Looking for a quick and nutritious meal idea? Look no further, this Healthy Millet Vegetable Stir-Fry is exactly it! It is one of my go-to easy and quick dinner ideas. All you need is cooked millet, some fresh vegetables and your choice of protein. How easy is that? And it gets even better when you consider the nutritional value of this grain. In this post, I’ll show you why adding millet to your diet is a great idea and how easy it is to create this: Healthy Millet Vegetable Stir-Fry at home. Enjoy!

As mentioned earlier, adding millet to your diet will not only be good for your health, but also for your wallet! If you are getting tired of always eating brown rice or quinoa, then definitely give millet a try!

Indeed, this grain (staple to many countries in Africa and Asia) has a different nutritional profile and therefore different health benefits compared to brown rice or quinoa. Adding it to your diet will add variety in the nutrients your body is exposed to on a daily basis. This is important so as to not create any digestive sensitivities within your digestive tract by exposing it to the same foods over and over again.

Now, let’s take a quick closer look at the nutritional value of millet.

Millet: Health Benefits

Millet is a gluten-free and non-allergenic grain that is very rich in minerals and a great source of plant-based protein. It contains a good amount of manganese, phosphorus and magnesium.

Magnesium is an excellent mineral that helps reduce headaches, migraines and muscles cramps. It can also help you relax.

Due to its high amount of dietary fibers and magnesium, millet has also been shown to be a great food to help reduce high blood pressure and the risk of heart attack. The amount of dietary insoluble fibers present in this grain also helps reduce the risk of developing gallstones, especially for women.

Finally, because millet is alkaline and low in allergens, it can be more easily digested than most grains. See? It is definitely worth a try ;).

Now, for our recipe… Since there are many ways to make a good stir-fry, I will not bore you with that today. However, I would like to advise you to sauté your millet and vegetables with good quality oils such as some coconut oil, avocado oil or even extra virgin olive oil (watch that it doesn’t smoke, though).

Using quality oils instead of cheap vegetable oils (such as canola, corn, soy, …) will allow you to avoid the oxidative stress and internal inflammation that these oils have been linked to. Better yet, try to sauté your veggies in a little bit of water and tamari (gluten-free soy sauce) first, then add your oil of choice. You will see that using this method allows you to use very little oil to make a yummy stir-fry ;).

Ok, let’s look at how to prepare this:

Healthy Millet Vegetable Stir-Fry

Most people ask me how to cook millet properly, so that is what I have decided to share with you today. Once you have mastered the cooking technique, you can enjoy millet in many different dishes, just as you would brown rice or quinoa.

Here is what you will need:

Ingredients:

1 cup of millet (well rinsed – at least 3 times – and drained)
1.75 cups of water (I find that 2 cups makes it too soggy to my liking, but feel free to add more water)
Some sea salt

How to:

Start by rinsing off the millet thoroughly to remove any dirt or residue.
Place the rinsed & drained millet into a pot with 1.75 cup of water (if using one cup of millet) and a pinch of sea salt.
Bring the water and millet to a rapid boil and then let it simmer on medium heat uncovered until almost all of the water has evaporated.
Once the water is almost evaporated, cover the pot with the lid and reduce the heat to the lowest setting. Let your millet cook through for about 20 to 25 minutes.
After 25 minutes, simply remove the pot from the heat source and let it cool down. Once cooled down, transfer the millet onto a dish and separate the grains with a fork.

That’s it! Add your cooked millet to your salads, stir-fry’s, or any other side dish. I love it in cold salads as a way to add some plant-based protein or I simply sauté it in some coconut oil with some spices and vegetables to turn it into a simple and Healthy Millet Vegetable Stir-Fry as seen in the pictures:

It is absolutely delicious and I strongly encourage you to give this gluten-free grain a try. Let me see your re-creations using the hashtag #dlvrecipes.

Bon appétit.

– Sarah.