Monks’ Cookbook

VEGETARIAN RECIPES
FROM KAUAI’S HINDU MONASTERY

A Collection of Jaffna-Style and Indian
Dishes from Around the World for
Daily Meals and Elaborate Festivals

Satguru Sivaya
Subramuniyaswami

Second Edition

Copyright © 2006
Himalayan Academy

Monks’ Cookbook was first published by Himalayan Academy in 1997. All rights are reserved. This cookbook may be used to share with others, but reproduced only with the prior written consent of the publisher. Designed, typeset, illustrated and kitchen tested by the swāmīs of the Śaiva Siddhānta Yoga Order and published by Himalayan Academy, 107 Kaholalele Road, Kapaa, Hawaii, 96746-9304, USA. www.gurudeva.org

PRINTED IN USA

ISBN-13: 978-0-945497-71-4 (HARDCOVER)

978-1-934145-15-9 (EBOOK)

ISBN-10: 0-945497-71-7

Dedication, by Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami

Contents

Dedication

Contents

Āyurveda, the Science of Life

Five Simple Remedies: a Must for Every Home

Black Pepper, Piper nigrum

Garlic, Allium sativum;

Onion, Allium cepa

Ginger, Zingiber officinale

Trifal, Terminalia chebula

Turmeric, Curcuma longa

The Āyurvedic Qualities of Foods

Spices and Herbs

AJAWAYAN SEEDS, Carum copticum

ANISE, Pimpinella anisum

ASAFOETIDA, Ferula asafoetida

BASIL LEAVES, Ocimum sanctum

BAY LEAVES, Laurus nobilis

Cardamom Seeds, Elettaria cardamomum

Cayenne Pepper, Capsicum annuum

Cinnamon Bark, Cinn. zeylanicum

Cloves, Eugenia caryophyllus

Coriander, Coriandrum sativum

Cumin Seeds, Cuminum cyminum

Curry Leaves, Murraya konigii

Fennel Seeds, Foeniculum vulgare

Fenugreek Seeds, Trig. foenumgraecum

Garlic, Allium sativum

Ginger Root, Zingiber officinale

Mint, Mentha sp.

Mustard, Black, Brassica nigra

Neem Leaves, Azadiracta indica

Nutmeg, Myristica fragrans

Onion, Small Red, Allium cepa

Pepper, Black, Piper nigrum

Pepper, Indian Long, Piper longum

Poppy Seeds, Papaver sp.

Saffron, Crocus sativus

Salt, Sea or Rock

sesame seed, Sesamum indicum

Tamarind, Tamarindus indica

Turmeric, Curcuma longa

Anna Gaṇeśa Raṅgoli

The Herb of the Day

Fruits

Apples, Malus domestica

Apricots, Prunus armeniaca

Bananas, Musa paradisiaca sapientum

Cherries, Prunus avium

Coconuts, Cocos nucifera

Dates, Phoenix dactylifera

Figs, Ficus carica

Grapes, Vitis vinifera

Grapefruit, Citrus paradisi

Lemons, Citrus limonum

Limes, Citrus aurantifolia

Mangos, Mangifera indica

Melons, Cucumis melo

Oranges, Citrus sinensis

Papayas, Carica papaya

Peaches, Prunus persica

Pears, Pyrus communis

Pineapples, Ananas comosus

Plums, Prunus domestica

Pomegranates, Punica granatum

Raspberries, Rubus strigosus

Strawberries, Fragaria virginiana

Watermelons, Citrullus vulgaris

Vegetables

Beets, Beta vulgaris

Bitter Melon, Momordica charantia

Carrots, Daucus carota

Cucumbers, Cucumus sativus

Fiddleneck Fern Tips

Mushrooms, Mussirionis

Radishes, Raphanus sativus

Spinach, Spinacea oleracea

Taro Root and leaf, Colocasia esculenta

Sweet Potatoes, Ipomoea batatas

Turnips, Brassica rapa

Yams, Dioscorea

Nightshade Plants (Solanaceae)

Eggplant, Solanum melongena

Potatoes, White, Solanum tuberosum

Tomatoes, Lycopersicon esculentum

Grains

Rice, Oryza sativa

Wheat, Triticum

Millet, Panicum miliaceum

Dals

Lentil, Lens culinaris

Mung, Vigna radiata

Tur, Cajanus cajan

Tofu

Urad, Vigna mungo

Milk Products

Cheese

Ghee

Milk

Yogurt

Oils

Sweeteners

Honey

Jaggery, Borassus flabellifer

Cane Sugar, Saccharum officinarum

Āyurveda Sources

All About Rice!

Editorial on Rice

Health through Āyurveda

Vāta Dosha

Pitta Dosha

Kapha Dosha

Food for Thought

Five Reasons to Be a Vegetarian

Introduction to the Recipes

Where to Purchase Supplies

Kalumbu, Sodi, Sambar & Dal

Fenugreek Kulambu (Jaffna Style)

Eggplant Kulambu

Sodi (Jaffna Style)

Onion Sambar

Dal

Mung Dal

Mung Dal (Jaffna Style)

Ayurvedic Mung Dal

Masoor Dal

Rasam

Rasam (South Indian Style)

Ayurvedic Rasam

Tomato-Lemon Rasam

Rice & Grains

Plain Rice

Yellow Rice

Pulao Rice

Pulao Rice

Beet and Green Pepper Pulao

Curd Rice (Jaffna Style)

Yogurt Rice

Coconut Milk Rice (Jaffna Style)

Lemon Rice

Lime Rice (Jaffna Style)

Black Pepper Rice (Jaffna Style)

Coconut Rice

Tomato Rice

Tamarind Rice (Jaffna Style)

Buriyani Rice 1

Buriyani Rice 2

Vegetable Rice (Jaffna Style)

Cauliflower Buriyani (N. Indian Style)

Mung Kitcheri

Pongal

Rice for Pongal

Sakkarai Pongal (Sweet)

Venn Pongal

Sakkarai Pongal (Jaffna Style)

Quinoa

Millet

Curries

Broccoli Curry 1

Broccoli Curry 2

Murungai Curry

Breadfruit Curry 1

Breadfruit Curry 2

Chili Curry

Drumstick Curry (Aadheenam Style)

Eggplant Curry

Tofu Curry

Okra Curry (Jaffna Style)

Cabbage/Ginger Curry

Cabbage with Potato (Jaffna Style)

Subzi Bhindi (Okra)

Tomato Curry (Jaffna Style)

Beet-Vegetable Curry

Cabbage Curry (Jaffna Style)

Beet Curry

Sweet Pepper Curry (Jaffna Style)

Beet Curry (Jaffna Style)

Zucchini and Tofu Curry

Potato Curry

Potato Curry (Jaffna Style)

Potato Curry (Variation)

Potato Curry (Dry)

Potato Curry (Thick Sauce)

Potato Curry (Fancy)

Potato Curry (Simple)

Tomato/Potato Curry (Jaffna Style)

Moglai Potatoes

Sweet Potato Curry 1

Sweet Potato Curry 2

Sweet Potato Curry (Extra Sweet)

Mushroom Curry (Jaffna Style)

String Bean Curry (Jaffna Style)

Fried Sweet Pepper Curry (Jaffna Style)

Kidney Bean Curry

Green Pepper Curry (Aadheenam Style)

Onion Tamarind Curry (Jaffna Style)

Onion Curry (Jaffna Style)

Pumpkin Curry (Jaffna Style)

Pumpkin with Dal (Jaffna Style)

Pumpkin Curry (Kauai Monastery Style)

Cauliflower Curry (Cinnamon Flavor)

Cauliflower with Dal (Jaffna Style)

Avaiyal

Banana Filet Curry

Spinach Curry

Banana/Urad Dal Curry

Amaranth Curry

Banana Curry (Jaffna Style)

Cauliflower Curry (Jaffna Style)

Masala Curry

Stuffed Eggplant

Potato Varai (Jaffna Style)

Banana Varai (Jaffna Style)

Chutneys, Sambals & Pachadis

Cabbage Pachadi

Mango Pachadi (Jaffna Style)

Sweet Potato Pachadi

Pumpkin Pachadi (Jaffna Style)

Eggplant Sambal (Jaffna Style)

Carrot Sambal (Jaffna Style)

Coconut Sambal (Jaffna Style)

Tomato Sambal (Jaffna Style)

Beet-Root Sambal (Jaffna Style)

Apricot Chutney

Curd Chutney (Jaffna Style)

Coriander Chutney (Ashok Bhavan Style)

Coconut Chutney (Ashok Bhavan Style)

Orange and Date Chutney

Tomato Chutney (Jaffna Style)

Date and Chili Chutney

Raisin-Ginger Chutney

Hot Tomato Chutney

Hanapepe (Hawaii) Hot Pepper Jelly

Pear Chutney

Spicy Orange Slices

Sweets

Ayurvedic Energy Balls

Chippi

Semolina Kesari (Jaffna Style)

Semolina Payasam (Jaffna Style)

Sago Payasam 1 (Jaffna Style)

Sago Payasam 2 (Jaffna Style)

Kheer (Rice Pudding)

Rice Channa Dal Payasam

Sakkarai Pongal (Jaffna Style)

Breads

Chapati

Paratha

Puri (Jaffna Style)

Pittu

Idli

Rice Dosai (Jaffna Style)

Dhogla

Semolina Dosai (Jaffna Style)

Idiappam

Vadai & Other Snacks

Urad Dal Vadai (Jaffna Style)

Channa Dal Vadai (Jaffna Style)

Dahi Vadai

Kadalai Sundal

Bonda (Jaffna Style)

Vegetable Samosa

Papadams

Murukoo (Indian Pretzels)

Vegetable Pakora

Quick Lentil Wafer Rolls

Miscellaneous

Tamarind-Ginger Sauce

Semolina Uppuma (Jaffna Style)

Panchamritam

Zucchini with Tofu

Marinated Tofu

Beet-Root Soup

Garam Masala (One Gallon)

Kapha Tea (Ayurvedic)

Coconut Milk

Dairy products

Palak Paneer

Peas and Paneer

Ghee

Making Yogurt

Daily Menu at Kauai’s Hindu Monastery

A Word About Health and Diet

Food-Blessing Chant

This is just the type of cookbook one might expect to find in the Mystic Trader’s collection. Many recipes collected over the course of 25 years by monks on pilgrimage, traveling the world, visiting families and temples. Whenever they were offered a particularly scrumptious dish, these monks would coax, cajole and even beg the cook for the coveted secret to take back to the brothers. Many of these recipes are closely guarded family heirlooms handed down through generations. Whetever the mystery behind it, each recipe represents the finest example of gourmet vegetarian cuisine.

So how does one find such an nonconventional cookbook? During my latest sojourn to the South Pacific, I found myself, at one point, on the sumptuously lush island of Kauai, in the Hawaiian Island chain. Here, at the site of an ancient Hawaiian heiau or temple, is a traditional Hindu temple, where 21 monks from six countries, under the guidance of Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami’s successor, Bodhinatha Veylanswami, have made over 50 acres of paradise into 50 divine acres of spiritual unfoldment. These humble servants of Lord Siva are living a Vedic lifestyle of renunciation as practiced in India for thousands of years.

After meditating in Kadavul Temple, where monks were chanting Vedic prayers in Sanskrit, I strolled peacefully through the manicured grounds and America’s only Rudraksha Forest. To my great pleasure I was invited to stay for lunch. This was not monk’s gruel, mind you. I can’t begin to adequately describe the wonderful flavors of the sumptuous feast set before me. I never expected such a tasteful arrangement. The monks had transformed ordinary home-grown vegetables into epicurean delights that were out of this world. Their culinary art has been handed down since time immemorial, perfected in temple kitchens throughout South India. Each dish is prepared as an offering to the Lord. Each step of every preparation is prepared with God in mind. By preparing food for God’s enjoyment and then offering it to the Lord, the meal becomes sanctified and one can come closer to the Lord, simply by eating such food. Now, I myself always want to get closer to God, and this seemed like a path I would have no trouble staying on. Of course, to stay on this path one would require a divine cookbook of recipes. I asked a few leading questions and soon the monks agreed to share their cornucopia with the Mystic Trader family. You hold the results in your hands.

The Mystic Trader

Āyurveda, the Science of Life

VERILY, THE FOOD WE EAT IS WHAT WE BECOME. YES, THIS IS A TIME-PROVEN FACT. “THE FOOD WE EAT IS WHAT WE BECOME.” It is also a time-proven fact that we live and we are healthy because of what we eat. No need to inject medicines to adjust the symptoms when we can eat the foods that adjust the causes. Food, the ṛishis of old wrote, is the best medicine.

There is no greater kitchen than the Amma nilayam, which is the real healing center of the home and the community. Amma, mother, is the supreme nurse, the only one in the home that keeps her family healthy by serving what they look forward to, the delicious meals they savor and enjoy. Her kitchen is the only clinic that needs to be entered for the well or ill, unless an arm is broken or other kinds of injuries incurred which need professional expertise. We have here for you the healing center of the New Age. How did we come by it? Well, we transported it from the Old Age to now. It is a precious collection of Asian ingredients that must be in every Hindu home, stored on kitchen shelves in beautiful jars, well labeled, like a shrine to nature’s life-giving gifts. It is most pleasing to our Loving Gaṇeśa to see all these items on the shelves. It is His great joy to see them growing in the garden, available to be freshly picked (fifteen square feet of land can help feed an entire family). We must remember that the sun and soil are the best “refrigerator,” and that cooling what has been picked diminishes its vitality; freezing even more so. Also, each Amma’s garden (her refrigerator out-of-doors and under the sun) must grow the foods that bugs and snails don’t like to eat, or grow enough for them to eat, too. They live with us on planet Earth and have the same right to eat as do we. When we grow human food that they don’t want to eat, we need no pesticides or other chemicals, which are harmful to our bodies. Amma’s garden has within it the foods that grow in the natural soil of the area in which her family lives and the foods that are not bothered by other creatures who live with us that are not human. In the list and explanations below Amma turns her kitchen into a virtual hospital, giving her family what they need in delicious curries. She puts into the menu what is needed to correct the sniffles when kapha season comes along. In the summer she cooks with the heat-removing spices. Yes, Amma knows, inspired by Loving Gaṇeśa, whom she worships before preparing each and every meal. She does. Read on.

Five Simple Remedies:
a Must for Every Home

By Dr. Virender Sodhi, M.D. (Āyurveda), N.D.
Published in Hinduism Today, July 1994

Āyurvedic medicine emphasizes that a person must take an active role in his or her own healing process. Natural remedies that harmonize with the body and promote the body’s own healing abilities are central to the ancient practice of āyurveda. Happily, many of these remedies are easily and inexpensively made at home. These preparations are so simple and so effective that they would be of great benefit to every household any time of the year. The five most important herbs and foods to have on hand year-round are ginger, garlic/onion, black pepper, trifal and turmeric. With these, you can create quick and effective remedies for a variety of ailments. A cautionary note: it is important to remember that if you suffer from a serious ailment you should seek the advice of a trained physician.

BLACK PEPPER, Piper nigrum

Āyurvedic properties: light, dry; taste: pungent, bitter; diuretic; post-digestive taste: bitter; liver stimulant; energy: hot; dosha action: decreases vāta and kapha, increases pitta. Pharmacological actions: anti-parasitic; digestive; diuretic; liver stimulant; nervine. [Dosha is an āyurvedic term for the humors which comprise and govern the body, mind and emotions. Vāta, cand kapha are the three doshas.]

Black pepper is an excellent herb for sparking the digestive fire, increasing appetite, and cleansing the liver. It promotes hydrochloric acid secretions (which help digest proteins), stimulates the nervous system, and increases circulation to all parts of the body. It also increases sweating (to burn out fevers) and helps expel parasites.

Black pepper helps relieve anorexia, bronchial asthma, bronchitis, cholera, common cold, diarrhea, eye diseases, fevers, frost bite, fungal infections, nervous disorders, painful menstruations, poor circulation, rheumatic conditions, ring worms, skin abscesses, sluggish liver, syphilis, toothaches, and upper respiratory infections. Black pepper provides a quick and easy remedy for the ailments mentioned above. A standard dosage is 500–1,000 mg (approximately ½-1 teaspoon) eaten two to three times a day. This can be boiled in one cup of water, covered to steep, and taken as a tea sweetened with a taste of raw honey. This tea helps relieve the symptoms of cold, flu and painful menstruations. Black pepper powder can be sprinkled on food or mixed with a teaspoon of raw honey and eaten from the spoon. Pitta people and those with ulcers should be careful of taking black pepper. It can aggravate ulcers, inflammation and other pitta conditions.

GARLIC, Allium sativum; ONION, Allium cepa

Āyurvedic properties: heavy, oily; taste: sweet, pungent, bitter, sour, astringent; post-digestive taste: pungent, sweet; energy: heating; dosha effects: decreases vāta, increases pitta and kapha. Pharmacological actions: analgesic, antibacterial, antiviral, antifungal, anti-inflammatory, antispasmodic, carminative, cholesterol lowering, diuretic, expectorant.

Onions and garlic have been used for centuries as both food and medicine. They help increase digestive secretions, promote proper fat metabolism and aid in liver detoxification. Garlic and onion help relieve: abscesses, asthma, atherosclerosis, coughs, diabetes, digestive disorders, dysentery, earaches, hemorrhoids, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, hysteria, inflammation, and parasitic conditions.

Onion and garlic have much the same action, but garlic is much more potent that onion. They can both be eaten either raw or cooked for the conditions mentioned above. Dosage depends upon the form. For taking raw, a medium-sized onion can be chopped and eaten as a salad with lemon juice. As a juice, 10–30 cc (a few ounces) of raw onion juice can be mixed with honey. This is an especially helpful remedy for asthma. As onion powder, ½ teaspoon is taken twice a day. Onions can be used in cooking and stir frying for their many therapeutic effects. Cooked onion is particularly good for vāta-type people. The dosage for raw garlic is 1-2 cloves eaten once or twice a day. As a dry powder, 500 mg is taken one to three times a day. As garlic oil, 1-2 drops are taken three times a day. Garlic can be used in cooking or stir frying for its therapeutic effects. Neither onions nor garlic should be consumed by those with gallbladder problems or kidney stones. These foods have a contracting action and could increase the pain caused by such conditions. Also, pittas should be very cautious when consuming garlic, as it can aggravate gastritis and other pitta disorders.

Ginger, Zingiber officinale

Āyurvedic properties: light, oily; taste: pungent; post-digestive taste: pungent; energy: hot; dosha action: decreases vāta and kapha, increases pitta. Pharmacological actions: anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, aromatic, carminative, cholesterol lowering, free radical scavenger.

In āyurvedic medicine, ginger is used to increase the digestive fire—the key to radiant health. It contains enzymes and encourages the body to produce enzymes that help digest fats, carbohydrates, and proteins. Ginger helps relieve: chest pain, cholera, common cold, diarrhea, dizziness, headaches, joint aches and pains, motion sickness, nausea, rheumatism, stomachaches, and vomiting.

Ginger decreases discomfort during pregnancy, including nausea and vomiting, and is also wonderful for postpartum care. In general, it helps alleviate nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and indigestion. Taken orally, ginger provides an excellent treatment for colds and fever, indigestion, water retention, nausea, elevated cholesterol, liver damage, and many other ailments. Ginger is especially useful for stimulating kapha and for aiding vāta’s poor digestion, aches, and pains. For dosage try ¼ teaspoon dried ginger root powder or ½ to 1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger root in warm water as a tea. This tea can be consumed up to three times per day. You can also sprinkle the above amount of ginger directly onto your food to aid digestion.

Externally, ginger powder can be mixed with water and used as a poultice to stimulate circulation, relieve muscle and joint aches and pains, eliminate headaches and chest pain, and regulate bowel movements. To make a poultice, simply mix ½ to 1 teaspoon of dried ginger root powder with enough warm water to form a paste. This can be spread onto the affected area. When using a poultice, take care to avoid the eyes and mucous membranes. The poultice, as well as any ginger residue left on your hands from making a poultice or a tea, can burn these sensitive areas. Other than this, ginger has no dangerous side effects.

TRIFAL, Terminalia chebula, Terminalia bellinica and Phyllanthus emblica

Āyurvedic properties: light, dry; taste: sweet, sour, astringent, bitter, pungent; post-digestive taste: bitter; energy: warm; dosha action: balancing for vāta, pitta and kapha. Pharmacological actions: adaptogenic, antibacterial, antivirial, antifungal, antiyeast, antihistaminic, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antitumor, blood pressure lowering, cholesterol lowering, digestive, diuretic, laxative. Trifal (Hindi), known in Sanskṛit as triphala, is an ancient āyurvedic herbal combination revered for its many therapeutic effects. It is a rasāyana, or formula which constantly rejuvenates and balances the body. Trifal helps relieve: anemia, bowel toxicity and irregularity, carbohydrate intolerance, chronic lung diseases, constipation, diabetes, eye diseases, high cholesterol, hypertension, indigestion, skin disorders, and yeast infections. Trifal is a wonderful preventive remedy that can be taken daily. It is a wonderful intestinal cleanser which gently promotes regularity without irritating the bowels. It first helps digest food, then aids in elimination. As a dry powder, 3,000–6,000 mg (1-2 teaspoons) of trifal may be taken one to three times per day. As an extract 500 mg is taken one to three times per day. Trifal has no known harmful side effects.

TURMERIC, Curcuma longa

Āyurvedic properties: light, dry; taste: bitter, astringent; post-digestive taste: bitter; energy: hot; dosha action: balances vāta, pitta, and kapha. Pharmacological actions: anti-allergenic, antibacterial, antiviral (anti-HIV), antifungal, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antiparasitic, antispasmodic, antitumor, carminative, diuretic.

Turmeric is known as the King of the Spices in āyurvedic medicine. A bitter spice, it helps cleanse the liver, purify the blood, and promote good digestion and elimination. It also has a powerful anti-inflammatory action without the unpleasant side effects of anti-inflammatory drugs.

Turmeric helps relieve: acne, allergies, ascites, auto-immune disorders, burns, chicken pox, diabetes, digestive disorders, gallbladder problems, liver damage due to toxic chemical exposure and drug use, liver disorders, skin rashes, tumors and ulcers.

Turmeric is very helpful for all doshas. In India, it has been used for thousands of years for its many healing and cleansing properties. It is a wonderful skin cleanser, color enhancer, and food preservative and is widely used for ritual purification. Also, recent studies show that turmeric is effective against cancerous tumors and HIV.

As a dry powder ½–1½ teaspoons of turmeric may be taken two to three times per day. As an extract (8:1) 250 mg is taken three times per day. Turmeric has no known harmful side effects and is safe for everyday use.

The Āyurvedic Qualities of Foods

A Quick Reference Drawn from Renowned Sources

The previous section gave a basic list of the essential food remedies that every home should have. It is especially designed for householders just getting started in the art of Indian cookery. Below is a more comprehensive directory of dozens of herbs and foods. You may wonder, “What about protein?” The answer is simple, though not obvious. The wonderful herbs, spices, fruits, vegetables and dairy products that āyurveda recommends contain more than enough protein for good health. Indeed, protein is not a concern in āyurveda. It is hardly mentioned. The body’s need for protein has been highly overrated in modern times, and in fact excess protein creates toxins in the body leading to bone disease. Everything the human body needs is fully contained in a wholesome, fully-balanced, vegetarian diet. Below we have listed and described the āyurvedic qualities of the herbs, spices, fruits, vegetables and other foods found in wholesome Hindu homes. Loving Gaṇeśa wants all of His nearly one billion devotees to follow this example.

Spices and Herbs

AJAWAYAN SEEDS, Carum copticum

Ajawayan is very much an exclusive Asian herb. It is often found only in Indian grocery stores. Ajawayan seeds (also called ajwan) resemble cumin seeds but are smaller in size. They have a distinct aroma, a bitter and pungent taste and, unlike the cooling cumin seed, are heating. As such, this herb is a digestive stimulant, and a strong one at that. It relieves indigestion and colic (intestinal pain) almost miraculously. Ajawayan is often mixed in lentils, beans and leafy vegetable curries to counteract the gas from their digestion. Because of its potent nature, ajawayan is used in small amounts.

ANISE, Pimpinella anisum

Anise is a sweet and pungent aromatic spice. It has a refreshing, pleasant taste. It is sometimes chewed with cardamom pods after a meal to refresh the breath. Anise seeds have a heating effect on the body and are a good appetizer that enhances pitta dosha, destroys mucus accumulations due to kapha dosha in the intestines and soothes vāta dosha.

ASAFOETIDA, Ferula asafoetida

Asafoetida has a unique sulphurous odor and pungent taste that takes a little getting used to for those who didn’t grow up smelling it. Nevertheless, asafoetida is by far the strongest aid to the gastro-intestinal canal. It stimulates pitta (water and fire element), aids food in its movement through the intestines, destroys ama (toxins) and eradicates worms in the intestines. It dissipates gas from foods like lentils and beans, making them lighter and more digestible. This crystalized plant resin is also effective against other vāta (the air and ether element) disorders, like arthritis and light-headedness.

BASIL LEAVES, Ocimum sanctum

Every Hindu is aware of the sacredness and medicinal effect of the holy basil, or tulsi. It is attributed to Vishṇu for its preserving powers. Wise elders often say that one should eat seven basil leaves each day for good health. Basil leaves are pungent in taste, balancing to kapha (the water and earth element) and calming to vāta. Basil is effective against respiratory tract diseases, coughs and colds. It is a wonderful tonic for the heart and the immune system, and it clears the mind and breaks up prāṇic congestions in the aura. The basil plant itself has a purifying effect on the environment.

BAY LEAVES, Laurus nobilis

Bay leaves are pungent and aromatic. They give a distinct appetizing flavor to food when they are cooked in oil and mixed into curries or rice dishes. Bay leaves help promote the evacuation of phlegm (kapha) from the lungs and throat. They assist vāta by encouraging intestinal movement, and they improve pitta’s catabolic activities.

CARDAMOM SEEDS, Elettaria cardamomum

For centuries cardamom has been extolled by spice traders for its sweet flavor and smell. It is found in just about all Indian desserts. Cardamom has a sweet, pungent taste and is very calming to the nervous system and the mind. Thus it is a pacifier of vāta dosha. It cures kapha in the respiratory tract and is known as a tonic for the heart. It stimulates digestion without aggravating the pitta dosha. Cardamom pods are often chewed with anise seeds after meals as a breath freshener. This spice combination also counteracts belching and vomiting.

CAYENNE PEPPER, Capsicum annuum

Cayenne pepper is used either in its fresh green or red chili form, as dried pods or powder. Many hot curry powders and garam masalas derive their color and pungency from cayenne. Cayenne pepper is food for the digestive fire. It stimulates appetite, destroys toxic build up, kills worms in the intestines and purifies the blood. It can also “jump-start” weakened organs after an operation. Due to its high pitta nature, cayenne pepper is used sparingly, especially during the summer and for people with high pitta dosha. Āyurveda generally prefers using black pepper in medicinal formulations when heating action is called for.

CINNAMON BARK, Cinnamomum zeylanicum

Nearly everybody on this planet can recognize the soothing and refreshing aroma of cinnamon sticks. It is a wonderful spice and medicine with a taste that is pungent, sweet and astringent. Cinnamon is very beneficial to the respiratory and alimentary canal. It regulates kapha in the lungs, relieving coughs and colds. Cinnamon also aids in digestion and the assimilation of digested food. It is also strengthening to the heart and kidneys.

CLOVES, Eugenia caryophyllus

The unmistakable aroma of cloves can be found both in the kitchen and the perfume industry. Cloves are pungent and heating. This herb lends itself both as a pacifier for kapha (which governs the lungs, mucus production and bodily functions of assimilation) and vāta. It is a stimulator for pitta. Clove is used for coughs and colds. It is also well known as a pain reliever. Clove oil, a concoction made from boiling cloves in ghee (clarified butter), is a remedy for toothache and is rubbed on joints to soothe rheumatic pains.

CORIANDER, Coriandrum sativum

The coriander plant offers to Amma’s nilayam its leaves and seeds. A universal balancer of the doshas, its taste is bitter and pungent. No hot Indian coconut chutney or spicy rice is complete without a garnish of fresh coriander leaves (cilantro). It is a household remedy, as its cooling effect mends disorders due to an overstimulated digestive fire. This is why hot foods are garnished with cilantro and almost every blend of masala powder contains ground coriander seeds. Coriander aids in the absorption of herbs and food. It is used to heal skin rashes, inflammations and a host of other ailments caused by the aggravation of the body’s fire element.

CUMIN SEEDS, Cuminum cyminum

Cumin seed is another prevalent herb in Indian cooking. The seeds are aromatic and pungent. Acclaimed as an herb of the stomach, it is a well-known digestive stimulant and appetizer. Cumin seeds give character to almost every curry, lentil or chutney. They have the often-needed effect of dissipating gas from complex carbohydrates like dals. Cumin seeds are cooling to the body despite their pungency. They are pacifying to vāta and kapha and a gentle stimulant of pitta.

CURRY LEAVES, Murraya konigii

Curry leaves are an exclusive Indian garnish that give a subtle smell and taste. They are found in almost every non-dessert food. Whole leaves are added to the cooking oil when popping mustard seeds or cumin seeds. Curry leaf is also an appetizer and a digestive stimulant which has a cooling effect. The leaf has a bitter and pungent taste that helps promote movements of the intestines and activates digestive secretions. Its effects are similar to cumin seeds, being pacifying to vāta and kapha and mildly stimulating to pitta.

FENNEL, Seeds, Foeniculum vulgare

It is a custom in India to serve raw fennel seeds after a sumptuous rice and curry meal. This spice is extolled in āyurveda as a universal balancer of doshas. The taste is sweet and pungent. It is a digestive rejuvenator, activating proper digestive functions when needed and reducing the digestive fire (pitta) when it has been over stimulated. It calms the mind yet prompts alertness. Fennel seeds combine well with coriander seeds and cumin seeds, two other cooling spices.

FENUGREEK SEEDS, Trigonella foenumgraecum

No sambar is complete without fenugreek (methi) seeds. The taste is bitter, pungent and sweet. It is a good pacifier of vāta (which governs the colon, nerves and bodily functions of evacuation and movement) and kapha. It promotes growth and healing, and it is a rejuvenator. Fenugreek is also a digestion-aiding spice.

GARLIC, Allium sativum

Garlic’s medicinal property is well known by most of the world’s medical traditions. Āyurveda extols it as a rejuvenator of vāta. The whole garlic plant is recommended for use by āyurveda as it contains five of the six tastes—sweet, salty, bitter, pungent and astringent—lacking only sour. Garlic reduces kapha phlegm production and purifies the blood. Its pungency stimulates digestion.

GINGER ROOT, Zingiber officinale

Ginger is one of the most widely used spices in Hindu cooking. From curries to desserts, ginger is a must in any kitchen. Āyurveda considers ginger as vishvabhesaj, “universal medicine.” It is used in its fresh form or as dry powder. Its taste is pungent and sweet. Ginger powder, with its more potent drying and digestive stimulant action, is employed to pacify kapha and stimulate pitta. Fresh ginger is more effective for calming vāta. Ginger root is a part of many āyurvedic formulations to relieve the conditions of any of the aggravated doshas. Paste made from ginger powder is applied externally to relieve aches and pains. Ginger is a wonderful tonic for the whole body, especially the heart and an agitated mind.

MINT, Mentha sp.

The smooth and slightly pungent taste of mint can often be recognized in Indian chutneys, desserts and teas. There are many types of mints—peppermint, spearmint, thyme and more. Generally they are highly constituted of ākāśa, giving them a light, cooling, calming quality. Mints are mild in their actions and are usually used with other herbs to enhance or reduce more aggressive properties. For instance, because of their cooling action, mints are added to hot chutneys. Mints are harmonizing and relaxing to the body and mind.

MUSTARD, BLACK, Brassica nigra

Black mustard seed is very popular in Hindu cooking. It is popped in hot oil, usually with other spices like cumin seeds or ajawayan, and then added to curry dishes. This process is called tempering. Black mustard seeds assist in the digestion of protein. The pungent seed is a pacifier of both vāta dosha and kapha dosha. Mustard oil is used to cure rheumatic pains in joints, a vāta disorder. Mustard seeds in large amounts cause vomiting, so they must be used cautiously.

NEEM LEAVES, Azadiracta indica

The neem tree is universally acclaimed the village pharmacy in India. Its various parts are employed in a host of preparations, especially to cure skin problems, purify the blood and cleanse the intestines of parasites and toxins. In cooking, its leaves are used to garnish rice, rasam or sambars. Neem provides the bitter taste in diet. Neem leaves are high in the vāta element, thus they promote all types of movement within the body and mind. Neem stimulates the immune system, enhances healing and has a cooling effect, thus counteracting fevers. It is very beneficial to pitta and kapha doshas and is used with discretion to calm the vāta dosha.

NUTMEG, Myristica fragrans

Nutmeg is a calming and aromatic spice. It is often taken with milk and cardamom to induce natural sleep. Pungent in taste, it is a good spice to calm the vāta dosha. It soothes the nervous system and clears the mind. Nutmeg also helps tremendously with the absorption of digested food and acts as a rejuvenator. Nutmeg is always taken in very small amounts, a pinch at a time, since it can be dulling when taken in excess.

ONION, SMALL RED, Allium cepa

Small red onions are more pungent than the bigger varieties (which are sweeter) and are more commonly used in Indian cooking. Āyurveda generally recommends onions be eaten cooked rather than raw. Cooked onions are pacifying to vāta and kapha. Onions have a heating effect, thus stimulating the digestive fire. They provide stamina, strength and a general well being to the body.

PEPPER, BLACK, Piper nigrum

The seeds of the Indian black pepper (known as pepper corns) can probably be found in every kitchen on earth. Black pepper, often used in a powdered state, is a powerful taste enhancer and appetizer. Its pungent taste and heating action not only aids digestion but also burns away toxic waste (ama) and mucus build-up in the gastro-intestinal tract. Black pepper is used in salad dressings as an antidote for cold and raw vegetables. Its drying action helps maintain the respiratory system by drying up excess phlegm (kapha).

PEPPER, INDIAN LONG, Piper longum

The Indian long pepper or pippali is a close relative of black pepper. Like black pepper, its taste is pungent. It acts to stimulate digestive functions and maintain the respiratory system. However, the Indian long pepper is unique in that it is also a rejuvenator of weakened tissues and biological functions, especially for the lungs. In āyurvedic terms it is known as a rasāyana. Trikatu is a renowned āyurvedic formulation of equal parts Indian long pepper, black pepper and dried ginger that is used to stimulate pitta and cleanse the gastro-intestinal tract of ama.

POPPY SEEDS, Papaver sp.

Poppy seed, like ajawayan seed, is an exclusive Indian spice. It is used in small quantities. Āyurvedically, it is a mind calmer and digestive stimulant. The taste is pungent, astringent and sweet. It is used to assist the small intestines with assimilation. Its heating action also acts as a vāta dosha calmer. Thus it is often used in conjunction with nutmeg or valerian to induce sleep. Poppy seeds are sometimes mixed with beans, dals and leafy green vegetables to dissipate the gas from their digestion.

SAFFRON, Crocus sativus

Saffron is definitely one of the most expensive spices. Fortunately, though, it is so potent that it need only be used in small amounts. It is often added to enhance the taste of desserts or rice dishes. Its taste is pungent, bitter and sweet. Saffron is known to be an effective rejuvenator of tissues. It aids in the assimilation of nutrition into all the tissues of the body. It is very balancing to all three doshas and emits a cooling and soothing effect for pitta. Saffron enhances the effects to the body of other foods and herbs.

SALT, SEA OR ROCK

Unrefined sea salt and rock salt are different from the usual table salt. They have a combination of minerals and are less concentrated compared to table salt. Āyurveda recommends these salts. Salt is just as important to the body as water. All the tissues in our body and most biological functions require salt. Salt serves as an appetizer, bringing out the flavor of food and is essential to the proper functioning of digestion and assimilation as a whole. Salt prevents distention in the stomach. Salt is a combination of water and fire. It stimulates kapha and pitta and pacifies vāta.

SESAME SEED, Sesamum indicum

Sesame seeds are a wonderful rejuvenative food, especially for vāta. They have a strong heating effect which soothes the cold quality of vāta. However, sesame is usually avoided by people with a high pitta constitution. Sesame seeds are very strengthening to the lungs, and help alleviate an aggravated kapha.

TAMARIND, Tamarindus indica

The sweet and sour taste of the tamarind pulp is a famous ingredient in rasams, sambars and chutneys. The juice of the tamarind is extracted for cooking by soaking the pulp of the tamarind fruit in water for fifteen minutes, then squeezing out the juice. Tamarind is a mild laxative. It serves as an appetizer and balances high pitta distortions caused by overexposure to the sun or pungent foods. Tamarind calms vāta but can aggravate the kapha dosha if used excessively.

TURMERIC, Curcuma longa

Turmeric is used both as a spice and a cosmetic. It is a very purifying, cleansing spice and a natural blood purifier and revitalizer. Turmeric has a bitter, astringent and pungent taste and is a general balancer of all three doshas. It stimulates pitta digestion, alleviates vāta aches, pains and anxiety, and it reduces kapha congestion. Turmeric also stimulates the immune systems and revitalizes the skin, both being vāta functions. It is often used in pickles because of its anti-bacterial, preservative effect.

Anna Gaṇeśa Raṅgoli

An Image of Gaṇapati Made with Herbs
And Spices, a Special Sādhana for Gaṇeśa Chaturthī

Below is an image of Gaṇeśa we created in our publications facility. The chart on the following page shows the ingredients used, all from the inspiration of the Lord of Categories. Nearly all the spices āyurveda recommends (from the listings above) went into our raṅgoli (kolam in Tamil) of loving Gaṇeśa. We enlarged the drawing (below) on a photocopier, then placed each spice with a spoon into its assigned area. Two suggestions: work from top to bottom to avoid disturbing already placed spices; and put the turmeric on last, no matter where it is located! Other spices with similar color and texture can be substituted for those not yet in your pantry.

Each month on His special day or at least yearly during the Gaṇeśa Chaturthī festival, gather with the entire family and create this raṅgoli (kolam in Tamil) of our loving Lord in all the healing foods that He wants us to use daily for the dear children and their parents. Performing this sādhana ensures that the proper spices are in the pantry and reminds everyone of the value of their use. It will be fun for the whole family. After Chaturthī day take the health-giving ingredients to a garden or park and offer them to the birds, mice and insects, for they live with us too on planet Earth and are as loved by Gaṇeśa as are we. There are, of course, other ways to make a Chaturthī raṅgoli for our Loving Gaṇeśa to enjoy, using essential spices and other pantry items that are standard in every Hindu Amma’s home, seen in big jars in every kitchen. For example, below is a simpler Gaṇeśa, made with six healing ingredients: the five home remedial foods described by Dr. Sodhi, along with jaggery for Gaṇeśa’s happy, ever-giving face. To the right are two swastikas, one made with six ingredients and the other with thirty-one.

The Herb of the Day

There are 31 important herbs and spices listed to the right, one for each day of the month. Each day in your home, make it a point to feature the item of the day in your menu in some way. Be creative and enjoy these wonderful foods throughout the year for good health and longevity.

1. peppercorns

2. trifala

3. tamarind

4. turbinado sugar

5. cumin

6. cloves

7. salt

8. curry leaves

9. turmeric

10. red pepper

11. mustard seeds

12. saffron

13. cayenne

14. nutmeg

15. fenugreek

16. coriander

17. jaggery

18. ginger

19. nutmeg

20. star anise

21. neem leaf

22. fennel

23. sesame

24. bay leaves

25. mint

26. cinnamon (chips)

27. ajawan

28. basil

29. cardamom

30. asofoetida

31. garlic

Fruits

APPLES, Malus domestica

Slightly astringent and cooling, sweet apples are good for pitta and kapha. Raw apples can help constipation, bleeding gums and cold sores. The juice is useful in gastritis, colitis and bladder infection. Cooked apples can alleviate diarrhea and dysentery.

APRICOTS, Prunus armeniaca

Sweet, astringent and heating, apricots increase pitta. Apricots are taken in large quantity to relieve chronic constipation and to help in anemia.

BANANAS, Musa paradisiaca sapientum

Sweet and cooling in quality, ripe bananas decrease vāta and increase pitta and kapha. They energize muscle, fat, nerve and reproductive tissues and are used to alleviate constipation, muscle cramps and burning urination. Bananas should not be taken with milk or yogurt.

CHERRIES, Prunus avium

Sweet, sour, astringent and heating, cherries pacify vāta and kapha, but may increase pitta if taken in large amounts. They are good for mental fatigue, stress, insomnia and effective in premenstrual syndrome and motion sickness.

COCONUTS, Cocos nucifera

Sweet and cooling, coconut pacifies vāta and pitta but may aggravate kapha when taken in excess. Coconut oil is useful for skin problems such as sunburn. Coconut water can help in stomach disorders and burning urination as well as rashes, such as measles and chicken pox.

DATES, Phoenix dactylifera

Fresh dates are sweet and cooling. Energizing and nourishing in quality, dates increase each dosha and generally promote health. Concoctions of dates and ghee can improve digestion, help anemia and relieve fatigue. A poultice of date sugar can soothe a painful muscle. Dates and certain herbs relieve coughs and other ailments of the chest region.

FIGS, Ficus carica

Fresh figs are sweet and cooling. They calm vāta and pitta and promote kapha. They are a good source of iron and to build up the blood, especially recommended for women in their childbearing years. Figs strengthen the gums, relieve indigestion, heartburn, diarrhea, burning urination and give some relief in asthma. Figs should not be taken with milk or by people suffering from diarrhea or dysentery.

GRAPES, Vitis vinifera

Grapes are sour, sweet and heating. They stimulate kapha and pitta and should be used for vāta in moderation. Red, purple or black grapes are tridoshic, meaning they are balanced in their effect. They are sweet, sour and astringent, with a cooling energy and a gentle laxative effect. Grapes and grape concoctions are taken for problems of urination, chest pain, cough, fever and sexual debility.

GRAPEFRUIT, Citrus paradisi

Sweet, bitter and cooling, grapefruit subdues vāta and increases pitta and kapha. It encourages healthy intestines and prevents diarrhea, dysentery and other infectious diseases of the digestive tract.

LEMONS, Citrus limonum

Sour and heating, lemons calm vāta, detoxify and balance pitta but may stimulate aggravated pitta and kapha doshas. In āyurveda, lemons have great healing value. They are used for high blood pressure, nausea, vomiting, indigestion, gas, morning sickness and kidney stones.

LIMES, Citrus aurantifolia

Sour and slightly bitter, limes calm vāta, but can aggravate pitta in excess and stimulate kapha. They cool the pitta-provoking nature of hot, spicy foods. Lime improves appetite and digestion, relieves heartburn, nausea and hyperacidity.

MANGOS, Mangifera indica

Ripe mangos are sweet and heating and balance the three doshas. Mangos are an energizer and useful to help lactation in women. Green, unripe mangos disturb all three doshas unless pickled, in which case they help digestion and improve the flavor of food.

MELONS, Cucumis melo

Sweet and cooling, melons calm vāta and pitta but may provoke kapha. Melons have a diuretic action. The rind can help with rashes and acne, and chewing melons can relieve bleeding gums. Melons should be eaten alone.

ORANGES, Citrus sinensis

Sour, sweet and heating, oranges pacify vāta and stimulate kapha when taken in excess. Sweet oranges are all right for pitta, but sour ones provoke this dosha. Oranges are useful for bleeding gums, hemorrhoids, bloodshot eyes, hangover, high blood pressure and indigestion.

PAPAYAS, Carica papaya

Sweet and heating, papayas calm all three doshas but should not be taken more than once a week by pitta constitutions. They are helpful for cough, asthma, liver and spleen disorders. The enzymes in papayas enhance digestion.

PEACHES, Prunus persica

Sour, sweet and heating, peaches pacify vāta and promote pitta. They are used in control of worms and the treatment of kidney stones, high fever and constipation.

PEARS, Pyrus communis

Sweet, sour and cooling, pears stimulate vāta, calm pitta and reduce kapha. A pear eaten alone can help stop diarrhea. Pears can stimulate the appetite and help inflamed gums.

PINEAPPLES, Ananas comosus

Sweet, sour and heating, ripe pineapples are soothing to vāta and kapha and all right for pitta. Pineapple is helpful in cases of indigestion and constipation. Its pulp relieves some skin irritations.

PLUMS, Prunus domestica

Sweet, astringent and cooling, plums increase kapha. In small quantities they help the system produce more blood, open the lower digestive tract and clean the stomach. Plums are very useful in subduing excess vāta and pitta.

POMEGRANATES, Punica granatum

Sweet, sour and astringent, pomegranates increase vāta and decrease pitta and kapha. They promote the production of red blood cells and are good for anemia, fever and heart conditions. Pomegranates are used to treat nausea, vomiting, rashes and morning sickness. Fresh juice in each nostril can stop a nosebleed, and a drop in the eye can relieve burning.

RASPBERRIES, Rubus strigosus

Sweet, slightly sour and astringent, raspberries stimulate vāta and calm kapha. Eating more than two handfuls at a time may cause vomiting. Medicinally, they relieve urinary problems, bleeding gums and hemorrhoids, and are able to slow bleeding and control profuse menstruation.

STRAWBERRIES, Fragaria virginiana

Sour, sweet, astringent and heating, strawberries in moderation are suitable for all doshas. Daily consumption may help in pulmonary tuberculosis or anemia.

WATERMELONS, Citrullus vulgaris

Sweet and cooling, watermelon provokes kapha and vāta and relieves pitta. It binds the stools and flushes the kidneys. The dried pulp is used in cosmetics to improve the skin.

Vegetables

BEETS, Beta vulgaris

Sweet and heating, beets increase pitta. Their alkaline nature and iron content make them a blood-producing food. Beets and beet tops are excellent for iron or calcium deficiency.

BITTER MELON, Momordica charantia

Bitter and cooling, bitter melon can provoke vāta and soothe pitta and kapha. It is used to treat fever, anemia, diabetes and worms. Cooked bitter melon is good for cleansing the liver. It is good for pregnant women and diabetics. Drops of juice in the nostrils can relieve migraine.

CARROTS, Daucus carota

Sweet, pungent and heating, carrots are calming for vāta and kapha but stimulate pitta when taken in excess. Carrots are digestive, laxative and can detoxify the body. They are used to treat anemia, chronic indigestion and cancer.

CUCUMBERS, Cucumus sativus

Sweet, astringent and cooling, cucumbers increase kapha. They work magically on restlessness caused by heat, and the juice gives instantaneous relief to any burning sensation in the stomach. Cucumbers cure constipation and counteract hyperacidity and gastric or duodenal ulcers.

FIDDLENECK FERN TIPS

Fern tips are a delicacy when they are picked fresh. This is an astringent food that is light and easy to digest, very good food for kapha people. However it aggravates vāta and needs to be eaten with onions and garlic for balancing out the wind element in the body. Fern tips cook in less than five minutes when steamed or boiled. If they are overcooked they become unbearably astringent and unctuous. They should be eaten no more than once or twice a week according to Hawaiian cultural tradition.

MUSHROOMS, Mussirionis

There are many types of mushrooms. In general they are light and dry, which makes it a good food for kapha people. Their astringent and sweet taste also make them pacifying to pitta. kapha and pitta constituted people may take them raw. However for vāta, the mushroom’s light and astringent quality makes it aggravating. This quality is somewhat counteracted when mushrooms are cooked. Mushrooms should be eaten in moderation(once or twice a week) as they can be dulling owing to its tamasic nature.

RADISHES, Raphanus sativus

Pungent and heating, radishes are fine for vāta and kapha. They can improve digestion, help relieve gas, flush the liver and get rid of intestinal worms. The long white daikon is especially effective.

SPINACH, Spinacea oleracea

Pungent, bitter, sweet and cooling, spinach provokes vāta and pitta but can be calming to kapha. Spinach is used to treat asthma and coughs. The juice applied externally can relieve swelling.

TARO ROOT AND LEAF, Colocasia esculenta

Sweet, pungent and neither hot nor cold, taro root increases vāta. The root is unctuous and heavy to digest, but if digested well it gives much strength. It should be cooked with black cumin, red cardamom, ajawayan, garlic or ginger. Taro root cooks in about 40-60 minutes. In cases of dry cough, taro root liquifies the cough and expels mucous. Taro leaf is bitter, sweet and slightly unctuous. Like the root, taro leaves contain oxalic acid in crystal form. If eaten uncooked, these crystals prick the digestive canals, causing painful swelling that can even be deadly. Fortunately, cooking completely breaks down the acid, alleviating the potential hazards. Taro leaf must be steamed (or boiled) for 40-60 minutes. The cooked leaf is easy to digest, subdues pitta and strengthens kapha dosha. It is best cooked with garlic and cumin seeds, which makes it balancing for vāta dosha. Both the root and the leaf should be eaten no more than twice a week.

SWEET POTATOES, Ipomoea batatas

Heavy, warming, sweet potatoes increase kapha. Despite the label “potato,” these are not members of the nightshade family. Their leaves may be used as a vegetable. Natives of tropical America, these relatives of the morning glory can be eaten by those who cannot eat white potatoes and are more nutritious. The orange-fleshed varieties are high in beta carotene (vitamin A)—the brighter the orange color, the more nutrition. They are mildly laxative and may create gas.

TURNIPS, Brassica rapa

Sweet, pungent and cooling, turnips balance all three doshas. They purify the system and help it produce more blood. Turnips are prescribed for healing in cases of jaundice, edema, bronchitis, scabies, psoriasis and eczema.

YAMS, Dioscorea

The true yams (tuberous roots of the lily family and cousins of onions and asparagus) of India, Africa and the Caribbean lack vitamin A. But they are antihelminthic (expel worms) and antihemorrhoidal. They are similar to sweet potatoes in increasing kapha. There are hundreds of varieties ranging from sweet to bitter to tasteless. Some are used to make poultices to reduce swelling. The quasi-yams of North America are a moist-fleshed variety of sweet potato.

Nightshade Plants (Solanaceae)

Nightshade is in the solanaceae family of flowering plants. It includes the white potato, eggplant, tomato, red pepper, capsicum, tobacco and many garden ornamentals. Belladonna (Atropa belladonna or deadly nightshade) is from the same family. Some species, tomatoes among them, accumulate poisonous alkaloids primarily in their leaves, which should not be used. Nightshades are related to the air element. Cases are reported in which individuals have been cured of osteoarthritis simply by abstaining from all nightshade plants. These foods should be taken moderately, once or twice a week, and not mixed with yogurt, milk, melon or cucumber. Individuals with kidney stones, gallstones or gout are advised to refrain from most nightshades because of the high oxalate content. (Kidney stones are calcium oxalate crystals). Other high oxalate foods are: spinach, beet leaves, rhubbarb, parsley, cranberry, nuts, black tea and cocoa.

EGGPLANT, Solanum melongena

Eggplant is very popular in India, though it is not as highly nutritional as other vegetables. It is somewhat toxic to the system and should not be eaten more than once a week. It is pungent, astringent and heating. It encourages agni and detoxifies the colon but should not be eaten by those with kidney or gallstone problems. Eggplant is high in oxalic acid, which causes the formation of calcium oxalate crystals.

POTATOES, WHITE, Solanum tuberosum

Cool, light and dry, white potatoes aggravate vāta, benefit kapha and have a neutral effect on pitta. Pittas and kaphas do best with boiled or stewed potatoes. They should be eaten no more often than three to five days a week. Pitta people can eat baked potatoes. Vāta people need their potatoes well spiced and moistened. Potatoes, being rich in vitamin C, are an old āyurvedic cure for scurvy. An important part of the nutrition is in the skins. Easy to digest, they are recommended for people with nervous indigestion or liver weakness. However, eaten alone, or with fatty condiments or in poor food combinations, the potato may be constipating and vāta aggravating. Potatoes are one of the few nightshade plants that can accumulate enough toxins in their edible portion to be overtly toxic. Fortunately, this is easily seen. Wherever the skin has a green shade, the alkaloids solanine and chaconine have accumulated close to the surface. Peeling ⅛ inch or less off these areas will remove the toxins. Potatoes need dark, cool storage.

TOMATOES, Lycopersicon esculentum

Tomatoes, though among the world’s most popular foods, are generally toxic to the human body and should be eaten no more than once or twice a week. They are only recommended in āyurveda when cooked with certain spices for healing purposes. Sour and slightly pungent, ripe tomatoes upset all doshas when eaten raw, as do green and yellow tomatoes. Therefore, tomatoes must be eaten cooked to maintain good health.

Grains

Grains are classified as sweet by āyurveda. They have a grounding, calming effect, smoothing out metabolic functions. Whole grains are more nutritious and balancing than refined grains. Vātas and pittas benefit from a good helping of grains, while kaphas should eat somewhat less. Grains provide the energy for work. In Asia a grain may be 60 percent of a complete meal. Each type of whole grain, such as rice, wheat and millet, has its unique qualities. Sugars mixed with grains may cause gas. Whole grains keep their prāṇa for a year. Flour should be eaten within two weeks after grinding, lest it become tamasic. Breads become tamasic eight hours after they are baked. Refined, highly processed flour should not be eaten, for it coats the intestinal tract with a paste that is constipating and debilitates proper assimilation.

RICE, Oryza sativa

There are over 40,000 varieties of rice. It is the queen of grains, the staple food for most of humanity, grown in countries throughout the world. Basmati is the famous, aromatic long-grained rice from India and Pakistan that balances all three doshas. It is very light and cooling. Texmati is an excellent substitute grown in North America. Āyurveda recommends unpolished white basmati mixed with mung dal, a dish called khicheri, as a mono-diet to balance, cleanse and rejuvenate the system. Milled varieties, some of which are parboiled before milling, have reduced nutritional value and increase kapha but are more easily assimilated by delicate stomachs. Rice is a miracle food which can be eaten without limitation, even at every meal.

BROWN RICE refers to any whole rice with only the rough husk removed but the bran and germ intact. Thus, the life force and ability to grow is retained. It is warming, heavy, moist and rough, sweet and astringent. It is balancing for vāta, but slightly unbalancing for pitta and kapha. Its high fiber prevents constipation. Its germ and bran contains proteins, vitamin B and minerals not found in white rice. It should be well cooked and well chewed. Mixing it half and half with barley will cool it for pittas. Rice and barley combined, āyurveda explains, dispels fatigue.

WHEAT, Triticum

Wheat is the heaviest, moistest of all grains, excellent for gaining weight and very grounding when served with foods that are cool and moist, like cheese. Wheat is good for vāta and pitta, but unbalancing for kapha. It is well suited for hard physical labor and cold climates. Wheat is the second most widely used grain in the world. Rice is number one. Unfortunately, many people have a severe intolerance for wheat—one in 500 persons in some areas. Studies have traced this to exposure in early infancy, perhaps as young as three weeks. Infants cannot digest grains that early. The wheat is treated as a toxin, and the body develops antibodies which may be triggered as a reaction to the intake of wheat throughout life. Wheat reactions can be complicated by an intolerance for cow’s milk, which produces similar symptoms, ranging from mild sluggishness to indigestion, headache, joint pain and moodiness, puffiness in the face and sinus problems. You can test this in your own system by simply abstaining from wheat and dairy for a few months. If such symptoms disappear, you will know your own body’s tolerance. A more severe intolerance for the gluten protein in wheat results in malabsorption, bloating, irritability, diarrhea. Severe cases of gluten intolerance is called celiac’s disease. Babies do best on mother’s milk for even up to two years with the slow introduction of pureed fresh fruits and vegetables. The habitual use of wheat crackers and biscuits as snacks for children also contributes to wheat intolerance.

MILLET, Panicum miliaceum

This tiny grain is hot, light and dry. It is balancing for kapha. Vāta types should not eat it alone as it is too light and dry. Its sweet after-effect balances out its heat for pitta, especially if it is cooked with extra water. Millet is high in calcium. The dark millet of India, called ragi, is renowned for bestowing endurance. Besides millet, many other small grass seeds, such as quinoa and amaranthus, are highly nutritious, light and easily digestible alternatives to rice and wheat.

Dals

LENTIL, Lens culinaris

Red lentils properly prepared are tridoshic. They are a source of iron and so a good blood builder and liver cleanser. Lentils are a beneficial food to take during flu and diarrhea.

MUNG, Vigna radiata

Sweet and astringent with a cooling energy, green mung beans properly cooked are light, easy to digest and balance the three doshas. They are good for indigestion, diarrhea, fever and eye problems. Skinless or yellow mung is sweet and cooling. It calms kapha and vāta.

TUR, Cajanus cajan

Astringent, sweet and heating, tur dal made into a soup is calming for vāta and kapha. It is good for strengthening muscles and as a blood builder, also great for skin, eyes, bones and joints.

TOFU

Tofu is a bland, protein-rich cheeselike food, coagulated from an extract of soybeans. It is astringent and sweet, cooling and heavy. Its astringence is good for kapha but requires extra spicing with garlic, ginger or black pepper to aid digestion. Vāta may find tofu constipating and should eat it in moderation. It is a good food for those with a strong pitta dosha. Lambodara, the one with the big belly, wants His dear ones to know this about the highly popular tofu. He wishes them all to maintain a balance in life and live many long years of healthful giving.

Tofu may be eaten daily, prepared in soups and other cooked dishes. It should be prepared by warming it with heat or with spices. It should not be served cold and may not digest properly. This is the most difficult way to consume an already chilling food. It is generally steamed, stewed or lightly sauted. It should not be deep-fried or otherwise exposed to excessive heat. Tofu is very sensitive to heat and when excessively heated changes in chemistry to a form that is said to be detrimental to health. Some people are unable, due to allergy to soybeans, to digest tofu in any form. The term is Sino-Japanese: from to, meaning “bean,” and fu, “ferment.” Eaten in excess, tofu will increase kapha. The thrust here is that no matter how good anything is, nothing should be eaten too much, nor too little, but just in the right amount.

URAD, Vigna mungo

Sweet and cooling, unctuous and heavy, urad dal is a calming food for vāta. It detoxifies the system, nourishes muscle, bone and reproductive fluids. It helps lactation and energizes the whole body, but is not good for kapha or pitta disorders.

Milk Products

CHEESE

Among the many kinds of cheeses, aged hard cheeses are the most commonly sold in markets. These cheeses are sour, unctuous, heavy and oily. They are constipating and tamasic and should be enjoyed only two or three times a week. Most hard cheeses are made with an enzyme (called rennet) extracted from the intestines of a calf, unless mentioned otherwise. Strictly speaking, such cheeses are nonvegetarian. There are cheeses made using vegetable rennet which can be found in health food stores. Soft cheeses, including cottage cheese, being lighter, sour and sweet, are more suitable for frequent consumption and are truly vegetarian foods. These pacify pitta. It is always advisable for vāta and kapha people to eat cheese with some cayenne, black pepper or dry ginger powder.

GHEE

Sweet and cooling, ghee, clarified butter, is highly praised in scripture for its purifying, disinfecting and healing properties. It is the number-one choice for cooking, and much preferred to other oils for frying. Ghee enhances memory, lubricates the connective tissue and makes the body flexible. A drop applied to the eyes relieves itching and improves eyesight. Taken in excess, it increases kapha.

MILK

Milk is sweet, cooling and increases kapha. Milk in its many forms can be nectar for the human constitution. However, in āyurveda, “milk” means milk fresh from a contented cow, and not the medicated, homogenized, ultrapasteurized product sold in stores today. A milk fast can relieve many disorders including fever, coughs and hysteria. Milk should be boiled, as it becomes easier to digest. Āyurveda recommends milk be taken alone on an empty stomach as a meal in itself. Small babies and those with lactose intolerance should avoid cow’s milk.

YOGURT

Sour, astringent and cooling, yogurt increases pitta and kapha. It has a generally invigorating effect to the system. Yogurt made from raw milk (and a good strain of the lactobacillus bacteria) is most nutritious and provides the necessary ingredients for good assimilation and elimination. Yogurt should always be taken with a little salt, cumin or black pepper.

Oils

Since oil breaks down rapidly when exposed to heat, light or oxygen, it is best to use ghee (clarified butter) for all saute needs. The advertised good-for-you polyunsaturated oils (margarine, safflower, corn, sunflower) are actually more prone to degeneration (oxidation) than butter through heating or simple exposure to ultraviolet light (sunlight), causing free radicals. Free radicals are substances with impaired electrons that swim around inside of us, looking for something they can grab onto. When they latch onto something, it’s known as oxidation. Free radicals speed the aging process by destroying healthy cells as well as attacking collagen, the cement that holds cells together. Oxidation can “rust” the body as it does metal. This means cardiovascular disease, atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries) and most of the heart problems of today’s society. (The best sources for the body’s much needed unsaturated fatty acids [UFA] are: flax seeds, sesame, pumpkin and sunflower seeds, eaten whole or freshly ground.) Oil assessment by Dr. Devananda Tandavan.

Sweeteners

HONEY

Sweet, astringent and heating, honey increases pitta and reduces vāta and kapha. Honey has extensive use in āyurveda, both as a treatment in itself for heart, throat, chest, lungs, liver and blood, and as a base in which many medicines are prepared and administered to the patient. Honey with warm water is a laxative. With black pepper it is a popular remedy for coughs and colds. Upon heating, honey loses its medicinal quality and actually becomes toxic to the system. From honey is produced the alcoholic beverage spoken of in the Vedas as madhu (Sanskṛit for honey as well), the health-giving, natural, fermented beverage known in Europe as mead.

JAGGERY, Borassus flabellifer

Jaggery is a dark, hard brownish sugar made from the flower sap of the palmyra palm tree (the same tree that produces toddy, an alcoholic beverage, by a different process). As a sugar it is far superior to processed cane or beet products in both health and taste. It is available in Indian stores around the world. It is sweet in taste and heating in effect, strengthening and heavy, subduing excess vāta, but increasing pitta and kapha. A product from boiling sugarcane juice is often sold as jaggery, but true jaggery is from a different source.

CANE SUGAR, Saccharum officinarum

Raw cane sugar is sweet and cooling, oily and heavy. It is most calming to vāta, moderately calming to pitta and aggravates kapha. A useable form of raw cane sugar is sucanat, evaporated organic sugar cane juice, which is similar in taste and texture to brown sugar. Freshly pressed sugar cane juice can also be used for beverages or to cook with. Refined white sugar, which is also derived from the sugar beet, is not recommended. Most “brown sugar” is simply refined white sugar with molasses added for color, so it is also not recommended. However, there is another form of processed sugar which is also brown, called Turbinado, which is better than processed sugar for cooking or baking.

Excessive consumption of all types of sugar depletes the immune system. Children given too much sugar or sugar-rich products, such as candy and soft drinks, become hyperactive and lose their abilities of concentration. A little known fact important to strict vegetarians is that white cane sugar is filtered through animal bones during processing.

Āyurveda Sources

Aziz, Khalid, Step by Step Guide to Indian Cooking. London, Hamlyn, 1974. Recipes from the five geographical regions of India, including many desserts.

Frawley, Dr. David, Ayurvedic Healing. Salt Lake City, Utah, Passage Press, 1989. Detailed methods of constitution balancing and treatment of common diseases.

Jain, S.K., Dictionary of Indian Folk Medicine and Ethnobotany. New Delhi, Deep Publications, 1991. A concise glossary of folk uses for over 2,500 Indian plants.

Johari, Harish, The Healing Cuisine, India’s Art of Ayurvedic Cooking. Rochester, Vermont, Healing Arts Press, 1994. Explains the healing qualities of foods and spices, with vegetarian recipes based on āyurveda.

Lad, Usha and Dr. Vasant, Ayurvedic Cooking for Self Healing, Albuquerque, New Mexico, The Ayurvedic Press, 1994. Explores health and healing through diet with recipes and their medicinal and āyurvedic effect.

Lad, Dr. Vasant, Āyurveda, The Science of Self-Healing. Santa Fe, New Mexico, Lotus Press, 1985. Clearly explains the principles and practical applications of āyurveda.

Morningstar, Amadea and Desai, Urmila, The Ayurvedic Cookbook, Santa Fe, New Mexico, Lotus Press 1990. Over 250 recipes designed to balance each constitution.

All About Rice!

Articles from Hinduism Today magazine, May, 1994.

Although it is still unknown exactly when and how people started growing rice, archaeologists have uncovered evidence that rice was present in Indian civilizations at 8,000 BCE, according to Tuk-Tuk Kumar, author of The History of Rice in India. She argues that rice husks used to temper clay pottery at Koldihawa and Mahagara sites indicate that a domesticated rice was grown at that time. Other researchers document a slender, wild strain called Indica growing on Himalayan slopes about 4,000 years ago. Extraordinary in yield, nutrition, resistance to disease, adaptability and savor, rice migrated around the globe with little promotion. Today, India’s prized aromatic rice, Basmati, is found as far from its birthplace as Kenya and California.

Hinduism’s ancient scriptures have many references to rice. Kumar notes that the Yajur Veda describes the preparation of rice cakes as a ritual offering. In the Atharva Veda, rice, along with barley, are described as “healing balms, the sons of heaven who never die.” Smṛitis tell how Goddess Devī Lalithāmbikā is known to be especially fond of payasa annam, sweet rice. Indeed, husked rice is always present in even the simplest Hindu pūjā as one of the offerings. So revered is rice that, if mixed with turmeric powder, it can substitute if necessary for costly items for the mūrtis such as dress, ornaments, even flowers.

Rice is also a potent symbol of auspiciousness and fertility. South Indians call rice Anna Lakshmī. Anna means “food” and Lakshmī is the Goddess of prosperity. From ancient times, the ever-giving Goddess Dhānya Lakshmī has been depicted holding a few sheaves of rice in Her hand. The most special offering to Lord Gaṇeśa is the modaka, a ball of sweet coconut-jaggery fill covered with a thick rice paste. The first food fed a child is rice. In Rajasthan, when a woman first enters her husband’s house, a measure of rice is kept on the threshold. This she scatters through her new home inviting prosperity and happiness. In South India, raw rice, mixed with kuṅkuma to redden it, is known as maṅgala akshadai and showered over newlyweds. At a harvest festival, Tai Pongal, rice is ceremoniously cooked, Sūrya, God of the sun, is worshiped and the nature spirits are thanked.

But this reverence for rice is not restricted to India. The Angkabau of Sumatra use special rice plants to denote the Rice Mother, Indoea Padi. The people of Indochina treat ripened rice in bloom like a pregnant woman, capturing its spirit in a basket. Rice growers of the Malay Peninsula often treat the wife of the cultivator as a pregnant woman for the first three days after storing the rice. Even the Sundanese of West Java, who consider themselves Muslims, believe rice is the personification of the rice Goddess Dewi Sri. In Thailand, when you call the family to a meal you say, “Eat rice.” In Japan, to goad children to eat all their rice, grains are called “little Buddhas,” and girls are told every grain they leave on the plate will become a pock mark on the face of their future husband. In China, the word for rice is the same as food. The Toradja tribals of Indonesia consider rice to be of heavenly origin. So hallowed was the grain, that it was taboo to plant any other crop in the rice fields. The Ahnishinabe Native American Indian tribe of North America say their ancestors saw tracts of wild rice in visions. So they migrated to the central part of USA-Canada, found the rice, and to this day, gather and trade it for their livelihood.

Winona Laduke is of the Ahnishinabe tribe of Native American Indians. She shared in a Seeds of Change magazine interview: “I live on the White Earth reservation. I work mostly on the land. In our language, most nouns are animate, whether it is the word for corn, for wild rice, min-o-min, or stone. Having spirit and standing on its own, I’m very careful when I harvest it because I must reckon with that spirit. In our culture, the respect you have when you harvest is what ensures that you are able to continue harvesting. It is not because you’re smart or clever, it’s because you’re respectful and you are worthy of receiving. Before rice, I offer ah-say-mah, tobacco, to that plant—that rice. Min-o-min was given to us by our Creator.”

Dietetically, rice is cherished as a cholesterol-free, protein-calorie cornucopia. Most people in Asia obtain 60 to 80 percent of their calories from rice. Rice becomes a “complete protein,” equivalent to beef protein, when eaten with beans or lentils because the enzymes in rice help to process the proteins in the lentil. As a result, rice is rarely served in India without some kind of lentil or dal.

Rice is prepared in many different ways. In the Far East, it is often squeezed into noodles. In South India, it is soaked overnight and made into fluffy idlis or thin, crēpe-like dosas. In Northern India, it is often cooked with sweetened milk to form kheer. People in Gujarat celebrate Sharad Pūrṇimā by soaking flattened rice in sweet milk which they drink at night. Drinking this “dood-powa” on this night is said to protect health. In Northern India, people celebrate the festival of Dīpāvalī with sugar candy, batasha, and khil, puffed rice.

In addition to its value as a food, rice serves other purposes in Asia. In Japan, every home is floored with elegant rice mats, called tatami. Villagers wear rice straw sandals, and the whole nation unwinds daily on a delicate rice wine, sake. In rural India, cooked rice is used as a glue. A verse in ancient Tamil literature says women would dress up in elegant sārīs starched with rice kanji, the excess water drained after the rice is cooked. Rice flour is used by housewives to make the beautiful religious kolam designs each dawn in front of their homes—and at temples for festivals—to ward off negative energies. Ants are allowed to eat the kolam (raṅgoli in Sanskṛit) as a natural cycle is fulfilled in a display of human kindness for the most defenseless of creatures.

When I was in India in the 1980s I participated in a Guru Mahāsannidhānam parade around the Meenakshi Temple. The parade was preceded by a grand pūjā to Lord Gaṇeśa. Walking beside me was the publisher of HINDUISM TODAY, Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami, and the Holiness of the oldest aadheenam in India, Madurai Aadheenam, Śrī-la-Śrī Arunagirinātha Śrī Gnanasambanda Desikar Paramacharya Swamigal. There were three or four elephants in front of us, two or three camels, numerous drummers, nāgasvara players and other musicians. After the parade, the elephants and other animals enjoyed an abundant dinner of delicious rice.

Editorial: Rice with Spice
Is Twice as Nice

Prolog: Behold life’s passing into paradise.
How like a languid Vedic sacrifice, with days and years poured into flames of soul in rites precise. How randomless, this intertwined device, where lice have cats and cats have mice. How bountifully it folds eternity into each tiny trice, and hugely unconcise, with fire and ice and fifty thousand kinds of rice.

How nice is rice, especially served with spice.
How it can, at meager price, twice or thrice each day suffice. How gentle and how very free from vice
are those whose fodder, in the main, is rice.

Deep within the granite mountains of Colorado, where you might expect to find a secret Defense Department stockpile of missiles awaiting the end of the Cold War thaw, lies another kind of reserve. It is a dark, clinically sterile cold room, kept meticulously at 42°f. and a relative humidity between 25 and 30. This is not the vault for a lethal chemical gas antidote or a vaccine for some exotic virus. These chambers, maintained by the United States Department of Agriculture, hold one of the strategic guarantors of human survival—16,474 varieties of rice. If that sounds like a lot, it’s a mere fraction of the planet’s diversity. India alone (where rice is said to have originated) had 50,000 varieties under cultivation over the centuries. Today most of India’s rice comes from fewer than ten varieties.

Bill Clinton is not spending all that money to save Uncle Ben’s pre-cooked, short-grain, sticky-white, highly-polished, nutrition-free, artificially-enriched rice for future generations. Uncle Ben’s is a kind of paradigm of the West’s naivete and historical neglect of rice. It opted for quick-cooking, high-yielding grains, while the East bred its strains for taste and texture. To export, the West selected for long shelf life; in the East 90% of all rice is consumed within eight miles of the fields where it is grown. Did you know that rice yields 6,000 pounds per acre and that 25% of the meager 20 pounds of rice each American consumes in a year is imbibed as beer?

“As rice goes, so will go the world’s encounter with starvation,” Dr. Charles Balach, the Texas-based guru of America’s rice breeding program, now retired, told me last week. This is a man who knows his rice. He bred the variety that feeds most American appetites, a task that took him 8 years (15 years can be devoted to manipulating just the right combination of genes). He observes, “Rice has been cultivated for at least 7,000 years in China. Farmers spent generations selectively getting the’bad’ genes out of a strain, and it’s very easy for us to introduce those back inadvertently as we try to improve a strain.”

That’s exactly what happened, says Dr. Robert Dilday of University of Arkansas’ Rice Research Center. “Breeders here were going for the high yields. In the process we didn’t recognize, and thus we left out, important strengths.” Fortunately, there is a germ plasm program and collection, the one mentioned above. “There are thousands of very ordinary varieties there, seemingly useless. But they may hold some special quality we will want in the future, and it will be there. That’s the beauty, and the justification, for this massive collection effort.”

Fingers, Forks or Chopsticks?

The world can be divided into three kinds of people: finger-feeders, fork-feeders and chopstick-feeders. Fork-feeders predominate in Europe and North America only. Chopstick-feeders rule most of Eastern Asia. Finger-feeders are the most widespread, prevailing in India, Sri Lanka, Indonesia and much of Africa. Globally, fork-feeders are a minority, outnumbered more than two to one. Chopsticks have a venerable history, dating back to 1200 bce, while forks first appeared in the 10th century ce in the Byzantine empire. Although forks first entered society on the tables of the rich and well-born, many royalty, including Queen Elizabeth I and Louis XIV, used fingers.

Dr. Dilday is beguiled by the variants: from the Japanese Super Rice Kernel (twice the length of the longest long grain, akin to a 12-foot-tall person) to the messy Purple Bran that when it flowers “stains your fingers like you were picking blackberries.” Then there are killer rices. He doesn’t call them that, preferring “allelopathic,” the term scientists use to describe the ability of certain plants to produce natural chemicals that suppress or even kill weed growth within an 8–10” radius. A grain that controls its own competition, without chemicals? It’s a farmer’s dream, and breeders have found six of them.

Americans are relative newcomers to rice cultivation, with a mere 300 years spent growing a handful of types. They are partial to wheat. Rice may sustain half the world, but in America it has been an export commodity known only in an insipid encounter with an anonymous soup ingredient or as a rare substitute for potatoes. Not anymore. There is a rice revolution going on in North America, and a smaller one in Europe. Basically, when immigration laws changed to allow more Asians in, millions answered the call. From Thailand, Cambodia, India, Korea and China they brought with them their culture, their clothing, their language and, of course, their penchant for rice.

When a Thai housewife cooked the Texas long-grain (which traces its roots to Indonesia, then Madagascar and thence to South Carolina in the 17th century), she was totally underwhelmed. Where was the taste? What happened to the sweet aromas she was accustomed to? Nothing. Zip. Not only that, who could eat this Yankee carbohydrate with chopsticks? Not even a black belt epicure could handle this dry grain where every pellet was an individual. In India it is said “Rice should be like brothers: close but not stuck together.” But Thais were accustomed to rices that, like Thai people, stick together (stickiness is determined by the ratio of two different starches, amylose and amylopectin). Some varieties are so sticky that if you put a chopstick in a bowl, the entire mass comes out together. Thai gourmets and gourmands love that kind. They break it off with their hands, dip it deeply into a spicy gravy. My theory is that cultures that eat with chopsticks evolved sticky kinds, fork-eaters selected very dry specimens, and those of us who eat with our hands developed in-between varieties.

Faced with their finicky family’s famished frowns, Asian women forsook all hope of getting decent rice in the US and began importing it. Tons of it. In fact, 39,690,000 pounds last year, nearly 10% of all the rice consumed in America. Farmers who didn’t know a Basmati—which means “Queen of Fragrance”—from a Jasmine suddenly woke up to the new reality. Asians had highly sophisticated tastes and would not settle for anything less than grandma had cooked over an open fire. They were even willing to pay a premium for quality, a big one. Aged Basmati sells for nearly $2 a pound! The wheels of free enterprise cranked up. Breeding programs began, expensive ones focused on one goal: produce and market an aromatic rice that equaled that most popular of all imports, Thai Jasmine.

Thai Jasmine is the monarch of short-grained sticky rices. Its smell is alluring, its texture is described as not-too-wet-not-too-dry, and its taste is savory sweet. American breeders imported a Thai strain from the famed International Rice Research Institute in Manila. They crossed it with a high-yielding Philippine stock, added a little of this DNA, a sprinkle of that and after many years celebrated the christening of Jasmine 85. It was to be the import killer. Hundreds of acres went under the Texas plow in 1989. Thai cooks by the thousands eagerly hauled home the first heavy bags of Jasmine 85, steamed it in the old country way, served it up and—“Yuck”—never went back for more.

“What happened?” marketers mourned. “What happened?” southern farmers fretted. “What happened?” rice breeders brooded. No one could explain. It tasted and smelled the same. It cooked the same. It looked the same. It was cheap. Yet it was a giant flop. Spurious stories spread that only US rats would touch it. Thai rodents preferred starvation. Well, that was the story.

This real-life disaster was a turning point in US rice consciousness. Americans, who pride themselves as the world’s most efficient rice farmers, realized they couldn’t detect differences which Asians readily perceived. They had made the mistake of not putting a single Asian on their select quality committee. “Before this experience, we didn’t recognize the subtlety of it. Or maybe we didn’t believe it. Now we believe. It started with the Asians, but now the Anglos are picking up on it too,” Dr. Bill Webb confided to me.

The search intensifies as imports continue to grow. US researchers now respect the preferences of the strong Asian market, and they have redoubled their efforts to match qualities found in Southeast Asia. In private they confess, “We’re no longer trying to replace the rices from India and Pakistan, but to develop a kind of poor-man’s Basmati.” Nor can they just bring rices in and plant them. It’s against the law. Besides, rice adapts itself to climates, to soils and weather patterns, not to mention birds, insects and diseases. All grains must be bred to US conditions. Those who touted the glories of Texas Long Grain now speak wistfully of approximating a Punjabi Basmati or an Italian Arboria. They are breeding Purple Bran, Spanish Bahia, Black Japonica and dozens of others, hoping to capture the burgeoning niche market for specialty, fragrant rices. For the record, our own absolutely favorite rice, one with no equal in all three worlds, is the ruddy, fluffy Red Country rice, known as urarisi in Tamil, grown near Jaffna, Sri Lanka.

“The editor’s jest, full of zest, is the best as he exalts us to eat the elite. Rice is so nice served with sweetness or spice. Can we resist this taste treat? Basmati, Bahia, Arboria, Japonica—twice, thrice a day, cooked in a legion of ways; rice, we recite, the ambrosial delight, gracing our palate each day.”

Kulamata Tara Katir, Kauai, USA.

Health through Āyurveda

By Dr. Devananda Tandavan, Four Columns
Reprinted from HINDUISM TODAY MAGAZINE, 1991

Āyurveda, the ancient Indian study of life, uses the tridosha theory to explain human makeup and behavior. It is considered by the ancient seers that man’s psychological and physical makeup may be classified as belonging to a specific type of constitution called prakṛiti, the underlying or inherent nature of one’s being. It is nature that determines how we behave, what we desire, what we enjoy, our physical constitution and how we respond to all of the stresses of living. It further determines our physical, psychological, social and religious patterns of behavior.

The prakṛiti is divided into three main doshas or forces that help to bind the five elemental forces into living flesh. These doshas are vāta, pitta and kapha representing the philosophical elements air, fire and water, respectively. If we know our prakṛiti and are well versed in the foods and activities that are natural to or that aggravate the doshas, we can maintain a more peaceful and healthy body and mind.

Very few of us have a pure prakṛiti of only one dosha, most of us have combinations. That is, we all have all three doshas within our makeup, but there is usually a prominence of one or two. For perfect health the goal is to have all of the doshas balanced within our prakṛiti.

There are seven possibilities of constitutional types: V, VP, P, PK, K, VK, VPK balanced (equal force from each dosha). What causes these constitutional types? They are determined at the time of conception and depend upon many factors, such as the spiritual state of the parents at conception, the astrology of the moment, physiology, genetics, and the physical health of the parents. Once the constitutional type is set, it is maintained for the balance of one’s life.

It is possible by studying the various types to analyze one’s own type from the similarities and dissimilarities with the characteristic patterns and varying categories. The difficulty with this is that we have a tendency to choose characteristics that seem to be “better” or of a “higher type.”

It is more accurate to learn one’s prakṛiti through the āyurvedic pulse diagnosis. Those who are trained in the method are able to determine which is the basic type and also able to determine if there are any imbalances. It is said that the real masters of this art are able to tell you about your entire past medical history, even to the extent of what surgery has been performed, as well as your present state of balance of the doshas.

In order to simplify this rather complex theory, we speak of the prakṛiti as a structura; the basis upon which we (in all of our facets) are structured. We also speak of each dosha as though it were a truly separate and concrete form of energy with usual effects upon our being. The extensive study of the prakṛiti and the doshas is only a small part of the vast field of āyurveda.

Āyurveda has studied the natural construction of man and his behavior in order to bring his very being into a closer natural harmony with nature. The very ancient science has a great deal to offer to the health of the world today.

Vāta Dosha

In order to be healthy, according to the āyurvedic system of medicine, we must have some knowledge of the character of each dosha and how to maintain a balance between them. Balance is attained by varying the diet and activities according to the climate, time of day and the individual’s nature.

Vāta is the dosha that is the base or driver of all motion within the body. It is the nature of the air/ether elements. It governs all biological movement such as breathing, muscular contraction, heartbeats and movement of single pulses through the nerves. It determines metabolism through the motion of the cell substances and controls the thoughts by leading the mind to constant, desirable objects rather than determined ones. Vāta is the root cause of the sense of hearing and stimulates the body fire for appetite. It causes the elimination of urine and feces. It distributes pitta and kapha in the body. It maintains the health and function of the body depending upon its balance. It also governs emotions such as pain, fear, nervousness, anxiety, tremors, and muscle spasms. Vāta’s physical properties are dry, expanding, light, cold, penetrating, subtle, rough and dispersing. Vāta dominates the fall season and is also most prominent between 2AM to 6AM and 2PM to 6PM. During these times, it is not wise to do or ingest anything that may bring about an imbalance of the vāta force. It is this time dominance that suggests that we rise from sleep each day before sunrise. Vāta is also dominant in the old-age period, that is, “life over fifty.”

Vāta’s natural seat is in the colon, pelvic cavity, bones, skin, ears and thighs. Imbalance will cause an accumulation of vāta in these areas with resulting diseases such as skin rashes and growths, constipation, abundant flatulence, bloating, bone and joint changes, decreasing mobility, impaired hearing, increased fear and memory loss and often confusion. In the fall we are still geared to a preponderance of pitta, so the changes in weather, although pleasant, may aggravate the vāta dosha, especially if we have a strong vāta constitution.

In order to counteract or attempt to balance this, we should always keep warm and protect ourselves from the strong winds and draft. We must avoid cold foods and drinks, supplementing our diet with warmer, heavier and moister foods but decreasing the vāta-aggravating foods such as beans, raw foods such as apples and anything from the cabbage family. Decrease pungent, bitter and astringent tastes as these aggravate vāta: increase the sweet, salty and sour tastes, as they tend to balance vāta. Dairy products are good to take in moderate amounts.

It is advisable to follow very closely to a routine, which may be boring, for this tends to balance or ground vāta. Long air travel tends to aggravate vāta, and this can be remedied by keeping warm and quiet and by good deep meditation. Alcohol aggravates vāta, especially in the artificial atmosphere of air travel. Sure ways to imbalance vāta are to worry, eat on the run, get too little sleep, eat dry, frozen or left-over foods, keep on the move or work at night.

Pitta Dosha

Vāta dosha has to do with energy in motion. Pitta is the force that balances the kinetic energy of vāta and the potential energy of kapha. Pitta is of fire/water energy, is dominant in July to October and peaks at noon and midnight. It governs metabolism, the enzymatic and endocrine systems, and has great influence on the mental activities. Pitta dosha’s function is pigmentation, digestion, heat, intelligence, sight, hunger, thirst, softness and radiance of the body, cheerfulness and courage. The physical properties of pitta are lightly viscid, non-sticky, active, hot to touch and bitter to taste. It is a combination of elemental fire and water. The normal seat is the duodenum (first section of the small intestine), liver and spleen. It also resides in the heart, eyes and skin and accounts for the skin’s radiant heat and health.

Deranged or unbalanced pitta may bring about changes in sight, digestion and inflammations of the skin. There is a tendency to be overheated and very thirsty. Ulcers, colitis, migraine headaches, hepatitis, allergies and hyperthyroidism are typical pitta diseases. Pitta people are of medium build and usually thin. They may have many moles or freckles or other skin blemishes. The skin is soft and warm; the hair is thin and silken. Normally these people have a strong digestion and huge appetites. They crave sweet, bitter, astringent tastes and cold drinks. They do not tolerate sun or heat well, as their body temperature is elevated. They are intelligent and sharp and like to be leaders. They are ambitious and have emotional tendencies toward anger, hate and jealousy.

In order to balance pitta, one must keep cool by avoiding heat and the warmer parts of the day, as well as the warmer climates. Avoid oils, fried foods, caffeine, salt, alcohol and hot spices. Plenty of grains and moderate dairy products tend to balance pitta, as do sweet, bitter and astringent tastes. Lots of fresh air is advised. Remaining calm and serene helps the pitta person to remain balanced. The important thing is to keep cool physically and mentally with such aids as cool, shady spots and cooling rinses after showers.

Hot spices and heavy, oily, fried foods aggravate pitta. Hard cheeses, sour cream, buttermilk and yogurt are to be used in very small portions, if at all. The cooling spices such as cumin, coriander, saffron, dill, mint and parsley are valuable in the pitta diet. Garlic is very aggravating to this constitution, and thus must sadly be avoided. Deranging the pitta constitution is easily accomplished—but hardly recommended—by the following: drink plenty of alcohol, eat spicy foods, especially tomatoes, chilies, raw onions and highly salted foods. Engage in frustrating activities, use drugs, especially cocaine, speed or marijuana, and wear tight, hot clothes. Avoid cool, fresh, peaceful places. Repress your feelings and eat as much red meat and salted fish as possible. These unhealthy forces are highly reactive and must be routinely excreted from the body. Vāta is eliminated from the body as gas and muscular or nervous energy. Pitta is eliminated from the body through acid, bile and perspiration.

Kapha Dosha

The last of the tridosha forces is kapha, active during March to June and early morning and early evening. Breakfast should be eaten by pitta and vāta people between 6 and 7AM. However, this is kapha time, so kapha people should not eat then, as it would increase the kapha within the body. kapha is not mucus but produces mucus to eliminate its forces.

kapha dosha’s main function is viscidity, nourishment, binding of the joints, solidarity, fortitude, forbearance, patience and abstinence. Its physical properties are: motionless, viscid, sticky, heavy, sweet, inert, cold, soft, white and tamasic. kapha is a combination of the earth and water elements. The challenge of a kaphic person is to overcome inertia and the desire to have and hold on to everything, even old outgrown attitudes and reactions. The natural site of kapha dosha is above the diaphragm. Unbalanced kapha produces heaviness in the body, drowsiness, numbness, feeling of old age, dyspepsia, sweet taste in the mouth, loss of memory, decrease in sensations and general debility. If the kapha is depleted, there is dryness, weakness, thirst and feeling of internal heat and emptiness.

Activities that imbalance kapha are: taking long naps after eating, eating lots of fat and oils, overeating, letting inertia take over your body and mind, not exercising, using drugs (especially sedatives and tranquilizers), never skipping desserts (especially ice cream and gooey, sticky ones), enjoying the sedentary TV life daily and interrupting viewing only by eating large meals and excessive snacking of salty and gooey foods.

In order to balance the kapha dosha: exercise daily, reduce fatty foods, eliminate iced drinks and foods and excessive amounts of bread and pastries. Also, eat warm, light and dry foods and have a lot of variety in the menus with vegetables, peppers, ginger, garlic, and turmeric. Keep salt consumption low. Most seeds and all nuts should be eliminated from the diet. Popcorn with no fat or salt is excellent.

The diseases common to kaphic constitution are: coughs, excess mucus, bronchitis, rheumatic fever, aching joints, pleurisy, pericarditis, sinusitis, nasal congestion, accentuation of greedy tendencies (holding onto things such as repressions, body wastes), lethargy and sloth.

Conclusion

By careful attention to diet, varying it according to the season of the year and the time of the day with special reference to one’s constitutional dosha, we are able to balance the doshas. This balance is the first step to a healthy and disease-free life. If there is such an upset of the doshic balance that a disease process is present, treatments using prāṇāyāma, massage, cleansing, aromatherapy, herbals, gems and other techniques are available to the āyurvedic physician. Remember that mental balance and a balanced diet according to one’s constitution are the basis of health.

Food for Thought: What You Eat Affects Mind, Body and Emotions

Reprinted from HINDUISM TODAY, February, 1992

Food comes from nature. According to the ancient science of āyurveda, nature is a primordial force of life composed in three modes, qualities or principles of manifestation called guṇas, meaning “strand or quality.” The three guṇas are: sattva, “beingness;” rajas, “dynamism;” and tamas, “darkness.” Sattva is the tranquil energy, rajas is active energy and tamas is energy that is inert. The nature of sattva is quiescent, rarified, translucent, pervasive. The nature of rajas is movement, action, emotion. The nature of tamas is inertia, denseness, contraction, resistance and dissolution. These guṇas are not separate entities, but varied dimensions or frequencies of the single essential life force. Like all things in the universe, the food we eat has one or more of these qualities of energy and affects our mind, body and emotions accordingly. Hence, what we eat is important. Sattvic food is especially good for a contemplative life.

Sattvic food makes the mind calm.

Our peaceful friend on the left above is blessing his food before he begins to eat. This sanctifies the naturally pure elements of his meal of fruits, whole grains, cooked vegetables, salad and pure water. Fresh and close to their natural state, his sattvic foods are lightly cooked and seasoned. He could also have fresh dairy products, yogurt or cheese made with vegetable rennet. His mind and emotions will be as wholesome as his meal, not disturbed by agitating or dulling elements in his food. His body will be fully nourished by life-giving carbohydrates, protein and vitamins.

Whole grains and legumes are sattvic, such as brown rice, whole wheat, millet, corn, soybeans, lentils, oats and beans.

Freshly picked organically grown vegetables are sattvic, such as celery, cauliflower, zucchini, lettuce, green beans, broccoli and
asparagus.

Fresh fruits are sattvic, such as apples, peaches, oranges, bananas, dates, guavas, berries and papayas.

Rajasic food makes the mind restless.

Our active friend in the middle in the drawing is about to enjoy his meal of spicy fish, potatoes, parsley and wine. Though nutritious, this food will excite his mind, emotions and body, causing a continuously restless state. Just as he desires new food and spices to enjoy, he desires ever-changing emotional and intellectual gratification. He will be aggressive with others, not at peace with himself and subject to illness. Fish, foul, eggs, meat (except beef and pork, which are tamasic), coffee, tobacco and spicy foods are all rajasic. This diet militates against a calm approach to life.

Fish and meat are rajasic, such as salmon, sole, trout, lamb, chicken, turkey, tuna and eggs.

Spices are rajasic, such as salt, cayenne, black pepper and ginger. So are onions, radishes and garlic.

Stimulants are rajasic, such as coffee, tea, sugar, cola drinks and chocolate. In moderation, beer and wine are rajasic.

Tamasic food makes the mind dull.

Our lethargic friend on the right in the picture is about to enjoy a standard American meal: cheeseburger and fries, with bourbon on ice to drink. He is unwittingly consuming largely lifeless matter. The patty of beef has been treated with chemicals, frozen, then cooked hours in advance. The cheese was curdled with rennet from calf stomach. The refined white bun provides precious little nutrition. The deep-fried french fries are difficult to digest. The drink will blur his senses. With this heavy load to digest, it is no wonder our friend’s mind is a little dull.

Beef and veal are tamasic as are preserved meats such as hot dogs, sausages, sardines, bologna, bacon and ham.

Deep-fried foods are tamasic, such as french fries. So are foods preserved with salt or by pickling in vinegar.

Hard liquor is tamasic, such as gin, vodka, arrack, whisky, rum, scotch, martinis and other mixed drinks.

Five Reasons to Be a Vegetarian

The abhorrence of injury and killing of any kind leads quite naturally to a vegetarian diet. The meat-eater’s desire for meat drives another to kill and provide that meat. The act of the butcher begins with the desire of the consumer. Meat-eating contributes to a mentality of violence, for with the chemically complex meat ingested, one absorbs the slaughtered creature’s fear, pain and terror. These qualities are nourished within the meat-eater, perpetuating the cycle of cruelty and confusion. When the individual’s consciousness lifts and expands, he will abhor violence and not be able to even digest the meat, fish, fowl and eggs he was formerly consuming.

Vegetarian foods include grains, fruits, vegetables, legumes and dairy products. Natural, fresh foods, locally grown without insecticides or chemical fertilizers are preferred. A vegetarian diet does not include meat, fish, fowl, shellfish or eggs. For good health, even certain vegetarian foods are minimized: frozen and canned foods, highly processed foods, such as white rice, white sugar and white flour; and “junk” foods and beverages—those with abundant chemical additives, such as artificial sweeteners, colorings, flavorings and preservatives. In the past fifty years millions of meat-eaters have made the personal decision to stop eating the flesh of other creatures. There are five major motivations for such a decision.

1. THE DHARMIC/SCRIPTURAL LAW REASON: Ahiṁsā, the law of noninjury, is the first duty in fulfillment of his religious obligations to God and God’s creation as defined by Vedic scripture.

2. THE KARMIC CONSEQUENCES REASON: All of our actions including our choice of food have karmic consequences. By involving oneself in the cycle of inflicting injury, pain and death, even indirectly by eating other creatures, one must in the future experience in equal measure the suffering caused.

3. THE SPIRITUAL CONSCIOUSNESS REASON: Food is the source of the body’s chemistry, and what we ingest affects our consciousness, emotions and experiential patterns. If one wants to live in higher consciousness, in peace and happiness and love for all creatures, then he cannot eat meat, fish, shellfish, fowl or eggs. By ingesting the grosser chemistries of animal foods, one introduces into the body and mind anger, jealousy, fear, anxiety, suspicion and a terrible fear of death, all of which are locked into the flesh of butchered creatures. For these reasons, śākāhārīs live in higher consciousness and mānsāhārīs abide in lower consciousness.

4. THE HEALTH REASON : Medical studies prove that a vegetarian diet is easier to digest, provides a wider range of nutrients and imposes fewer burdens and impurities on the body. Vegetarians are less susceptible to all the major diseases that afflict contemporary humanity. Thus they live longer, healthier, more productive lives. They have fewer physical complaints, less frequent visits to the doctor, fewer dental problems and smaller medical bills. Their immune system is stronger, their bodies are purer, more refined and skin more beautiful.

5. THE ECOLOGICAL REASON : Planet earth is suffering. In large measure, the escalating loss of species, destruction of ancient rain forests to create pasture lands for livestock, loss of topsoil and the consequent increase of water impurities and air pollution have all been traced to the single fact of meat in the human diet. No single decision that we can make as individuals or as a race can have such a dramatic effect on the improvement of our planetary ecology as the decision to not eat meat. Many seeking to save the planet for future generations have made this decision for this reason and this reason alone.

Introduction to the Recipes

IT IS WELL KNOWN THAT SOUTH INDIAN MONASTERIES SERVE SOME OF THE BEST MEALS ENJOYED ANYWHERE. Kauai Aadheenam, the secluded ashram of Satguru Bodhinatha Veylanswami on Hawaii’s Garden Island is no exception. Here the cooks daily prepare delicious, nourishing meals for their Satguru, 20 of his monastic disciples and the many guests who pilgrimage to this sacred sanctuary. Through the last four decades these Saivite Hindu monks have assembled and developed a rare array of recipes. In the Monks’ Cookbook we are happy to share these nutritious vegetarian delights for you to enjoy in your own kitchen. Remember, from the point of view of both nutrition and health, South Indian cooking is perfectly balanced—low in both fats and cholesterol. Oil is used sparingly and a variety of protein-rich dals form an important part of the daily menu. These are a key to the ability of the body to assimilate, and should not be neglected. A meal is always finished with a wholesome and soothing home-made yogurt. These combinations are the result of 8,000 years of heritage, and represent one of humanity’s most perfectly balanced diets.

Most of the recipes in the Monks’ Cookbook labeled “Jaffna style” will provide rather large servings for four people. Most other recipes are for at least 10 to 15 people, so take note of the amounts if you are cooking for just a few people. In Jaffna, large amounts of rice (about 40-50% of a meal’s volumn) are usually eaten, with smaller portions of curries. Increase the amounts in the curry recipes if you wish to serve larger portions of vegetables.

Chili powder in a recipe means cayenne curry powder, and in Jaffna it is usually a mixture of ground roasted coriander and roasted cayenne. Other spices are added separately. This is the curry powder referred to in these recipes. It is ideal, though time-consuming, to roast your own spices every month or so. Commercial curry powder bears no resemblance to the subtle flavors thus achieved.

Dal or lentils are available in Indian groceries in many types: urad dal, mung, tural, channa and masur (also spelled Mysore) are the most common. If a recipe calls for a small amount of unspecified dal, urad dal is usually used. The fastest cooking dal (easiest to digest and best to serve Gurudeva) is the masur of the orange color.

Jaggery is a brown sugar made like maple sugar, from the flower nectar exuded from the palmyra tree. If unavailable, use the organic whole food sweetener called “Sucanat,” a raw sugar made from evaporated cane juice. If this is not available, dark brown sugar or honey may be used. If using honey, never cook or boil it as this will change the chemistry and render it indigestible. Best to add honey to the dish after you have turned off the stove. In this way you avoid the honey from boiling.

Mustard seeds are often called for in these recipes. They should always be tempered—popped first in a little ghee (be sure to cover the pan when frying them or they’ll pop all over the stove).

A word on the very important practice of tempering is due. Tempering is cooking spices (which may be whole, ground or roasted previously) in hot ghee or butter. In the monastery we don’t use any other oils, though you may be less strict about that. It is tempering which gives Indian dishes a crunchy, nutty flavor. Tempering is typical of all Sri Lankan and South Indian cooking, and a key to mastering these recipes (even when the recipe does not call for it specifically, very often you will want to imploy this style, and the best results depend on it!) At first glance, it may seem as if tempering is nothing more than a few mustard seeds spluttering away in a pan or a couple of dals turning to a golden color. However, it is this delicate blending of spices that imparts the distinctive charm and aroma to each dish. Mastering this spicing system can make all the difference between a dish that lights up the family’s eyes and one that is forgettable.

To temper any curry do the following: heat ghee, saute ½ tsp mustard seeds, 1 sprig curry leaves, 1 tsp cayenne, ½ onion (chopped small), 1 tbsp urad dal and later stir this sauteed mixture into finished curry, mixing it well with the cooked vegetables. Most spices should be fried on low or medium heat as this is sufficient to obtain the correct flavor. With some spices the flavor becomes mellow or more subtle, other spices like cayenne become even more pungent and hot. It is important that the ghee or butter should never be brought to the smoking point as this renders it and anything it coats undigestable. Also when ghee or oil smokes, it begins to decompose, creating free radicals as well as a noxious compound that can inflame your respiratory system. Ghee and various oils smoke at different temperatures. For example, olive oil at 375 degrees F, ghee smokes at 410, sesame oil at 420, peanut oil at 440, and corn oil at 474. You can use a candy thermometer to test the oil.

Coconut milk gives Jaffna curries their distinctive richness and sweetness, but if it is not possible to obtain, cow’s milk may be substituted. Most of the recipes simply call for milk—either type may be used. If using cow’s milk, try to obtain unhomogenized raw milk and bring it to a boil before using. Coconut milk is obtained by soaking coconut flour in warm water, then squeezing it very hard so the rich milk is extracted. The process may be repeated two or three times to yield first a very rich cream, then a thinner milk, then “skim milk.” Frozen or canned coconut milk is also available in some grocery stores, but should be avoided.

Coconut flour refers to coconut grated very finely on the Indian style coconut grater. Coconut paste is the flour ground to a paste. In Jaffna, heavy stone grinders are used. In the West, a blender will work, if a large enough amount of coconut flour is put in.

Curry leaves are the leaves of a small shrub that grows in Asia. They are used fresh there, but the dried leaf may be purchased in Indian groceries here and used in these recipes. Amounts are not given. A small handful is usually used in a recipe for four. Often a recipe will call for a grain or legume to be roasted. This can be done in a heavy skillet or in the oven on a tray. Keep the temperature fairly low, and stir often. Watch carefully to see that the grain doesn’t burn. Some recipes call for tamarind paste. This can be purchased at Indian stores; a small amount is dissolved in water as directed in the recipes.

Here are a few additions to any curry that needs a special something (known in our kitchen as recipe-savers): lime juice, coconut chutney, sodi, Braggs Liquid Amino (soy sauce).

Amounts for salt and other ingredients are not always given. This means that there is no set amount for the recipe. Simply add to taste. Similarly, “finish with lime juice” means to add lime juice to taste or as directed to the finished curry.

If deep-frying (a method we use infrequently, for fancy festival feasts), it is important to keep the oil hot enough or the food will absorb too much of the frying medium and become greasy and heavy—a most unappetizing combination. Also be sure to use enough oil to completely cover the food while it fries. The pot should be big enough to provide ample room for the currents of hot ghee or oil to circulate freely. Before adding a new batch of food, allow the ghee or oil to return to its optimal temperature.

Liquids: Beverages are an integral part of an Ayurvedic meal. It is not advised to separate beverages and solid foods, but to sip in moderation. This will enhance agni and aid the saliva in moistening the food. Some liquids will enhance agni, while others can suppress it. This depends on the makeup of the beverage and the amount drunk. A plain glass of room temperature water or some warm tea are fine beverages to drink with a meal; a slice of lime or lemon in them will enhance their ability to support agni. It is washing foods down with excessive amounts of icy drinks that is discouraged in ayurveda, and rightfully so. In both Eastern and Western research, this has been shown to suppress gastric acid secretion and subsequent digestion.

Several types of savory liquids are served with rice and curry. Kulambu is spicy hot and thick like a gravy. Sodi is milder, rich with coconut milk and usually served with stringhoppers. Rasam is a peppery water flavored with other spices and is drunk with the meal or poured over the rice. Another thick gravy—actually more like a stew in some cases—is sambar, not to be confused with sambal. Sambar is made with dal and vegetables, often with a tomato base. It can be served with rice, dosai or idli.

Where to Purchase Supplies

AYURVEDA

Bazaar of India: 1810 University Ave, Berkeley, CA 94703. Phone: 1-800-261-7662, 1-510-849-3329,
1-510-548-4110; fax: 510-548-1115. They carry all the traditional ayurvedic herbs, powders and care products.

Ayurveda Holistic Center: 82-A Bayville Ave, Bayville NY 11709. Phone: 1-516-628-8200; fax: 1-516-628-8200

Ayurvedic Institute: PO Box 23445, Albuquerque, NM 87192. Phone: 1-505-291-9698; fax: 1-505-294-7572.

Ayush Herbs Inc.: 2115 112th Ave. NE, Bellevue, WA 98004. Phone: 1-800-925-1371, 206-453-8022; fax: 206-451-2670.

Sushakti: 53 E 6th Ave, Vancouver, BC, V5T 1J3. Phone: 1-604-877-1077; fax: 1-604-877-0906.

INDIAN GROCERIES

House of Spices: 5113 Mowry AVE. Fremont, CA 94538. Tel: 510-791-8014. They carry all the Indian spices and dals, and a wide selection of chutneys.

Jay Store: 6688 SW Freeway, Houston, TX 77074. Phone: 1-713-783-0032.

The Tamarind Tree: 1037 State Street, Perth Amboy, NJ 08861. Phone: 1-800-432-8733, 1-908-293-1500; fax: 1-908-293-1507.

Spices of the Orient: 6/48 Buckingham Drive, Wanneroo 6061, Western Australia (09) 409-1949.

Hotdishes

3979 Mosher Drive

San Jose, CA 95135

http://www.hotdishes.com/groceries.htm

SRI LANKAN FOODS

Lanka Link: 2493 E Colorado Bvd, Pasadena, CA 91107. Phone: 1-818-405-2353, 1-818-338-6975; fax: same as tel. They have all the needs specifically for Sri Lankan and South Indian cooking.

Saravana’s: 1023 Markham Road, Scarborough, Ontario, M1H 2Y5 CANADA. Tel: 416-439-5727 Fax: 416-3439-9632

Ohm Siva’s Trading Co LTD.: 3852 Finch Ave. E., Scarborough, Ontario, CANADA. Tel: 416 321 2739

Sri Murugan Traders: 289 Dundas ST. E., Unit 6, Mississauga, Ontario L5A 1X1 CANADA Tel: 905 272 5119

GHEE

Purity Farms: 14635 Westcreek Rd, Sedalia, CO 80135. Phone: 1-303-647-2368; fax: 303-647-9875.

SPICES

San Francisco Herb Co.: 250, 14th ST. San Francisco, CA 94103. Tel: 800-227-4530 or 415-861-7174. Fax: 415-861-4440. They specialize in spices and carry just about all the Indian spices you will need and also Western spices. Very good prices for wholesale and retail.

YOGURT MAKING SUPPLIES

New England Cheesmaking Supply Co.: P.O. Box 85, Main ST., Ashfield, MA 01330. Tel: 413-628-3808 Fax: 413-628-4061.

NUTRITIONAL SUPPLEMENTS

Nutritech: 719 E. Haley ST. Santa Barbara, CA 93103. Tel:1-800-235-5727.

KALUMBU, SODI, SAMBAR & DAL

Fenugreek Kulambu (Jaffna Style)

THICK SPICY GRAVY SERVED OVER RICE FOR LUNCH

1 large onion, chopped small

1 clove garlic, minced

1 tsp fenugreek seed

1 ½ tsp ghee

1 ½ tsp curry powder w/chili

1 tsp tamarind paste

½ cup coconut milk

curry leaves

salt

1 cup water

Soak fenugreek in warm water for ten minutes. Then strain the seeds and discard the water. Saute onion and garlic in ghee. When golden, add the fenugreek and curry leaves. Dilute tamarind in water and add to the cooking onions with curry powder and salt. Boil for five minutes, add coconut milk and simmer until thick like a gravy.

Eggplant Kulambu

1 eggplant

diced small½ onion

½ tsp fenugreek seed

1 cup coconut milk

1 tsp curry powder w/chili

salt

ghee

curry leaves

½ tsp tamarind paste

½ cup water

Saute eggplant in ghee until cooked and remove it from the ghee. In another tablespoon of ghee fry the onion and fenugreek seed and curry leaves. Add the curry powder, salt and eggplant. Mix tamarind and water and add this to mixture. Simmer for ten minutes. Add milk and simmer until thick like a gravy.

Sodi (Jaffna Style)

THIN COCONUT GRAVY

1 small onion, chopped

curry leaves

3 cups coconut milk

salt

chilies, chopped

lime juice

2 tomatoes, diced

2 cups water

Boil onion, chilies and tomatoes in water with salt for 10 minutes. Add coconut milk and simmer 10 minutes more. Remove from fire and add lime juice. (Tomatoes, potatoes or cabbage can enhance sodi: just add ½ lb chopped vegetables and boil with the onion and chilies.) Sodi is traditionally served with stringhoppers, idiappam or rice.

Onion Sambar

THICK GRAVY

½ cup toor dal

1 almond sized tamarind

1 large onion, chopped

1 tsp coriander seed

¾ tsp Bengal gram dal

1 small or medium red chili (dried)

1 coconut, grated

¼ tsp mustard seeds

1 tsp ghee

1 tsp salt

Chinese parsley, chopped

Cook toor dal ahead of time with a pinch of turmeric in 1 ½ to 2 cups water until tender. Soak tamarind in hot water. When cool, extract the pulp. Fry coriander seed, dal, red chilies and coconut, without ghee, in that order until spices brown a little. Then add coconut. In another vessel, add ghee and fry mustard seeds until they stop popping. Add onion and saute until slightly golden. Then add tamarind juice and salt. Cook until onion becomes soft. Grind the fried spices dry, then add ½ cup of water and grind to a smooth paste. Add this paste to the onions and cook 5-10 minutes more. Add cooked dal and parsley, bring to boil and remove from fire. Enjoy over rice for lunch or with dosai, idli or chapatis for dinner. Serves 3.

Dal

THICK LENTIL OR BEAN GRAVY SERVED ON RICE FOR LUNCH

1 cup toor dal

1 onion, chopped small

⅛ tsp urad dal

salt to taste

¼ tsp cumin seed

pinch of turmeric

1 tbsp coconut milk

⅛ tsp mustard seeds

2 cups water

Cook toor dal in water. The dal is cooked as soon as it becomes soft and mushy. This can take between 30 and 90 minutes depending on the type of dal (lentils) or beans. Add cumin seed, turmeric and salt, then coconut milk. Fry the onion, mustard seeds and urad dal. When urad dal turns golden brown, stir it into the cooked toor dal. Stir well. Makes 4 servings.

Mung Dal

½ cup mung beans

1 tsp finely chopped ginger

2 cups water

1 small onion

1 medium tomato

lemon juice

½ tsp cumin seed

¾ tsp salt

1 tbsp ghee a

pinch of turmeric

½ small green chili

Cook mung beans with a pinch of turmeric (about 45 minutes). Add more water if needed. Heat ghee and fry cumin seeds. Add the chopped onion, green chili and ginger. When onions are golden, add tomato and cook for a few minutes more. Add dal. Add salt and lemon juice to taste. Serves 4.

Mung Dal (Jaffna Style)

1 cup mung beans

1 onion

⅛ tsp cumin seed

⅛ tsp turmeric

3 cloves garlic

⅛ tsp black pepper

¼ cups coconut milk

1 green chili

salt to taste

Cook the mung beans in two cups of water with the onion and chilies. Then add the pepper, cumin seed, salt, coconut milk and garlic, crushed. If you like, add ¼ tsp chili powder. Split mung beans and red lentils (masoor dal) are prepared the same way.

Ayurvedic Mung Dal

4 cups mung beans

12 cups water

¼ cup ghee

1 tsp mustard seeds

¼ tsp hing (asafoetida)

1 ½ tsp turmeric

4 green peppers (not hot)

2 ½ tbsp cumin seed

1 tbsp ginger root powder

1 cup water

juice of 2–3 limes

2 tsp salt

Wash the beans two or three times by rinsing and straining off the beans to get rid of stones and other debris. Then cook the beans in 12 cups of water. SAUCE: Heat ghee in a frying pan. Add hing and turmeric when mustard seeds start to pop. Stir in peppers (chopped). Let peppers roast for a minute, then add cumin seed and ginger powder. Let mixture roast for minute (but don’t let it burn), then add 1 cup water, lime juice and salt. Bring sauce to a boil, then add to the cooked beans. Serves 20.

Masoor Dal

2 cups Masoor dal

6 cups water

½ cup ghee

1 tbsp mustard seeds

1 tsp turmeric

⅛ tsp hing (asafoetida)

3 cloves of garlic, minced

5 green peppers (not hot)

2 tbsp coriander powder

1 tsp cinnamon powder

2 tbsp curry powder

2 cups water

½ tbsp turbinado sugar

juice of one lime

1 tbsp salt or to taste

1 large onion chopped

Masoor dal is the same as red lentils. Wash and cook the dal. The water-dal ratio can be adjusted according to the desired consistency. Pop the mustard seeds. Add the garlic and onions. As soon as onions are cooked, add green peppers then the powdered items and sugar and salt. Add some water to prevent burning. Let mixture boil a minute or two, then add lime juice salt and sugar. Garlic and green peppers should be allowed to turn golden brown. Add sauce to the cooked dal. Serves 20.

RASAM

SPICY SOUP: A BEFORE-LUNCH APPETIZER

There is no strict recipe for rasam. Common ingredients include ghee, mustard seeds, ginger, garlic, onions, anise, fennel cumin, fenugreek, pepper, crushed chili peppers, turmeric, tamarind, lemon juice, fresh coriander. Following are a few variations. Rasam is also commonly served during lunch in a cup or poured over rice.

Rasam (South Indian Style)

8–10 whole black peppercorns

1–2 tsp cumin seed

2 dried chilies

2–3 cloves garlic, crushed

1 tomato, diced

8 curry leaves

1 tbsp ghee

¼ tsp mustard seeds

4 cups of water

tamarind paste salt

In about 2 cups of water combine the tamarind paste (if using raw tamarind, soak and squeeze an almond sized pulp in ½ cup of water), a few dried chilies, the tomato, garlic and four curry leaves. Grind black peppers and cumin seeds together and add to the liquid. Bring to a boil and simmer for about ten minutes. Heat a skillet and fry the mustard seeds until they start to pop. Add one or more dried chilies and the remaining curry leaves. Saute until fragrant and add to rasam liquid. Add salt to taste. This should cook until the tomato is soft. More liquid can be added if mixture is a bit heavy. Serve in small cups. All ingredients are given in approximate measurements, so experiment a little! Makes about 4 servings.

Ayurvedic Rasam

1 tbsp ghee

1-2 tsp mustard seeds

2 bulbs garlic, minced

1 pinch fenugreek

1 tbsp cumin powder,

½ tbsp cinnamon powder

2 tbsp coriander powder

2 tbsp tamarind paste or 4 limes

1 tbsp fennel powder

3 tomatoes, diced small

1 tsp hing (asafoetida)

1 onion, minced

1 tsp turmeric powder

12 cups water

1 tsp cayenne

salt to taste

Lots of ingredients, but easy to make. First combine all the powdered spices and dry roast until the mix starts to be fragrant. Mix the tamarind with water and add the roasted spices, garlic, onions and tomatoes and bring to a boil. As soon as the rasam boils, turn the heat down to simmer and cover the pot. Heat the ghee in a small frying pan and pop the mustard seeds, then add it to the simmering rasam. Salt to taste. Rasam is done when the tomatoes are tender. You can add more cayenne if you like, but it is very tasty without any spicy heat, too. This recipe serves about 15.

Tomato-Lemon Rasam

¼ cup toor dal

pinch of turmeric

¾ tsp salt

1 medium tomato

½ tsp rasam powder (optional)

1 inch of ginger

1 pinch asafoetida

¼ tsp mustard seeds

1 tsp ghee

1 handful coriander leaves

1-2 tbsp lime/lemon juice

6 cups of water

Cook toor dal with turmeric in about 1 cup of water. When this is cooked, add chopped tomato, salt, rasam powder, crushed ginger, asafoetida and 1 cup water. Cook on medium heat till the spices become fragrant. Add 1 more cup water and chopped coriander leaves bring to boil and turn flame off. Season with popped mustard seeds (to pop mustard seeds, in a separate pan, add ghee and mustard seeds and fry until the seed stop popping). Serves 3.

RICE & GRAINS

Rice is the mainstay of the South Indian diet and also plays an important part in the religious ceremonies as a symbol of fertility and abundance. It is said India produces over one thousand types of rice and there are probably as many recipes for cooking rice, too. When cooked correctly, rice should be flaky, not mushy, and tender all the way through. Each grain should be separate from the others. This is a trick for cooking good rice that each cook should master. Use brown rice whenever possible, as it is much more nutritious than polished, refined rice. One-half to ¾ cup of dry rice is a serving for one person. If you are cooking 1 to 3 cups of dry rice, use twice the amount of water to cook it in. For example, 3 cups of dried rice should be cooked in cups of water. Be sure your pot is big enough for the expansion. If you are cooking more then 3 cups, use twice the amount minus 2 cups of water. Confused? This means if you are cooking 7 cups of dried rice you would use 12 cups of water (7 x 2 equals 14; minus 2 equals 12). Here’s a test. How much water would you use to cook 20 cups of dry rice? If your answer is 38, you got it right!

Plain Rice

3 cups rice

6 cups water

Bring water to a vigorous boil. Add the rice and bring to a boil again, then reduce heat as low as possible (with cover on) and let steam for 30-40 minutes, until the water is gone. White rice cooks faster than brown rice. In the last stages of steaming you may check the amount of water left by carefully inserting a chopstick through the rice to the bottom of the pot. If little or no water bubbles up, the rice is done—remove from heat and set aside with the cover still on the pot. Once the rice is steaming, DO NOT STIR! The rice forms starch webs between the grains as it steams. Stirring breaks these webs, and the result is mushy rice. Rice cooked in a pot with a tight lid will stay hot for 30 minutes or more.

Yellow Rice

Follow the above directions, but add ½ tsp of turmeric for each cup of uncooked rice. Add the turmeric during the boiling stage. The boiling action mixes the turmeric through the rice, so there is no need for stirring.

Pulao Rice

VEGETABLE FRIED RICE

1 medium onion, chopped

¼ tsp ginger, chopped fine

1 stick cinnamon broken into pieces

3 cloves

½ tsp fennel powder

½ tsp cardamom powder

½ tsp coriander powder

½ tsp cumin powder

¼ tsp turmeric powder

½ tsp salt

¼ cup ghee

1 tomato, chopped

½ tbsp vegetable bullion

¼ cup cashews

5 oz peas and carrots

10 cups cooked rice

Fry onion and ginger in ghee. When golden, add spices and fry on low heat for 2-3 minutes. Add cooked rice and fry it for 1 minute. Then add water, tomato, vegetable bullion, peas and carrots. Bring to boil, then turn heat down and steam the rice for 40 minutes, until done. Fry cashews in ghee and add to rice. Serves 5, great for dinner with chutney.

Pulao Rice

1 cup rice

1 ½ water

2 tbsp ghee

4 clove

4 cardamom seed

2 bay leaves

1 inch cinnamon

½ tsp salt

A pinch of turmeric

1/3 cup green peas

Heat ghee. Add cloves, cardamom, bay leaves. When fragrant, add water. When the mixture begins to boil add the rice. Cook peas separately and add when rice is done. Garnish with sauteed onion rings, sauteed slivered almonds and raisins. Serves 4.

Beet and Green Pepper Pulao

3 tbsp ghee

1 onion, sliced

2 bay leaves

½ tsp mustard seeds

1 large beet, slice

2 large green peppers

1 tbsp lemon juice

2 brown cardamom pods, crushed

1 tbsp chopped cilantro

3 ¾ cups water

2 cups brown rice, pre-soaked

salt

Heat ghee in a saucepan and fry the onion until golden. Add bay leaves, cardamom and mustard and saute for 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in the beet and green pepper and fry for another 2 minutes or so. Add the rice and water together with the seasoning and bring to boil and cook for about 10 minutes. Lower the heat, sprinkle with the lemon juice and coriander, cover the pan and simmer for another 10 to 15 minutes until the rice is cooked and the water has evaporated. Serve hot.

Curd Rice (Jaffna Style)

OFTEN MADE AS PRASADAM

2 cups of rice

curry leaves

1 cups curd(yogurt)

1½ tbsp ghee

2 green chilies, minced

2 dried chilies, minced

1 tbsp urad dal

1 tbsp grated ginger

½ tsp mustard seeds

salt

Cook rice in four cups of water. Fry the chilies, mustard seeds, dal, curry leaves and ginger. Mix the curd and salt, add to rice with the fried spices. Stir well. Serves 4.

Yogurt Rice

ANOTHER VARIATION FOR FESTIVE OCCASIONS

For each cup of dry rice use:

1 cup of yogurt

½ tsp chopped fresh ginger

2 tsp chopped fresh coriander

¼ tsp mustard seeds

¼ tsp cumin seed

3 tbsp ghee

½ tsp salt

Cook the rice and add the salt and yogurt to it. In a separate pot, heat the ghee and pop the mustard seeds. After the mustard seeds stop popping, turn off the heat and add the cumin seeds. They will also pop. Turn the heat to low and add the ginger and coriander and cook until the coriander is soft and done (about 5 minutes), then add to the rice. For a variation, you may use ½ cup of sour cream and ½ cup of yogurt for each cup of rice you prepare. This will make the dish much richer.

Coconut Milk Rice (Jaffna Style)

RICE FOR LUNCH

2 cups rice

½ coconut shredded

2 tbsp split mung dal

salt

Boil the rice and dal in four cups of water for 20 minutes. Press one cup of milk from the shredded coconut and add it to the rice. Add salt, reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes, then remove. Serves 3.

Lemon Rice

1 tbsp of lemon juice

¼ tsp turmeric powder

1 tbsp ghee or butter

3 tbsp cashews

½ tsp salt

¼ tsp mustard seeds

1 cup rice

Steam 1 cup rice; then add lemon juice and turmeric powder. Fry cashews in ghee and add to the rice. Pop mustard seeds in ghee (keep cover on so seeds don’t fly all over the place). Add mustard seeds to the rice, stir thoroughly. Serves 2.

Lime Rice (Jaffna Style)

2 cups rice

¼ tsp mustard seeds

2 tbsp urad dal

curry leaves

1 tbsp ghee

4 limes

6 dried or green chilies, minced

⅛ tsp turmeric powder

Steam the rice and set aside. Fry the chilies, mustard seeds, curry leaves and dal. Add lime juice, salt, turmeric powder along with the fried spices to the rice and stir well.

Black Pepper Rice (Jaffna Style)

HOT RICE FOR LUNCH

2 cups rice

1 tbsp black pepper coarse

1 tbsp cumin seed

½ coconut, grated

4 tbsp cashew nuts

1 tbsp ghee

Cook the rice and add to it the cumin, pepper, and coconut. Brown the cashews in ghee and add to the rice. Stir well. Serves 4.

Coconut Rice

4 tbsp grated coconut

2 tbsp ghee

½ tsp mustard seeds

3 tbsp cashews

½ tsp salt

4 cups freshly cooked rice

Stir coconut into 4 cups of cooked rice. Fry cashews in ghee and add to rice. Pop mustard seeds in ghee and add to rice. Mix ingredients thoroughly. Serves 3.

Tomato Rice

A POPULAR RICE FOR DINNER

1 large tomato, diced small

1 medium onion, chopped small

¼ tsp ginger, finely minced

½ tsp coriander powder

¼ tsp cinnamon powder

⅛ tsp clove powder

½ tsp cumin powder

½ tsp fennel powder

1 tbsp ghee

½ tsp salt

2 cups freshly cooked rice

Saute onion in ghee until soft and golden, then add ginger and cook for 2 minutes. Next add all other spices and fry with low heat for two more minutes. Pour in 2 cups of cooked rice. Cook for half a minute, then add tomato and water. Bring to a boil; then lower heat and steam for 40 minutes. Serve for dinner with hot coconut chutney.

Tamarind Rice (Jaffna Style)

FOR SPECIAL DAYS

2 cups rice

1 ½ tsp channa dal

3 tbsp ghee

1 tbsp tamarind paste

¼ tsp mustard seeds

curry leaves

6 dry chilies, minced

salt

⅛ tsp turmeric powder

Soak dal in water for one hour. Steam the rice and set aside. Fry mustard seeds, chilies, curry leaves and dal. When the mustard seeds stop popping, add the tamarind paste, salt and turmeric powder (keep the pan covered until the seeds stop popping). Add enough water to the mixture to make a thin gravy and simmer for about 15 minutes or until sauce thickens. Add the rice to the sauce and stir well. Serves 3.

Buriyani Rice 1

DINNER TIME SPICY VEGETABLE RICE

5 cups cooked rice

6 medium potatoes

2 medium onions

1/3 cabbage

6 oz peanuts

24 string beans

½ tsp fennel seeds

1 handful chopped coriander leaves

½ tsp cinnamon powder

2 tsp salt, 1 tsp fennel powder

Peel and slice potatoes into ⅛ inch cubes and deep fry. Slice onion small and fry with mustard seeds. Cut cabbage small. Fry it in a small amount of ghee or steam lightly. Add all above ingredients to cooked rice. Stir in coriander and cinnamon. Great with coconut chutney. Serves 8.

Buriyani Rice 2

7 ½ cups cooked rice

6 potatoes, sliced long and thin

1 cup milk

5 carrots, chopped long and thin

½ tsp saffron

3 onions, chopped small

1 ½ cup cashews

2 tbsp ginger

½ cup ghee

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 tbsp turmeric

1 tbsp fennel seeds

4 sticks cinnamon

2 tbsp cinnamon powder

2 tbsp coriander powder

2 green chilies

4-5 whole cloves

salt

Heat milk and saffron, stir into rice, set aside. Saute cashews in ghee and set aside. Fry potatoes and carrots and set aside. Then start on the main sauce: saute onions in ghee, add garlic and green chilies until golden. Add cloves, fennel and cinnamon sticks. Then add other spices. Add sauce and vegetables to rice, mix thoroughly. Serves 14.

Vegetable Rice (Jaffna Style)

2 cups rice

coriander leaves

2 carrots

salt

¼ lb green beans

½ tsp turmeric powder

1 curry plantain

1 tbsp chili powder

¼ lb potato

1 tbsp cumin

1 large onion

5 cloves garlic

¼ cups urad dal

curry leaves

2 green chilies

½ tbsp mustard seeds

½ tbsp tamarind paste

1 tbsp urad dal

3 tbsp ghee

½ coconut, grated

Chop vegetable into small pieces. Cook rice with the dal. When they are half cooked add the vegetables. Cook ten more minutes, add chili powder, cumin, turmeric and salt, stir well and continue cooking over a low fire. When the rice is done, remove from fire. Add the grated coconut, garlic paste and coriander leaves, stir and cover the pot. Fry the mustard seeds, dal, onion and curry leaves, add to rice and stir well. Serves 4.

Cauliflower Buriyani (North Indian Style)

2 cups cooked Basmati rice

3 cups cauliflower

½ cup cashew nuts

1 bunch scallion or onion

5–6 cloves of minced garlic

6–8 hot chilies

½ cup coriander leaves

pinch of turmeric

salt to taste

fresh lemon juice as desired

6 tbsp ghee

½ tsp mustard seeds

1 tsp fennel seed

fresh curry leaves

Cut cauliflower into flowerettes. Break the nuts into small pieces. Chop the coriander leaves finely. Heat ghee. Add ghee, mustard seeds, fennel and curry leaves. When popping begins, lower the heat and add chopped chilies, coriander, scallion, minced garlic, cashew nuts and cauliflower, turmeric and salt and cook on a low flame, without breaking the flowerettes, until tender. Then add 4 tbsp of ghee, cooked rice and lemon juice and mix well. Serve with yogurt or any raita (yogurt salad).

Mung Kitcheri

SOUPY RICE COOKED WITH MUNG BEANS

1 ½ cup rice

½ cup split mung dal (yellow lentils)

¼ cup butter

3 whole cardamoms, ground

2 cloves

2 bay leaves

¼ tsp cumin seed

¼ tsp cayenne, ¼ tsp turmeric pwd

¼ tsp paprika powder

2 small potatoes, cut to 1” cubes

1 stick cinnamon

½ cup peas

6 cups boiling water

4 tbsp ghee and salt to taste

In a dry frying pan, roast mung beans (without ghee) for 5 minutes. Wash the rice by repeating two or three times momentarily soaking and straining off the rice to get rid of foreign substances. Heat butter in a saucepan and add bay leaves, cardamoms and cinnamon stick. Saute for a minute. Add the beans and washed rice, paprika, cumin seeds, chili powder, turmeric powder and salt. Saute on medium heat for 20 minutes and pour hot water over this. When mixture boils turn down to medium heat and cover the pot, stirring occasionally. After cooking, add the ghee. Serve hot. Feeds 4.

PONGAL

Pongal is a Tamil word that originally refered to a special batch of rice made for the Tai Pongal festival, to invoke the blessings of God and Gods for a bountiful harvest year. Pongal rice, often sweet, was a sacred offering cooked at the temple amid grand festivities. To this day, in South Indian Hindu temples, this practice continues, though now pongal also applies to a variety of rice dishes for a range of occasions. For all pongal recipes, however, cow’s milk is used. The following rice recipe, when cooked, will be halved for the making of the two primary kinds of pongal, one sweet and one salty.

Rice for Pongal

¾ cup split mung beans

2 cups rice

5 ½ cups water

Lightly roast raw beans in a skillet (without ghee) until dry. Remove from heat before browning begins. Check carefully and remove stones or impurities then wash thoroughly. Mix dal with rice, add hot water and cook in a pressure cooker. If a pressure cooker is not available, bring water to a boil in pan, add rice and dal, lower the heat and cook until tender.

Sakkarai Pongal (Sweet)

SERVED TO DEVOTEES AFTER BEING OFFERED TO THE DEITY

1 ½ cups jaggery

¼ tsp cardamom powder

¼ oz ghee

¼ cup cow milk

6 cashews

few gratings of nutmeg

pinch of salt

Melt jaggery in a pot over low heat. Add cooked rice and dal (prepared in recipe above). Mix well. Add milk and stir until mixture thickens. Add melted ghee a little at a time. In a separate pan, fry cashews to a golden brown. Add the cashews, cardamom and grated nutmeg to the pongal and mix well.

Venn Pongal

SALTY RICE

¼ oz ghee

6 cashews

½ tsp black pepper

1 tsp cumin

a few curry leaves

1 tsp ginger

salt

turmeric powder to taste

Fry cashew nuts in ghee until golden brown. Add coarsely ground pepper, cumin, curry leaves and chopped ginger. Stir. Add cooked rice and dal (see recipe above). Mix well; add salt to taste. Add a pinch of turmeric powder, stir well.

Sakkarai Pongal (Jaffna Style)

SWEET RICE

2 cups rice

¼ cup raisins

2 tbsp mung dal

1 tsp cardamom powder

1 cup sugar

½ coconut, grated

¼ cup cashews

1 tbsp ghee

Roast mung dal in a dry skillet. Boil rice and dal in five cups of water for thirty minutes, until rice is cooked. Add sugar and coconut and stir well. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Fry raisins and nuts in ghee until nuts are brown and add to the rice along with the cardamom powder. Stir well and remove from fire. Serves 4.

Quinoa

Quinoa is a light grain common to South America’s Andean plateau. It is quick to cook and easily digestible. It is available in most health food stores, good for breakfast or for dinner. To make quinoa, add 2 cups of water for every cup of quinoa and bring to a boil. Cover the pot and turn the heat down to a simmer. Allow the grain to cook for 15 minutes, or until water on the top disappears, and turn off heat. Let the remaining steam cook the the quinoa for another 10 minutes, and the quinoa will fluff. Quinoa is a versatile grain that can be used as an alternative to rice in the pulao and other vegetable and rice recipes.

Millet

Millet is another light grain, a favorite bird food, but very healthy for humans, too! Like Quinoa it is quick to cook and easily digestible, available in most health food stores. It is popular for breakfast or dinner dishes. To make millet, roast it on medium heat for 5 minutes then add 3 cups of water for every cup of millet. Bring to a boil, cover the pot and turn heat down to simmer. Allow the grain to cook for 15 minutes or until water on the top disappears and turn off heat. Let the remaining steam cook the the quinoa for another 10 minutes so the millet will fluff. Millet is a dry grain, best served with a little ghee or with wet curries or chutneys.

CURRIES

SPICY VEGETABLE DISHES

Broccoli Curry 1

24 bunches of broccoli

2 onions (cut into thin slices)

4 cinnamon sticks

6 cloves

1 ½ tbsp cumin seed

1 tsp mustard seeds

6 whole black pepper seeds

⅛ tsp asafoetida

9 cups yogurt

½ cup mung flour

½ cup ghee

salt to taste

½ tsp turmeric powder

Cut the upper part of the broccoli into medium sized pieces and cut the stem into thin long pieces (peel the skin off if it is too hard). Steam broccoli for 9 minutes. Meanwhile, add to the yogurt 1 cup of cold water plus the mung flour and mix well. In another pot, heat the ghee and add the cumin and the mustard seeds. When mustard seeds have popped add the onions and fry until light brown. Add the asafoetida and turmeric powder to the ghee. After about 1 minute add the yogurt mixture. Stir constantly as sauce begins to thicken. Cook for about 20 minutes, then add the steamed broccoli and mix until sauce is very thick. Turn off heat. Serves 20.

Broccoli Curry 2

4 cups chopped onion

24 cups chopped broccoli

1 tsp mustard seeds

1-½ tbsp caraway seed

1 cup ghee

2 tbsp curry powder

3 cups tomato sauce

1-½ cup coconut milk

salt to taste

Pop mustard seeds in ghee. Add other spices. Add onion and fry. Add ghee and cook a few minutes. Add tomato sauce, salt and coconut milk and simmer. Pour this sauce over steamed broccoli and simmer for about 5 minutes. Serves 30.

Murungai Curry

DRUMSTICK CURRY, A SOUTH INDIAN DELICACY

2 bunches murungai, cut to lengths 3-4”

2 tsp mustard seeds

ghee

1 onion, chopped small

6 cloves garlic, chopped small

6-8 tomatoes, diced

1 tsp fenugreek seed

1 tbsp cayenne powder

1 tbsp coriander powder

1 ½ cups water

½ cup coconut milk

1 tbsp salt

Pop mustard seeds in ghee. Add onion and garlic. Cook gently; best not to brown. Add murungai and tomatoes. Stir cook a while, then add fenugreek, cayenne, coriander and water. Bring to a boil, then turn flame down to low and simmer gently for one hour or until murungai is fully cooked. Then stir in coconut milk and salt. We’ve found this recipe tastes best with lots of garlic and fenugreek seeds. We also make it quite hot (cayenne amount should be same as coriander).

Breadfruit Curry 1

2 tbsp cayenne

1 ½” ginger, minced

1 ½ tsp mustard seeds

8 tbsp ghee

1 large breadfruit, diced

½” 3 cloves garlic, minced

3 broccolis chopped

4 Chinese eggplant

2 tsp of turmeric

1 tbsp cumin seed

¼ cup sugar

1 ½ tbsp salt

½ cup tamarind juice(or 2 limes)

½ cup garam masala #6

Cut breadfruit, broccoli, eggplant and steam in a large pot. Mix in a bowl: ginger, garlic, cumin seed, chilies, black mustard, garam masala, turmeric. Heat ghee in frying pan. When hot but not steaming, pour in bowl’s contents, stirring until mustard seeds start popping. Pour in tamarind and boil. Add spice mixture, sugar and salt. Stir in steamed vegetables and let simmer for 15 minutes.

Breadfruit Curry 2

1 large breadfruit

1/3 cup ghee

1.5 tbsp coriander powder

1 onion, sliced thin

1 ½ tsp turmeric powder

1 or 2 chilies, minced

1 tsp cayenne

1 clove garlic, minced

1 coconut, grated

2” ginger, minced

1 tsp cumin seed

2 curry leaves

salt to taste

2 large tomatoes, blended

2 ½ cups water

Peel breadfruit and cut into ½-inch cubes. Steam for 40 minutes. Meanwhile, soak coconut in the water for 15 minutes, then strain to extract milk. Heat ghee in medium-sized pot. Add cumin and mustard seeds and cover. When popping ceases, add onions and chilies. Add garlic and ginger when onions are soft and golden. Keep stirring to prevent sticking. Add remaining spices after 2 minutes. After another 2 minutes add blended tomatoes. Wait 5 minutes, then add the coconut milk, bring to a boil, then reduce to low heat. Blend half the steamed breadfruit and add to the sauce. Then add unblended breadfruit. Remove from heat after 10 minutes. Serves 5-6.

Chili Curry

2 onions, diced

2 lbs sweet, green chilies (cut in half)

2 inches ginger, minced

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp turmeric powder

1 tsp cumin powder

1 tsp coriander powder

1 tsp raw sugar

1 ½ tsp salt

In ¼ cup melted ghee, saute ingredients above. When onions are soft or a light brown color add 1 cup tomato puree, 1 cup yogurt. Serves 6.

Drumstick Curry (Kauai Aadheenam Style)

12 pieces drumstick

1 coconut, grated

2 tbsp coriander powder

2 onions

¼ tsp turmeric

1 tbsp chili powder

½ cup tamarind

1 tsp fennel

1 tsp cumin seed

2 tsp turbinado sugar

2 green chilies

1 tbsp ginger

4 potatoes

1 tbsp garlic

curry leaves (if available)

ghee

salt

½ cup fresh coriander leaves

Steam the potatoes for 20-25 minutes, and drumsticks for 12 minutes and set aside. Heat ghee in a frying pan and add ginger and garlic. Cook a few minutes, then mix in the green chilies, then the onions. Cook until golden brown. Add spices (coriander powder, chili powders and turmeric) and cook for a while. Blend the grated coconut with 1 cup of water and add to the mixture. Simmer for a 5 minutes. Add honey and if you wish add 1 cup of yogurt (do not boil the mixture after adding coconut.) Add the mixture with steamed drumstick and potatoes. Add salt and fresh coriander.

Eggplant Curry

2 large onions, chopped

2 large tomatoes, diced

4 cloves garlic, diced

2” of ginger, diced

1 tsp poppy seed

2 tsp turmeric powder

1 tbsp salt

1 tsp cayenne

In ¼ cup ghee, saute the ingredients above. When onions are soft add 3 lbs of eggplant, chopped into ¼ inch pieces. Next add 1 cup tomato puree. Then add the juice of one lemon. Cover and simmer on low heat for 15 minutes. Serves 10.

Tofu Curry

1 lb tofu

½ tbsp curry powder

½ tsp fenugreek seed

½ tsp chili powder

1 cup coconut milk

⅛ tsp turmeric powder

1 tbsp fennel powder

1 onion

½ tsp salt

Slice tofu and fry or boil. Then strain the tofu. Lightly frying or boiling the tofu helps it maintain its shape while being stirred. Fry the onion and fenugreek seed separately. Add the tofu and stir well for 10 minutes over low heat. Add the coconut milk, curry powder, chili powder, salt and turmeric powder. Stir well and simmer for 10 minutes. Finish with lime juice. Serves 2.

Okra Curry (Jaffna Style)

1 lb okra

2 green chilies

1 cup milk

1 onion

1 tbsp lime juice

½ tsp salt

Cut the okra in one inch pieces, mince the onion and green chilies. Mix the milk, lime juice and salt with the okra and simmer all ingredients for 15 minutes.

Cabbage/Ginger Curry

2 oz ghee

3” finely chopped ginger

1.5 tbsp mustard powder

1 tbsp black pepper

1 tbsp coriander powder

1 chopped onion

2 cups yogurt

16 cups chopped cabbage

Saute spices in ghee, add cabbage and cook over low heat. Add yogurt at the end.

Cabbage with Potato (Jaffna Style)

½ lb cabbage

1 onion

½ lb potato

2 green chilies

1 cup milk

¼ tsp turmeric powder

salt

Cut the vegetables into small pieces and boil the milk with the spices for 15 minutes.

Subzi Bhindi (Okra)

1 lb fresh okra

2 tbsp coriander powder

2 tbsp cumin powder

¼ tsp turmeric powder

½ tsp chili powder

½ tsp mustard seeds

Fresh coriander leaves

1 fresh green chili

4 tbsp ghee

1 pinch of asafoetida

2-3 curry leaves

1 tsp salt

Finely chop the coriander leaves. Rinse the okra and pat dry with a paper towel or a napkin. Cut off the top and the bottom of the okras and chop into ½” pieces. Heat the ghee; add the spices, and a pinch of asafoetida at the last. When brown, quickly add okra. Stir fry for 2 minutes. Mix well and continue stir-frying until okra is nearly tender. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves. Serve hot with chapatis and yogurt.

Tomato Curry (Jaffna Style)

1 lb tomatoes, diced small

1 ½ tbsp coconut milk

1 onion, chopped small

2 green chilies, chopped small

1 tbsp ghee

salt

Heat ghee and saute onion and chilies for 5 minutes. Add tomatoes and stir for five minutes, then add coconut milk and simmer for 10 minutes more.

Beet-Vegetable Curry

3 cups vegetables

2 tsp pounded chilies

1 tsp pounded garlic

½ cup thick coconut cream

2 tbsp ghee

salt

1 tsp cumin seed

1 onion

Saute sliced onion in ghee, add vegetables (small pieces of carrot, beet, beans, peas and potatoes) and spices. Add coconut cream, close lid, cook till done.

Cabbage Curry (Jaffna Style)

1 lb cabbage

1 onion

2 green chilies

⅛ tsp turmeric

3 tbsp milk

salt

Cut cabbage into small pieces along with the onion and chilies. Mix all ingredients and boil for 10 minutes. Finish with ½ tbsp lime juice. Serves 3.

Beet Curry

8 medium sized beets

1 tbsp grated coconut

1 tbsp coriander leaves

1 tbsp sugar

2 tbsp ghee

4 green chilies

1 onion

¼ tsp fenugreek seed

1 cup water

1 tsp salt

Pound chilies and coconut; add to beet cubes and spices. Braise onion sliced and fenugreek seed in ghee until onion is soft and transparent. Add beets and spices; allow to simmer slowly. Stir well several times. Add water and cook until beets are tender. Mix in sugar. Garnish with a dry red chili and chopped coriander leaves and serve with mung kitcheri.

Sweet Pepper Curry (Jaffna Style)

1 lb sweet peppers, minced

½ cup milk

1 onion, minced

¼ tsp fenugreek seed

1 tsp salt

½ tbsp lime juice

ghee

Saute onion in ghee until clear. Add fenugreek seed and peppers. Stir fry for five minutes. Then add milk and salt, simmer for 10 minutes. Add lime juice, mix thoroughly and remove from fire.

Beet Curry (Jaffna Style)

1 lb beet

1 &½ cups tomato

1 onion

2 green chilies

salt

⅛ tbsp chili powder

Chop beet and onion. Boil in milk for 15 minutes. Add the chili powder and salt and stir. Simmer 5 or 10 minutes more; add lime juice before serving. Serves 3.

Zucchini and Tofu Curry

12 zucchini, diced

2 lbs tofu

2 cups sunflower seeds

1 big onion, chopped small

2 cups coconut milk

1/3 cup mint leaf, chopped small

¼ cup ghee

2” ginger, minced fine

4 cloves garlic, minced

green chilies

½ cup soy sauce

salt

Dry roast sunflower seeds, grind and set aside. In ghee, saute onion, garlic, ginger and green chilies. When golden, add steamed zucchini and tofu. Stir in mint and sunflower seeds, then add coconut milk and soy sauce. Salt to taste. Serves 20.

Potato Curry

2 medium potatoes

1 ½ tbsp ghee

½ tsp mustard seeds

½ tsp salt

1 pinch of turmeric

1 pinch asafoetida

Cook potatoes till soft. Peel the skin if desired. Cut into 16 pieces. Coat the pieces with salt, turmeric and asafoetida. Heat ghee in a frying pan and add mustard seeds. When the seeds stop popping, add the potatoes. Lower heat and fry potatoes to a golden brown color, occasionally turning them over. Serves 2.

Potato Curry (Jaffna Style)

1 lb potatoes

1 cup milk

1 onion

⅛ tsp turmeric

2 green chilies

1 tbsp ghee

½ tsp chili powder

small piece ginger

¼ tsp fenugreek seed

salt to taste

Cut the potato small and boil. Fry the onion, fenugreek seed and chilies in ghee. When onion is clear, add potatoes, milk and spices. Simmer over a low fire until potatoes are tender. Finish with lime juice. Serves 2.

Potato Curry (Variation)

10 potatoes

1 tsp fenugreek

2 tsp mustard seeds

½ tbsp tamarind

1 tbsp turmeric

½ coconut grated

1 tbsp coriander

2 tbsp salt

Milk grated coconut twice, by soaking in 1 cup water for 15 minutes then pressing through a fine strainer. Peel and dice potatoes, boil and drain. Heat the ghee in another pot and pop the mustard seeds. Lower the heat and saute spices, then add coconut milk with tamarind in it. Add salt to potatoes and simmer for 5 minutes. Serves 10.

Potato Curry (Dry)

2 potatoes

½ tsp cumin seed

½ tsp mustard seeds

½ tsp black pepper

2 cloves garlic

1 tbsp ghee

½ stick of butter (2 oz)

½ cup fresh coriander

Chop and steam the potatoes as explained above. Pop the mustard seeds in ghee, lower the heat and then pop the cumin seeds. Melt the butter, add the black pepper and saute the garlic and the chopped coriander until both are cooked (the garlic and coriander may be blended together with a little ghee to save some time.) Add salt to taste and mix with the potatoes thoroughly. For another variation add two medium chopped tomatoes. Serves 4.

Potato Curry (Thick Sauce)

2 potatoes

½ tsp caraway seed

1 cup of milk

⅛ tsp cayenne

½ tsp mustard seeds

½ tsp black pepper

2 cloves garlic

1 tbsp ghee or butter

salt

Chop the potatoes into ½ inch cubes and steam them until they are tender but not overcooked. This takes about 10 minutes. While the potatoes are steaming, heat the ghee in another pot and pop the mustard seeds. Lower the heat and melt the ghee, then add the chopped garlic and cayenne and saute on medium heat until the garlic browns. Add the milk, caraway seeds and salt, and warm the milk over low heat. When the potatoes are tender, combine them with the sauce, stirring gently so that most of the potatoes remain as cubes. Serves 4.

Potato Curry (Fancy)

2 potatoes

½ tsp cumin seed

½ tsp mustard seeds

½ tsp black pepper

2 cloves garlic

2 cups of yogurt

¼ tsp cardamom powder

½ cup fresh coriander

1 tsp finely chopped ginger

⅛ tsp ground cloves

¼ tsp cinnamon powder

1 tsp salt

3 chopped tomatoes

1 tbsp ghee

⅛ tsp turmeric powder

1 tbsp butter

Chop and steam the potatoes. In a separate pot, heat the ghee and pop the mustard seeds, then the cumin seed. Add the butter and remaining spices; heat for a couple of minutes. Then add the garlic, ginger, coriander and tomatoes and cook until tomatoes are done (the garlic, ginger and coriander may be blended in a blender with a little ghee.) Add yogurt and salt and heat until warm, then mix well with the potatoes. Serves 4.

Potato Curry (Simple)

2 potatoes

2 cloves garlic

1 tbsp ghee

1 tbsp of curry power (or ½ tsp garam masala #2)

Chop and steam the potatoes. Melt the ghee and saute the garlic in it until it browns. Add the curry powder and cook for 2 minutes. Add the milk and let it get warm, then add the salt, the potatoes, and eat.

Tomato/Potato Curry (Jaffna Style)

½ lb potatoes, steamed

½ lb tomato

1 onion

½ curry powder

1 cup milk

1 tbsp ghee

salt

Boil the potatoes, cut into small piece chop tomato and onion and fenugreek seed in the ghee for 5 minutes. Add the potato and stir, then add the tomatoes and stir for five minutes. Add curry powder, milk, salt and simmer for 15 minutes.

Moglai Potatoes

3 large potatoes

3-4 fresh green chilies, slit

2 grated onions

1 tsp sugar

1 cup yogurt

salt to taste

2 tbsp ghee

large piece of ginger

1 tbsp cashew nuts

1 tsp cumin seed

8 cloves of garlic

a few saffron strands

1 tsp garam masala

Grind ginger, cashew, cumin, garlic and saffron to a fine paste. Grate the onions. Peel the potatoes and fry till golden brown. Fry the onions till brown. Add slit chilies and masala. Fry for a while and add yogurt and fried potatoes. Let simmer for 10 minutes and stir occasionally. Serve with chapatis.

Sweet Potato Curry 1

10 lbs sweet potatoes

2 tbsp ghee

1 tsp mustard seeds

¼ cup ghee or butter

1 clove garlic

9 green pepper (mild)

1 tbsp caraway seed

1 tbsp cayenne pepper (reduce for mild dish)

½ tbsp black pepper

5 cups of milk

2 tbsp salt

Wash and steam the sweet potatoes. Heat ghee in separate pot and pop the mustard seeds. Lower the heat and melt the butter; add garlic and cook until it browns. Add green peppers and cook for 2 or 3 minutes more. Next add the spices and cook for 3 to 5 minutes. Then add milk but do not allow to boil. Transfer the steamed sweet potatoes into a larger bowl and mix in the sauce. Add salt to taste. Serve 15 to 20.

Sweet Potato Curry 2

17 cups diced sweet potatoes

1 cup ghee

1.5 tbsp coriander powder

1tsp cinnamon

1 tsp nutmeg

½ tsp cloves

3 cups milk

2 tbsp salt

Steam diced sweet potatoes. Melt ghee over low heat and add spices. Add milk and simmer a bit. Then add the salt followed by the sweet potatoes. Stir well. Garnish with fresh chinese parsley. Serves 20.

Sweet Potato Curry (Extra Sweet)

10 lbs diced sweet potatoes

1 ½ cup ghee

4 ½ tbsp coriander powder

1 tsp nutmeg

2 tsp cinnamon powder

1 ½ tsp cloves

5 cups milk

2 tbsp salt

Dice sweet potatoes and steam until cooked (10-15 minutes). Heat ghee in a pan and mix in the spices. When the spices become aromatic, add milk (do not boil). While the milk is warming check sweet potatoes and, if ready, strain off and set aside. Remove the milk-aspice mixture from the fire and pour over the sweet potatoes. Serves 20-30.

Mushroom Curry (Jaffna Style)

1 lb mushrooms

1 tbsp ghee

1 onion

½ tbsp coriander powder

1 tsp cumin seed

⅛ tsp turmeric

1 green chili

½ tsp salt

½ tsp fenugreek seeds

1 tbsp lime juice

Slice the mushrooms. Chop onions and chili. Fry onion until clear, add fenugreek seeds and stir fry for 5 minutes. Add mushrooms and cook another 5 minutes. Add salt and spices, stir and simmer until tender. Finish with lime juice. Serves 4.

String Bean Curry (Jaffna Style)

1 lb string beans

1 small onion

2 green chilies

⅛ tsp fenugreek seed

2 tsp salt

Chop beans, onion and chilies. Fry onion and chilies until onion is clear, then add fenugreek and stir for 3 minutes. Add the beans and salt and stir for 5 minutes until beans start cooking, then simmer until tender—about 10 or 15 minutes. Serves 2.

Fried Sweet Pepper Curry (Jaffna Style)

1 lb sweet peppers

1 ½ tsp coriander

1 onion

½ tsp chili powder

½ tsp cumin

¼ cup coconut milk

Chop peppers and deep fry for 15 minutes. Remove peppers from the ghee and then fry the onion. Mix the coconut milk with the spices. Add peppers and onion and simmer 10 minutes. Salt to taste.

Kidney Bean Curry

per 8 cups cooked beans, use the following:

ghee

4 cloves garlic, minced

½” ginger, minced

1 onion, chopped small

1 tbsp fennel seed

2 tsp cayenne powder

1 tbsp anise seed

1 tbsp caraway seed

¼ cup tamarind

¼ cup soy sauce

2 cups yogurt

½ cup dark chili powder

Saute onion in ghee. When onion is soft, add garlic and ginger. Next add rest of spices. When thoroughly mixed, add yogurt. Add sauce to beans.

Green Pepper Curry (Kauai Aadheenam Style)

10-12 green peppers

3 tbsp ghee or butter

½ cup Braggs Liquid Amino

1 clove of garlic

1 tbsp ginger

4 tbsp garam masala #2

2 bunches of green onions

2 onions

2 cups coconut milk (or cow’s milk)

1 cup sunflower seed roasted

5 tbsp basil leaves

Heat the ghee and fry the onions, followed by the ginger, garlic and halved peppers. Add a little water if needed, then mix in the garam masala and coconut milk. Allow this mixture to cook about 10 minutes, then add basil and sunflower seeds (ground). After boiling a couple of minutes remove from heat and allow to cool a little. Then stir in the liquid aminos or soy sauce and garnish with green onions.

Onion Tamarind Curry (Jaffna Style)

1 lb onion

1 tsp tamarind paste

10 cloves garlic

⅛ tsp fenugreek seed

1-½” ginger

3 tbsp ghee

3 or 4 green chilies

Peel the ginger and cut onion, garlic, ginger and chilies into small pieces. Fry in ghee until onion is clear. Add the fenugreek seed and continue frying for two or three minutes. Mix the tamarind paste with one cup of water, add to onions and simmer for 15 minutes until liquid is reduced.

Onion Curry (Jaffna Style)

1 lb onion

curry powder with chilies

ghee

salt

1 cup coconut milk

1 tbsp lime juice

Deep fry the onion until light brown. Add the onion to the milk along with the curry powder and salt and simmer 10 minutes. Add the lime juice and stir.

Pumpkin Curry (Jaffna Style)

1 lb pumpkin

½ onion

½ cup milk

2 chilies

¼ cup coconut paste

salt

Cut the pumpkin into small pieces and boil in the milk with all other ingredients. When making the curry with coconut paste, boil all ingredients in ¾ cup of water about 15 minutes, then add the coconut paste, then continue to simmer 5-8 minutes.

Pumpkin with Dal (Jaffna Style)

1 lb pumpkin

½ tsp cumin seed

2 tbsp mung dal or channa dal

⅛ tsp turmeric

½ cup coconut paste

salt

Boil the dal for 15 minutes and set aside. Boil the pumpkin in ½ cup water for 15 minutes. Add the dal, coconut paste and spices, stir well and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes.

Pumpkin Curry (Kauai Monastery Style)

3 lb pumpkins, chopped

1 ½ tbsp coconut milk

1 onion, chopped small

2 green chilies, chopped small

1 tbsp ghee

3 ½-inch long cinnamon sticks

½ tsp nutmeg powder

1 lb tomatoes, diced small

½ tsp cayenne powder

2 tsp salt

Steam pumpkins chunks until tender. Fry cinnamon sticks, onions and green chili until onion is cooked. Then add tomatoes, cayenne and nutmeg. Cook until tomatoes are soft, then add coconut milk, salt and pumpkins. Turn off heat and mix well. Serves 6.

Cauliflower Curry (Cinnamon Flavor)

1 heaping tbsp of mustard seeds

meat of one coconut grated for milk

1 tbsp of ginger and 2 tbsp garlic

1 handful of mint leaves

4 tbsp cinnamon

salt

1 onion

1 tsp anise seed

1 tsp fennel seed

1 handful of paneer cheese

1 handful of green onions

5 Ib cauliflower

Milk grated coconut by soaking in 1-2 cups water and pressing through a fine strainer. Heat ghee and pop the mustard seeds, then the anise and fennel seeds. Saute for a moment and add onions, ginger, garlic and paneer cheese. Let everything cook for about 5 minutes, then add coconut milk, cauliflower, salt and cinnamon seeds. When cauliflower is cooked, remove from heat. Garnish with green onions and mint just before serving.

Cauliflower with Dal (Jaffna Style)

½ cup split mung beans

⅛ tsp turmeric

1 lb cauliflower chopped

¼ tsp cumin seed

1 tsp grated coconut

3 garlic cloves

salt

Bring beans to a boil in 1 ½ cups of water. Cook for 15 minutes, then add the cauliflower, turmeric and coconut (ground into a paste with the cumin). Bring to a boil, then simmer for 15 minutes.

Avaiyal

MIXED VEGETABLES

5 carrots

6 potatoes

5 Japanese eggplant

10 plantains (green cooking bananas)

½ lb string beans

3 cups coconut milk

½ tbsp mustard seeds

4 tsp salt

Slice the carrots, potatoes, eggplant, plantains and into medium-size pieces. Slice beans into long pieces. Boil everything together. Pop mustard seeds and add to drained vegetables. Add salt and coconut milk. Serves 6.

Banana Filet Curry

20 green cooking bananas

2 cups of chickpea flour,

ghee for deep frying and tempering

1 bulb garlic

1 tbsp fennel seed

2 medium sized onions

1 handful of coriander leaves

¼ cup hot chilies

1 handful of green onion stems

1 tbsp of turmeric

1 tbsp of turmeric

1 onion

¾ cup Mexican chili powder

1 inch ginger

1 tsp tamarind paste diluted in ½ cup water

¼ cup of turbinado sugar

2 cups water

½ cup Liquid Amino or 2 tbsp salt

Slice and steam cooking bananas. Thoroughly mix chickpea flour, cumin seed and fennel seed, 1 tsp salt, and water in a bowl to make a batter. Dip bananas in batter and fry in ghee until brown. Strain oil off bananas and set aside. In another pan of ghee, saute handful of ginger, garlic, hot chilies, onions, green onion stems. chili powder, turmeric, tamarind, turbinado sugar, and Liquid Amino or salt. Add 2 cups water and allow to simmer, then mix in bananas and remove from heat. Serves 10.

Spinach Curry

15 cups roughly cut spinach

½ bulb garlic, ½ inches ginger

2 cups bean sprout

1 tsp each fennel, anise seeds

½ grated coconut juice from

1 lime

1 cup yogurt

2 tsp salt

Steam the spinach and bean sprouts and blend them in a food processor with grated coconut, adding yogurt until a thick and smooth consistency is achieved. In a pan fry in 2 tbsp ghee: ginger, garlic, fennel, anise and cumin seed. Mix the spices with the spinach and add lime juice and salt or liquid aminos. Serves 4.

Banana/Urad Dal Curry

2-3 cups urad dal

1 tbsp mustard seeds

ghee

6 small green chilies

1 tbsp each anise and fennel seed

2 tbsp turmeric

2 grated coconuts

1 handful of coriander leaves

1 Handful of green onion stems

1 ½ tbsp salt

20 green cooking bananas

1 onion

1tbsp tamarind paste (or 2 limes)

2 tbsp garlic and twice as much ginger

Cut and steam bananas. Roast dal until brownish, then steam it until it is soft. Heat ghee in a frying pan and cook mustard seeds until they pop and add chilies, garlic and ginger, anise, fennel. Saute a couple of minutes then put in onions. Add turmeric, tamarind, coriander, green onion. Add coconut, salt and cooked bananas. Garnish with coriander leaves (chinese parsley). Serves 10.

Amaranth Curry

A TRADITIONAL LEAFY GREEN CURRY

15 cups roughly cut amaranth

½ teaspoon mustard seed

2 onions

1 tsp cumin seeds

½ coconut, grated

Juice from 1 lime

6 cloves garlic

2 tsp salt

2 tbsp coriander powder

⅛ tsp cayenne or black pepper powder

Heat 1 tbsp ghee in a deep pot and add the mustard seeds. When the seeds start to pop, add the cumin seeds and saute for 30 seconds. Add the garlic and onions and stir fry until onion is half cooked, then add the amaranth, coriander and cayenne powders. Mix the amaranth with the spices and cover the pot and turn heat to high. Add up to 1 cup of water if mixture is too dry. When the liquid from the greens start to boil up, turn heat to a simmer and stir and cook until tender. Add lime juice and salt. Transfer to a serving tray and garnish with grated coconut. This recipe also works well with swiss chard and with Chinese cabbages such as bok choy or lei choy.

Banana Curry (Jaffna Style)

2 cooking bananas (green)

1 cup milk

1 small onion

½ lime

2 green chilies

salt

Peel and chop the plantain. Chop onion and chilies. Boil the vegetables in the milk until tender, finish with lime juice.

Cauliflower Curry (Jaffna Style)

1 lb cauliflower

1 cup milk

2 green chilies

⅛ tsp turmeric

½ lime

salt to taste

Cut the vegetables into small pieces and boil in the milk with the spices until tender. Finish with lime juice. Serves 2.

Masala Curry

4 tbsp ghee

1 tsp cumin seed

1 medium chopped onion

2 medium chopped tomato

1 tsp garam masala

1/3 tsp turmeric powder

1 tsp salt

2 medium potatoes cut into large pieces

2 medium carrots

½ cup peas

Cut the carrots into large pieces. Fry seed in the ghee until they are fragrant. Add the chopped onion and turmeric and cook until brown. Add tomatoes and cook until rather soft. Add 1-½ to 2 cups of water, the remaining vegetables (except peas), masala and salt. Cook on medium low heat until done, adding peas during the last few minutes. Serves 4.

Stuffed Eggplant

6 small eggplants

2 green chilies

1 tsp salt

3 tbsp lemon juice

½ cup ghee or ghee

1 large onion

1/3 cup coriander seed

3 tbsp anise seed

1 tbsp cumin seed

1.5 tsp fenugreek seed

1 tsp turmeric powder

Chop the green chilies and onion into small pieces. Rinse eggplant and slit lengthwise without cutting into half. Roast the first 4 spices together and grind to a powder. Add turmeric. Mix spices with chili, salt and lemon juice to make a stuffing. Stuff all the eggplants with the filling. Heat the ghee in a frying pan and fry the onions until light brown. Add the stuffed eggplants and cover with a lid and leave to cook, turning occasionally until tender for 20 to 30 minutes.

Potato Varai (Jaffna Style)

VARAI IS STIR-FRIED DRY CURRY

1 lb potato

2 or 3 chilies

2 tbsp grated coconut

1 onion

½ tsp mustard seeds

1 tsp urad dal

2 tbsp ghee

salt

Boil and then grate the potatoes. Mince the onion and green chilies. Fry the mustard seeds and dal. When the seed stop popping, add onion and chilies. When onion is clear, add potatoes, coconut and salt. Stir-fry for five minutes. Serves 2.

Banana Varai (Jaffna Style)

2 plantains (green cooking bananas)

1 onion

2 tbsp grated coconut

2 green chilies

3 dry chilies

1 tsp urad dal

⅛ tsp mustard seeds

2 tbsp ghee

salt

curry leaves

Cut plantains in half and boil. Peel and grate when cool. Mince the onion and chilies. Fry the mustard seeds and dal until the seeds stop popping, then add onion and chilies. Fry for 10 minutes. Add plantains, salt, coconut, onion and chilies. Stir-fry for five minutes. Serves 2.

CHUTNEYS, SAMBALS & PACHADIS

Chutneys are condiments made with cooked fruit or vegetables. Sambal is a condiment of cold vegetables or coconut, usually uncooked, served in small amounts with rice and curry. They are often quite hot, and may be as simple as grated coconut combined with chili powder. Pachadis are salads with light spicing to aid in digestion. Pachadis are usually served for lunch only, while chutneys and sambals work for lunch or dinner often as a dip for dosai, idli or chapatis.

Cabbage Pachadi

2 cups yogurt

1 tsp roasted cumin powder

1 tsp grated ginger

1 tsp honey

salt and chili powder to taste

½ cup finely shredded cabbage

Mix all ingredients well and chill. Serves 4.

Mango Pachadi with Carrot and Ginger (Jaffna Style)

1 unripe mango

3 tbsp grated coconut

½ lb carrots

salt

½” piece of ginger

4 green chilies

1 onion

Grate the mango, carrot and ginger, keeping each separate. Squeeze the excess juice from the grated mango (save juice for a beverage). Mince onion and chilies. Combine all ingredients. Serve at room temperature or chilled.

Sweet Potato Pachadi

5 baked sweet potatoes

1 tsp cinnamon and 1 tsp nutmeg

3 tbsp honey

1 cup grated coconut

2 cups cream

Blend all items together (except coconut). After blending, add coconut.

Pumpkin Pachadi (Jaffna Style)

1 lb pumpkin

⅛ tsp cumin seed

2 red or green chilies

1 tsp tamarind paste

¼ cup coconut paste

salt

curry leaves

Cut pumpkin and chilies into small pieces. Dissolve tamarind paste in two cups water. Combine with pumpkin, chilies, coconut paste and salt. Boil until tender.

Eggplant Sambal (Jaffna Style)

1 lb eggplant

1 onion

2 green chilies

½ cup coconut milk

1 tbsp lime juice

salt

Bake the eggplant whole for one hour at 400˚ or until it wrinkles. Allow eggplant to cool, then peel and mash it. Mince onion and chilies, and add to the eggplant along with salt and lime juice. Mix thoroughly. Serve at room temperature.

Carrot Sambal (Jaffna Style)

½ lb carrot

1 large onion

2 tsp grated coconut

2 green chilies

½ cup curd (yogurt)

salt

Grate the carrots. Mince onion and chilies. Mix all ingredients well and serve at room temperature or chilled. A small piece ( 1 ½”) of grated ginger may be added if desired.

Coconut Sambal (Jaffna Style)

¼ lb ginger

1 tsp ghee

1 cup grated coconut

½ lime (or yogurt)

1 onion

⅛ tsp mustard seeds

2 green chilies

1 ¾ tsp urad dal

salt

Peel the ginger and fry it whole for five minutes with the chilies. Pound together the ginger, chilies and coconut into a paste. Fry the mustard seeds, dal and onion. Mix with the ginger, lime and salt. If using yogurt, omit lime juice, and use enough yogurt to make the mixture soft but not runny.

Tomato Sambal (Jaffna Style)

1 lb tomato

3 green chilies

salt

½ coconut milk

1 onion

Chop tomatoes, onion, chilies into tiny pieces. Mix everything together very well. Serve at room temperature.

Beet-Root Sambal (Jaffna Style)

1 lb beets

½ tsp urad dal

1 onion

1-1/3 cup curd

2 tsp coconut paste

1 tsp ghee

2 green chilies

⅛ tsp mustard seeds

salt

Boil the beets whole for 10 minutes, then peel and grate. Dice onion and chilies. Mix beets with the coconut paste, onion, chilies, curd and salt. Fry mustard seeds and the dal and mix with beets. One tbsp lime juice may be used instead of the curd.

Apricot Chutney

1-2/3 cup sugar

1-2/3 cup cider vinegar

20 large ripe apricots

7 sweet red peppers, chopped

3 medium size onions, chopped

1 clove garlic mince

4 oz chopped candied ginger

1 tsp salt

1 cup seedless blonde raisins

1 orange, peel and pulp chopped

1 lemon, peel and pulp chopped

2/3 cup almonds, blanched and slivered

1 tsp ginger powder

Boil apricots with sugar and vinegar for 10 minutes. Skim. Add remaining ingredients except almonds and ginger powder. Cook 30 minutes, stirring frequently. Add almonds and ginger powder and cook another 30 minutes, stirring frequently. Pack in sterilized jars and seal immediately. Makes enough to fill six half-pint jars.

Curd Chutney (Jaffna Style)

1 cup curd

2 tbsp ghee

1 onion minced

1 tsp urad dal

2 green chilies minced

½ tsp mustard seeds

1 tbsp shredded coconut

1 handful coriander leaves

Pop the mustard seeds in ghee, then add urad dal and roast until golden brown. Add remaining ingredients and salt to taste. Garnish with coriander leaves.

Coriander Chutney (Ashok Bhavan Style)

Five hands full of fresh coriander leaves, ground

17-½ ounces tamarind

4 cups chickpea gram

meat of 15 coconuts, grated

½ cup salt

1-½ cup green chilies

There is no cooking here. Just grind it all together. Excellent with idli. Serves 30.

Coconut Chutney (Ashok Bhavan Style)

2 pints chickpea gram (flour)

3 pints or green chilies

3 oz of ghee

meat of 15 coconuts, ground

3 ½ oz of tamarind

1 ¾ oz of garlic

¼ pint of salt

1 ½ onions

Roast the chickpeas. Heat ghee and saute the chopped chilies, garlic and onion, then mix with other ingredients. Grind or blend together. Great with idli. Serves 30.

Orange and Date Chutney

Mix in 3 ½ quarts vinegar

6 tsp chili powder

grated rind of 4 oranges

3 tsp cinnamon

6 cups of sugar

3 tsp nutmeg

3 tsp salt

1 1/3 lbs raisins

Bring above ingredients to a boil. Puree through juicer the following:

4 lbs pitted dates

fruit of 6 oranges (remove seeds; use 4 that were grated and 2 more with peels)

3 lbs onions

3 cloves garlic

3 tsp nutmeg

3” of ginger

Add to vinegar and bring again to boil. Cook 5 minutes. Lower heat, simmer gently for one hour. When cold, bottle and store in air-tight bottle. Keep refrigerated. Makes about 1 ½ gallon.

Tomato Chutney (Jaffna Style)

1 lb tomatoes

1 tbsp ghee

1 onion

1 tsp urad dal

½ cup coconut milk

½ cup curd

½ tsp lime juice

2 green chilies

salt

½ tsp mustard seeds

Blanch the tomatoes, then peel and mash them. Add the coconut milk and curd. Heat the ghee and fry the mustard seeds, dal onions and chilies for 10 minutes. Remove from heat and add to the tomatoes. Serve at room temperature.

Date and Chili Chutney

Put through blender:

1 lb dates

turmeric

3 tbsp parsley

½ tsp salt

2 fresh or pickled hot green chilies

juice of 2 lemons and pulp

2 tbsp water

Mix well. Bottle and refrigerate. For 10 people, will last about 3 weeks. (It is best to alternate ingredients as you puree. For example, a handful of dates, small amount of parsley, 1 chili, more dates, etc. This makes mixing easier.)

Raisin-Ginger Chutney

Puree through juicer:

2 cups raisins

2” ginger

10 cloves garlic

½ tsp mustard seeds

Mix thoroughly with:

4 tbsp vinegar

1 tsp salt

½ tsp cayenne

3 tsp sugar or honey

Bottle and refrigerate. For 10 people, will last about 3 weeks.

Hot Tomato Chutney

4 lbs ripe tomatoes, cut coarsely

1 quart cider vinegar

2 lbs raisins

2 large cloves garlic

1 lb green ginger, chopped

4 lbs granulated sugar (9 cups)

4 tbsp cayenne pepper

1 cup salt (reduce if desired)

Boil tomatoes in vinegar for 15 minutes. Chop raisins and garlic in vinegar to a paste. (Use the blender with just enough vinegar to operate the machine). Add other ingredients to tomato-vinegar mixture and simmer gently until the mixture is the thickness of heavy cream (about 2 hours). Pour into hot sterilized glasses.

Hanapepe (Hawaii) Hot Pepper Jelly

½ cup ground whole chili pods (5-6)

½ cup ground bell pepper, seeded (2-3)

1 large onion (ground)

1 ½ cups cider vinegar

6 ½ cups sugar

1 bottle Certo

Remove stems from chilies, remove seeds and veins from bells. Peel onion. Grind fine. Add to other ingredients (except the Certo). Mix well, bring to a rolling boil. Remove from heat. Add Certo after two minutes. Put in jars. Makes 2 quarts.

Pear Chutney

5 lbs hard pears, peeled, sliced

2 lbs brown sugar

3 pints cider vinegar

1 lb seedless raisins

3 cloves garlic, peeled, minced

2 tbsp mustard seeds

6 tbsp salt

1 dash cayenne pepper

16 oz preserved ginger,
sugar rinsed off, chopped

Mix pears and sugar in large kettle and cook gently until mixture is thick and smooth. Stir frequently. Add remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and let stand overnight. Return to medium heat and bring to boil. Pack while hot in hot sterilized jars and seal.

Spicy Orange Slices

8 seedless oranges

4 cups sugar

1 cup vinegar

½ cup water

10 whole cloves

2 sticks cinnamon

Slice oranges about ½ inch thick; discard end pieces. Cut each slice in half. Cover with water and simmer in covered pan until tender. Drain. Boil other ingredients 5 minutes. Add oranges and simmer until slices are well glazed (about 1 hour). Pack in sterile pint jars. Fill with hot syrup and seal. Makes 8 cups.

SWEETS

Ayurvedic Energy Balls

4 cups sesame seeds

9 cups sunflower seeds

2 tbsp honey, raw

4 cups raisins

2 tbsp cinnamon powder

Grind seeds in a seed grinder. Add rest of ingredients and mix in food processor until the mixture sticks together in a uniform mass. Roll into finger balls. (Ayurvedic note: because this mixture is ground, it is absorbed and assimilated quickly. The raisins, cinnamon and honey perk the agni (body fire) right away, the seeds add a little stamina and energy support. It perks pitta without disturbing vata or kapha even though raisins usually increase vata. This is negated by soaking them. Sesame seeds normally stimulate kapha, but this is balanced by the honey and cinnamon.) Often used as a traditional prasada at Dipavali and Ganesha Chaturthi festivals.

Chippi

FRIED RICE BALLS IN SWEET SYRUP

3 cups rice flour

1 cup sugar

½ cup water

5-6 cups coconut milk

½ cup black pea powder

1 tbsp sesame seeds

ghee or oil

⅛ tsp salt

Boil coconut milk until nutty oil flavor emerges. Mix rice flour, black pea powder, sesame seeds and salt in a bowl and add the boiling milk to the mixed flour. Make small balls with the mixture. Then impress balls with a greased fork (or any design desired). Set them aside on a buttered plate. Once all the balls are impressed, fry in ghee/oil one plateful at a time and drain. In water, heat and dissolve the sugar into a thick syrup. Add the fried balls to the syrup and mix well. Cool and keep airtight.

Semolina Kesari (Jaffna Style)

SEMOLINA PUDDING

2 cups semolina

½ cup ghee

1 ¼ cup sugar

2 tsp cashews, chopped

¼ tsp cardamom powder

Dry roast semolina for ten minutes. Dissolve sugar in four cups water. Bring to a rolling boil, then turn flame to low and slowly stir in semolina. When mixture thickens, add ghee gradually, stirring well. When kesari is soft, stir in nuts and cardamom. Remove from fire and flatten into tray. Let cool, cut into pieces as desired.

Semolina Payasam (Jaffna Style)

PAYASAM PUDDING

1 cup semolina

1 cup split mung beans

3 cups milk, 2 tbsp ghee

2 cups brown sugar

⅛ tsp cardamom powder

1 cup of raisins and cashew nuts

Roast the semolina and dal in a dry skillet. Boil the beans in three cups of water until soft (about 1 hour), add the semolina and stir it well for ten minutes. Add the milk and simmer for fifteen minutes more. Add the cardamom. Fry the nuts and raisins in ghee and add to the payasam. Stir well. Serve at warm or at room temperature.

Sago Payasam 1 (Jaffna Style)

1 cup rice

2 cups brown sugar

½ cup mung beans

2 cups coconut milk

⅛ lb cashew nuts

⅛ lb raisins

⅛ tsp cardamom powder

2 tbsp ghee

Roast the mung beans for ten minutes in dry skillet over a low fire. Cook the rice and the beans in five cups of water until soft (about 30 minutes). Then add the sugar. Continue cooking and stir frequently until sugar is dissolved (about 15 minutes). Add the milk and stir until mixture thickens. Remove from fire. Fry the nuts and raisins in the ghee over a low fire and when nuts are golden, remove and add to the payasam along with the cardamom. Stir well.

Sago Payasam 2 (Jaffna Style)

1 cup mung beans (roasted )

2 cup brown sugar

½ lb sago

2 tbsp ghee

3 cups milk or coconut milk

cashews

⅛ tsp cardamom powder

raisins

Boil the beans in three cups of water until soft, then add the sago and stir for fifteen or twenty minutes. Add more water if necessary. Add the sugar and stir well, then add cashews (roasted in ghee) and other ingredients.

Kheer (Rice Pudding)

½ cup small grain rice

2 cups milk

2 cups cream

½ cup sugar

¼ cup golden raisins

6 unsalted almonds

2 whole cardamom pods, crushed

⅛ tsp nutmeg powder

Soak the raisins in water. Blanch and slice the almonds. Crush the cardamom. In a heavy saucepan, cook rice until soft. Add milk and cream, a little at a time, constantly stirring to avoid lumps. Add sugar and raisins. Mix well. Keep stirring for about 15 minutes on low flame. Remove from heat. Pour into a big bowl. Add almonds, nutmeg powder and crushed cardamom seed and mix well. Cover with a plastic wrap. Serve warm or cold.

Rice Channa Dal Payasam

1 cup rice

½ cup channa dal

1 tbsp ghee

4 cups water, 1 cup milk

1 cup brown sugar

1 cup fresh grated coconut

¼ tsp cardamom powder

Fry the dal in the ghee until golden brown. Bring the water to a boil and add dal. Cook for 20 minutes. Add the rice and continue cooking until rice is soft. Add milk and continue to cook until mixture is thick. Add sugar and coconut and mix well. Remove from heat and add cardamom. This is very thick when cool and will not spread on the plate. Serves 8.

Sakkarai Pongal (Jaffna Style)

SWEET RICE

2 cups rice

raisins

2 tbsp mung beans

cardamom powder

1 cup brown sugar

½ grated coconut

cashew nuts

1 tbsp ghee

Roast mung beans in a dry skillet. Boil the rice and beans in five cups of water for thirty minutes. Add the sweetening and coconut and stir well. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Fry the raisins and nuts in ghee until nuts are brown and add to the rice with the cardamom powder. Stir well and remove from fire.

BREADS

Chapati

INDIAN FLAT BREAD

1 cup whole wheat flour

¼ tsp salt

1 tbsp ghee

1/3 cup water

To the flour add salt and ghee and mix well. Add sufficient water to make a soft, pliable dough. Knead until elastic. Allow to rest 15 minutes or more.

For chapatis: Divide dough into 8 equal parts. Roll into small balls and, using a rolling pin, flatten out into circles about 4-5 inches in diameter. (Before rolling into circles, flatten between hands and dip in flour to prevent sticking to rolling pin.) With each chapati, cook one side on a hot frying pan, then turn and half cook the other side. Finally hold it directly over a burner flame and allow to puff. Tongs can be used to old the chapati (and there is a special implement for this sold in Indian shops). Keep chapatis covered as others are being made. Brush upper side with ghee to prevent sticking together in the stack. Chapati and parathas is often made for dinner, served with potato curries or dals. Serves 2.

Paratha

Make small balls as in chapati recipe and roll out in circles 3 inches in diameter. With the fingers, spread a thin coat of ghee on the circle and fold it in half. Fold again in half and press edges together to seal. Roll this out to the same thickness as a chapati, it can be made round if you are skillful. Cook on both sides in a hot frying pan. Add ghee (about 1tsp) around the edges and on sides of the paratha. In will puff up almost as much as a chapati. (For best results it’s best to learn paratha-making from an experience cook, but a little experimentation will go a long way!) Parathas are done when golden brown and puffed to capacity. Don’t be concerned if some don’t puff, when you are learning the art.

Puri (Jaffna Style)

FRIED PUFFED BREAD

2 cups whole wheat flour

1 green chili, minced

1 small onion, minced

salt

2 tbsp grated coconut

Mix onion and chili with flour, coconut and salt. Add cool water to form a bread-like dough. On an oiled surface, a tray or cookie sheet, roll by hand a small amount of dough and flatten it. Fry in a heavy skillet on a low fire, 5 minutes on each side. Puris are usually served in place of rice, with sambal and or curries. But they may also be served in addition to rice, though in South Indian cooking, papadam (see pg. 81) would be used. Papadams are paper thin and deep fry quickly. They are purchased rather than made at home. Puri is often served with masala potatoes.

Pittu

STEAMED RICE FLOUR WITH COCONUT

special bamboo-pittu steamer

6 cups of brown rice flour (roasted)

1 cup salt water for steaming

1 grated coconut

The pittu maker is a thick piece of bamboo with a metal cover at one end (with a hole) which is mounted on a pot filled with water for steaming. It can be purchased at certain stores that carry South Indian groceries.

Making pittu: Put rice flour in a large bowl. Sprinkle in water little by little and mix it with the flour so that tiny balls are formed. Sprinkle one handful of coconut, a little at a time while mixing in the water to keep the flour from forming one large mass. Keep adding and mixing until all the flour has become dry dough. Be careful not to add to much water. Next, fill the bamboo to the top, alternating with layers of one handful of rice flour followed by 2 tbsp of grated coconut. Steam the bamboo on its pot. When steam appears at the top of the bamboo, cover and let cook for about 30 minutes. When cooked remove the pittu, which will look like a long tube, and cut into 1” serving slices. Add another batch for steaming until all the flour is used up. Pittu is usually served for lunch or dinner, with coconut chutneys or sambar. It can also be made sweet by add brown sugar to the coconut. Serves 10.

Idli

STEAMED SOUTH INDIAN RICE CAKES

2 cups rice

1 cup urad dal

Soak rice and dal in water (in separate pots) for 10 hours. Grind each separately with a little water in a food processor until smooth. Mix with hands the rice and dal to form the idli batter. The batter should be thick but slightly runny. Set the batter aside for about 8 hours to let it rise and sour slightly. Idlis are cooked in idli steamers, available at most Indian groceries. Ladle batter into each buttered compartment of the idli maker and steam for 20 to 30 minutes. Cool for a minute; remove idli from bowl. (There is no need to ghee the bowl.) Experiment to find the best cooking time. Serves 2.

Rice Dosai (Jaffna Style)

SOUTH INDIAN THIN RICE PANCAKES

1 cup urad dal

2 cups rice flour or rice grains

Soak the dal and rice grains in water for at least 8 hours. Process these separately in a food processor with a little water and mix both item to make the dosai batter. The batter should be runny enough so it can be poured over a hot griddle and spread out into a circle immediately. Mix with the rice flour and add ⅛ tsp baking soda. Let the batter sit over night to rise and sour slightly. A little yogurt can be added to the batter to help it rise through the night. The batter temperature should be around 70-80 degrees F.

Making dosai: Add 1 tsp of salt to the batter. Pour a ladle full of batter onto a very well seasoned hot griddle or heavy frying pan. Cook like pancakes. Ghee is spread on the griddle after cooking each dosai. This recipe serves 2. Dosai’s are usually served with coconut chutney and/or sambar and curries. The batter can be made very thin to produce and extra thin pancake, known as paper dosai. For masala dosai, potato curry is placed inside the pancake and it is rolled, something like a large, crisp crepe.

Dhogla

STEAMED CHICKPEA CAKES

2 cups chickpeas, cooked, ground

1 box Malt-O-Meal

1 box corn meal

2 cups yogurt

¾ cup ghee

3 cups water

3 zucchinis, shredded

3 tbsp salt

2 tbsp cayenne/chilies

7 hot green peppers

3” ginger

½ tsp baking powder

2 cups coriander leaves, fresh

3 cups grated coconut

4 tbsp raw peanuts

2 tsp chilies

1 tsp salt

½ tsp cumin seed

Blend all ingredients together in a big bowl. Ghee a round cake pan and pour about ½ inch of dhogla mix into the pan. Steam one cake pan at a time in a large pot with another smaller pot inside it, upside down. Put about two to three inches of water in the bottom of the steaming pot and steam the dhogla. The dhogla will rise and pull away from the sides of the pot when cooked. Takes 20-25 minutes.

Semolina Dosai (Jaffna Style)

1 cup semolina

2 or 3 green chilies

½ cup rice flour

1 tbsp urad dal

1 cup wheat flour

2 tbsp ghee

1 cup buttermilk

salt

⅛ tsp mustard seeds

Mix the semolina, rice flour, wheat flour and the buttermilk together into a batter. Let sit for an hour. Fry onion, chilies, mustard seeds and dal and add to the batter along with enough water to make it medium thin. Cook like pancakes in a skillet with ghee.

IDIAPPAM

JAFFNA STRING HOPPERS

2 cups roasted red rice flour

boiling water

Idiappams are made with a special wooden press, much like a spaghetti maker, available from most South Indian and Sri Lankan groceries.

To make the idiappam: Add 1 tsp of salt to the boiling water and mix it slowly into the flour with a wooden spoon. The dough should be thick and not stick to the mixing container. Take a little dough and put into the idiappam press and press out the dough strings in a circular motion over idiappam steamers. Steam the idiappam for 20-25 minutes. Serve for dinner or lunch with sodi or coconut chutney.

VADAI & OTHER SNACKS

Vadais are spicy donuts served as a snack or prasada for special occasions. Often eaten plain, they are sometimes served with sambal or sambar or soaked in yogurt.

Urad Dal Vadai (Jaffna Style)

1 cup urad dal

1 onion

2 green chilies

curry leaves

ghee

salt

Soak the dal in water for 4 hours. Drain and grind to a coarse paste. Mince the onion and chilies. Add to the dal with salt and curry leaves. Stir well. To make each vadai, roll a small piece of dough into a ball and flatten it. Vadais are usually about 2 ½” in diameter and sometimes have a hole in the middle like a donut. Deep fry the vadai in ghee until golden (about 5 minutes).

Channa Dal Vadai (Jaffna Style)

1 cup channa dal

1 onion

2 dried red chilies

curry leaves

salt

ghee

Prepare exactly the same as urad dal vadai.

Dahi Vadai

1 cup urad dal

¼ cup green split mung dal

2-3 fresh green chilies

salt to taste

ghee for deep frying

6 cups plain yogurt

2 tbsp roasted cumin powder

1 tbsp chili powder

Sauce (optional)

1 tbsp ghee

½ tsp mustard ghee

sweet and sour sauce

curry leaves

1” round ball of tamarind

1 cup jaggery

Wash the tamarind and soak it in ½ cup of water. In the same water also soak jaggery. Let mixture stand ½ hour then pour into strainer and extract the pulp with the help of the spoon.

Vadai: Soak both the dals overnight. Drain and grind to a fine paste in a blender, along with the chilies. Add a little water gradually to form a thick paste. Add salt and mix thoroughly. Set aside. In a bowl, place a handful of salt to 3 cups of water. Wet your palms with water and take small balls of paste, flattening them with fingers then placing them into hot ghee. Fry until golden brown. Drain them on paper towels. Soak cooked vadais in hot salt water mixture for half an hour. When soft remove and squeeze out the water between your palms. *Beat the yogurt and soak vadais in it. Sprinkle with cumin seed and chili powder and tamarind sauce as desired. Serve in individual dishes.

Kadalai Sundal

LENTIL SNACK FOR GANESHA CHATURTHI

½ cup whole channa dal

2 tbsp ghee

1 tsp mustard

1 tbsp sliced green chilies

1 cup fresh grated coconut

½ tsp salt

Soak the dal overnight. Wash and then boil the dal in water for 45 minutes, or until tender. Drain. Fry the mustard seeds in ghee until they pop. Add the chilies and coconut. Stir for 5 minutes. Add the channa and salt. Mix well.

This recipe can be made with any dried pea or bean, even with beans that have been allowed to sprout. To sprout beans, soak for 12 hours and spread on a wet towel. Let stand for 24 hours, keeping moist. Wash sprouts well to remove skins.

Bonda (Jaffna Style)

POTATO CROQUETTE FOR LUNCH

½ lb potatoes

3 green chilies

1 large onion

2 tbsp ghee

¼ tsp mustard seeds

salt

½ tsp urad dal

curry leaves

1 cup channa dal flour

coriander leaves

Boil the potatoes, peel and mash them. Mince the onion and chilies. Heat the ghee and fry the mustard seeds and urad dal. When the seeds stop popping, add the onion and chilies and stir for five minutes. Add the potatoes and ¼ cup of water with the salt and simmer until tender. For extra spice, add ½ tablespoon chili powder. Remove from fire, let cool slightly and roll into small balls. Mix the channa dal flour with enough cool water to make a thin batter. Add salt and 1 tablespoon rice or wheat flour. Dip the potato balls in the batter and fry in deep ghee until golden (about 5 minutes).

Vegetable Samosa

NORTH INDIAN ENCHILADA-TYPE LUNCH SNACK

Filling:

3 big potatoes, diced

¼ cup ghee

salt to taste

lemon juice

1 cup shelled green peas,
coarsely chopped

Dough:

2 cups whole wheat flour

4 tbsp ghee

1 tbsp yogurt

salt to taste

ghee for deep frying

Roast and grind:

5-6 whole red peppers

1 tsp cumin seed

Heat ghee and add pinch of cumin seed. When brown, add potatoes. Fry over medium until until half done. Add peas and salt and stir-fry for 10-15 minutes more, until tender. Add roasted spices and lemon juice and keep stirring until dry. Set aside and cool.

Combine wheat flour and ghee in a bowl. Mix together with hands until it has a consistency of corn meal. Add yogurt and salt. Mix well. Slowly add water and knead dough until soft and smooth. Cover with a damp cloth and set aside for an hour.

*Form balls about an inch or two in diameter. Flatten into circles. Cut in half. For each samosa, keep the one half aside and roll the other into a hollow cone. Pinch the seams together and fill cone with the potato-peas filling, about 2/3 of the cone and press firmly the top two edges with a moistened fingers, to seal. They have to be well sealed, so as not to break open while frying. Heat ghee for deep frying. Fry samosas till golden brown. Serve warm with tamarind or coriander chutney.

Papadams

LENTIL WAFERS

Papadams are paper thin deep fried lentil wafers usually served with lunch. They are available at most Indian and Sri Lankan groceries and even certain health-food stores. To make papadams, heat ghee in a shallow frying pan until hot but not smoking. (Start with high heat then turn to a lower setting.) Wipe off excess lentil powder from each papadam and gently place into ghee. The papadam will immediately expand. After about 5 seconds turn it over to cook the other side, pressing into the ghee any areas that you notice uncooked. Turn again after another five seconds, cook two more seconds then remove from ghee. Hold for a moment to drip drain and store in serving container. Papadams are cooked just before lunch time, so they are still crunchy when served.

Murukoo (Indian Pretzels)

3 cups rice flour

1 tbsp sesame seed

1 ½ coconuts, grated

1 tsp black pepper

3 ¼ cups black peas powder

1 tsp spoon cumin powder

1 dessert spoon ghee

salt

ghee for deep frying

Dry roast rice flour. Milk grated coconut twice, by soaking 15 minutes in 1-2 cups water and pressing through a fine strainer. Boil coconut milk well. Put other ingredients in a bowl with salt to taste. Mix in enough coconut milk to make a thick dough. Fill the murukoo mould and press the murukoos, dispensing dough in circles, onto a plate or banana leaf (or directly into the ghee). Deep fry in hot ghee in skillet or pan.

Vegetable Pakora

FRIED VEGETABLE BALLS

2 cups chick pea flour

1 cup shredded cauliflower

½ cup potato

½ cup spinach

1 small bunch onion

pinch of baking soda

1 tsp coriander seed

ghee for deep frying

¼ tsp black pepper

3-4 red peppers

salt

Peel and shred the potato. Finely chop the spinach and onion. Grind the coriander seed, red peppers and black peppers to a fine paste. Mix all the above ingredients with water until batter resembles pancake mixture. Heat ghee. To cook, form round balls with the batter and drop one at a time into hot ghee. Turn with a slotted spoon and cook until done. Remove and drain. Serve hot with chutney.

Quick Lentil Wafer Rolls

A SIMPLE AND DELIGHTFUL SNACK

2 medium potatoes, boiled peeled and mashed

1 small jalapeno chili, chopped

½ tsp salt

1 medium onion, finely chopped

1 tsp cumin seed

1 tsp minced fresh ginger

1 tbsp all-purpose or whole wheat flour

1 cup plus 1 tbsp water

ghee for frying

4 plain papads (lentil wafers)

Combine potatoes, chili, onion, ginger, salt and cumin seed. Mix thoroughly. Divide into 8 portions. Make a paste with flour and 1 tbsp water. Meanwhile heat ghee in fryer. Dip papads, one at a time in one cup water for a few seconds, until softened. (Do not insert in water too long; it will become difficult to work with.) Cut papad in half with a knife to make two semicircles. Place one portion of potato mixture on one end of semicircle. Overlap the other end to make a triangle. Seal all sides with paste made with flour. Deep fry in ghee until light brown. Drain on paper towel. Repeat with remaining papads. Serve hot with mint sauce or tomato chutney.

MISCELLANEOUS

Tamarind-Ginger Sauce

½ cup tamarind

½ cup water

1 tbsp ginger, grated

1 clove garlic, crushed

2 tsp sesame oil/ghee

2 tsp dark vinegar

2 tsp sugar

2 tbsp corn starch

In heated ghee dissolve sugar, then saute garlic and ginger until golden. Stir in corn starch, fry for 1 minute. Finally, add tamarind and water (separately dissolve the tamarind in the water first) and vinegar.

Semolina Uppuma (Jaffna Style)

2 cups semolina

1 onion

1 green chilie

2 tbsp ghee

½ tsp mustard seeds

½ tbsp channa dal

salt

curry leaves

Roast semolina until light golden. Mince the onion and chilies. Fry the mustard seeds and dal in ghee, then add the onion and chilies. When the onion is clear, add four cups of water and the salt and curry leaves. When the water boils, slowly add semolina and stir it well over low heat for ten minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Mixed vegetables may be added to this dish if desired: carrot, cabbage, green beans and cashews. Mince them and fry with the onion. When you add water, add one cup extra, and continue as directed. Uppuma is most often served as a breakfast or supper dish.

Panchamritam

FIVE-NECTAR SOUTH INDIAN PRASADAM

7 bananas

¾ cup dates

¼ cup fructose or other sugar

Fruits: dates, jak, mango, etc

1 cup honey

2 tbsp golden raisins

2 tbsp ghee

Chop dates. Peel and mash bananas. Crush sugar into small pieces. Mix everything thoroughly. This dish is prepared for the Deity on auspicious days and served as prasadam.

Zucchini with Tofu (Kauai Monastery Style)

12 zucchini, sliced

¼ cup of ghee

1 bulb garlic, diced

1 ½ inch ginger

1 large onion, chopped

1 cup of mint leaf

2 packages tofu

2 cups of Braggs Liquid Amino

Steam the tofu then saute in ghee with garlic and ginger. Add onions and mint leaf. When onions are cooked, add liquid Amino. Add zucchini and continue cooking until soft. Serve at room temperature. Serves 10.

Marinated Tofu

Marinate the tofu in a mixture of safflower oil, lemon juice, Braggs Liquid Amino, garlic and basil or any fresh herbs. By marinating the tofu we can keep it two weeks without any appreciable loss of food value.

Beet-Root Soup

1 large onion

1 oz whole-meal flour

3 sticks celery

½ pint milk

1 tbsp ghee

1 tsp mixed herbs

2 large cooked beet roots

1 tsp yeast extract seasoning

2 pints vegetable stock

Cut the cooked beets into pieces, add to the vegetable stock and cook for about 1 hour. Rub through a sieve or liquidizer and return to the pan (or freeze at this point if desired). Mix the flour with a little milk and add when the soup is hot, stirring until it thickens. Add finely chopped herbs, yeast extract and seasoning to taste.

Garam Masala (One Gallon)

SEVEN PREMIXED CURRY POWDERS RECIPES FOR COOKS IN A HURRY

1) Sweet Masala

1 part coriander powder

4 cups

1 part cumin seed

4 cups

½ part ground cinnamon

2 cups

½ part cardamom powder

2 cups

¼ part clove powder

1 cup

2) Potato Curry Masala

1 part coriander powder

4 cups

1 part cumin powder

4 cups

1 part chili powder

4 cups

½ part curry powder

2 cups

3) Hot Masala

1 part cayenne

5 cups

1 part cumin powder

5 cups

½ part turmeric

2 ½ cups

¼ part ground mustard

1 ¼ cups

4) Mild Masala

1 part black pepper

3 cups

1 part coriander powder

3 cups

¾ part caraway seed

2 ¼ cups

½ part cardamom powder

1 ½ cups

½ part mustard seeds

1 ½ cups

½ part anise seed

1 ½ cups

5) Onion Curry Masala

1 part fenugreek powder

3 cups

1 part mustard seeds

3 cups

1 part coriander powder

3 cups

1 part curry powder

3 cups

½ part turmeric powder

1 ½ cups

¼ part ground mustard

¾ cup

6) Rasam Masala

1 part cayenne

3 cups

1 part cumin powder

3 cups

1 part curry powder

3 cups

1 part mustard seeds

3 cups

1 part minced garlic

3 cups

7) Curry Masala

1 part coriander powder

1 cup

¾ part fennel powder

⅔ cup

¾ part cumin powder

¾ cup

¼ part clove powder

¼ cup

1 part curry powder

1 cup

½ part black pepper powder

½ cup

¼ part ginger powder

¼ cup

¾ part salt

¾ cup

¼ part turmeric powder

¼ cup

¼ part mustard seeds

¼ cup

½ part cayenne

½ cup

¼ part cinnamon powder

¼ cup

¼ part cardamom powder

¼ cup

¼ part garlic powder

¼ cup

Kapha Tea (Ayurvedic)

1 coffee pot water

1 tsp turmeric powder

½ tsp cinnamon powder

1 tbsp fennel powder

1 tbsp ginger powder

1 tbsp chili powder

1 tsp cardamom powder

¼ tsp cayenne powder

6 whole cloves

3 tbsp alfalfa

1 tbsp echinecia

1 tsp basil

2 tbsp honey

Bring water to boil and add spices. Bring to boil again, turn flame off and let stand for 12 hours or overnight. Drain water and discard the pasty residue at the bottom. (A fine sieve is adequate to catch the heavier residue.) Warm the tea and add honey just before drinking. (Heating honey above 115˚ turns it to ama, toxin.)

Coconut Milk

1 coconut

2 cups water

Grate coconut into bowl. Gradually add water while kneeding the coconut with the hand to release the milk. Pressing through a fine strainer and catch milk in another bowl. Canned oconut milk is availabe in most major grocery stores and nearly all Asian food shops.

DAIRY PRODUCTS

Palak Paneer

4 cups spinach, finely chopped

1 small onion, finely chopped

½ tsp ginger-chili paste

¼ tsp turmeric powder

paneer cubes, fried

salt

4 tbsp ghee

To make paneer, bring 3 gallons of milk to a boil. As soon as the milk starts to foam up and out of the pot, add apple cider vinegar or lime juice until the milk curdles. Filter through cheese cloth or cotton. Press under weight for two hours to remove remaining liquid.

Saute onions in ghee until golden. Stir in ginger-chili paste and turmeric and fry for one minute. Add spinach, salt and half cup water. Bring to boil. Cook until almost done, then add fried paneer cubes and simmer for 5 minutes on a medium flame.

Peas and Paneer

3 inches ginger

3 tbsp salt

3 green peppers

1 tbsp ground cumin

3 tomatoes, sliced

1 cup yogurt

3 lb green peas

2 tbsp tomato paste

1 tsp cumin seed

1 tbsp sugar

1 tbsp cayenne

½ gallon water

1 tbsp coriander

1 tsp turmeric

ghee

1 1b paneer cheese

Cover bottom of pan with ghee. Add cumin seed and spices while heating. (Roast cumin seed a little in dry pan before adding.) Add tomatoes, ginger and green pepper puree. Saute for a few minutes. Add tomato paste, sugar, peas and water. Boil until peas and tomatoes are well cooked. Slice paneer (as prepared in previous recipe) into ½-inch cubes and add to the boiling vegetables.

Ghee

clarified butter

Put one pound of butter in a heavy, medium-sized pan. Warm at medium heat until the butter melts. Turn heat to low when butter begins to boil and continue to cook. Do not cover the pot. The butter will foam up and sputter for awhile and then begin to quiet down. Stir occasionally. In 12 to 15 minutes, it will begin to smell like popcorn and turn to a lovely golden yellow color. Whitish curds will begin forming on the bottom of the pot. When these curds turn light tan, the ghee is ready. Remove from heat immediately and strain through a fine sieve into a clean, dry container. If kept airtight, ghee needs no refrigeration. It turns to a soft solid at room temperature. Once familiar with the process, feel free to process larger amounts of butter. Tend the cooking carefully, for ghee burns easily, acquiring a nutty smell and a light brown color.

Making Yogurt

At Kauai’s Hindu Monastery, a small herd of Jersey cows graze our pastures and provide an abundant supply of organic raw milk. A large percentage of this is turned to yogurt. Not only is yogurt easier to digest than raw milk, but it also replenishes the healthy bacteria needed in the intestines to help digest other foods and break down toxins. The best yogurt is made fresh in your own kitchen, naturally sweet with no ingredients added. Most commercial yogurt contains artificial gums or chemicals to provide a longer shelf life. Yogurt is so easy to make. Various types of yogurt bacteria culture can be bought from cheese making suppliers. (Our monastery’s source is given on page 31.) To make a large batch of yogurt, heat two gallons of milk in a heavy pot to 195˚F. Then immediately place the pot in a basin of cool water. When the milk reaches 110-120˚F, remove the pot from the basin, pour in 2 packets of culture and stir gently. If your room temperature maintains at about 70˚F, all you need do next is wrap the pot with a thick towel to keep the heat in. Let it stand for 12 hours, and you will have fresh yogurt to savor. If your room is not constant, find a warm place: a draftless cupboard perhaps, or even in the oven, where the pilot light provides a steady warmth; or you can purchase a special yogurt-making thermos from your culture supplier. Refrigerated, yogurt lasts up to 7 days. Straining fresh yogurt through cheese cloth and letting it stand 5 hours will give you sour cream. The leftover liquid, called whey, is a very healthy drink—some say healthier even than the yogurt.

Our Typical Daily Menu at Kauai’s Hindu Monastery

Three wholesome meals are served from the monastery’s kitchen. Breakfast consists of yogurt, fresh fruits and seeds. Lunch is the primary meal, consisting of rice and curry. Dinner is lighter— generally a grain and a soup made with leftovers from lunch. At lunch, for optimum digestion, we follow the general guideline of 2 portions of starch to 1 portion of protein. Many South Indian recipes, such as idli and dosai, are made with 2 parts rice and 1 part dal, providing a perfect balance. Deep-fried foods are minimal: papadams once or twice a week, and vadais and other delicacies only on festive occasions.

Breakfast: A free choice of fresh and dried fruits (we have about 108 kinds of fruit trees on the property), seeds (sunflower, sesame, flax and sometimes pumpkin) and yogurt. Supplements are also available, including nutritional yeast, All-One nutrition supplement, and various seeds and spices prescribed for individual ayurvedic temperaments (called doshas). We avoid eating acidic fruits, like pineapple or oranges, with nuts or dried fruits. They are OK with neutral fruits like apples and pears, but not with bananas. Melons, when available, are eaten by themselves; but they digest quickly, and other breakfast foods can be taken after 15 minutes. Rasam is served around 10AM.

Lunch: This is the main meal of the day, enjoyed shortly after noon, when the body’s digestive powers are strongest. Lunch consists of:

- One or sometimes two rice dishes: usually plain brown steamed rice, and when the chefs are inspired tamarind rice, lemon rice or another variation.

- Dal, kulambu or sambar.

- Occasionally (on special days) dosai or idli in addition to the rice.

- One green curry–made with a fresh leafy vegetable (we have several kinds to choose from growing on the 51-acre sanctuary).

- One vegetable curry : potato, string beans, pumpkin, taro root, etc.

- One and usually two sambals, chutneys or pachadis. Often it’s our much-loved coconut sambal and a freshly-made fruit or mint chutney (yum).

- Yogurt (each monk enjoys about ½ cup).

- An occasional sweet, usually kesari or payasam.

- Papadams one or two times a week

Dinner: This is a light, cooked meal (taken around 6 PM), usually consisting of quinoa, mung beans or millet prepared in a variety of ways, along with a light stew made from vegetables and dal. Dosai, idli or chapatis are sometimes served when the monks have more time, with kulambu and coconut chutney.

A Word About Health and Diet

As we were preparing this special edition of the Monks’ Cookbook in April of 1997, it happened that our ayurvedic doctor flew to the islands for an annual check-up of the monastics’ health. After a full week of examining each one (ages 17 to 72, most in their 40s and 50s), he remarked that this was the healthiest group he had ever seen, and he has seen most of them. He attributes it to our fresh and completely organic foods, home-grown and picked daily from the garden, to our avoidance of packaged and processed foods, and to the wholesome schedule and balanced life, good air and water on our island and a daily dose of healing meditation.

He told us a few things that may prove useful to your family’s health and well-being, which we share here. Ever take aspirin? “What? Aspirin? Use ginger instead.” “Ginger?,” we asked. “Yes, ginger is my aspirin. Try it. It’s as good as aspirin for pain, and it has none of the side effects.” Try two teaspoons of freshly grated ginger next time pain strikes (it reduces pain, helps the liver and thins the blood, whereas aspirin bleaches and weakens the liver.

He also said that ginger and turmeric are good blood cleansers. Ginger helps digestion, a teaspoon before meals. Prepare them as a tea or eat grated raw rhyzomes with meals. Papaya is great for breakfast, giving good digestion (eat the seeds to eliminate worms). Yogurt twice a day is wonderful and balancing. His prime edict was to always eat a protein with a carbohydrate. So if you have rice, be sure to eat half as much beans or dal with it, or if you enjoy potatoes or nachos, take them with some refried beans, tofu or avocado. Lots of liquids are part of his regimen, 8-10 glasses in a day (including teas, juices, etc.)

One teaspoon of turmeric twice a day is better for any inflamatory problem than over-the-counter pharmacy pills. Turmeric is a natural antibiotic, a tonic for the skin and promotes proper metabolism in the body. It aids in the digestion of protein, so is good to add to all dals along with ginger. Turmeric helps anemia as it increases red blood cells, but decreases blood platelet levels (high platelets means thick blood and higher stroke risk). He prizes pineapple because of its bromiline, and suggests eating it regularly. Pineapple juice decreases the inflamation of large intestines. Those with high blood pressure can soak feet in ice water before bed for a better sleep at night.

If you have skin problems, take four fresh neem leaves morning and evening, before a meal or on an empty stomach. This will clear the skin, and, by the way, also keep mosquitos and other insects from bothering you. Do this for three months.

Dr. Virender Sodhi, Ayurvedic & Naturopathic Medical Clinic

10025 N.E. 4th Street, Bellevue, WA 98004

Phone: 206-453-8022, Fax: 206-451-2670

Food-Blessing Chant

A Prayer of Gratitude to the Source of Sustenance.
Lines 1-4 are from Śrī Śaṅkarāchārya’s Annapūrṇāshṭakam.
Lines 5-6are the Īśa Upanishad invocation.
Lines 7-8 are a traditional Śaivite closing.

Aum, beloved Śakti of Śiva, Fullness everlasting and fully manifest as this food; O, Mother of the universe, nourish us with this gift of food so that we may attain knowledge, dispassion and spiritual perfection. Goddess Pārvatī is my mother. God Maheśvara is my father. All devotees of Śiva are my family. All three worlds are my home. Aum, Śiva is Fullness. Creation is fullness. From Śiva’s Fullness flows this world’s fullness. This fullness issues from that Fullness, yet that Fullness remains full. Aum, peace, peace, peace. Aum, this I offer unto Śiva.

The Mini Mela Giftshop

For all our books, visit www.minimela.com

Dancing with Śiva

Hinduism’s Contemporary Catechism,
Book 1 of The Master Course Trilogy
By Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami

This remarkable 1,000-page sourcebook covers every subject, answers every question and quenches the thirst of the soul for knowledge of God and the Self. Clearly written and lavishly illustrated, expertly woven with 600 verses from the Vedas, Āgamas and other holy texts, 165 South Indian paintings, 40 original graphics, a 25-page timeline of India’s history and a 100-plus-page lexicon of English, Sanskrit and Tamil. A spiritual gem and great value at twice the price. “The most comprehensive and sensitive introduction to the living spiritual tradition of Hinduism, …a feast for the heart and the mind (Georg Feuerstein).” Sixth edition, 2003, 7" x 10", full color, case bound (ISBN 0-945497-96-2), US$59.95.

Living with Śiva

Hinduism’s Contemporary Culture
Book 2 of The Master Course Trilogy
By Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami

In the same bold, candid style of Merging with Śiva, Gurudeva focuses here on Hinduism’s twenty restraints and observances that when dynamically applied bring order in life and establish a foundation for spirituality, meditation and realization. He addresses frankly and offers sound advice on the various problematic areas of modern living. The book is conveniently structured in 365 daily lessons disclosing how to approach family, money, relationships, technology, food, worship, yoga and karma to live a truly spiritual life. Second edition, beautiful full color art throughout, haṭha yoga and religious dues resources. Second edition, 2001, 7" x 10", case bound (ISBN 0-945497-98-9), US$29.85.

Hinduism Today

The International Magazine

Enjoy a spiritual experience with the foremost international journal on Sanātana Dharma, published by Satguru Bodhinatha Veylanswami and the swāmīs of the Saiva Siddhanta Yoga Order. Breaking news, ancient wisdom, modern trends, world-class photos, family resources, humor—you’ll treasure every issue! “HINDUISM TODAY is a beautiful example of the positive possibility of the media being fulfilled, a bright ray of light in a darkened world” (Anne Shannon, Portland). Introductory offer (US only): one-year subscription, four stunning issues, for US$35! And yes, the author of this book founded this global magazine and guided it for 20 years. ISSN 0896-0801; UPC: 0-74470-12134-3. Visit: www.hinduismtoday.com

Merging with Śiva

Hinduism’s Contemporary Metaphysics
Book 3 of The Master Course Trilogy
By Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami

Here is the ultimate text for the really serious seeker. It may well go down in history as the richest and most inspired statement of meditation and God Realization ever, in any language. Yet, it’s user-friendly, easy to follow, sensible and nonacademic! Merging with Śiva is 365 daily lessons, one for each day of the year, about the core of your own being. It’s about God, about the mystical realm of the fourteen chakras, the human aura, karma, force fields, thought and the states of mind, the two paths, samādhi and so much more. Illustrated with fifty original South Indian paintings. Second edition, 2001, 1,000 pages, 7" x 10", case bound (ISBN 0-945497-99-7), US$59.95.

Loving Gaṇeśa

Hinduism’s Endearing Elephant-Faced God

By Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami

No book about this beloved elephant-faced God is more soul-touching. The Lord of Dharma will come to life for you in this inspired masterpiece. It makes approaching this benevolent Lord easy and inspiring. Learn about Gaṇeśa’s powers, pastimes, mantras, nature, science, forms, sacred symbols, milk-drinking miracle and more. “A copy of Loving Gaṇeśa should be placed in every library and Hindu home” (Sri Om Prakash Sharma). Second edition, 1999, 576 pages, 5½ 8½, softcover (ISBN 0-945497-77-6), US$29.85.

The Best of Merging with Siva
In Gurudeva’s Voice

Enjoy Gurudeva’s powerful readings of 13 enlightening lessons, the essence of Merging with Śiva, recorded in 1998-99. In these excerpts from the 365 daily lessons, Gurudeva discusses Self Realization, the soul body, color and the human aura, facing our karma, kuṇḍalinī and the three psychic currents, the fourteen chakras, and a spiritual balance between husband and wife. CD anthology, 63 minutes, US$19.95.

Lemurian Scrolls

Angelic Prophecies Revealing Human Origins
By Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami

Enliven your spiritual quest with this clairvoyant revelation of mankind’s journey to Earth millions of years ago from the Pleiades and other planets to further the soul’s unfoldment. Learn about the ensuing challenges and experiences faced in evolving from spiritual bodies of light into human form and the profound practices followed and awakenings achieved in ancient Lemuria. These angelic prophecies, read by Sivaya Subramuniyaswami from ākāśic records written two million years ago, will overwhelm you with a sense of your divine origin, purpose and destiny and motivate a profound rededication to your spiritual quest. An extraordinary metaphysical book which answers the great questions: Who am I? Where did I come from? Where am I going? Second Edition, 2006, 7" x 10", 400 pages, beautifully illustrated with original full-color Balinese-style paintings, smythe-sewn and case bound (ISBN 0-945497-79-2), US$39.95.

How to Become a Better Hindu

A Guide for Seekers and Born Hindus
By Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami

Hundreds of thousands of half-Hindus, having received a first name of a God or Goddess from their yoga teacher or a swāmī, want to enter the religion fully. Because of Hinduism’s liberal doctrine, it is left to the individual as a “do-it-yourself conversion.” How to Become a Hindu explains how the six steps of ethical conversion have enhanced the lives of many in the East and West. Here Americans, Canadians and Europeans tell their stories of passage from Western faiths to Hinduism. The book raises and convincingly settles the debate about non-Hindus entering the religion. “This elucidative book will provide immense help to those who wish to enter the Hindu fold, and also the younger generation of Hindus living outside India” (Puri Shankaracharya). First edition, 2000, 496 pages, 8½" x 5½", softcover (ISBN 0-945497-82-2), US$27.95.

Order Form