RA 00110.pdf - OAR@ICRISAT

Steamed Products
Couscous is the preferred food staple in many areas
of West Africa, especially Senegal. A traditional
process for producing couscous is presented (Fig. 6).
Pearl millet is generally decorticated and milled by
hand-pounding in a mortar and pestle to produce
couscous flour. The flour is agglomerated and
Whole p e a r l m i l l e t k e r n e l s
Wash i n w a t e r
D e c o r t i c a t i o n ( m o r t a r & p e s t l e )
D r y a n d w i n n o w - r e m o v e b r a n
Pound d e c o r t i c a t e d g r a i n a g a i n a n d
s i f t t h r o u g h 1-mm s i e v e
D i s c a r d o v e r s o r r e c y c l e
F l o u r
Add 4 0 % w a t e r t o f l o u r
a n d f o r c e t h r o u g h 1.5-mm s i e v e
F i r s t
s t e a m i n g
b r e a k u p
p a r t i c l e s
S e c o n d s t e a m i n g
B r e a k u p p a r t i a l l y s t e a m e d c o u s c o u s ,
add p o w d e r e d b a o b a b l e a f ,
o k r a o r o t h e r s o u r c e o f gums
f o r c e t h r o u g h
2.5-mm s i e v e
T h i r d
s t e a m i n g
C o u s c o u s
d i s c a r d
o v e r s
Figure 6. Traditional procedure for the preparation
of couscous.
steamed. Gums and mucilages from several species
are added to the couscous to improve palatability. In
Mali, ground okra and baobab leaves are used.
Fresh couscous is consumed with a sauce containing
vegetables, especially legumes, and other foods.
Dried couscous is one of the few traditional, cerealbased
convenience foods of the Sahel. Sun-dried
couscous can be stored and reconstituted in milk or
be rehydrated by steaming prior to serving with a
sauce.
Sorghum and millet couscous is an excellent product
when consumed with the typical sauces used in
West Africa. The disadvantage of couscous is the
laborious, time-consuming process, and the skill
required to make the product. Small- scale, mechanized
production of couscous in urban centers might
be an economical way to enhance the acceptability
of sorghum and millet.
In Mali, sanio pearl millet produced lower yields
of couscous than keninke sorghum (Sidibe et al.
1982). Galiba et al. (1985) found that sanio and
souna pearl millets produced couscous with a higher
moisture content than sorghum couscous. The taste
and color were different, but were quite acceptable.
The milling yields were lower for souna and sanio
pearl millets compared to sorghums with hard or
intermediate kernels.
Degue (steamed, fermented millet dumplings) is
consumed in West Africa. The flour is made into a
stiff dough which is formed into large dough balls
and steamed. The degue is broken into small pieces,
covered with sour milk and eaten. The large dough
balls may be stored overnight or longer. In Niger and
Nigeria this product is referred to as fura.
Boiled Rice-Like Foods
Pearl millet is substituted for rice in many areas.
Usually, decorticated pearl millets are used, but
sometimes the whole kernel is cracked and cooked.
The decorticated grain is cooked in a 1:3 ratio of
grain to water. Sometimes the grain is soaked overnight
in water to facilitate cooking (Subramanian
and Jambunathan 1980). The grains are cooked
until soft, and the excess water is removed. In
general, the cooked product should not be sticky,
although the desired texture varies among consumers,
and should be light colored. Pushpamma and
Rao (1981) indicated that in some areas of India, the
lighter-colored pearl millets were preferred. In some
areas of Africa, slate grey pearl millets are soaked
overnight, which lightens the color.
50