source of nutrition for newborn mammals before they are able to digestion other types of food....
/boiled water/yoghurt
Yoghurt

Yoghurt, yogurt, yoghourt, youghurt or yogourt , is a dairy product produced by bacterial fermentation of milk....
.

Ragi flour is usually eaten as ragi mudde
Ragi mudde

Ragi mudde is a food item unique to the state of Karnataka, India. It is mainly popular with the rural folk of Karnataka. It is made of ragi flour by pouring the flour into boiling water and mixing the two together to make a soft dough....
(literally, ragi paste; also called ragi balls for the round shape). The mudde which is prepared by boiling the ragi flour in water until the water is condensed. The resulting preparation is then rolled into a spherical form and consumed, after applying ghee
Ghee

Ghee is a class of clarified butter that originated in the Indian subcontinent, and is important in South Asian cuisine and Middle Eastern cuisine ....
with sambar
Sambar (dish)

Sambar or sambhar or Sambaaru , is a dish common in south Indian cuisine and Sri Lankan Tamil cuisines, made of toovar dal .Sambar is a vegetable stew or chowder based on a broth made with tamarind and toovar dal, and is very popular in the cooking of southern regions of India especially in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala an...
.
In Maharashtra
Maharashtra

Maharashtra is a States and territories of India located on the western coast of India. Maharashtra is a part of Western India. It is India's List of states of India by area and List of states of India by population....
, bhakari (a type of flatbread) is prepared using ragi (nachani) flour.Bhakri is called as Ragi rotti in Karnataka.

In the north-west of Vietnam, finger millet is used as a medicine for women when they give birth. A minority used finger millet flour to make alcohol (bacha alcohol is a good drink of the H'mong minority).

In southern parts of India, pediatricians recommend ragi food for infants of six months and over because of its high nutritional content, especially calcium.

Uses
A traditional food plant in Africa, this millet has the potential to improve nutrition, boost food security, foster rural development and support sustainable landcare.

Common names for finger millet

Arabic: Tailabon
Chinese: ?? (Traditional), ?? (Simplified), canzi (pinyin)
Dhivehi: ?????? Bimbi
English: Finger millet, African millet, ragi, koracan
Ethiopia: Dagussa (Amharic/Sodo), tokuso (amharic), barankiya (Oromo)
French: eleusine cultivee, coracan, koracan
German: Fingerhirse
India:
Ragi (Kannada, Telugu),
Mandia (Oriya)
Taidalu (Telangana)
Kezhvaragu(????????), Aariyam (Tamil
Tamil language

Tamil is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by Tamil people of the Indian subcontinent. It has Official language in India, Sri Lanka and Singapore....
)
Panjapul or kooravu ([Malayalam])
Mandua (in some parts of north India)
Nachani ????? / Ragee ???? (Marathi)
Naglee ?????(Gujarati)

Kenya: Wimbi (Swahili), Kal (Dholuo), Ugimbi (Kikuyu)
Nepal: Koddo
Sri Lanka: Kurakkan
Sudan: Tailabon (Arabic), ceyut (Bari)
Tanzania: (Swahili) Mbege, mwimbi, Wimbi, ulezi,
Uganda: Bulo
Zambia: Kambale, lupoko, mawele, majolothi, amale, bule
Zimbabwe: Rapoko, zviyo, njera, rukweza, mazhovole, uphoko, poho
Vietnam: Hong mi, Chi ke
Denmark: Fingerhirse

External links

at Bawarchi.com
- Baby Food