Mixed Millet Pullao with Goan Choriz

Challenges add flavour to life and this is something I'm beginning to appreciate even more after I participated in the Commeat Recipe Challenge with KitchenAid India. This challenge, spread over five weeks, had five well known people from the food blogging and writing world with each one setting a challenge every week.

The first challenge was set by Bangalore blogger Neha Mathur and her challenge was "cook something innovative with millets". Now, the thing is, I've led a fairly sheltered life as far as food is concerned and have only recently been formally introduced to millets. There was no rush of creativity and I was quite stymied. The only thing I'd made with millets was a sort of pullao with assorted vegetables and that didn't seem particularly creative or even worthy of the challenge. As I mulled over pullao possibilities and tried to think of something beyond the obvious, I settled on making a choriz pullao using millets in place of rice.

25 Goan Choriz links (for stock) 

25 Goan Choriz links 

1 cup Mixed millets 

1 Onion sliced 

4 cloves Garlic chopped 

1 Green capsicum 

1 Potato 

Salt 

Oil

Dry roast the millets in a frying pan over medium heat till they give out a fragrant toasty smell.
Peel the choriz reserved for the stock and boil in 2 cups of water for a few minutes till the meat is cooked. Strain the meat and reserve the liquid stock.

Cube the potatoes and chop the capsicum into half inch sized pieces.

Heat oil in a pan and fry the potatoes over medium heat till they are cooked. Be careful not to over-brown them.

Add the sliced onions to the pan and fry for a further couple of minutes. Add the garlic too.

Now add the drained choriz meat along with the chopped capsicum, mix well and fry for another minute.

Peel the remaining choriz links and add it all to the pan. Cook over medium heat letting the fat render from the choriz. You can cover the pan at this stage and let it cook for a few minutes. 
Add salt allowing for the millets you will add later.

Remove approximately one quarter of this mix to a bowl and keep aside.

Now add the toasted millets to the pan and mix everything properly. Pour in the choriz stock and once it boils reduce the heat and let the millets absorb all the liquid in the pan.

Cover the pan and let it rest for five minutes. Then fluff up the grains with a fork, garnish with the reserved vegetable and choriz mix and serve your millets and choriz pullao hot.

We thoroughly enjoyed the pullao and, in fact, the hubby had seconds too. And that's not all - my recipe won a prize! Now I have a stylish ice cream scoop from KitchenAid poshing up my small tools drawer.