At what age can millet and millet porridge be given to a child?
Until the infant is 6 months old, his diet includes only mother's milk or an adapted mixture. Next, the crumbs begin to acquaint with new products, one of which is porridge. This dish is made from different cereals. All of them are useful for the body of growing up kids, but the introduction of some cereals has its limitations, so parents should know in advance when to start giving this or that cereal dish.
And if such cereals as buckwheat or rice cause no questions and are among the first to be cooked by infants, then doubts arise with respect to other cereals. Is it possible for children to cook millet and for how many months is it permissible to cook millet porridge for karapuz? What are the beneficial properties and contraindications of this cereal? Let's figure it out.
Benefit
Millet is a grain of millet, which have removed the shell. Usually they are simply polished, but sometimes also crushed. The resulting grain is rich in amino acids, starch and fiber.
Millet also has the following useful qualities:
- Such croup contains beta-carotene, vitamins of group B, and also vitamins E and A.
- The child will receive a lot of calcium, potassium, zinc, chromium, sulfur, copper and other trace elements from millet porridge.
- Since there is no gluten in millet, porridge from it is allowed for feeding children with intolerance to this protein.
- Millet has a positive effect on heart function, blood formation and liver function.
- In millet porridge note the ability to accelerate the elimination of toxic substances from the body. For this reason, millet porridge is advised to eat after a course of antibiotics.
- This dish improves digestive function and helps to normalize the composition of the intestinal microflora. As for whether this porridge strengthens or weakens the stool, everything depends on the recipe, for example, porridge with apple or prune will weaken.
Minuses
- Some babies have an allergy to millet porridge, although it is extremely rare, as millet is called a hypoallergenic product.
- It is necessary to spend time preparing millet for cooking. Grits should be washed in hot water several times until the liquid to be drained is clear. Next, before cooking, it is recommended to soak the millet in water at room temperature for 1 hour.
- If you cook porridge from the "old" millet, this dish will be bitter.
Digesting whole grains of millet at an early age is difficult, therefore, children under one year are advised to grind millet into flour before cooking porridge. To do this, the grits need to be washed, dried and crushed with a coffee grinder.
From what age can one give millet porridge to a child?
The introduction of millet in the diet of the child is recommended from 8-9 months.
Porridge from such cereals is usually starting to be cooked on water for children who, from the age of 7 months, became acquainted with rice, buckwheat and corn porridge.
Babies at the age of 8-10 months should grind millet to a state of flour, and then cook porridge. To make porridge for a 10-11 month old baby, the grinding of millet may already be larger. Whole grains are not cooked for children under 1-1.5 years.
How to put in a lure
The first millet porridge for children up to one year old should be liquid and boiled in water. You can add a little breast milk or the usual baby mix. First, crumbs offer a small portion of porridge, for example, 1 teaspoon. Usually they do this for breakfast, so that in the evening it would be clear if the baby is allergic. With normal tolerance, the next time the portion is doubled, until the volume of the whole dish is brought to the age required.
To vary the taste of porridge, instead of water, you can take a vegetable or fruit decoction. If the child has already tried milk porridges, millet can be boiled with milk. The finished gruel can be mixed with fruit purees, and for children over 1.5 years old - add pieces of fruit and berries. A child who is 3-4 years old can make sweet casseroles of millet.
First millet porridge recipe
For cooking liquid porridge take 10 g of flour from millet and 100-150 ml of water. Bring the water to a boil, then pour the flour into it. While stirring, boil the porridge for about 3-5 minutes. Before serving, add butter or fruit puree, which is already included in your baby's lure.
How to cook porridge with milk?
For children older than a year, take 1/2 cup of millet and 200-250 ml of milk. Pour the cereal into boiled milk and cook over low heat until the millet melts. Add sugar to taste in porridge. If the dish is intended for a one-year-old child, you can also add fruit puree to this gruel. For children older than 1.5 years, porridge can be served with pumpkin, fruit pieces, steamed raisins or berries.
You can cook milk millet porridge in a slow cooker. Depending on the volume of milk, the dish can be liquid, viscous or crumbly. When cooking milk in such a device, the milk does not “run away”, and the finished porridge can be kept warm for the required time. Washed millet is poured into a multicooker bowl, filled with milk and salt or sugar is added to taste. Next, select the mode "cooking" and the product "porridge". When the dish is cooked, the multicooker will inform about this with a sound signal.
Recipes of other dishes with millet for children
Millet soup with prunes (from 1.5 years)
Take 500 ml of water, 40 g of millet, 120 g of prunes and a tablespoon of sugar. Sort and wash the cereal, soaking it for 1-2 hours. Bring the water to a boil and put the cereal in it, then boil until cooked.
Soak prunes for several hours, clean the seeds and cook in a small amount of water, where you should add sugar. Drain the prepared prune through a sieve, add to the boiled millet, pour in the broth as well. Boil the dish for a few minutes and remove from the heat. Serve this soup advised chilled by adding a spoonful of sour cream.
Millet casserole with raisins (from 3 years)
For this dish you will need 100 g of millet, 400 ml of milk, 20 g of raisins, one egg, 2 tsp of sugar and 1 tsp of sour cream. From millet and milk cook porridge until cooked. After letting it cool slightly, add a raw egg, sugar and washed raisins. After mixing the ingredients, place them in an oiled mold. Smear the future casserole with sour cream on top and send to the oven until golden brown.
How to choose millet for baby food?
When buying millet, from which the porridge will steal for a child, you should carefully consider the seeds and ask about the expiration dates. It is advisable to buy millet for children in a transparent package, as the cereals are by weight exposed to various external factors, which can deteriorate or lose useful substances. Choose millet with a matte surface, bright yellow color, without garbage.
It is not advisable to keep millet at home for a long time, because of the oxidation of fats, stale cereals start to taste bitter. Keep grains in an airtight container in a cool place away from sources of moisture.
For more information about the benefits of millet and millet porridge, see the following video.
