From what cereal and how is millet made?
Having an idea of how cereals or fruit crops are cultivated, you can not only expand your horizons, but also get comprehensive information about the benefits of the product. Millet and millet porridge are popular dishes that have been present in the human diet for quite a long time and, due to their properties, deserve special attention.
What plant is millet made from?
Cereals are important foodstuffs, because the beneficial substances contained in them provide invaluable benefits to the human body. It has been established that wheat grains act as an inexhaustible source of proteins and carbohydrates, as well as vitamins and fiber. It is this culture that is considered the most ancient, but over time it has not lost its popularity at all.
Today, several names for cereals have taken root, other than the derived name of the cereal crop from which they were originally obtained. These include pearl barley, semolina and millet porridge. A golden and healthy side dish is obtained from millet, a herbaceous annual cereal. The color of millet can be not only the usual yellow shade, but also white, gray and even red. However, cereals with kernels of the color of the sun are cultivated to a greater extent, since it is this culture that has the maximum concentration of nutrients in the chemical composition.
The culture goes through a certain processing cycle, as a result of which consumers have the opportunity to purchase various types of cereals suitable for consumption.
However, the benefits of millet do not end only with the production of porridge, material for knitting brooms is extracted from the plant, in addition, grain acts as a nutritious feed for poultry.
The popularity of cereals is primarily due to the chemical composition. The indicator of protein content in grains is equal to that of wheat and is about 11%. An important point regarding the benefits is the fortified composition of the product. It includes the following groups of vitamins:
- B1, B2, B5;
- RR;
- E;
- BUT.
As for the mineral composition, it is worth noting the presence of iron, potassium, phosphorus, magnesium and copper in the grains. A large amount of complex carbohydrates allows you to cleanse the body, remove toxins and toxins from it.
For quite a long time, the reputation of a healthy product has been rooted behind millet, which should be present in the diet of a person who cares about a healthy diet. Millet was first cultivated in China even earlier than rice. This fact allows us to attribute the cereal crop to the most ancient agricultural plants. Later, they began to grow cereals and get millet from it in India, and then in Russia and other countries of the near abroad.
Such a wide range of cultivation of the plant indicates that the importance of culture was appreciated by many nationalities, as well as the fact that the feature of the plant is the ability to grow beautifully in any climatic conditions without being tied to any region, which allows you to get good crops of nutritious cereal.
Production technology
Since cereals are not the last place in the human diet, crops are grown both on private farms and on an industrial scale.As far as millet is concerned, after harvesting, the grain needs some processing in order to obtain grain that will be suitable for food. Today, several types of millet are made from the plant, products are classified by grade based on the level of grinding: the first, second and highest grades stand out.
Grinding technology is a process of liberation of the culture core from shells and films, as well as from the aleurone layer. The resulting grains after processing become pliable to heat treatment (cooking), due to which the product is in great consumer demand.
In addition, during the preparation of polished millet, its volume increases several times, and the dish acquires excellent taste and visual appeal. As a positive advantage worth noting easy digestibility of the resulting garnish.
Groat millet, which is cultivated for further processing, is divided into several main types. The highest quality and most useful is the grain, which has a white or creamy film, in addition, cereals with a red flower shell are very popular.
The consistency of the kernel influences the assessment and consumer attractiveness of a cereal crop. Vitreous nuclei are characterized by increased strength, as a result of which the process of peeling and grinding does not destroy them. The highest technological qualities are inherent in plant varieties in which large grains of the correct form ripen; during processing, they are perfectly separated from the outer shells.
For processing, grain is used, the moisture content of which is from 13.5 to 14.5%. Raw materials that have a moisture content below the specified value will tend to be more granular.
Before processing, millet undergoes preparatory work. The need for carrying out these measures is due to the presence of a large number of hard-to-separate inclusions in the grain mass. They consist of weed seeds, which, in their basic physical characteristics, are similar to millet grains. In addition, the cereal culture contains underdeveloped grains in the total mass, which are poorly served by peeling.
The essence of the preparatory measures carried out with millet is the separation of grain. After passing the grains three times through a sieve, they are separated by size, then the resulting material of different fractions is sent to stone-separating machines. Millet is obtained by peeling and sorting grains, grinding kernels and controlling the quality and quantity of waste.
Peeling and sorting of millet is carried out according to a technology that does not involve the intermediate selection of culture kernels. To separate the films, roller deck machines are used, specially equipped with an abrasive roller and a deck with plates. The most efficient equipment is considered to be a two-deck machine: as a rule, on such equipment it will be sufficient to carry out processing on two systems.
During the peeling of cereals, an insignificant amount of crushed kernels and flour accumulates in the total mass, which are removed from the machine along with the husk.
In some industries, grinding pads are used for grinding millet kernels, but they are not suitable for small grains, as they will have a minimum productivity. Good results are demonstrated by the processing of cereals in screw-press equipment. In such machines, millet is polished due to the friction of the grains against each other and the working surfaces of the equipment.After processing, the grain acquires a yellow matte color.
Millet porridge made from processed millet will be slightly lighter than grain before grinding., this technology will help to avoid the rigidity that is present in millet grains that are not subjected to polishing.
In addition, after processing, the time required to prepare the side dish is significantly reduced.
Grinding machines make it possible to obtain crushed groats from millet, which were previously processed in special crushes. The quality control of the ground grains takes place during another screening procedure performed by magnetic separation of the material. Raw materials are separated and sent to separate bunkers for finished products.
The husk is used as a feed product of a processed cereal crop. Muchka is an equally valuable feed mixture, since it includes fats, proteins and other biologically active components.
Millet can be used to make flour, but bread from such raw materials is rarely made.
Varieties of millet groats
If you delve into the study of varieties of millet, then it will be useful to know that there are about five hundred varieties of cereal in the world. Despite this diversity, after processing the output is the same grain used in the food industry.
Taking into account the peculiarities of the technological process of peeling grains, it is possible to carry out a certain classification of millet.
- On sale, most often, an even and beautiful croup is presented, which has undergone the grinding procedure described above. Due to processing, the grains increase the taste and benefits of consumption. In addition, the product is absorbed faster.This type of product can be distinguished from other varieties due to the light color, regular shape and matte surface. In addition to the main application, such grains can act as a component for the preparation of cutlets or casseroles.
- In addition to the main type of cereal, crushed millet is being prepared for subsequent sale. This raw material is a by-product that is formed during the grinding of grain. It is distinguished by a peculiar irregular shape and small size, resembling grains. Such products are in demand for the preparation of instant and liquid cereals.
- The third type of cereal is shingled millet. A similar product is not often found on store shelves. It will be the most nutritious and beneficial for the human body, since during the processing of cereals, the kernels retain the maximum concentration of useful trace elements. As a rule, the drapery has a rich yellow color and a shiny surface. However, it is unlikely that it will be possible to cook a delicious side dish from shingles, since millet retains a bitter taste. In addition, the chemical composition, which includes cereal germ oils with a minimum shelf life, decomposes rather quickly, which, in turn, adversely affects the organoleptic qualities of the finished product.
As a rule, errors associated with the storage conditions of millet groats lead to the fact that the product acquires a rancid taste. In order to avoid such situations, you should control the shelf life of the purchased goods, as well as soak the millet before cooking. Improves the taste of the product by piercing porridge in the oven or in a hot pan.
The fact that a product sold in a supermarket is of poor quality and was manufactured with errors made in the technological process will be indicated by the following visual signs:
- according to the requirements regarding the composition of cereals, the packaging must be completely free of excess impurities or foreign inclusions;
- raw cereal should not have a too rich smell;
- the faded color of the grains will be a sign of low-quality cereals;
- in order to avoid mistakes, it is worth choosing one or another type of millet based on the goal of its subsequent use.
Since polished millet grains do not have a long shelf life, it is worth refusing to buy cereals for the future. The purchased porridge must be stored in the right conditions, so it is best to pour the kernels into an airtight dry container and leave it in a place where sunlight will not act on the cereal, and air ingress will be minimal.
See the following video for the benefits of millet.
I bought wheat. Packing 0.8 kg, whole, not broken. Manufactured on 01/19/19. GOST 572-2016. Packed 04/08/19. The smell of mold is not removed when washing cereals, and also when cooking. What to do, how not to fall into rotten meat?