Millet biryani or pulao recipe – I have been using a variety of millets for more than 3 years, since the time I started solids for my younger son. To include millets in his diet, I had to experiment a lot and eventually we started liking them. One of the favorites has been foxtail millet called as korralu in telugu, navane in kannada and thinai in tamil. I use hulled millet and not the millets as it is. Millets are with the husk and don’t get cooked well. Hulled foxtail millets are called as korra biyyam in telugu, navanakki in kannada and thinai arisi in tamil.
If you are seriously trying to maintain a steady healthy weight or lose weight, try replacing white rice with foxtail millet.
I made this millet biryani or pulao for myself and my 4 year old sometime back for lunch. He enjoys millets and loves trying different varieties like
Millet upma
Lemon millet
pongal
millet sweet pongal
Millet khichdi and payasam.
Millet biryani is so simple to prepare, call it a biryani or a pulao and can easily make changes to suit your taste. It tastes delicious and goes perfect with any raita.
It takes only 25 minutes to cook this apart from the soaking time. For a nutritious and whole some meal, you can make this any time: breakfast, lunch or dinner. Winters are the best time to try this korralu biryani, since they are said to keep the body warm.
This is a diabetic friendly recipe and can also be enjoyed by women with gestational diabetes.
More simple biryani recipes,
semiya biryani
vegetable biryani
Millet biryani or thinai pulao recipe
Millet biryani
For best results follow the step-by-step photos above the recipe card
Ingredients (1 cup = 240ml )
- ½ cup foxtail millet hulled / korra biyyam/ thinai arisi
- 1 ½ cups water
- Salt as needed
- 1 to 1 ½ tbsps Ghee or oil
- ½ to ¾ cup vegetables Chopped, (carrots, beans, peas, potatoes, small onion sliced)
- mint leaves Few, chopped
- 1 tsp grated ginger or ginger garlic paste
Dry spices
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 green cardamoms
- 4 Cloves
- Cinnamon stick Small
- 1 Star flower small, or few petals
- 1 strand mace
- ¼ tsp shahi jeera
Instructions
- Wash and soak millets in lot of warm water for about one hour
- Heat a pan with oil, saute dry spices till they begin to sizzle
- Add ginger garlic paste and fry till you get a nice aroma
- Add vegetables and mint, fry for 3 to 4 minutes, till the raw smell goes away
- Pour water and add salt as needed
- Bring it to a boil.
- Drain off the water from millets, add them to the boiling water
- Cook on a medium to low flame till they are cooked fully. If the biryani still has water, on a high flame just evaporate the water. Off the stove
- Keep it covered for about 7 minutes.
- Serve with any raita.
Alternative quantities provided in the recipe card are for 1x only, original recipe.
For best results follow my detailed step-by-step photo instructions and tips above the recipe card.
NUTRITION INFO (estimation only)
© Swasthi’s Recipes
How to make millet biryani with step by step pictures
1. I soaked the millets for about one hour in warm water.
2. Chop the veggies. I use carrots, barabati beans, peas and onion. Mint leaves for flavouring. Keep these aside. You can even use potatoes too.
3. Heat oil in a pan, add the dry spices and fry till they crackle.
4. Add grated ginger or ginger garlic paste and fry till the raw smell goes off.
5. Add the veggies and mint. Fry for about 3 to 4 minutes
6. Add water and salt. Bring it to a boil, add drained millets and cook on a medium to low flame till soft cooked. If there is more water left, cook on high and evaporate it. Cooking on a low flame yields a flavourful millet biryani.
7. Towards the end. Switch off the stove and keep it covered for about 7 to 8 minutes.
Serve hot millet biryani with any raita
For more millet recipes, check
ragi dosa
ragi malt
ragi semiya curd bath
ragi chocolate malt
ragi coconut cookies
Anjali says
Made this today, I will be trying out more of yr millet recipes as am moving to a less carb/ more millet diet. It came out well, but I didnt know how long to cook it, so it turned out squidgy- over done. Can you share the approx timing on low heat? Will try it again, it is easy to make, too. Thank you.
swasthi says
Hi Anjali
Glad it came out well. Next time try with lesser water. Little millets usually cook better and don’t turn mushy. Thanks for leaving a comment
Binu says
Good one, I made it as foxtail millet pulao. Thanks
Kala says
hi Swasthi, thanks for your reply. I will look in amazon. I love your recipies.
Kala says
Hi Swathi,is thanai same as quiona where do you buy these millets
swasthi says
Hi Kala
Thinai is foxtail millet. They are also called korralu in Telugu. They are not the same as quinoa. I buy them online. You can look on amazon for Thinai millet. There are also many different kinds of millets. You can use any but the cook time varies. Hope this helps
Faseeha Yaseen says
What did u add fr kaaram in ths recipe ??
swasthi says
Hi Faseeha,
You can add green chilli. I made this for my kid as well so I did not add any thing for kaaram. I will update it.
Rakesh Prattipati says
Can this be done in cooker ?
swasthi says
Yes you can cook for 2 whistles on a medium flame.
Snigdha says
Hello,
Can we try this with multi millet mix?
swasthi says
Hi Snigdha,
Yes you can. But it may turn mushy. Just adjust the amount of water.
Shaila says
Hi Swasthi, I tried cooking thinai millet. After cooking there are still some grains I feel uncooked. Is this the way it is supposed to be? I soaked for about 2 hours, steam cooked for 20 minutes and then cooked it in pressure cooker with 1 whistle. Thanks
swasthi says
Hi Shaila,
Actually there are 2 kinds of thinai. Hulled and unhulled. The unhulled is with skin and is similar to what you said. It is hard to cook them. Since you are saying only some are under cooked I feel the pack must be having some unhulled mixed with the hulled. You can check them. If not then it is likely that it is a old stock. May times it happens to me that unhulled pop up in the pack.
Jayakumar Daniel says
I have triesd little millet Pongal and curd rice . Oearl millet Gnji / soup .
Kodo millet [any suitable millet ]chicken Biryani tomorrow.
Some tips are welcome.
swasthi says
Hi,
You can try this chicken biryani recipe using kodo millet.
I have made it few times and it works very well.
1: 2 ratio — millet:water worked good for me in pressure cooker. Hope this helps
Lisa says
Hi swasthi just made this yesterday was delicious. Love you recipes . A follower from Paris
swasthi says
Hi Lisa
Glad to know you made this. Thanks a lot. Have a good day
🙂
C.B.Chaudhsri says
Where can had foxtail millet in Mumbai.
C.B.Chaudhsri says
In khandesh area in Maharashtra papadam r rolled from ragi floor and after drying in sunrays are stored for the long period. Whenever, required are fried or roasted on Fire and served.
swasthi says
No idea where in mumbai they sell. You may find it online
Devi says
Hai swathi garu.. This is ur recipes follower Devi once again. Yela vunaru.. My request is as of now I am preparing only brown rice recipe for everyone.. But I want to start to include every millets to my family.. So pls suggest some recipes.. Thank you
swasthi says
Hi Devi,
I am doing fine. Thank you. Hope you are doing good as well.
Check out this link for all millet recipes. Few other easy ways to include millet is to add soaked korralu to the sambar rice or bisibele bath or khichdi.
I also have a multi millet dosa recipe which i make often. 1 cup each of jonnalu, sajjalu, ragi, rice, urad dal, attukulu (can use red too).1 Tsp menthulu. Even attukulu are considered healthy so iam using them as well. You can follow the same method as i did for jonna dosa. Hope these help.
SHANKAR says
very nice food I like it
swasthi says
Thank you
🙂
veena says
I am on a millet diet (:-)) these days.. this looks so yummy
Rumana says
I always love one pot meal.. Looks delicious.