Health and Nutrition

Curry leaves in Indian cooking

Curry leaves is to Indian cuisine what garlic is to Italian cooking or butter is to french cuisine. They are also treated as shabbily these days, discarded from the plates like an unwelcome pest. Next time try and consume it. Its’ benefits are varied.

An Indian meal preparation with out curry leaves is unimaginable. Its health benefits vary from good eyesight, hair, skin, digestion, immunity and much more. Why then, you surely must have wondered, are they discarded from the plates as a nuisance?

South Indian cuisine, is incomplete without the flavour of curry leaves sputtered in smoking oil. Curry leaves’ use can be traced back to 4th century literature. It’s perhaps one of the oldest known flavouring herb known to us. It’s use pre-dates the usage of modern day garnishing with fresh herbs. Its flavour, it so happens, is just the tip of the proverbial iceberg. The various medicinal benefits discovered by generations past is substantial and significant.

Continue reading Curry leaves in Indian cooking

Indians and their pickle (achar) varieties

Indian pickle excite the taste buds, aids digestion and delivers essential nutrients. Pickle is pro-biotic in nature. It is a means to extend the shelf life of seasonal produces while at the same time develop a healthy culture of essential bacterial life.

It would be almost impossible to trace the origins of Indian pickles. No doubt that it was a labour of food enthusiasts to make flavours last beyond their seasonal limitations. Curing by dehydrating, salting and other mediums to preserve were some of the earlier attempts. When food was available in short and bountiful harvests it was just a natural desire to make it last longer that would have been the driving force behind the early chemistry of pickling.

It’s no wonder that every civilization around the world has a storied legacy when it comes to curing and pickling.

Pickle excites the taste buds, aids in digestion and also provides nutrients during the lean months when vegetables and fruits are scarce. Pickle makes the mouth water. It generates essential enzymes necessary for a healthy metabolism.

Mango achar - loaded with oil and spices — Mango achar – loaded with oil and spices

Continue reading Indians and their pickle (achar) varieties

Does dal-chawal (lentils and rice) provide complete protein?

It is a myth that only food products from animals and animal sources provide protein. A balanced vegetarian diet is more than capable of supplying a typical human with all essential proteins and nutrients provided that they are processed and consumed in proper combinations.

Stone-age humans are the ones believed to have incorporated eggs, honey, fruits and other readily available food sources into their diets on a regular basis. The skills needed for tool making, which in turn was essential for hunting and agriculture, was not developed yet.

Obviously humans would have seen other species eating meat, vegetation, grains, etc. Learning by mimicking, humans must have tasted them all. Choosing and discarding based on the effects each had on their constitution. Each generation responsible for evolving the diet based on climate, season, soil, water and other resources at their disposal.

dal chawal - lentils and rice - wholesome protein — dal chawal (lentils and rice) – A wholesome source of protein

Foraging and farming are but natural progressions of human evolution. There is little doubt that it is convenient and healthy to be a vegetarian. However, with vegetarians, the biggest concern is finding reliable sources of protein. Meat and fish are easy and abundant sources of protein as well as other nutrients like iron.

Continue reading Does dal-chawal (lentils and rice) provide complete protein?