Millet

Look, millet is a cereal grain, but it's not wheat, it's not rice — it's proso millet, small round kernels, and it has its own character. You cook it in water or milk, and it can go two ways: crumbly, each grain separate, or soft and creamy like porridge. That depends on how much liquid you give it and how long you let it sit. Watch the pot near the end: the surface turns glossy and thick, and if you leave it, the porridge firms up right there on the plate as it cools.

Choose millet by colour and smell. Good millet is bright yellow, almost golden, with a clean, slightly nutty smell. If it smells stale or the grains look dull and faded, walk away — that's old millet, and it tends to turn bitter.

Some people call millet gluten-free rice; others call it a poor relative of rice. No! Millet is its own grain, and it asks for its own handling. People who cook it like rice — pour the water, set a timer, walk away — end up disappointed more than once. Taste a grain near the end: it should be tender all the way through, no hard little centre left, and the liquid should be gone, not standing in the pot. That's how millet tells you it's ready, not a clock.