Fragrant, comforting, and easy to serve as a complete meal, Sama Chawal Idli | Vrat Ki Idli | Vari Rice Idli is a gluten-free, vegan Indian breakfast made with simple everyday ingredients in about 550 minutes. The recipe lays out the ingredients and each cooking step clearly, so you can adjust seasoning, texture, and serving size for your own kitchen.

Recipe Snapshot

  • Prep time: 540 minutes
  • Cook time: 10 minutes
  • Total time: 550 minutes
  • Yield: 9 · 9 Barnyard Millet Idli
  • Category: Breakfast
  • Cuisine: Indian

Ingredients

  • 1 cup sama ke chawal ((barnyard millet))
  • ½ cup sabudana ((tapioca pearls))
  • 2 pinches baking soda
  • rock salt ((edible and food grade) as required)
  • water (- as required, for soaking)

Method

Soaking Barnyard Millet & Sago

  1. Take both the sama ke chawal and sabudana in a bowl.
  2. Rinse then well and soak in enough water for 3 hours.
  3. Press a few sabudana pearls and they should get mashed easily. If the center feels hard, they need to be soaked for more time. So add water if required and soak for a few more hours, until the sabudana has softened well.

Making Batter

  1. Drain all the water very well. Then grind the sama chawal and sabudana in a wet grinder or mixer-grinder.
  2. No need to add any water as the sago grains absorb enough water to help with the grinding. But if you are unable to grind in your grinder then just add 2 to 3 teaspoons of water.
  3. The consistency of the batter can be a bit granular or slightly coarse.
  4. Take the batter in a bowl and allow to ferment for 8 to 9 hours or overnight,
  5. Before preparing, add salt to the batter and mix well.

Steaming

  1. Heat water in a steamer or an electric cooker. Add water as needed in the steamer or electric cooker or instant pot.
  2. Add the baking soda to the batter and stir well.
  3. Pour the batter in greased idli moulds.
  4. Place in the steamer or electric cooker.
  5. Steam the idli for 8 to 10 minutes or until they are cooked well.
  6. Serve sama ke idli hot or warm with your favorite coconut chutney

Kiyaan Singh’s Kitchen Note

Keep this recipe as a working base: cook once as written, then adjust spice, texture, and serving style for your own table.