Difference between kuttu and rajgira: nutrition and vrat use

Different plants. Kuttu is buckwheat, Fagopyrum esculentum Moench; rajgira is amaranth, Amaranthus cruentus, which IFCT 2017 records under 'Amaranth seed, pale brown'. Neither is the other.

Kuttu wins on fibre and carbohydrate; rajgira wins on minerals. Kuttu atta gives about a third more fibre, rajgira atta gives about 3.6 times the iron and nine times the calcium, and the protein is a near tie at 13.2 g against 13.3 g per 100 g.

Both are gluten-free grains. The ICAR-IIMR millets review lists amaranth and buckwheat among the gluten-free grains that may help people avoiding wheat, barley and rye, so the choice between them can rest on the dish and the nutrients.

The table below shows both rows per 100 g of the raw seed, kuttu from the USDA FoodData Central record and rajgira from IFCT 2017. Energy is close: 356 kcal for rajgira against 343 kcal for kuttu, about 4 percent more. Protein is a tie in any kitchen: 13.3 g against 13.2 g. After that the two part ways: kuttu carries 10 g of fibre to rajgira's 7.5 g, and more carbohydrate, potassium and folate, while rajgira carries 8 mg of iron to kuttu's 2.2 mg, 162 mg of calcium to 18 mg, and more fat, magnesium and zinc.

Both rows are per 100 g of the raw seed, and each atta is simply the seed milled, so the comparison reads across to the flours.

Per 100 g raw, edible portion. Composition: USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy), FDC ID 170286, NDB 20008; IFCT 2017 (ICMR-NIN). GI: University of Sydney GI database. — means not reported. These are average values for the food; the label on a pack gives the values for that product.

No, and the botanical names make it plain. Kuttu is Fagopyrum esculentum Moench, the name on the USDA FoodData Central record; rajgira is Amaranthus cruentus, the botanical name IFCT 2017 gives beside its local names for the seed, Gujarati Rajagaro, Hindi Ramdana and the rest. Both are pseudocereals: the 2015 buckwheat review classes it in the Polygonaceae family, and a 2012 review of amaranth grain in the Journal of Food Science calls amaranth a highly nutritional pseudocereal. Both also appear in the ICAR-IIMR list of gluten-free grains.

In vrat cooking the two are used side by side, not as synonyms: kuttu atta is buckwheat flour, rajgira atta is amaranth flour. The kuttu ka atta in English page holds the rest of the naming.

For kuttu a GI is on record: four University of Sydney database entries for plain boiled buckwheat groats run from 46 to 64, the mean is 53, and that falls under 55, the Sydney scale's ceiling for the low band. For rajgira the database has no entry for plain amaranth, so no GI is given here and none is guessed. The only recorded figure is popped amaranth eaten with 150 ml of milk, tested in India at 97, and that test is not usable here because the milk adds carbohydrate of its own.

Both flours are used in vrat cooking. Kuttu atta goes into roti, khichdi, pakoras and puris, and rajgira atta is used in its own dishes. Neither grain has gluten, so neither dough is a wheat dough. For what each flour carries per 100 g, the table above is the place to look.

Recipes: the kuttu roti and kuttu khichdi recipes show the savoury side, and the buckwheat recipes roundup holds the set.

Which to buy depends on the dish and on which nutrients you want from it.

• Fibre first: kuttu, with 10 g of fibre per 100 g against 7.5 g.
• Iron and calcium first: rajgira, with 8 mg of iron and 162 mg of calcium per 100 g.
• On vrat days: both are used; the recipes linked here use kuttu.
• A measured GI: kuttu has one, at 53; rajgira has none, so a household that plans meals around GI has only kuttu's number to work with.
• Gluten-free needs: both grains are on the ICAR-IIMR list of gluten-free grains; check the pack either way, and for kuttu the detail is on is buckwheat gluten free.

Is kuttu atta and rajgira same?

No. Kuttu atta is buckwheat flour and rajgira atta is amaranth flour; the seeds are Fagopyrum esculentum and Amaranthus cruentus, two different plants. Both are pseudocereals, both are gluten-free grains, and both are used in vrat cooking, so the mix-up is an easy one. The table above shows where their nutrition parts ways.

What is the difference between rajgira and kuttu?

Rajgira is amaranth and kuttu is buckwheat. Per 100 g, rajgira gives 8 mg of iron and 162 mg of calcium against kuttu's 2.2 mg and 18 mg, while kuttu gives 10 g of fibre against rajgira's 7.5 g. Protein is a near tie, and only kuttu has a measured GI, 53.

What is kuttu?

Kuttu is buckwheat, the seed that kuttu ka atta is milled from, and a 2015 review calls it a gluten-free pseudocereal. Per 100 g, the USDA FoodData Central numbers for the seed are 13.2 g of protein, 343 kcal and 10 g of fibre. More on the grain itself sits on the kuttu hub page.

Does kuttu atta have gluten?

No. Kuttu atta is milled from buckwheat seed, and the 2015 review calls buckwheat a gluten-free pseudocereal, outside wheat, barley and rye, the three gluten cereals the NHS names. A pack bought from a shop should still be checked, label and ingredient list, before it goes into a strict gluten-free kitchen.

Can kuttu atta be eaten in fast?

Kuttu atta is widely used in vrat cooking, for roti, khichdi, puri and pakora, and rajgira atta is used too; whether either suits your fast depends on your own custom. Both are gluten-free grains, so a fasting kitchen that must also stay away from wheat, barley and rye can use either.

Which is better, kuttu or rajgira?

Neither wins overall; each wins its own nutrients. Kuttu carries more fibre, carbohydrate, potassium and folate, and has a measured GI of 53. Rajgira carries far more iron and calcium, and more magnesium and zinc. Pick kuttu for fibre, rajgira for iron and calcium.