Many people use the term “Dali” entirely incorrectly. Dalia is most often spoken of in terms of being a type of grain, which is a common mistake. It is thought to be a type of wonder grain or superfood that passes all of the ‘good carbs’ checklist. But the truth is that Dalia is not a grain at all, it is actually a type of texture. Dalia simply means that a grain has been broken, therefore Dalia can be made using any type of grain – millets, wheat, rice, oats, etc.
The milling process for making Dalia is not very complicated. The grain of choice is typically washed and dried. It is also sometimes ‘parched’ or lightly roasted so that the outer skin can break down before the grain is passed through a machine that breaks it down into various degrees of fineness.
Due to the Dalia preparation process where the grain is washed, parched, or sprouted, the grains are actually able to cook faster. They also are easier to digest because the entirety of the grain is used (the bran and endosperm are kept in place). When the whole grain is consumed, it is one of the best sources of dietary fiber and complex carbohydrates.
Millet specifically benefits quite a bit from Dali. Some people are not used to eating millet every day, and struggle to prepare it properly as a result. Breaking the millet grains makes it easy to turn into porridges, kheers, pulaos, etc. This drastically cuts down on the preparation time of the millet so that you can eat it during important meals, such as breakfast and dinner.
Just make sure that when you’re picking Dalia off the shelf, you know which grain it is so that you can properly plan your meals.
