The Complete Ayurvedic Cookbook - The Eumundi Medicine Man

Tridosha in other words is using cooking processes, the use of spices, dressing as with
salads and combinations to balance any meal. Brown rice is very heavy and hard to
digest but is also a safe carbohydrate, so over-cooking the brown rice in a traditional
kitchari proves a good idea for those who have not got a cast iron stomach but want
the benefits of wholegrain. Also the ghee and tasty spices add a digestive tridoshic
energy to any dish.
A few very crude example of the tridoshic concept could be that coffee can be
disturbing to the adrenals. If a person is addicted or habituated to coffee, one can
chew cardamom pods with or after the coffee to balance the adrenal blow somewhat.
If one is a chocolate-holic what can be done to balance the habit, besides controlling
it would be to resort to chilli or pippali chocolate. Sweet taste is cold, heavy and wet
and taxing to the digestive fire and damp for the spleen. Sweet also accumulates ama
or undigested toxins, pippali and chilli are light, cutting, drying and hot while
clearing ama.
2. A SPICY CHAUNCE
A chaunce is spices, mildly cooked in ghee; used to flavour your dishes!
Ghee which is the best cooking oil for several reasons, namely;
a. Ghee improves digestion and is not taxing the liver
b. Ghee can handle high temperatures without structural change
c. Ghee is a natural flavour enhancer.
d. Ghee lowers cholesterol
e. Rich source of omega 3 & 6 fatty acids
f. According to Ayurvedic philosophy ghee being animal fat is similar to our fat,
therefore an excellent delivery system of nutrients to the mitochondria and nuclear
membrane of the cell.
Heat say a tablespoon of ghee, over a moderate to low flame, add a few pinches of
mustard seeds that will pop after a few minutes, turn down the heat once they start
popping, add a good few pinches of cumin seed, stir for 30 seconds add fenugreek
seeds after another 30 seconds add a pinch of hing, stir and remove from heat. That is
a chaunce; you have diffused the flavour and energies of the spices into the ghee.
Children and myself do not like too many crunchy seeds but we love the flavour so if
you wish scoop out some excess seeds leaving the flavoursome ghee.
You can either throw this chaunce into a dahl, over a pot of rice or into a pot of
steamed vegies. A mustard chaunce can be added to yoghurt for a raita. Or vegies can
be added to the chaunce stir fried for a minute then add water or whey and steam.
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