Your millet rotis just got softer and healthier: Indian scientists unlock a game-changing secret for superfood appeal
- Scientists in Indian government labs have developed a natural binder that makes millet-based foods softer, tastier, and gluten-free—potentially reshaping diets, boosting farmer incomes, and reviving an ancient superfood.
For many households, wheat flour rotis have long been the easy choice, with healthier millet versions often losing out for being less soft and cumbersome to prepare. That might soon change.
Scientists in government labs have come up with a way to improve the texture and taste of millet-based variants of foods such as rotis, noodles, pasta, and bread so these are both pleasant to eat and wholesome.
The breakthrough could breathe new life into India’s traditional superfoods, making them more acceptable on dining tables and opening fresh opportunities for farmers. With cultivation of millets already on the rise, the development is expected to strengthen the link between nutrition, consumer preference, and farm income.
Scientists at the Indian Council of Agricultural Research’s (ICAR) National Institute of Secondary Agriculture (NISA) have developed a natural gluten-free binder that improves the characteristics of flours made from millets such as jowar (sorghum), bajra (pearl millet), and ragi (finger millet).
The plant-based binder gives millet dough the softness, elasticity, cohesiveness, and water absorption that it otherwise lacks by mimicking gluten—a structural protein in wheat that helps in the preparation of dough but can be troublesome for some people.
The binder makes millets a safe choice for people suffering from gluten intolerance, diabetes, and celiac disease, said Dr. Mangi Lal Jat, ICAR director general, and secretary, Department of Agricultural Research and Education.
Only a small quantity of the binder is needed—25 grams for a kilogram of millet flour, said Dr. Abhijit Kar, director of ICAR-NISA. By improving rolling, puffing, and chewability, it also increases the shelf life of millet chapatis, he said.
ICAR-NISA has filed a patent application for the technology and is in talks to transfer it to industry players, with plans to make it available in small packets through retail outlets.
A silver bullet
Nutrition experts say the natural gluten-free binder could change the way Indian households perceive millets, once considered the “poor man’s food".
“Millets could be the silver bullet for healthier blood sugar. Whether in roti, noodles, pasta, or bread, these tiny grains pack big benefits such as fiber that stabilizes glucose, minerals like iron, calcium, and magnesium that strengthen bones and nerves, and antioxidants that fight oxidative stress," said dietician Dr. Mansi Chatrath.
Natural gluten-free and nutrient-dense millets can transform everyday meals into functional, healing foods, she added.
The timing of ICAR-NISA’s innovation is significant. Following India’s initiative, the United Nations declared 2023 as the International Year of Millets, bringing global attention to the nutritional and environmental value of these superfoods.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi said at the time that millets could help tackle both food security and health challenges.
Large companies, too, have been getting on the millet bandwagon as families seek healthier but familiar foods with lifestyle-related diseases becoming a common concern. PepsiCo’s Kurkure brand recently launched jowar puffs, becoming the first national brand to offer a millet-based snack at mass-market prices of ₹10 and ₹20.
In 2024-25, India harvested 18 million tonnes of millets, 443,000 tonnes more than in the previous year. The area under millet cultivation has expanded from 18.15 million hectares in 2024-25 to 19.40 million hectares in the ongoing kharif or monsoon crop season, a rise of over 6.8%.
That, however, pales against the annual consumption of wheat in India, which, according to Navneet Chitlangia, president of The Roller Flour Millers Federation of India, is 105-108 million tonnes.
topics
