Ragi or Finger Millet is considered supremely healthy.  Born and brought up in India, specially in the State of Karnataka which is the largest producer of this wonder grain, I feel privileged to be one of those many people who’ve enjoyed hot Ragi balls or “Ragi Mudde”, as its popularly known as, with spicy green curry. The fun part of Ragi balls lies in the way it’s eaten. You don’t chew on it, you swallow it. Ball, pop, gulp! This intrigued me the most when I was little. 🙂

Including Ragi in one’s daily diet has plenty of privileges. Ragi is said to be the richest source of Calcium meaning it’s extremely beneficial for bone health, it aids weight loss, it reduces excess fat from Liver thereby helps bring down high cholesterol levels, is an excellent source of Iron, is great to keep Diabetes in check, and has many other therapeutic properties. In an era where unnatural junk food has become a  part of our food selections, Ragi could do wonders if regularly incorporated in one’s diet. Find out more about the history and benefits of this miracle grain and try your hand at some more cool Ragi recipes at http://isha.sadhguru.org/blog/lifestyle/food/7-health-benefits-of-ragi-6-great-ragi-recipes/

Now, combining the greatness of this nutritive cereal with the richness of the playful Avocado gives you a truly enriched meal! Avocado or Butter Fruit or Alligator Pear, in itself, is extremely healthy. It plays the role of a good Samaritan and is loaded with healthy fats; so you don’t have to feel guilty about eating too many or too much. It has a buttery, rich texture and is said to contain 20 different vitamins and minerals. Read more about this super-food here – https://authoritynutrition.com/12-proven-benefits-of-avocado/

Avocado Ragi Roti or Avocado Ragi Flour Flat-bread is quite easy to make and is very filling. They are great for breakfast or lunch or dinner – basically, they’re great anytime! What I learnt while kneading the dough is that the avocados make the dough very soft and just perfect! So you don’t have to worry about adding too much oil or ghee while making them. Add little or no oil or ghee and they’ll still turn out perfectly soft. Adding boiling hot water to the flour while kneading is very important. I particularly stress on this after experiencing many cold water roti fiascoes, so trust me when I say that super-soft rotis can only be made by kneading the dough with “boiling hot water” taken straight from the kettle! So ladies and gentlemen, introducing….. Avocado Ragi Roti!  😀

Avocado Ragi Roti

Ingredients

This recipe makes six hot and delicious rotis.

Ragi Flour – 1 cup

Avocado, big – 1 or ½ cup pulp

Sunflower oil – 2 tbsp for the dough; additional to cook rotis

Salt – ½ tsp

Dried fenugreek leaves/Kasuri Methi  – 1/2  tsp (optional)

Boiling hot water – just enough to make a smooth dough

Parchment paper – to roll rotis

Method

1. Measure one cup Ragi flour. Add salt.
2. Take out the pulp by peeling the avocado. Stir in kasuri methi and mash the pulp with a spoon or potato masher.
3. Mix avocado pulp with the flour. Add sunflower oil and knead into a soft, pliable dough, adding little water as you go. The water is boiling hot – so be careful not to burn your hand!
4. Cover the well-kneaded dough (cling wrap or a dishcloth work great!) and keep aside for 10 minutes.
5. Now, heat up a skillet/tawa on medium flame.
6. Make equal size balls from the dough. Grease your palms slightly so as to prevent the dough from sticking to your hands, take one ball, and flatten the circle between two sheets of parchment paper. Use a rolling pin to roll them out as thin as as you can.
7. Cook the roti on the heated tawa. Flip the roti as soon as you see the rawness disappear (when tiny bubbles form – 5 to 10 seconds) and drizzle with a few drops of oil on top. Flip again and drizzle oil on the other side. Keep pressing the roti slightly with the spatula to make it rise.
8. Serve hot with chutney, curd and pickle. Enjoy hot and fresh!

Thanks for reading! ❤