Fonio breakfast porridge

Last week, I presented you my savoury fonio upma recipe. I told you there would be a sweet fonio recipe coming, and here it is! This is my take on a breakfast porridge recipe made with fonio. This fonio porridge recipe makes for a super nutritious and delicious breakfast. After eating it, I was barely hungry by lunch time! Since oranges and chocolate go so well together, I thought they would make great toppings for my breakfast porridge. Let’s embark on this tasty and educational ride about fonio!

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What is fonio?

Fonio is an ancient grain – more specifically, it’s a type of millet. It is most commonly consumed in Africa, where it is also grown. If you haven’t seen my previous fonio recipe where I talk in detail about fonio, let me reiterate some of my explanations!

Fonio grows in West Africa, on the southern edge of the Sahara dessert. Growing fonio is, luckily, fairly easy: it can grown on dry or poor soils, as well as withstand droughts. Moreover, can you believe that growing fonio takes only about 70 days before it’s ready for harvest? That’s really quick!

Fairtrade fonio

Fonio is a staple food for West Africans for many reasons. Not only is it easy to grow, but it is also extremely nutritious and delicious! Fonio has so much potential, yet it is barely heard of in Western markets. Before partnering with gebana for these recipes, I honestly had never heard of fonio. Through online research and recipe making, I learned so much about fonio and I want to share it all with you!

One of the reasons why fonio is still fairly unknown in the EU is because of EU imports. The EU imports many different agricultural products to African countries at competitive prices, making them very accessible for the local populations. Unfortunately, this comes at the detriment of local African producers. Because of these EU imports, African grown and produced items end up being more expensive and thus less competitive on the market. The EU’s high tariffs on imports also make it very hard for African producers to export their grain.

gebana sources its fonio from Togo, from a local Togolese processing company. By doing so, gebana supports African agriculture and the local economy. Thus, by purchasing your fonio from gebana, you are participating and supporting a Fairtrade agricultural practice! Personally, I find that supporting responsible agricultural practices only makes my food taste better!

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Is fonio gluten free?

One of the many wonders of fonio is that it is gluten-free! Fonio grains can also be grounded into flour. Fonio flour is a very workable and strong gluten-free flour. This therefore makes for a very interesting option for gluten intolerant or avoidant people.

Nevertheless, being gluten-free isn’t the only wonder of fonio! Fonio is considered as one of the most nutritious grains in the world – it contains B vitamins, amino acids, minerals, as well as a high protein content. The more I learned about fonio, the more impressed I was by it!

Is fonio healthier than quinoa?

Fonio and quinoa are often compared to each other, as they are both a gluten-free and super nutritious grain. But is fonio healthier than quinoa? This question is a bit hard to answer due to the grains’ nutritional profiles.

Quinoa and fonio have a very similar profile in terms of nutrition. They both are very nutritious, contain lots of B vitamins, protein and other great nutrients. Nevertheless, quinoa does have more protein than fonio. This does not mean that quinoa is better than fonio though, as fonio contains some things that quinoa doesn’t. Fonio contains 8 essential amino acids, as well as in cysteine and methionine.

All in all, fonio contains some nutrients that quinoa doesn’t, while quinoa has more protein than fonio. It is therefore hard to say that one grain is better than the other. If you are specifically looking for a protein-rich grain, then quinoa might be better for you. But if you are looking for a nutritionally-fuller grain, then fonio might be the one!

How to make fonio porridge

Making this vegan fonio breakfast porridge recipe is simple and quick, you will only need about 15 minutes. Before explaining the recipe in detail, let’s talk about the ingredients!

To make the base of the porridge, you will need fonio (obviously!), water, plant-based milk and a sweetener. While I used almond milk, you are free to use whichever plant-based milk you want. I loved the flavour of almond milk with the nutty flavour of fonio, so I would definitely recommend pairing them together! As a sweetener, I used erythritol, but this is simply due to personal preference. You are welcome to substitute it for sugar, maple syrup, or any other kind of sweetener.

To flavour my fonio porridge, I used cardamom, cinnamon, nutmeg and some vanilla essence. These flavour combos are always a big hit in desserts. While the vanilla essence is optional, I would recommend using it for a really indulgent tasting porridge. Nevertheless, if you don’t have any, your fonio porridge will still taste great without!

Lastly, as toppings for my breakfast porridge, I used some delicious fresh oranges and cacao nibs. I had some oranges left over from my previous gebana order, so I thought I would use them up here. Combined with cacao nibs, it was so delicious! You’re free to use any toppings of your choice, but using oranges and cacao is a solid base to start with.

And now, let’s get started with this fonio brekfast porridge recipe!

Fonio breakfast porridge

Start off by soaking and washing your fonio in a bowl of warm water for 5 minutes. Just like with rice or lentils, washing your grains before using them ensures you get a better end result!

When the fonio is clean and soaked, add it to a pot with the water, plant-based milk and sweetener. Here we will add our spices: the cinnamon, cardamom, nutmeg and vanilla (if using). I personally like my porridge’s really thick, as you can see if from the pictures. If you’d prefer something runnier, simply add more milk, anywhere between 50 and 100ml!

Cook this mixture on a medium to high heat, for about 8 to 10 minutes. Make sure to mix is continuously, as otherwise the mixture could clump and stick to your pot.

When your porridge is cooked, it will have absorbed all or most of the liquid. Transfer it to a bowl and top it off with oranges and cacao nibs. The fonio breakfast porridge is ready!