10 Easy and Instant Porridge Recipes for Your Baby

One of the hardest parts associated with being the mother of an infant is the little one’s diet. Feeding your child becomes not only a regular chore but also a constant, confusing question. It can be an extremely overwhelming time when several questions regarding the suitability of the dish trouble you. Questions like whether the dish is appropriate for your little one, whether it is digestible or safe to feed him, etc. tend to swarm your mind. In such situations, there can only be one answer – porridge! Yes, porridges are safe and highly nutritious. And, did you know there are several ways to make porridge? Read on for some ideas on how to make porridge for your baby.

10 Healthy Infant Porridge Recipes

Porridge recipes can be quite a life-saver when you are clueless as to what you can feed your baby. Here are some highly nutritious porridge recipes your child is sure to enjoy during his mealtime.

1. Rice Porridge

Rice porridge is energy-dense and easy to digest. Follow this simple recipe to make some delicious rice porridge for your baby.

Ingredients

• Parboiled rice/ rice cereal/ puffed rice – 2 tbsp
• Water – 1.5 cups

How to Make

If you are using parboiled rice/ puffed rice, ensure you dry it in the sun for at least an hour. If you are using rice cereal, you may start directly from step 3

1. Dry roast the sun-dried, parboiled rice until it gets slightly puffy
2. Grind the rice into a powder. You can store the extra powder for future use in an airtight container.
3. Now, take the required amount of ground rice/ rice cereal in the same saucepan and add water to it.
4. Mix it well to ensure there are no lumps.
5. Cook it on low flame for about 5 (2-3) minutes.
6. Let it come to room temperature before feeding your baby.

2. Rice and Moong Dal Porridge

Rice and Moong Dal Porridge is high in protein and brings about muscle development in babies. Here’s how you can make it.

Ingredients Required

• Parboiled rice – 2 tbsp
• Moong Dal – 1 tbsp
• Cumin seeds – a pinch (optional)

or

• Rice and moong dal powder – 2 tbsp
• Water – 1.5 cups
• Ghee – ¼ Tsp

How to Make

1. Dry roast the moong dal and the dried rice on low flame until the rice becomes puffy.
2. Add cumin powder and mix well. You may choose to skip this step for younger babies.
3. Then, grind the roasted grains into a fine powder.
4. Take some ghee in a saucepan.
5. Add the ground rice and moong dal and water.
6. Keep stirring to ensure there are no lumps. Cook for about 5 to 7 minutes.
7. Feed it at room temperature.

3. Barley Apple Porridge

Rich in dietary fibres, barley apple porridge can help ease the digestive process.

Ingredients Required

• Barley dry cereal powder – 2 tbsp
• Apple – 1, small-sized
• Breast milk – ¼ cup (optional)
• Water – 1 cup

How to Make

1. De-seed the apples.
2. Grate and cook them to make a soft apple sauce
3. In a  separate saucepan, put the barley and a cup of water and keep stirring.
4. Cook for ten minutes.
5. Add the fruit puree and mix well.
6. At this point, you can also add some breast milk.
7. Cook for three more minutes.
8. Feed the porridge to your baby after it cools down.

4. Ragi Porridge with Whole Ragi

This recipe is rich in calcium. Let’s find out how it is made.

Ingredients Required

• Ragi seeds – 1 cup
• Water to grind
• Powdered jaggery – 1/2 tsp (optional)

How to Make

1. Wash the ragi adequately until it is clean, and then soak it in water for twelve hours.
2. Grind the soaked ragi with some water till you get a smooth paste.
3. Using a cheesecloth, strain the ragi milk into a saucepan.
4. Cook this milk until it thickens inconsistency.
5. Add some jaggery for sweetening.

5. Ragi Porridge Using Ragi Flour

Ragi is also rich in calcium and helps tremendously in the development of bones. This is another reason why you must include the recipe in your baby’s diet.

Ingredients Required

• Homemade ragi flour / organic ragi flour – 2 tbsp
• Powdered jaggery – 1.5 tbsp (optional)
• Water – ¼ cup + ¼ cup
• Cow’s milk – 1 cup (optional, don’t add for babies under one year or if he is lactose intolerant)

How to Make

1. Take the jaggery in a saucepan, add a cup of water and boil till the jaggery melts.
2. Strain this liquid.
3. Take the ragi in a separate saucepan.
4. Add the strained jaggery and 1/4th cup of water the ragi.
5. Keep stirring or whisking the mixture on a medium flame, until it turns into a shiny brown colour.
6. Add a cup of milk if apt and cook until the consistency thickens.

6. Sweet Potato and Poha Porridge

Sweet potatoes are rich in Vitamin A and help improve vision and skin. This recipe thus is not just delicious but also highly nutritious. Here’s how you can make this porridge for your baby.

Ingredients Required

• Poha/ flattened rice – 1 cup
• Sweet potato – 1, medium-sized
• Powdered jaggery – 2 tbsp (optional)
• Cardamom powder – a pinch (optional)
• Water – as required
• Ghee – 2 tablespoons

How to Make

1. Soak the poha in water until they are soft.
2. Cook the sweet potatoes for three whistles in a pressure cooker (on a medium flame).
3. Melt the jaggery by heating it in a pan with some water and strain it to remove all the impurities.
4. Mash the sweet potatoes with a fork and cook the mash with the jaggery water.
5. Add cardamom powder and mix well.
6. Add the soaked poha and cook it over a medium flame for two minutes.
7. Add ghee to the mix and cook it for another two minutes.

7. Oats Porridge

Oats are rich in fibre and aid digestion. They are, therefore, highly recommended to babies while weaning them onto solids. This recipe can be given to your baby after he is at least a year old. Do not feed oats porridge to babies younger than a year.

Ingredients Required

• Homemade oatmeal cereal – ¼ cup
• Water – ¾ cup
• Breast milk/ cow’s milk – ¼ cup
• Dates syrup/ honey/ sugar – 1-2 tsp (optional)

How to Make

1. Take the oatmeal in a saucepan and add a quarter cup of water.
2. Whisking well and cook the porridge for five minutes on a medium flame.
3. If it thickens, add milk or water if required.
4. Cool it down and serve it warm.
5. You may add additional milk while feeding your baby.

8. Salted Cerelac Porridge

Cerelac is rich in iron; therefore, it is a perfect alternative for the foods that help prevent anaemia in babies. This recipe can be fed to babies over 9 months old.

Ingredients Required

For Homemade Cerelac Powder

• Ragi – 1 cup
• Brown rice – 1 cup
• Horse Gram (chana dal) – 1/2 cup
• Red Lentil (masoor dal) – 1/2 cup
• Green Gram (moong dal) – 1/2 cup
• Almonds – 1/2 cup
• Cardamom – 8 to 10 pods

For the Porridge

• Homemade cerelac powder/ sathu maavu – 2 tbsp
• Water – ¾ cup
• Jeera powder – a pinch (optional)
• Salt – a pinch (not recommended for babies below one year)
• Thin buttermilk – ¼ cup (made from 2 tbsp of curd & water)

How to Make

Homemade Cerelac Powder:

1. Soak the ragi, brown rice and all the dals overnight in separate containers.
2. Then, tie the grains in pieces of clean cotton and keep them in a dry area of the house.
3. Dry the grains for a day in the sun.
4. In a pan, preferably non-stick, dry roast the ragi, the rice, the dals and the cardamom pods separately on a medium-low flame.
5. When the colour of each ingredient becomes darker, remove them in a clean, dry plate and let it cool.
6. Then, grind the ingredients in a grinder till you get a fine powder.
7. Store the homemade cerelac powder in an airtight container.

The Porridge:

1. Take the homemade cerelac powder in a saucepan along with the water.
2. Add salt and jeera powder and mix.
3. Cook it while whisking for about 5 minutes on a low flame.
4. Let it cool down.
5. Add the buttermilk and mix well.

9. Rice and Green Moong Porridge

Rich in proteins, this Green Moong dal porridge is a delicious yet healthy treat for your little one. Here’s how you can make it.

Ingredients Required

• Green Moong Dal – 2 tbsp
• Rice – 1 tsp
• Powdered palm jaggery or usual jaggery – 1 tbsp (optional)
• Grated coconut – 2 tsp (optional)
• Water – as required
• Cardamom powder – 1 pinch (optional)

How to Make

1. Soak the dal and rice for half an hour after thoroughly washing them.
2. Boil the jaggery separately and strain off the impurities.
3. Grind the soaked dal and rice along with some coconut. Grind it to a fine paste. Add some water if required.
4. Heat a saucepan and cook the ground rice and dal paste.
5. Add the cardamom and salt and cook it on a low flame for five minutes.
6. This step is optional. If you want to, you may add some jaggery syrup at this point.
7. Feed the porridge to your baby at room temperature.

10. Instant Sooji Porridge

Apart from aiding digestion, this recipe is easy to cook, takes very little time and is an excellent choice for working moms.

Ingredients Required

• Roasted sooji cereal – 2 tbsp
• Hot water – 1 cup
• Ghee -1/2 Tsp
• Breast milk – ½ cup
• Dates syrup/ honey/ sugar/ fruit puree – 1-2 tbsp (optional)

How to Make

1. Boil the water in a pan.
2. Add sooji to it slowly while whisking thoroughly.
3. Cook for 5 minutes on a low/medium flame.
4. Add the sweetener and the milk and cook for a few more minutes.

Porridge is one of the best dishes to cook for children, as it is both easy to make and highly nutritious. Porridge for 6-month-old babies is a common first-meal as children rarely reject it.

Also Read: First Foods for Baby