Ayurveda – Spotlight – Lassi
Posted by Mary on Oct 15, 2009
Lassi (pronounced luh-see) is served as the beverage of choice with an ayurvedic lunch because of its ability to enhance digestion. It can be enjoyed as a sweet beverage or as a spice- or herb-infused beverage, and is balancing for all three doshas. Yogurt can clog the shrotas (the channels of the body), but when blended with water into lassi, it can be enjoyed everyday without the fear of creating ama (digestive toxins).
To pacify Pitta dosha, enjoy sweet lassi made with sweet ripe mangoes or rose water, turbinado sugar and cardamom. To pacify Vata and Kapha, blend a little rock salt and herbs and spices into your lassi: ground dry-roasted cumin, black pepper, and minced ginger, for example. Mint and cilantro are popular fresh-herb additions to digestive lassi, and a leaf or two of fresh mint can be added to sweet lassi as well.
Lassi is best made fresh right before your meal. Use fresh, “live” homemade yogurt for the best flavor and healing benefit.
Ayurvedic Cooking – Spotlight – Paneer
Posted by Mary on Sep 23, 2009
Paneer is a fresh cheese traditionally made from whole milk. It is crumbly and semi-soft when raw, and has a firm, slightly chewy texture when cooked. Its faintly nutty flavor works well with many different foods and spices. It does not melt down with frying or cooking, but retains its shape and texture, so it can crumbled or cubed for use in different dishes.
From the ayurvedic perspective, paneer offers nourishment but can be taxing on the digestion. It is preferable to eat paneer dishes at the mid-day meal, and to cook it with spices that enhance digestion. If you would like to combine paneer with other vegetables, or to make it in a sauce, dice the paneer and fry the cubes in ghee separately and add to the dish two to three minutes before the cooking process is complete. Fried paneer cubes make an excellent garnish for rice pulaos. Sliced paneer can be baked into a casserole with other vegetables.
While paneer is available at Indian grocery stores, it can easily be made fresh at home. Ayurvedic healers recommend making the paneer fresh for use within the day for better digestibility.
Ayurvedic Cooking – Spotlight – Ghee
Posted by Mary on Sep 21, 2009
Ghee, quite simply, is butter with all the milk solids removed by cooking. That’s why it’s also called clarified butter. When just made, or heated, ghee is a clear golden oil. When kept at room temperature, ghee is a semi-solid–not hard like butter but a scoopable texture.
From the ayurvedic perspective, ghee is revered as a rasayana–a food that promotes overall good health, vitality and longevity. It is a sattvic ( that which has a pure influence on mind, body and spirit) food. Ghee is very pacifying for Vata and Pitta. Vata types can enjoy more ghee than Pitta types, and Pitta types can enjoy more ghee than Kapha types. Ghee stimulates the digestion while balancing stomach acid, is cooling for the mind and body, and helps carry the benefits of different foods to the cells and tissues of the body. The therapeutic value of spices is brought out in ayurvedic cooking by sautéing them in a little ghee. Ghee also brings out the aroma and flavor of many foods.
Ghee can be heated to high temperatures without burning. It stays fresh for several weeks if kept in a relatively cool place. Ghee can be used to bake, sauté, fry and as a spread.
While ghee is available at Indian grocery stores, it can easily be made at home using good quality butter that is organic and bovine growth hormone free.
Ayurvedic Cooking – Spotlight – Bitter Gourd
Posted by Mary on Sep 15, 2009
Definitely an acquired taste, bitter gourd (Latin Momordica charantia) is also called Balsam pear or bitter melon. Young immature bitter gourds are the best for cooking: the skin is bright green in color, the flesh inside is white, and the seeds are small and tender. The vegetable is ridged, and the skin is pebbly in texture. Do not use mature bitter gourds, and do not eat bitter gourd if you are pregnant or nursing.
Bitter gourd contains vitamin A, B1, B2, and C. It also contains minerals like calcium, phosphorous, iron, copper and potassium. From the ayurvedic perspective, bitter gourd is excellent for balancing Kapha. It helps purify blood tissue, enhances digestion, and stimulates the liver.
To prepare bitter gourd for cooking, wash thoroughly, then cut in half lengthwise and scrape out the seeds with a sharp spoon or corer and discard. Cut or slice as called for in your recipe, and blanch for 3-4 minutes in boiling water to which a little salt has been added. Drain.
If you find that you cannot eat bitter gourd by itself, you can add some to other dishes such as vegetable soups and lentils to take advantage of its therapeutic properties.
Ayurvedic Cooking – Spotlight – Daikon Radish
Posted by Mary on Sep 12, 2009
Daikon radish (Latin Raphanus sativus) is also known as Oriental radish, icicle radish or Chinese radish. The roots are fairly large, about 2-4″ in diameter and 8-20″ long. Daikon is available in specialty groceries or oriental markets. Choose radishes that are pure white, feel firm and heavy, and are free of sprouts, cracks or bruises. Discard green-tops unless the leaves are crisp, green and fresh. If the leaves are good, they can be eaten as well.
Daikon has high water content and is very low in calories. It is rich in vitamin C, potassium and folate and a good source of magnesium. The leaves contain beta-carotene, calcium and iron besides vitamin C.
From the ayurvedic perspective, daikon is a cleansing vegetable that also fortifies the liver and enhances digestion. It has a mildly pungent taste when raw (sweeter than the conventional red-skinned radish), which mellows with cooking.
To prepare the vegetable, scrub thoroughly with a brush under running water, peel with a peeler as you would a carrot, then dice or grate for use. Daikon (including fresh tops) can be stir-fried in a little ghee or olive oil with the spice mix recommended for your skin or body type. It can be diced and added to soups or lentils during the cooking process, or it can be cut into larger pieces or rounds and steamed, grilled or baked.
Ayurvedic Cooking – Spotlight – Brussel Sprouts
Posted by Mary on Jul 28, 2009
Brussels sprouts look like tiny green cabbages. They are a cruciferous vegetable. Freshly harvested Brussels sprouts offer the best flavor. Choose young tender heads, no more than an inch in size, firmly packed, with no signs of wilting or yellowing.
Brussels sprouts are high in protein, and contain many vitamins and minerals, including potassium, folate and vitamins A and C. Cruciferous vegetables have been shown in modern research studies to have cancer-fighting properties. From the ayurvedic perspective, Brussels sprouts offer the pungent and astringent tastes, and are wonderful for balancing Kapha. Cooked with ghee and cooling spices, they also help balance Pitta.
When cooking Brussels sprouts, pick heads of roughly the same size for a dish so that they cook uniformly. To prepare the vegetables for cooking, peel off any coarse outer leaves and cross-slit the bottom of each head with a sharp knife. Cut larger heads into half.
Brussels sprouts taste great braised, steamed, sautéed or boiled, but whatever the method you choose, remember: do not overcook Brussels sprouts. Nothing looks more unappetizing than discolored, mushy Brussels sprouts. But cooked to just the right degree and seasoned with zesty spices, Brussels sprouts can truly be a treat.
Ayurvedic Cooking – Spotlight – Lentils
Posted by Mary on Jul 15, 2009
Lentils are storehouses of nutrition, especially fiber and protein, and are a staple of the vegetarian ayurvedic diet. Lentils come in a wide variety of shapes, colors and textures, and are eaten whole or split or split and hulled.
According to the ayurvedic perspective, the small lentils offer substance and nourishment while not being unduly burdensome on the digestion. To increase their digestibility, cook them to butter-soft consistency and cook them with digestion-enhancing spices like cumin and coriander.
Of the Indian dhals, mung dhal–split, hulled mung beans–are revered highly by ayurvedic healers because they cook easily, are easy on the digestion and are tri-doshic. Recuperating individuals are traditionally fed kitcheree–a mushy porridge of Basmati rice and mung dhal–as nourishing food on the road back to a normal digestion.
Urad dhal and whole urad–black lentils–are rich and heaviest of the small lentils. They are nourishing in the winter months, because they have an unctuous texture and are a “heavy” food. They need pre-soaking to cook down well. Add balancing spices such as ginger and black pepper to increase digestibility, and eat small portions.
Masoor are red lentils, and again can be eaten whole or split and hulled as masoor dhal. These also cook with relative ease, but may require some pre-soaking.
Toor dhal are split yellow lentils with a nutty flavor. These, when cooked, can be mashed into a puree to form a base for soups.
Channa dhal are split hulled black chick-peas. They have a nutty flavor, take longer to cook than most other dhals, and keep their shape even when fully cooked.
All of these dhals are readily available at Indian groceries or at some health food stores. They need to be stored in airtight containers in a dry, cool place, and used within 90-120 days of purchase. Sort through them before you wash them thoroughly to eliminate small stones or other debris.
Dhals combine well with vegetables, rice and wheat flatbreads.
A pressure cooker is very useful if you plan to eat dhals on a regular basis.
Ayurvedic Cooking – Spotlight – Lauki Squash
Posted by Mary on Jul 14, 2009
Lauki Squash belongs to the curcubitaceae family and is also known as bottle gourd. These gourds contain moderate amounts of Vitamins C and B complex and a few proteins. Their high water content makes them cooling and lubricating.
From the ayurvedic perspective, lauki is extremely Pitta pacifying. It particularly pacifies Bhrajaka Pitta, the sub-dosha of Pitta that governs the skin, by pacifying Ranjaka Pitta, which governs the liver and blood. It provides balanced rehydration for persons with fire, air or space predominant physiology.
Lauki is blessed with a good amount of soma (lunar energy element) from Nature, which is extremely balancing for persons with a strong fire element and nurturing for Vata persons with space or air predominant physiology.
The bottle gourd generally has a very pale green smooth skin. The flesh is white. Size and thickness can vary widely. Choose young, firm lauki for best results. Scrape and discard harder portions of skin, and scoop out and discard seeds before cooking.
Lauki is generally available at Asian grocery stores that sell fresh vegetables.
Never used Lauki Squash in a recipe before? Check out my New Recipe Section!
Ayurvedic Cooking – Spotlight – Mung Beans
Posted by Mary on Jul 13, 2009
Mung (moong) beans are small, cylindrical beans with a bright green skin. In ayurvedic cooking, they are used whole or, more commonly, split and hulled. Split and hulled mung beans are small and yellow and called mung (moong) dhal in India. These beans don’t need pre-soaking and are a snap to cook to butter-soft consistency if you have a pressure cooker. They can also be cooked in a slow cooker or on the stovetop. Sort beans and wash thoroughly before you cook them.
Mung beans are one of the most cherished foods in ayurveda. They are tridoshic–they can be eaten to balance all three doshas, especially when cooked with spices appropriate for each dosha. They are very nourishing, while being relatively easy to digest–they do not generally create abdominal gas or bloating, the drawbacks of larger beans. Persons recuperating are often recommended khichari, a combination of rice and mung beans, because of their ability to provide a good level of nourishment without overtaxing the digestion. They offer the astringent taste.
According to modern nutrition, mung beans offer 14 gms of protein per cooked cup. Mung beans are also a good source of dietary fiber. They also contain thiamin, iron, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium and copper, and are a good source of folate.
Mung beans can be eaten on their own, or combined with rice to make khichari, or combined with vegetables and greens to make hearty soups or ground into flour to be used to make crepes or added to breads. Turmeric, cumin, dried ginger and coriander are some spices that work very well with mung beans.
Mung beans are available at Indian groceries or health food stores.