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Tamannaah Bhatia has been known to share her delightful culinary adventures with her fans and followers. The celebrated actor's indulgence for all her favourite foods and gastronomic delights is well-known but Tamannaah has also been recognised just as much for her holistic approach towards health and nutrition and for relishing soul food as a way towards wellness.
In a recent Instagram story posted by the actor, she seems to be taking a bite of a ragi and moong dal cheela stuffed with some grated carrots right out of what appears to be a casserole. The actor seems to be waiting to board a flight and appears to be enjoying a healthy meal before taking off. Mentioning wellness coach Luke Coutinho and lifestyle expert Shimpli Patil, she writes, "Going back to the roots..."
Ragi, or finger millet is rich in protein, full of antioxidants and free of gluten. Made into a cheela or pancake mixed with moong dal, it is a great source of energy that gives the body its required nutrition without causing an insulin spike. Stuffed with grated carrots, the cheela is also rich in vitamin A, potassium and beta carotene making for a very healthy and filling meal.
Tamannaah, who was recently seen in Netflix's Lust Stories 2 seems to be devouring this healthy and nourishing homecooked food. As she munches on the cheela, tell us in the comments below what your favourite type of cheela is and whether you like it with ghee and chutney!
The millet is extremely versatile and can be used to make ladoos, dosas, idlis, sharbat and upmas. The cheela made from ragi flour is a great option for a healthy breakfast or a high-tea snack filled with the nourishing goodness of the finger millet. It helps to boost absorption of iron and is also easy on the stomach. Read on below for a quick and easy recipe to whip up ragi cheela at home:
Ingredients:
1 cup ragi flour
½ cup curd
2 tbsp semolina
3-4 green chillies/ red chilli powder (as per preference)
½ finely chopped onion
½ tbsp jeera powder
½ tbsp coriander powder
½ tsp asafoetida
1 tsp ginger-garlic paste
1 tbsp coriander
Salt to taste
Oil for making the cheela
Method:
1. In a bowl mix ragi flour and semolina with curd and ginger-garlic paste. Let it rest for 10-15 minutes.
2. Once the batter starts fermenting, add jeera and coriander powder, chopped onions, chillies/chilli powder and hing or asafoetida.
3. Heat a tawa and ladle the batter onto it to make the ragi cheela. If the batter feels too thick, add a little bit of water. For a thin cheela, the batter should have a smooth, liquid-like consistency.
4. Flip it over once so that the cheela cooks on both sides on a medium flame and becomes slightly crispy at the edges. Serve hot with ghee and groundnut chutney.
Cooking tip: Rice flour, moong dal flour or a mix dal flour can also be added to the cheela for making it a more nutritious meal.
