The usefulness of Ayurvedic cooking methods have been acknowledged for centuries which include better digestion, radiant skin, and stronger immunity.
Far from being another trendy diet rule, ‘Ayurveda’ is an ancient approach to address overall well-being. This traditional holistic medicine practice, originated in Indian subcontinent, has been evolving for more than 5,000 years. You will be surprised to know that, even after so many years, it still has numerous modern applications. The main reason behind this is personalized guidelines on diet, daily routine, and living environment. According to Ayurveda, if your diet is perfect, you don't even need any medicine for disease. But, how to practice that? It starts with healthy cooking methods. If you have no idea about Ayurvedic cooking, don't worry, we've got you covered.
Let's not go into the history and discuss only about facts. Ayurveda focuses on both prevention and treatment of any disease depending on individual's dosha or constitution. So, it deals with dietary approaches to herbal remedies to ultimately achieve the required balance of mind, body, and spirit. As human cannot live without food, it should be prepared and consumed for effective digestion and optimal benefit.
Cooking Essentials: We all know that grains and oil are prerequisites for cooking. But, which is the best and what you should avoid? In our day-to-day life, we often prefer vegetable oil or canola oil. However, in Ayurvedic cooking, ghee should be preferred over other oils. In summer season, you can use coconut oil because of its cooling power. Among grains, Basmati rice is preferred in ayurveda.
Spice Staples: Numerous herbs and spices are mentioned in ayurveda with astonishing health benefits. Some of the common spices that you should have in your pantry are turmeric, ginger, garlic, cumin, coriander, cilantro, cinnamon, cloves and cardamom.
Gradual Transition: We understand it's tough to avoid those tasty fast foods, but if you really care about your health, it's important to avoid them. It will not happen in one day. It's a long process because sacrifices take time. Ayurveda promotes consumption of fresh foods. So, you need to slowly transform your diet from packaged food to fresh ingredients.
Go Local: There is no alternative to seasonal and local ingredients. Consuming those locally produced seasonal veggies and fruits optimizes the ‘prana’ or spirit of the food. Ayurvedic cooking prefers food compatibility. So, you must be preparing food based on your Dosha (Vata, Pitta, Kapha).
Cook Smarter: In conventional methods, we tend to prefer some deep-frying items. In Ayurvedic cooking, it's prohibited as it kills its spirit and taste. As the cooking method is ‘Dosha’-aligned, for pitta-dominated people, cooling items and spices are beneficial. Vata-dominated persons should prefer warming foods, whereas light, warm, and dry works best for kaphas.
An important step of embracing Ayurvedic Cooking is avoiding popularly used aluminum utensils. Instead, use heavy cast iron frying pan, medium sized stainless steel pots with lids, soup pot with lid, mixing bowls, chopping board, deep pot for frying, hand egg beater, measuring cups and spoons, and blender. But, why do you need these? Because, you will be following a personalized diet and cooking methods. It requires precise concentration of ingredients. They should be thoroughly cleaned before and after use. This is known as ‘Patrasudha’ in ayurveda.
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As per Vedic expression, if our digestion is strong, our bodies can automatically turn into nectar from poison, on the other hand, if digestion is weak, the nectar can be converted into poison quickly. So, you must cook in a calm mind with absolute focus. This is called ‘Paksudha’ in ayurveda.
"Cooking and eating Ayurvedically is a very intuitive and joyful process. It's a way to practice self-care and self-love and then spill them onto those around you," mentioned Divya Alter, and Ayurvedic chef and author of the cookbook, Joy of Balance: An Ayurvedic Guide to Cooking with Healing Ingredients.
