This is an easy and tasty dosa batter recipe using millets, specifically barnyard millet or kuthiraivali in Tamil. Packed with fibre, protein, and essential nutrients, barnyard millet makes this dosa lighter on the stomach, crispy, and easy to digest. Whether you’re looking for a wholesome breakfast or a quick dinner, this recipe is simple, delicious, and perfect for busy cooks.
As you can tell, barnyard millet dosa turns out looking the same as regular dosa and taste-wise, they are really similar too. I served millet dosa with sambar and chutney for Sunday breakfast and it was quite a treat. I did find they turned out a bit more crispy than regular dosa and held the crispness for longer too!
Types of Millets for Dosa Batter
Below are the few I have tried. I generally follow the same proportions mentioned in the recipe card and they turn out fine. You can also use a mix of millets to make your dosa, don’t be afraid to experiment!
- Foxtail Millet (Thinai) – Light and slightly nutty, good for crispy dosas.
- Little Millet (Samai) – Small grains, easy to digest, and makes soft dosas.
- Kodo Millet (Varagu) – Similar to rice in texture, great for traditional-style dosas.
- Barnyard Millet (Kuthiraivali) – Low in calories, makes soft and fluffy dosas.
- Finger Millet (Ragi) – Rich in calcium, results in darker, slightly earthy dosas.
- Pearl Millet (Bajra) – Gives a strong, rustic flavor, works well with mixed grains.
- Proso Millet (Pani Varagu) – Mild and slightly sweet, good for soft dosas.
Other Ingredients for Millet Dosa Batter
I always add whole urad dal (skinned black gram dal) to the millets to make dosa batter. This gives it the texture we enjoy. I sometimes add 3 tablespoons of idli rice to the millets as they soak which gives the dosas more crispness. I have also seen poha (flattened rice) and even cooked rice being added for the same reason so give those a try too. You can eyeball the measurements.
Ingredients in Millet Dosa
- Any variety of millets or a mix. I have also tried varagu arisi or kodo millet dosa batter before.
- Whole skinned urad dal
- Idli rice or poha
- Fenugreek seeds (helps fermentation) – optional
- Salt
Equipment for Making Barnyard Millet Dosa Batter
While I use a wet grinder to make my homemade dosa batter recipe, for millet dosa I use my Preethi mixer and it does a good job. The urad dal gets much more fluffier in a wet grinder though so if you are feeling up to it, that’s what I’d recommend. I generally make much smaller batches of millet dosa batter at home so just stick with a mixer-grinder for convenience.
Tips for Making Perfect Millet Dosas
- Soak the millets and dal for atleast 4 hours. I normally leave them soaking for 6 hours or so before grinding. In winter, I use warm water for soaking.
- Adding a fistful of poha (flattened rice) or cooked rice can make the dosas more soft and spongy. For crisper dosa, I omit adding cooked rice but still add poha. Soak for 10 minutes before adding it while grinding the batter
- Grind urad dal and millets separately and mix together after. This gives softer dosas due to urad dal getting more airy when ground separately
- Fenugreek seeds can aid fermentation so add some if you have any, but this is optional
- Add salt and mix well (with your hands!) before leaving the batter to ferment
- You can use the yogurt setting in your Instant Pot or similar to ferment batter. It helps keep it at an event warm temperature best suited for fermentation. You can also use the more old-fashioned method of pre-heating oven to 50C, turning off and then leaving batter inside with the lights on, overnight. Always works.
- I have also experimented with variations of millets and using 1/2 rice 1/2 millets mix with urad dal. This results in a very crisp and brown dosa, which is delicious.
Barnyard Millet Dosa Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cup whole skinned urad dal
- 3 cups barnyard millet
- 3 tbsp poha flattened rice, optional
- 1/2 tsp fenugreek seeds optional
- 1 tbsp salt more or less
Instructions
- Wash and soak 1 cup whole skinned urad dal and 3 cups barnyard millet separately in plenty of water. Set aside for a minimum of 4 hours up to 8 hours
- If using, add 1/2 tsp fenugreek seeds to the urad dal while soaking
- Grind the urad dal first, adding enough water to make a thick and smooth batter that's slightly thick and fluffy
- When done, remove into a large bowl and grind the soaked millets. Take care adding water at this stage because the millets soak up water and release when grinding. It's easy to have your batter get too watery at this stage so take care
- Add 3 tbsp poha at this stage with the millets, if using
- Remove and add to the same bowl with the ground urad dal
- Add 1 tbsp salt and give everything a really good mix. Using your hands to mix makes the batter ferment better, apparently. Do what works!
- Set aside in a warm place to ferment for 8 hours or overnight. The batter will rise a bit and turn bubbly.
- To prepare dosas, heat a griddle and grease with gingelly oil
- Pour about 1/4 cup of batter and make into thin rounds.
- Add more oil and flip when the first side is cooked
- Cook the other size until crisp and done.
- Transfer to a plate and serve with sambar and chutney for a nutritious and fillng breakfast or dinner
Notes
- Use fresh urad dal for best results. The urad dal should turn fluffy when being ground. Add enough water to get this result.
- You can add 50/50 rice to millets or any proportion you like, for a different flavoured dosa
Step by Step Images for Barnyard Millet Dosa Recipe
Wash and soak the urad dal and millets separately in sufficient water for 4-6 hours. Use warm water in winter.
Grind separately with enough water until smooth.
Urad dal will turn fluffy and airy when ground with enough water. Add to a large bowl and then grind the millets.
Add ground millets to the same bowl. Add poha if you’d like.
Add salt and mix everything really well to combine.
Set aside and leave in a warm place, loosely covered, to ferment. Since this was summer time in Sydney, I just left it overnight on the counter top. Otherwise you can leave in the oven with the light on or in the ‘yogurt’ setting of your Instant Pot, for example.
Once fermented, the batter will turn bubbly.
Made dosas on a hot griddle by spreading thinly and add some gingelly oil.
Cook both sides until crisp and brown.
Serve hot with chutney and sambar.
i loved this recipe and your easy instructions. thank you!