Ayurveda Spices |
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Spices
are pungent or aromatic substances obtained from the
bark, buds, fruit, roots, seeds or stems of various
plants and trees and used to season or flavor foods. In Ayurvedic cooking spices are more valued for their
medicinal or healing properties. Ayurveda give emphasis
to two factors of food preparation, quality of food and
proper digestion of food. Our digestive capacity or the
capacity to transforms food into healthy tissues is
known as Agni or digestive fire in Ayurveda. The proper
functioning of our body largely depends on the Agni. |
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Spices play
an important role in digestion and assimilation of food and
maintain a balanced and healthy Agni. The more heavier the
food the more importance of spices increased. If not spiced
properly these foods quickly produce Ama (toxicity), that
causes heaviness and blockages of the micro-circulatory
channels (shrotas) and physiology. Spices are also believed to
cleanse toxins from the body. Spices can be taken prior to, or
during or after a meal. You can sauté them in ghee or olive
oil for using in vegetables or poured them on dahl or curry,
or can be simmered with grains and beans as they cook. Some
spices such as mint and cilantro (coriander) can be used fresh
for garnish. Spice powders can also be used for dressing
salads or preparing health drinks. Thus, there are as many
uses of spices as benefits.
Some Common Spices
Salt
Salt is perhaps the most commonly used spice. It is one of the
six basic tastes and an essential substance for everyone. We
all need a limited quantity of salt on a daily basis. Ayurveda
consider the natural rock salt as the best. The black (red or
pinkish color) varieties of salt are high in sulfur content
and too heating for most people. The best way to use salt is
to cook it rather than sprinkling it on the food afterwards.
It should be added to the preparation near the end of cooking. |
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Pepper
Sharp, pungent in taste pepper is widely used culinary
spice. It is known for stimulating the digestive process
and relieving nausea. As it is very heating, only a very
small amount is required in food. It is best to cook
pepper into organic extra virgin olive oil or organic
ghee as this allows it to be carried most efficiently
into the tissues. Pepper encourages the absorption of
other nutrients, spices, and herbs also. It passes thru
the blood-brain |
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barrier also
and provide an excellent way for nourishment to the brain.
There are many varieties of pepper like, white, black, green
and red but the most popular among these is black pepper. It
is used so extensively in almost all the region of world that
it has acquired the name "the King of Spices". Black pepper
helps to decrease kapha and vata, and increase pitta only
slightly. It is used to seasoning the vegetables to enhance
their flavor and sprinkled on cold foods like cucumbers,
melons and bananas to neutralize their coldness.
Fresh Green Herbs
Many herbs are used for garnishing the foods and enhancing
their nutritional or medicinal properties. Unlike the dried
spices, these are used in their fresh form. As they are heat
sensitive, it’s best to add them at the end of the cooking
process and cook for only a minute or so.
Basil
Basil is an excellent healing herb. It has many medicinal
properties and helps in promoting general health by supporting
the body's natural defense against stress and diseases. It
clears the lungs, and uplift the mind. Though it is used in
many food preparations, its popular use is as tea. A tea made
from the fresh leaves of basil made excellent remedy for
chronic cough, cold, allergies, or asthma.
Cilantro
Cilantro or coriander leaves are commonly used spice. It is
used to garnish vegetables, making chutneys, or in drinks to
enhance their taste and cooling effect as well. It has cooling
properties hence, highly useful for Pitta types. It is good
for hot summer months. It is also useful for all kinds of skin
rashes, used both internally and externally. It is
particularly helpful to detoxify heavy metals in the
physiology.
Sweet Spices
Spices that are mainly used in sweet food preparations and
desserts can be termed as sweet spices. As sweet foods are
usually heavy and high in carbohydrates and fats, these spices
are used to make as they help in digestion, assimilation and
the metabolism. Some commonly used sweet spices are: |
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Cardamom
Cardamom contains fragrant seeds and used throughout the
world in sweet dish. There are three kinds of cardamom
black, green and white. Traditionally, Indian cooking
uses only black and green cardamoms. It gives the
preparation a distinct sweet and pleasing flavor. Mainly
used in milk and milk desserts, it helps to reduce
mucous production, and stimulates digestion and enhances
fat metabolism. |
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Cardamom
reduces all three doshas and
being sweet after digestion, it rejuvenates the system. |
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Cinnamon
Cinnamon means bark in Sanskrit. It is pungent, sweet
and bitter in taste. It helps in the assimilation of
nutrients into the tissues of the body. It also enhances
sugar metabolism. According to Ayurveda, it controls
both vata and kapha, without aggravating pitta unless it
is consumed in excess. |
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Clove
Clove is commonly used spice adds refreshing flavor to
the food. It is considered best for increasing the
digestive fire (Agni) without overheating the system.
Hence it is widely used in both savory and sweet
preparations. It is best used into stewed apples, and
taken first thing in the morning. Clove is also used as
mouth freshener. |
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Saffron
Saffron, which has for decades been the world’s most
expensive spice by weight, is an aromatic spice. It
gives food a rich golden-yellow hue to the food. It is a
wonderful nourishing spice which helps in building and
strengthening all the tissues of the body. It has many
medicinal |
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properties
also. It is useful for anemia, heart, reproductive tissues,
and enhancing fertility. It is used in very small quantity,
only a few strands in each dish. It is mainly used in milk,
milk preparations, sweets, rice, etc.
Traditional Indian Spices
Spices are widely used in Indian foods. Spices are mainly used
to enhance the flavor and taster of food but they also help
digestion, assimilation, metabolism, and decrease the
heaviness (kapha) of foods. |
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Coriander
Coriander is the seed of the Cilantro plant. It is very
useful spice as it stimulates the digestion without
aggravating Pitta, due to its cool nature. It is highly
useful for digestive, respiratory, and urinary systems
of the body. The toasted coriander seeds are used in
treating nausea, and are safe in |
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pregnancy.
Coriander is also used in spice mixture commonly used in
Indian dishes. |
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Cumin
Cumin is known as the ‘digester’ in Sanskrit. It
stimulates digestion, helps to reduce gas, and is
diuretic. It is pungent and slightly hot in nature. It
has antimicrobial qualities too. It is useful for
diarrhea, abdominal pain, and distention. It is used in
many food preparations, yogurt raita, salty lassi
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(yogurt drink) etc. |
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Fennel
Fennel is also cool in nature and helps to stimulates
digestion. It also helps to reduce gas, is diuretic, and
calms the nervous system. Fennel also helps to increases
fertility in women. It is highly estrogenic, stood
second after licorice, which is the most estrogenic
herb. It is |
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contraindicated in pregnancy, and for those on any estrogen
inhibitor medication. The estrogenic effect of the seeds can
be reduced to 80% by toasting. |
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Fenugreek
Fenugreek is commonly used spice and highly valuable for
its healing properties. It improves the digestive,
respiratory and nervous systems, regulates the menses,
purifies the skin and tones the whole organism. It is
also helpful for weight loss. It is widely used in
treating diabetes as it |
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has quality
to reduce the sugar level of the blood. It has beneficial
effect on carbohydrate, and fat metabolism. |
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Ginger
Ginger is commonly used in various foods and beverages.
Ginger is useful in so extensive range of ailments and
diseases that Ayurveda referred it as “the universal
medicine”. It is commonly used in fresh state as the dry
powder is too heating. It is best cut or grated into
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small pieces
and then sautéed into ghee or olive oil at the beginning of
the cooking process. Ginger is an excellent remedy for
digestive problems, such as flatulence, nausea, indigestion,
intestinal infections and certain types of food poisoning.
Gastrointestinal problems including heartburn and gas can also
be treated with ginger. It also reduces nausea in motion
sickness and pregnancy. It is safe in pregnancy, but best not
to overdo it. It also relieves headaches, nausea, rheumatism,
and colds and is analgesic. It is used both internally and
topically. |
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Turmeric
Turmeric is bitter, astringent, hot and pungent after
digestion. It is used externally and internally to
purify both blood and mind. Turmeric has many useful
therapeutic qualities, including, anti-oxidant, anti-tumoral,
anti-microbial, anti-inflammatory, anti-hepatotoxic,
anti-hyperlipidemic, and insect repellent effects. It is
very useful in cancer as it improves the anti-cancer,
and anti-inflammatory properties of nitric oxide and
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increases the
anti-cancer properties of other phytonutrients. It also
restrains the growth of leukemia in the stages of initiation,
promotion, and progression. It inhibits precancerous colon
growth, suppresses colon cancer, oral tumors, multiple lines
of breast cancer, and inhibits skin cancer growth when applied
topically. In general, it enhances metabolism and helps the
body to reduce undesirable fatty deposits, and protect against
heart disease by reducing inflammatory causing bacteria in the
blood circulation. Turmeric also has anti septic action, and
helps to slow bleeding when applied topically to wounds.
Turmeric paste is used in bruises, bites, stings, open wounds,
boils and breast disorders. |
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