Ayurveda

Today is one of my favorite seasonal observances.  It marks the day in the solar calendar of the sun moving into Capricorn on its northward trajectory. In agricultural societies, it is also the culmination of the winter growing season and a time of harvest. So this day is a celebration all across the Indian subcontinent (Nepal and Bangladesh as well), a giving of thanks to the sun, the rain, and hardworking farm animals for a plentiful winter harvest. I love that this festival is named for a food!

‘Pongal’ (in Tamizh) literally translates to ‘spilling over’ as in a pot left untended on a fire that then boils over.  It is a symbolic celebration of a plentiful harvest and a wish for prosperity in the year to come.  Pongal is also the name of the porridge-like dish made on this day.  Suffused with celebration and hence a particularly sacred meaning, this dish is cooked in a special bronze pot adorned with fresh sugarcane, turmeric, and ginger just harvested.   It elevates everyday fare like porridge to a feast.  There are savory and sweet versions, both usually made on this day.

While today dawned rainy in my part of the world, Sweet Pongal is ready. The kitchen window is steamed up! Here is a simple recipe for this immensely satisfying dish!

For generous servings for 8 ~

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups short grain rice (I prefer any short-grain from India; Ponni is grown in the south of India and is available at Indian markets.)

1/2 heaping cup yellow mung daal (an easy to cook and easy to digest lentil, usually baby’s first food; used extensively in Ayurvedic cuisine as part of a pacifying and soothing diet; also available at Indian markets)

2 cups Indian Jaggery, broken into bits with a mallet or heavy rolling pin (a traditional rustic sweetener made from cane syrup without separation of molasses)

1 tablespoon green cardamom pods

1 tablespoon sugar

Ghee or coconut cream/oil; any nut milk will works as well.

Method

• Rinse the rice and daal separately.  If using a pressure cooker, the two may be cooked together with about 4 cups of water.  If cooking stove top, simmer and cook the rice in 3 cups of water and the daal in 2 cups of water separately, covered, adding water as desired until they’re both creamy and done. It is customary to overlook the rice for this porridge like dish. Mix the cooked rice and daal together.
• Combine cardamom pods and sugar in a coffee mill and powder smooth.
• Heat a cup of water in a pan and add the jaggery pieces.  Shut off heat and stir to dissolve.  Add the cardamom sugar and mix well.  Filter this sweetener with fine mesh sieve to take out the husks and grit from the cardamom and the jaggery itself.

• Add this sweetener to the rice and daal mixture.  Heat thoroughly in a heavy bottom, adding ghee (clarified butter) or any nut milk to blend the dish into a smooth porridge.  At this point, it is tradition to let this pot boil over to mark this occasion! The cook yells out ‘Pongalo-pongal’ as a celebratory salud and everyone within earshot echoes this greeting!
• Garnish with almonds and cashews that have been toasted in a little ghee.

Serve warm and enjoy! Pongalo-Pongal!!!!

Growing up, we ate with fingers, off plates.  Vegetables, condiments, and other sides were placed individually and apart from the bread or grain topped with lentils/sauce.

I still love a meal eaten this way; it is both comforting and very satiating!

But I also love the idea of a one-dish meal eaten out of a bowl. So even though the above picture is reminiscent of Thali-style of eating, all the ingredients went in willy-nilly for a delicious spring feast in a bowl!

Full of bright, crunchy greens and bursting with flavor, easy to prepare and very satisfying!

For 2 generous lunch portions ~

1 cup cooked brown rice or any whole grain of choice

1/2 of a Daikon radish, washed and grated

1 cup packed arugula; 1 small bunch cilantro washed and chopped fine

1/2 jicama, peeled and sliced, diced, or grated fine

For the massaged kale ~ one bunch of kale leaves, washed, dried and chopped fine; 1 teaspoon fresh, peeled and grated ginger; a dash of lemon juice and (optional) Braggs Aminos; a drizzle of EVOO.  Put all the ingredients in a large bowl and with clean washed hands, massage the kale with much love 🙂  Set aside for a few minutes.

For the dressing ~ In a bowl with some hot water to cover all the ingredients generously, soak the following for at least 30 minutes: 2 tablespoons of raw white sesame seeds, 2 tablespoons of raw walnuts, 1 tablespoon raw hemp seeds.  After about 30 minutes, add the soaked ingredients with the water, some lemon juice, 1 pod garlic, and salt to taste into a blender and blend smooth! This should keep in the fridge for a few days.

For the Bowl ~ Layer rice, massaged kale, fresh greens + herbs, Daikon, and Jicama. Drizzle the dressing as you wish.  Enjoy this season’s best!

Sesame is a valuable addition to the winter pantry.  This seed is a powerhouse of nutrients and is extensively used in Ayurveda to nourish and fortify the body’s tissues against the cooling and drying effect of Vata (the Dosha governing winter).  Sesame is used internally and topically to rejuvenate skin, hair, teeth, and bone; it is also used in tonics for nourishing a woman’s reproductive system and cycle.

One of my favorite ways to get this food into my diet is this sweet snack – a few of these is like an energy bar! These snack bites are easy to make and quite lovely with an afternoon cup of warming Chai.

If one tends to be Pitta (warm~hot) in nature, it is best to reduce or avoid this seed especially in the summer.

Ingredients

1 cup sesame seeds – I like to use a mix of black and white sesame (Black is richer in nutrients with a stronger flavor.  White sesame seeds are just hulled black sesame.)

1 cup fresh, grated coconut loosely packed

Coconut palm sugar to taste – I used about 2/3 cup

Method

Heat a skillet on medium flame and toast the sesame seeds for a few minutes till they crackle and pop.  Do not leave them untended since they burn easily;  when toasted remove into a plate and let cool.

To the same skillet, add coconut and toast until it is light brown and fragrant; if using dry coconut flakes, this step can be avoided.  Allow coconut to cool on a plate as well.  (If you add the hot ingredients to a bowl, water may condense in the bowl as they cool.  This would tend to make the food moldy if kept unrefrigerated! So it is best to keep everything dry.)

Pulse sesame seeds, coconut, and palm sugar in a dry high-speed blender jar until the oil is released and the mixture starts to ball up.  One can add crushed cardamom seeds , a few strands of saffron and/or a few drops of vanilla for added flavor.

Remove from blender and using fingertips, roll out the dough into small bite-sized morsels.  Alternately, press onto an oiled plate and cut into bites.  Enjoy!

Since this recipe has fresh coconut, it is best to store this in the fridge – it should keep up to 2 weeks.

Akki Rotis are a popular gluten-free bread option in the south of India; Akki meaning rice.  Rice has enough gluten to hold these puppies together.  My friend Anpu has her own version – she throw some rolled oats, a handful of rice flour, and a handful of millet flour into a mixing bowl.  Then some fresh grated ginger and garlic.  To this basic dough starter, she adds any veggies she has on hand – grated carrots, zucchini, corn, edamame, peas (the latter three preferably blanched) and chopped herbs.

As you start to mix this together with some sea salt, the veggies start to release water and make the flours moist;  then add enough water to pull this altogether to make a dough the consistency of pizza dough.  Separate this into balls about the size of tennis balls, pat them out as flat as you can get them on wet paper towels.

Flipping them onto a hot griddle is easy – pick up the paper towel placing the roti face-up on the palm of your hand.  Then flipping the wrist over, place the roti wet side down onto the griddle and peel back the paper towel gently to keep the roti whole.  Allow a few minutes each side to brown and cook;  drizzle some virgin expeller pressed coconut or sesame oil onto each side to give the roti a nice crunch!

Serve with any relish or chutney if they make it to a serving dish!

This is one of those dishes …could be a meal, could be a side, could be anything and that is what I love about it!

Ingredients: Washed and Prepped

Ripe Avocado

Ripe, juicy lime or lemon, juiced, pips discarded

Fresh bunch of basil

Green chiles (optional)

Sea Salt

Blend all the ingredients with some extra virgin olive oil and warm water.  This dressing without the avocado will keep for a couple of weeks in the fridge.  Basil blended with nothing but olive oil can be poured into ice cube trays and saved for winter soups and stews.

Ingredients ~ Makes about 4 servings

1 cup dry navy beans soaked overnight

4 cups assorted seasonal vegetables, prepped and diced ~ butternut squash, sweet potato, carrots

1 bunch any Kale, washed, hard stems removed and leaves torn to small pieces

Ginger and garlic – fresh, grated, 1 tablespoon each; 2 medium sweet onions diced fine

2-3 heaping tbsp of cumin-corainder-turmeric powder; salt and black pepper to taste

Method ~

1.  Rinse the soaked beans and set them in a heavy bottom pot to cook with enough water to cover the beans and then some; add a dash of turmeric to the cook water.  Bring to a boil and simmer for an hour until beans are soft and done.

2.  In another stock pot, add a couple of tablespoons of ghee and the dry spices; let them sizzle for a minute or so.  Then add ginger, garlic and diced onions.

3.  Saute till the onions are soft and translucent.

4.  Add diced vegetables and stir to coat everything fully.  Add a cup or two of water, cover and allow veggies to steam till almost done.

5.  Transfer the cooked beans into the veggie pot along with the chopped greens; salt as desired and heat thoroughly making sure everything comes together as soup!

6.  When serving, add crushed black pepper add a drizzle of ghee to the bowl! Enjoy!

(Gram: English-as-in-the-other-side-of-the-pond for Lentils/Pulses)

This week, in a moment of rushed preparation, I made a rookie mistake ~ took one lentil to be another.

I meant to use Green Gram (Mung) for this dish and ended up using Black Gram instead – two very different creatures! Don’t tell my mom 🙂

This post is my attempt to turn this into a teaching moment for myself and my readers 🙂

Green Gram, also called Mung is used essentially in Indian cooking as one of the main sources of vegetable protein; babies are usually started on first solid meals of rice and Mung. Picture on left: the top row, L-R, is whole Mung, the missing cracked Mung with skin on that I meant to use and didn’t have, and Mung without the green hull.

Black Gram (Gram ~ English for Lentil) is also called Urad and used extensively in Indian cooking for its property to bind and act as a good pre-biotic for fermented foods. The bottom row, L-R: Whole Urad, Cracked Urad that I mistook for the Green, and hulled Urad.

If you were to make this dish, best start with cracked green mung with hull on! All else works just the same!

Ingredients: Lentils best soaked overnight

• 1 cup cracked Green Mung, soaked in several cups of warm water, overnight or 4-6 hours until the lentil is bite-able and soaked all the way through; next morning, rinse out the lentils, add to a blender and add in the next few ingredients
• Green chiles and fresh (peeled) ginger to taste;  the tan powder is Asafoetida (or Hing, available in Indian groceries) which helps in digesting the lentil and adding the wonderful ‘Umami’ flavor; add salt as desired!

With just enough water to make a smooth and stiff batter that coats a spoon, blend everything together.

Best to make batter in the morning; When steaming this batter, it is ideal to allow batter to sit on the counter for several hours to start natural fermentation.   Ready for lunch or supper!

To Steam:

A metal steamer or a stainless steel plate with a lip; I used the latter.

Coat the surface of your steamer with some oil; pour in the batter and even out with a spoon; you can go about 1/2-1 inch thick depending on the steamer.

To steam: I use a large wok, some hot water in the wok, place the plate inside, cover with a well-fitting lid, and allow this to steam for 8-10 minutes until done.  Donen-ess is a toothpick inserted in the middle of this cake and coming out clean.

This cake can be sliced and served with any relish or vegetables on the side – my dinner happened to be late-summer zucchini and fenugreek greens sauteed in olive oil with cumin-coriander-turmeric.

Phew! Salvaged a batter! But more importantly a fun culinary experiment!

Side Note:

Legumes are a class of vegetables that include lentils, peanuts, peas, and beans. 

Lentils are the seeds of a specific species of legume, Lens Culinaris – Brown, Green, French or Puy, Beluga etc.

Beans, according to United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organization, should include only species of Phaseolus: Aduki, Lima, Black, Pinto, Kidney etc.  It commonly also includes Castor, Soy, and Chickpeas.

When training your gut to eat vegetable proteins like lentils and beans. it is important to start by preparing them well.  These proteins are rich in fiber and act as good pre-biotic foods.  Ideally, they should be pre-soaked for several hours, then rinsed and further cooked stove-top or pressure cooked with appropriate spices ~ fresh ginger, roasted and powdered cumin-coriander seeds and turmeric go a long way towards helping one digest the protein without discomfort ~ a side of gas and bloating anyone? :-).  Another common prep is to pre-soak for several hours, rinse, and then grind them into a batter along with a grain like rice.  This batter is most commonly allowed to ferment for several hours, turning it into a naturally rich pro-biotic food.  Depending on region, there are many versions of this process, using many different lentils and grains.  This makes for a versatile repertoire of dishes, everything from steamed dumplings to many different crepe or pancake like foods, both sweet and savory!

Chickpea flour is a versatile, gluten-free addition to the pantry.  It makes a nice pancake with very little prep time.

For the veggies ~ any vegetable or greens, finely chopped or grated.  I had a small zucchini, one small carrot, some spring onions, and a little left-over arugula in my fridge today.  To this add fresh grated ginger, and any herbs you desire – cilantro works really well.

For the batter, and to make about 6-8 medium sized pancakes, start with 2 cups chickpea flour;  add in sea salt, some cayenne or crushed black pepper, and my favorite,  some cumin-corainder-powder-with-turmeric blend.  Add enough water to make a stiff batter like you would for pancakes or latkes.

Mix in the grated veggies and herbs.  Allow batter to sit for 5 minutes.

Pour onto a hot griddle; roast each side until golden brown with a little ghee.  I enjoyed mine with a pat of salted, organic butter!