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Ragi (finger millet)

Eleusine coracana
Teluguరాగులు RaguluHindiरागी RagiTamilகேழ்வரகு KezhvaraguKannadaರಾಗಿ RagiMarathiनाचणी Nachni

Names: ICAR-Indian Institute of Millets Research

Pictures

Ragi (finger millet): The grain
The grain — from: "Red Ragi.jpg" by Tonynirappathu, Wikimedia Commons (commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Red_Ragi.jpg), cropped · CC BY 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0)
Ragi (finger millet): The plant
The plant — from: "EleusineCoracana1.jpg" by L. Shyamal, Wikimedia Commons (commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:EleusineCoracana1.jpg) · CC BY 3.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0)
Ragi (finger millet): An old botanical plate
An old botanical plate — from: "Oriental memoirs (Plate 25) (6860239076).jpg" by Forbes, James; Hooker, William Jackson, Wikimedia Commons (commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Oriental_memoirs_(Plate_25)_(6860239076).jpg) · Public domain

Nutrition of the raw grain, per 100 g

Energy321 kcal
Protein7.16 g
Fat1.92 g
Carbohydrate (available)66.82 g
Dietary fibre (total)11.18 g
Calcium364 mg
Iron4.62 mg
Magnesium146 mg
Phosphorus210 mg
Zinc2.53 mg

Source: Indian Food Composition Tables 2017, ICMR-National Institute of Nutrition, food code A010. Energy converted from kilojoules (1 kcal = 4.184 kJ).

Every nutrient in the raw grain — 89 values, per 100 g

Energy, protein, fat, carbohydrate, fibre9
Water (moisture)10.89 g
Protein7.16 g
Ash (total minerals)2.04 g
Fat1.92 g
Dietary fibre (total)11.18 g
Insoluble fibre9.51 g
Soluble fibre1.67 g
Carbohydrate (available)66.82 g
Energy1342 kJ
Starch and sugars5
Available carbohydrate (starch + sugars)62.47 g
Starch62.13 g
Glucose0.25 g
Sucrose0.12 g
Free sugars (total)0.34 g

Not detected in this grain (the table leaves it blank or zero): Fructose, Maltose.

Minerals5
Calcium364 mg
Magnesium146 mg
Phosphorus210 mg
Potassium443 mg
Sodium4.75 mg
Trace elements8
Chromium0.032 mg
Cobalt0.022 mg
Copper0.67 mg
Iron4.62 mg
Manganese3.19 mg
Molybdenum0.011 mg
Selenium15.3 µg
Zinc2.53 mg
Vitamins12
Thiamine (B1)0.37 mg
Riboflavin (B2)0.17 mg
Niacin (B3)1.34 mg
Pantothenic acid (B5)0.29 mg
Vitamin B60.05 mg
Biotin (B7)0.88 µg
Folate (B9)34.66 µg
Vitamin D2 (ergocalciferol)41.46 µg
Vitamin E: alpha-tocopherol0.09 mg
Vitamin E: gamma-tocopherol0.66 mg
Vitamin E (alpha-tocopherol equivalents)0.16 mg
Vitamin K13 µg

Not detected in this grain (the table leaves it blank or zero): Vitamin E: alpha-tocotrienol, Vitamin E: beta-tocopherol, Vitamin E: delta-tocopherol, Vitamin E: gamma-tocotrienol.

Carotenoids4
Lutein25.53 µg
Zeaxanthin1.45 µg
Beta-carotene1.53 µg
Carotenoids (total)154 µg
Amino acids18 · g per 100 g of protein
Histidine2.37 g
Isoleucine3.7 g
Leucine8.86 g
Lysine2.83 g
Methionine2.74 g
Cystine1.48 g
Phenylalanine5.7 g
Threonine3.84 g
Tryptophan0.91 g
Valine5.65 g
Alanine6.71 g
Arginine4.33 g
Aspartic acid6.4 g
Glutamic acid20.22 g
Glycine3.59 g
Proline5.42 g
Serine4.81 g
Tyrosine3.37 g
Fatty acids8
Palmitic acid (C16:0)290 mg
Stearic acid (C18:0)27.86 mg
Oleic acid (C18:1)585 mg
Linoleic acid (C18:2, omega-6)362 mg
Alpha-linolenic acid (C18:3, omega-3)68.58 mg
Saturated fat (total)317 mg
Monounsaturated fat (total)585 mg
Polyunsaturated fat (total)431 mg

Not detected in this grain (the table leaves it blank or zero): Arachidic acid (C20:0), Behenic acid (C22:0), Capric acid (C10:0), Eicosenoic acid (C20:1), Erucic acid (C22:1), Lauric acid (C12:0), Lignoceric acid (C24:0), Myristic acid (C14:0), Myristoleic acid (C14:1), Palmitoleic acid (C16:1).

Organic acids7
Oxalate (total)39.58 mg
Oxalate (soluble)31.16 mg
Oxalate (insoluble)8.58 mg
Fumaric acid0.2 mg
Malic acid0.75 mg
Succinic acid1.89 mg
Tartaric acid1.6 mg

Not detected in this grain (the table leaves it blank or zero): Citric acid, Quinic acid, cis-Aconitic acid.

Polyphenols8
Protocatechuic acid2.38 mg
Vanillic acid0.34 mg
Gallic acid1.38 mg
Apigenin2.58 mg
Apigenin-7-O-neohesperidoside10.45 mg
Catechin15.52 mg
Sinapic acid0.28 mg
Polyphenols (total)135 mg

Not detected in this grain (the table leaves it blank or zero): 3,4-Dihydroxybenzoic acid, 3-Hydroxybenzaldehyde, Caffeic acid, Chlorogenic acid, Cinnamic acid, Ferulic acid, Isorhamnetin, Kaempferol, Luteolin, Quercetin, Quercetin-3-galactoside, Quercetin-3-glucoside, Quercetin-3-rutinoside (rutin), o-Coumaric acid, p-Coumaric acid.

Phytosterols3
Campesterol5.67 mg
Stigmasterol2.55 mg
Beta-sitosterol57.36 mg
Other compounds2
Raffinose0.02 g
Phytate306 mg

Not detected in this grain (the table leaves it blank or zero): Saponins (total), Stachyose.

Source, one for the whole list: Indian Food Composition Tables 2017, ICMR-NIN. Values exactly as the table prints them; published values for the grain, not a laboratory test of our packs. Tap a name for what it is and does.

Where it comes from

  • Finger millet is originally from Sudan (FAO); mainly grown in eastern Africa and southern Asia; India is the largest producer today. (FAO, International Year of Millets 2023 - About)
  • Finger millet was domesticated from wild populations in the East African highlands; many reports of it in India in the later 3rd-2nd millennia BC need scepticism (misidentified grains); one specimen was identified at Hallur. (Fuller D, Korisettar R, Venkatasubbaiah PC, Jones MK)
  • The presence of finger millet in prehistoric South Asia has been greatly exaggerated by misidentifications. (Fuller DQ)

In India’s old books

  • Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary: 'raga f. Eleusine Coracana (a sort of grain, commonly called Raggy, and much cultivated in the south of India), L.' (Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries)
  • Rajanighantu: 'ragi tu lanchanah syad bahudalakanisas ca gucchakanisas ca' (ragi, also called lanchana, 'many-leaved ear', 'cluster-eared') (GRETIL)
  • IFCT 2017 food description A010, p.430: IFCT lists 'S. Madhulika' among the names of Ragi (Indian Food Composition Tables 2017 (Longvah T, Ananthan R, Bhaskarachary K, Ven)
  • Tamil Lexicon, pp.1096, 1094, 244, 317: kēḻ-varaku 'Ragi, a millet, Eleusine coracana' (Patartta. 1394); kēppai 'Ragi'; āriyam 'Ragi, cereal'; irāki '[T. K. M. Tu. rāgi.] ... Ragi' (Tamil Lexicon (University of Madras, 1924-36), Digital Dictionaries of South Asi)

Where it grows

  • Karnataka has about 60% of India's finger millet area and production, followed by Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra and Uttarakhand; ~1.18 million ha nationally. (ICAR-IIMR 'Millets Chalisa' farmer leaflet)
  • About 90% of the area is kharif rainfed; grown from sea level to the Himalayan foothills (up to ~2100 m). (ICAR-IIMR 'Millets Chalisa' farmer leaflet)

In the kitchen

  • ICAR-IIMR recipe: soft finger millet mudde, served with sambar or chutney; also laddu and muruku. (Dayakar Rao B, Vishala AD, Arlene Christina GD, Tonapi VA)

Recipes