Phytate in Indian Foods: Dal, Ragi, Atta, Almond, Til

By NYUS Inc. · October 2026

हिंदी में पढ़ें: दाल, रागी, आटा, बादाम, तिल में फाइटेट कितना होता है (IFCT 2017 के आँकड़ों के साथ)

Phytate, also called phytic acid, is a plant compound that the Indian Food Composition Tables 2017 (IFCT 2017, ICMR-NIN) measure in Table 11 in milligrams (mg) per 100 g of edible portion. This page only reports those printed values for common Indian foods. It makes no claim about what phytate does, and it gives no limit or dose. To keep every figure solid, it uses only rows IFCT averaged over 2 or more regions, and says how many regions each row has.

The short answer

Among everyday foods, raw dry toor dal has 277 mg of phytate per 100 g, chana dal 450 mg, urad dal 579 mg, masoor dal 218 mg and moong dal 170 mg. Ragi has 306 mg, bajra 485 mg, jowar 549 mg, atta 632 mg and raw milled rice 266 mg. Nuts and seeds are higher: almonds 964 mg, cashews 929 mg and white sesame 927 mg. Spinach has 12.01 mg and tomato 2.59 mg.

How the rows were chosen

IFCT 2017 Table 11 has 314 food rows. 258 of them are averages of 2 or more regions, and 247 of those have a phytate value. This page shows 96 of them, from 2 to 6 regions: the 20 highest rows, then every pulse and grain row that has a value, the nuts and seeds, and common vegetables, roots, fruits and spices. 2 of the shown rows come from only 2 regions (B015, B018), so treat those as thinner evidence. Values are printed exactly as IFCT prints them, and a blank cell in IFCT (below the detectable limit) means a food has no number here. IFCT 2017 says all its data except poultry and egg is for raw food (PDF p. 27). The Phytate column sits on PDF pages 454 to 470 (printed pages 405 to 421).

The 20 highest rows, mg per 100 g

IFCT 2017, Table 11, phytate in mg per 100 g edible portion, sorted from the highest to the lowest. Many of the top rows are seeds and spices that are eaten in small amounts.

Niger seeds (1974 mg for black, 1709 mg for gray) and linseeds (1859 mg) lead, followed by poppy seeds, safflower seeds, garden cress seeds, coriander seeds, walnuts and almonds.

Dals and pulses, mg per 100 g

Every raw dry pulse row that has a phytate value, sorted the same way.

White field bean (791 mg) and whole black gram (679 mg) are the highest pulse rows, and moong dal (170 mg) the lowest. In each pair the whole form is above the dal: bengal gram, whole 578 mg against bengal gram, dal 450 mg; black gram, whole 679 mg against black gram, dal 579 mg; green gram, whole 375 mg against green gram, dal 170 mg; red gram, whole 604 mg against red gram, dal 277 mg; lentil whole, brown 564 mg against lentil dal 218 mg.

Grains, millets and flours, mg per 100 g

Every raw grain, millet and flour row that has a phytate value.

Brown rice (742 mg), bulgur (679 mg), dry maize (646 mg) and whole wheat (638 mg) are the highest, and puffed rice (115 mg) and refined flour (123 mg) the lowest. Atta has 632 mg against 123 mg for maida, whole wheat 638 mg against semolina 549 mg, and raw brown rice 742 mg against raw milled rice 266 mg.

Nuts and seeds, mg per 100 g

Every nut and seed row with a phytate value (areca nut is left out).

Linseeds (1859 mg), walnuts (1001 mg), almonds (964 mg), cashews (929 mg) and sesame (927 mg for white) are all above 808 mg, the pistachio row. Groundnuts have 582 mg, sunflower seeds 423 mg, dry coconut 390 mg and mustard seeds 132 mg.

Vegetables, roots, fruits and spices, mg per 100 g

Common foods, sorted the same way. Orange pulp, milk and paneer have no value printed in IFCT.

Fresh peas (162 mg) and drumstick leaves (128 mg) are the highest vegetables here, with dates at 134 mg. Potato has 55.77 mg, sweet potato 63.69 mg, spinach 12.01 mg and tomato 2.59 mg. Apple is the lowest row on this page at 0.57 mg.

What this table does not say

Table 11 reports how much phytate the raw food contained in the samples IFCT tested. It does not say how soaking, sprouting, fermenting or cooking changes the figure, how much of a food a person eats, or what phytate does in the body, and this page gives no limit, target or advice. Cooked and mixed dishes have no row here.

Three common mistakes

1. Comparing foods by 100 g only. A spoon of seeds and a bowl of dal are very different amounts, so the per 100 g numbers are not what a meal contains.
2. Using raw figures for cooked or soaked food. Table 11 has no cooked rows.
3. Treating a thin row as settled. Rows from only 2 regions, such as lentil whole, yellowish and rajmah, black, are weaker evidence.

Log your food in NYUS

NYUS is an AI diet and workout coach with 8,900+ foods with calories and macros. You can search or scan to log a meal and weigh food by the gram. NYUS does not track phytate.

Frequently asked questions

Sources (read 26 October 2026)

• Longvah T. et al., Indian Food Composition Tables 2017 (IFCT 2017), ICMR-NIN, Table 11 "Oligosaccharides, phytosterols, phytates and saponins", Phytate column, mg per 100 g edible portion, rows with 2 or more regions: A002, A003, A004, A005, A006, A007, A008, A010, A011, A012, A013, A014, A015, A016, A017, A018, A019, A020, A021, A022, A023, A024, B001, B002, B003, B004, B005, B009, B010, B011, B012, B013, B014, B015, B016, B017, B018, B019, B020, B021, B022, B024, C002, C015, C019, C020, C033, D004, D007, D031, D036, D043, D046, D056, D061, D075, E001, E012, E017, E036, E049, E055, E057, F001, F002, F004, F006, F014, G011, G014, G017, G019, G020, G024, G025, G029, G032, G033, H001, H005, H006, H007, H008, H009, H010, H011, H012, H013, H014, H015, H016, H017, H018, H019, H020, H021 on PDF pp. 454 to 470. The statement that all data except poultry and egg is for raw food: p. 27.
• The 96 rows are exactly as printed in IFCT; we only grouped and sorted them.