5 Amazing Health Benefits of Kambu | Bajra | Sajjalu | Bajri

 
Kambu | Bajra has been consumed for many years by our ancestors and it has many health benefits. There are lot of traditional recipes with bajra that is still made the way our ancestors did which is both very healthy and tasty. Kambu is called Pearl Millet in English, Bajra in Hindi, Sajjalu in Telugu and Bajri in Gujarati. In our house we make different traditional recipes with kambu and if you pair it well with a suitable side dish, even children will enjoy eating kambu. My son prefers the regular rice dosa (pancakes) to kambu dosa, as rice dosas are more crispier but now after explaining to him about the health benefits of kambu, he is eating it more often now. There is one main thing  about the traditional diet that our ancestors followed, it is eating according to the season. Now with kambu, the main recipe is the porridge made with broken kambu. Kambu porridge is made only during hot summer season and if you are a South Indian, you must have seen that most of the homes will have kambu porridge for lunch during hot summer. It is one of the best body coolants and my mother in law insists that we eat kambu porridge daily during peak summer. You will be less likely to suffer from heat strokes, ulcers and dehydration, if you make it a habit of eating kambu porridge in summer. I used to love watching vendors who sell kambu porridge. The kambu porridge is usually kept in huge clay pots which keeps the porridge cool and usually there will be plenty of accompaniments like homemade vadams and vathals to go with it. But nowadays the vendors who sell these traditional drinks are slowly decreasing as we are taking to drinking harmful sugary drinks. A few years back, sugary drinks were not available in villages, nowadays I see these drinks in every small shop in most of the villages. I think it is high time we educate our kids about the traditional drinks like kambu porridge that is usually cheap, good for the body and soul along with keeping us healthy. Kambu apart from being a body coolant also is good for treating constipation, acidity and it is full of nutrients.

1. Kambu | Bajra For Diabetics:


Kambu is one of the best ingredients that diabetics can include in their diet. Kambu dosai is a regular in our home and the best combination for this dosai is peanut chutney. This combination has been followed for many years and that is how we always eat the dosai. When you have a breakfast like this that is high in GI,  it prevent blood sugar spikes and keep us satiated till lunch. If I have this breakfast, I know I will be full till lunch without any hunger pangs. Diabetic patients when they include traditional food like this that is full of nutrients, good fats and low in glycemic index can keep blood sugar level under check without any great effort.


2. Kambu | Bajra For Weight Loss:


Kambu is a great ingredient to include in weight loss diet, as it keep us satiated for a long time like I mentioned before. Another thing with kambu is that it settles the stomach after consuming it. I think many of you will understand when I say settle the stomach, it is a nice feeling after having a meal, whereas when we eat a meal high in processed food we never get a satisfied feeling and within an hour or two we are hungry again. Including foods that keep us satiated for a long time along with providing us with the required nutrients is the main key to natural weight loss. Try to include kambu along with other millet’s to get fat burning under way 🙂


3. Kambu | Bajra For Infants & Children: Keeps the Hair & Skin Healthy


Please encourage children to consume kambu as it full of minerals and vitamins that keeps the hair and skin healthy: 100gms of bajra contains around 12gm of protein, 42 mg of calcium and 8 mg of iron. Kambu is also one of the few ingredients that rarely cause allergies in anyone. In my home, I buy the whole kambu and grind it into a powder. I find that when I grind it fresh, it has the best flavor and aroma. I cook the ground bajra along with water into a thick mass. I then roll them into balls and then immerse it in water and then I keep it in the refrigerator.  To consume, take a ball from the refrigerator and mix it with thick yogurt. You can spice it up with finely cut green chillies, shallots and coriander leaves. According to me there is no food to match this for children in terms of nutrition and as a body coolant in summer. This mixture can be given to children from 2 years onwards, skip the spicing part for young children.


4. Kambu | Bajra For Constipation:

If you are suffering from constipation, try eating bajra and the next day you will find that you don’t have any constipation problem, that is because of the high fiber content of bajra. I would prefer eating bajra as a porridge in the afternoon along with yogurt. In the form of dosais, paniyaram in the night or morning breakfast. I would like to eat it dosais and paniyaram with coconut chutney or like mentioned before peanut chutney. Even last week when I was eating it, I was thinking what a nice simple wholemeal it was and just 2 dosais would fill me up. When consuming food like this you will never have any constipation problems at all. What I have given is just a few ideas to include kambu in daily diet that I regularly make, but you can get creative and include it in many recipes. if we make it a point to eat more of bajra, I am sure we will find a way to include it in our diet.


5. Kambu | Bajra the Best Allergy Food: Good For Lactating Mothers


I was actually surprised when a health magazine announced that many Indians are gluten intolerant and we lead our lives without ever realizing it. Even me, though I love chappathis, I find it hard to digest especially if I have it in hotels with fat added to the flour and sometimes I get a very bloated feeling. But you will never experience this kind of bloating consuming bajra. I have noticed it several times, though sometimes I have consumed bajra dosai that is a bit greasy, I have never felt bloated at all. It is also one of the foods that can be consumed by both elders and children. Bajra also is good for lactating mothers and should be included in their diet very often as it increases the breast milk supply. If you are suffering from pcos try including these traditional recipes a lot in your diet. Since Pongal festival is around the corner, almost all the homes in our village will be preparing kamba maavu, a high iron food that is made with jaggery, ground bajra and spices. Since we are farmers, Pongal festival is very very special to us and we make a lot of this kamba maavu along with other traditional sweets and gift it to everyone during Pongal. I have never seen a single person complain of stomachache after eating kamba maavu only that they didn’t get enough of it. I hope after reading this article that you will start consuming more of kambu in the daily diet 🙂








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52 Comments

  1. Anonymous
    January 11, 2015 / 5:30 pm

    I've only found and been reading your blog about a couple of month, and it's obvious how much work you've put in it. The only 2 suggestions I have, if I may, are : 1) Make the table size in % instead of static. That's because the fon't size may be small for some readers. Trying to increase the font size, makes the text go beyond the screen size, which requires going back and forth manually – for every sentence. 2) Add the Bangla Names too for Plants/Herbs.

    • Ramya Venkateshwaran
      January 13, 2015 / 2:50 am

      Hi, Thanks a lot for your suggestions, I maintain the blog myself and I am not very tech savvy, If I can figure it out I will surely do it. As for Bangla names, I will try adding them from on…..

  2. Anonymous
    January 13, 2015 / 3:47 pm

    At flowersofindia dot netYou can look up the Bengali or other Indian language names by typing the Tamil, English or Latin name in the search box.

    • Anonymous
      January 14, 2015 / 6:17 pm

      or try ethnobotanybd dot comfor Bangala names

  3. Kirti
    March 6, 2015 / 8:12 am

    Hello,I too want to start using bajra recipes.I am a total fan of south indian cuisine. I stayed with my parents for a long time over 20 years In Bangalore. So my mother knows most of the recipes that we got to taste thereI want to make a simple request. I have the paniyaram patra with me.Can you send me a few of the bajra recipes like dosai, porridge and paniyaram and many more so that we too can benefit from it. My mother would love them tooWarm RegardsKirti

    • Ramya Venkateshwaran
      March 13, 2015 / 5:04 pm

      Kirti, please give me your mail address, I will send the recipes to you…..

  4. Anonymous
    May 26, 2015 / 6:14 am

    Hi Ramya, Thanks to your blog I got introduced to Bajra and other millets. It would be very helpful if you can tell us how to consume millets according to the season. As in Ahmedabad, we make bajra ladoo and bajra roti in winters, I liked the idea of consuming Bajra in buttermilk in summers. Could you please also tell us the traditional way of preparing Bajra and Ragi (fermented version) drinks for summers. warm regardsSonal

    • Ramya Venkateshwaran
      May 28, 2015 / 4:22 pm

      Hi Sonal, I will try my best to post those recipes very soon….

    • Anonymous
      September 22, 2015 / 5:17 pm

      Why in south it's taken during summer to keep cool ….and in north it's taken during winter for warmth?

  5. Durga Somayajula
    August 24, 2015 / 11:37 am

    Hi,the post is interesting and very informative. We eat less of bajra in Andhra Pradesh. But I guess knowing its benefits, we must increase the intake of sajjalu.

  6. Paranisri Sinniah
    August 25, 2015 / 10:36 am

    Thankyou for the precious message

  7. Jawaharlal Guthikonda
    October 3, 2015 / 10:40 am

    Thanks for your information. It is really good.I worked in TN for 10 years and visited entire rural TN.i know that people consume RAGI but my friends never told me about BAJRA. My wife is high diabetic aged 63.Can you please post receipe for bajra dosa,pariyaram,porridge etc to my email gjlaal@gmail.com.BLESS YOU DAUGHTER

    • Ramya Venkateshwaran
      October 9, 2015 / 5:13 pm

      I will send the recipes for you sir….:)

    • hemesh reddy
      May 26, 2016 / 12:55 pm

      Hiii i also need recipes to loose weight pls send recipes

  8. Ravi
    February 18, 2016 / 3:57 am

    I am following your recipes that I am preparing at home as Breakfast everyday, and I see positive changes in my Health, feeling Brisk that sugar level under normal.

  9. Unknown
    March 12, 2016 / 8:37 am

    Hi..can we eat bajra rotis in summer

    • Ramya Venkateshwaran
      March 21, 2016 / 6:20 am

      Yes you can, in fact it is highly recommended to eat bajra during summer…

  10. Saravanamuthu M
    April 12, 2016 / 3:05 am

    Hello Mam,Came across your blog while searching for the English word for Kambu. Very much informative blog. Thank you so much. Prepared Kambu dosa and taking it to office for Potluck Lunch.

  11. raja veda
    April 16, 2016 / 4:22 pm

    How much carbohydrates in this

    • Ramya Venkateshwaran
      May 30, 2016 / 8:02 am

      Kambu | pearl millet has around 67.5 grams of carbohydrates for every 100 grams…

  12. karthik karthik
    April 25, 2016 / 7:04 am

    Is it good food for bodybuilding….can u tell me the perctage of proteins and carbs present in it…

    • Ramya Venkateshwaran
      June 4, 2016 / 3:13 pm

      Bajra | kambu is a high carbohydrate food. It has around 67 grams of carbohydrate and 11.8 grams of protein for every 100 grams in raw form….

  13. Bhagirathi Ramesh
    April 28, 2016 / 7:28 am

    Ramya can you please send me some of your bajra recipes.My mail id is rbhagirathi15@gmail.com

  14. Divya Dupati
    May 27, 2016 / 7:36 am

    Hi Ramya..Nice information..Can you please post me few weight losing and anti-diabetic recipes using millets? My email id is divyadupati@gmail.com. Thank you!

  15. Murali R
    June 13, 2016 / 2:57 am

    Hi Mam Myself Murali from chennai from past one year I am having one side right side forehead headache I last for 1hr daily,this headache comes daily correctly at 11:00 am it's pain last for 1hr when I consulted neurologist he asked me to take CT Scan and Eye check these both I took both result had no problem,even though I am getting this headache once in six months it's episode last for 2 months,please suggest me some remedies for this please my doctor say this is cluster headache similar to migriane, my doctor suggest me painkiller and some migraine tablet I am 22 years old please give some remedies Mam thank in advance. my mail id rmurali364@gmail.com please revert back mam

    • Ramya Venkateshwaran
      June 17, 2016 / 5:28 am

      Hi, I would suggest keelanelli thailam for treating headache, please try the remedy regularly and let me know how you feel. You can find all the information about it here: keelanelli

    • Anonymous
      June 19, 2016 / 1:49 am

      Hi Ramya,Good to hear these kind of traditional and nutritional information. Very helpful. Could you please post or send Bajra recipes to my email id: ajjji.shailu@gmail.complease post more food items which will be helpful for new generation. lets make our next generation and healthy including us. Best of luck.Thanks

  16. Ruby Ahmed
    September 18, 2016 / 12:38 pm

    Hi gud information I m using bajra and ragi flour Can u post receipe how to make dosa using flour

    • Ramya Venkateshwaran
      October 6, 2016 / 8:15 am

      Soak 1/4 cup of urad dal along with a teaspoon of fenugreek seeds in water for an hour and grind to a smooth paste. Add the ground paste to a cup of brajra or ragi flour along with salt. Let it ferment overnight, the next day morning you can make dosas….

  17. Rashid Khan Pattan
    October 13, 2016 / 8:32 am

    Madam I want to consume bajra by soaking in winter. How much quantity of bajra I have to soak in water.

    • Ramya Venkateshwaran
      November 10, 2016 / 1:25 pm

      Bajra has to be cooked before consuming. We generally wash and grind to a powder in a dry mixer and then add it to water in the ratio of 1: 3 along with salt and pressure cook for 3 whistles. Once cool, we make small balls out of it and consume every day…

  18. Magesh B
    November 23, 2016 / 11:12 am

    Hi Mam, i Want to reduce weight, can you tel me how to take kambu | Ragi? in morning or night? how much quantity need to take? also send me the recipes to trkmagesh@gmail.com

  19. Magesh B
    November 23, 2016 / 11:15 am

    Hi Ramya,I need to do weight loss, Can you tel me how to take Kambu | Ragi? how much quantity ? i need to take morning or evening? Also can you send me recipes to trkmagesh@gmail.com

  20. ambika prasad
    November 27, 2016 / 1:09 pm

    Hi Ramya Mam, pl send me some kambu recipes to my mail id.

  21. Unknown
    December 4, 2016 / 3:21 pm

    Is bajra good during first trimester of pregnancy?

    • Ramya Venkateshwaran
      December 10, 2016 / 4:32 am

      Bajra can be had during the whole time of pregnancy, it will not cause any harm…

  22. Jayachandran Kannappan
    January 28, 2017 / 7:37 am

    Hello Mam,Myself Jay from Chennai. My wife have PCOS problem. Can you pls let me knw the diet wht we should follow to get override if this. We tried all medicine's. So pls help us.. My mail I'd jchandran55@gmail.com

  23. Er.A.Sethupathi
    March 3, 2017 / 2:17 pm

    nice

  24. Anonymous
    March 10, 2017 / 4:23 pm

    Mam, I am taking Kambu Kuzhu for the past 10 days in alternative day, using the fermentation over night before preparing it. But I feel my body getting over heated when I consumed on that day, I heared Kambu is cool properties, that is what I preferred over Ragi Kuzhu, Kindly suggest which will be the coolent one. but checked with ancestors, getting different option from different one.my body constitution is neutral one, when I take this Kambu Khuzu feels heat and eyes burning.I asked my wife to prepare with 2:1 2-kambu and 1-ragi propotion, even feels the same.shall I go with Ragi Khuzu for this summer, due to acidity and ulcer I started this diet.kindly suggest me

  25. Unknown
    August 24, 2017 / 1:20 pm

    Mam eating barja can control flatulence. If not pls suggest me the right tip. And I am a vitiligo patient.

  26. Raj R
    December 30, 2017 / 9:52 am

    Hi Mam, Can you please send me the receipes to my email as well. rajasforce3@gmail.com Thank you.

  27. Senthilmurugan Chinnusamy
    March 22, 2018 / 12:52 pm

    Can we take kambu as our dinner ??? Especially the water soaked kambu Im expecting your reply Reply me at senthilcentum100@gmail.com

  28. Anonymous
    May 15, 2019 / 6:51 pm

    Which dals specifically can be eaten with Kambu?

    Also I am getting conflicting opinions on whether Kambu can be eaten in winter for Tamils and Ragi can be eaten in winter for Tamils? Some are telling Ragi produces heat and should be taken monsoon time or winter time. But why do they also have it in the summer if it produces heat? Some say Kambu is easier to digest and so they have it in the winter and it produces coolness so is had in summer but not during monsoon which is Aadi time, and they won’t eat Ragi in the winter as it is harder to digest…..I am not clear on which season is meant for which sirudaniyam.

    Also please inform which dals can be eaten with Ragi too. You mentioned toor for Ragi, and peanut chutney for Kambu and Ragi dosa, but what else?

    Please post the recipes you are sending to everyone above on this webpage somewhere….

  29. Anonymous
    May 28, 2020 / 3:06 am

    whoever eats siru dhaniyam they need to be careful especially when feeding to children as there
    are the following problems in it…children just simply swallow food without sensing anything wrong in it sometimes like stones…..or sand…..Ramya please teach us how to deal with these issues as it is in most products sold it is not brand specific:

    சிறு தானியம் பிரச்சனை

    உமி, கல், குருணை

    -lots of unhusked grain in the UMI உமி
    -lots of very tiny black stones KALS கல்
    -lots of broken grains KURUNAI குருணை

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0bHbUirecCQ

    சிறுதானியத்திலிருந்து கற்களை நீக்குவது எப்படி?

  30. Kamal
    February 23, 2022 / 8:11 pm

    Hi Ramya thx for gr8 efforts my daughter is having pcod problem am also going to start the recepies of millets pls forward to me also

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