Finger millets have a long history of traditional use in cooking and food preparation in many regions of Asia and Africa. They are used to make a range of dishes, including porridges, flatbreads, and fermented beverages. In recent years, there has been a growing interest in promoting and preserving these traditional uses of finger millets, as they are seen as an important part of cultural heritage and a valuable source of nutrition. Some organizations and initiatives are working to promote the use of finger millets in schools, restaurants, and other settings to increase awareness of their nutritional value and cultural significance.

Primary processing techniques such as dehulling, soaking, germination, roasting, drying, polishing and milling are followed to make millets fit for consumption. Traditional processing is usually referred to as primary or secondary: Milling and grinding the grain are considered primary processing processes as while baking the grain into bread is secondary processing. The less-acceptable form of processed food is the result of tertiary processing. Generally, finger millet is pulverized to flour for preparation of food products. First, it is cleaned to remove foreign materials such as stones, chaffs, stalks, etc., then passed through abrasive or friction mills to separate out glumes and then pulverized. Millet grains are either coated with ashes in a large basin in which it is mixed or they are stored in alternate layers of grains and potash. Millet is a good source of protein, fibre and a number of important vitamins and minerals. Millet may boost cardiovascular health, prevent diabetes, aid in weight loss and maintenance, and reduce inflammation in the stomach, among other things. Millets contain high reserves of protein, vitamins, minerals, and fibre. They are rich sources of nutrients like iron, copper, calcium, manganese, Vitamin E & B, folate, choline, magnesium, potassium, phosphorous and zinc. Millets are resilient and rain-fed crops that thrive in dry regions and grow well in conditions of low soil fertility and moisture. In terms of nutritional value, millets are superior to popular cereals like wheat and rice. Finger millet is an excellent source of natural calcium which helps in strengthening bones for growing children and aging people. Regular consumption of finger millet is good for bone health and keeps diseases such as osteoporosis at bay and could reduce risk of fracture. Ragi can be milled by wet conditioning. It can be steamed followed by milling in a hammer or plate mill or roller flour mill. Malting: Compared to other millets, ragi is most suitable, from the stand point of product quality and enzyme release for malting.