A revival towards the traditional food lifestyle is underway almost everywhere. Ayurveda, an ancient science of life, had scripted its food knowledge in a reverential way- there was a goddess of nutrition – Annapurna Devi to whom every meal was dedicated, there was gratitude for what was placed before you, some rituals to help you eat slowly and postures to help you digest food.
The kitchen was a holy place complete with altar. The lady of the house burnt a ghee lamp in the kitchen altar and after prayers began her cooking. I recommend we at least do a mental prayer or affirmation as we make our meal- the ritual is really a mood maker for this.
Here are some natural principles for Cooking the Ayurvedic Way-
- Pranic Freshness: The food should be as fresh and organic as possible. Grains used to be ground weekly, the vegetables would be plucked in the morning from the land adjoining the home: the sun still saturated in the greens. Ayurved gives primacy to Prana- the life force emanating from the universe. Fresh vegetables and fruits are sun soaked and brimming with prana- alas- not for long. Peaking with prana when just plucked, they retain this precious life force for a few hours and diminish rapidly after. Having a kitchen garden really serves you well- specially greens eaten right after plucking give you a prana high. Avoid precut vegetables from the grocery stores- much prana is lost there. I have practised a high prana diet in India and as an overeater I noticed a reduction in the volume of food i ate- high prana food satiates more.
- Steaming: Vegetables are best cooked by light steaming: this preserves colour and nutrition which is lost when we boil ( nutrient loss to water) or bake (high temperatures destroy nutrients). Light steaming allows the prana to remain in the food yet breaks down the cellulose walls that are hard to digest.
- Eat all six flavours: Ayurveda is about balance. We need to eat all the six flavours: sweet, sour, salty, bitter, astringent and pungent for the body to fully stay at ease.
- Cook at home: Nothing beats the health and energy of a home made meal. You know the ingredients you buy, there is love energy going into the food and its freshly eaten. Ideally there should be no refrigeration- this may be tough with the convenient lifestyle we are addicted to, but if you cook just enough there may be no need to store.
These are the first principles. There are spirals of information within these principles which I am happy to share through your questions.
To Your Health!
