Food Preparation Basics

Cooking as Practice

In Ayurveda, food is medicine - perhaps the most important medicine. How food is prepared affects not only its nutritional value but its pranic quality and its effect on consciousness. Cooking becomes a practice, not just a chore.

The Ayurvedic Kitchen

Essential Ingredients

A well-stocked Ayurvedic kitchen includes:

Grains:

Legumes:

Fats:

Spices:

Fresh Produce:

Dairy (if tolerated):

Kitchen Tools

Simple tools serve well:

Avoid aluminum (reactive) and non-stick coatings (chemicals).

Cooking Principles

Cook Fresh

The most important principle:

This doesn’t mean elaborate cooking - a simple fresh meal exceeds a complex stale one.

Cook with Awareness

The consciousness of the cook enters the food:

Food prepared with love nourishes differently than food prepared with resentment.

Use Spices Wisely

Spices are not just flavor - they are medicine:

Spices should be cooked in fat (ghee or oil) to release their properties - this is called tempering or tadka.

Balance the Six Tastes

Each meal should ideally include all six tastes:

This creates satisfaction and reduces cravings.

Basic Preparations

Ghee

The foundational fat of Ayurvedic cooking:

  1. Place 1 lb unsalted butter in a heavy pot
  2. Heat on medium until melted
  3. Reduce heat and simmer gently
  4. Watch as water evaporates (bubbling decreases)
  5. When milk solids turn golden and sink, ghee is ready
  6. Strain through cheesecloth into glass jar
  7. Store at room temperature (no refrigeration needed)

Ghee increases agni without increasing pitta. It carries the properties of what is cooked in it deep into the tissues.

Simple Spice Blend (Churna)

A basic tridoshic blend:

Toast seeds lightly, then grind all together. Use 1/2 to 1 tsp per dish.

Kitchari

The quintessential Ayurvedic food - balancing, cleansing, easy to digest:

Ingredients:

Method:

  1. Rinse rice and dal until water runs clear
  2. Heat ghee in pot; add cumin and coriander seeds until they pop
  3. Add turmeric and ginger, stir briefly
  4. Add rice, dal, and water
  5. Bring to boil, then simmer covered 30-40 minutes
  6. Add salt and serve with fresh cilantro

Kitchari can be varied infinitely with different vegetables and spices.

Simple Dal

  1. Rinse 1 cup split mung or red lentils
  2. Cover with 3 cups water, add 1/2 tsp turmeric
  3. Boil, then simmer until soft (20-30 minutes)
  4. In separate pan, heat 2 tbsp ghee
  5. Add 1 tsp cumin seeds, let pop
  6. Add 1/4 tsp asafoetida, 1-2 dried chilies
  7. Pour tempering over dal, add salt and lemon juice

Rice

  1. Rinse basmati rice until water runs clear
  2. Soak 30 minutes if possible
  3. Drain; add fresh water (1.5 cups water per 1 cup rice)
  4. Add pinch of salt and 1 tsp ghee
  5. Bring to boil, reduce to lowest heat, cover
  6. Cook 15 minutes without lifting lid
  7. Let sit 5 minutes, then fluff

Simple Vegetable Preparation

  1. Chop vegetables into uniform pieces
  2. Heat ghee or oil in pan
  3. Add spices (cumin seeds, mustard seeds, etc.) until they pop
  4. Add harder vegetables first (root vegetables), softer ones later
  5. Add small amount of water, cover, steam until tender
  6. Season with salt, lemon, fresh herbs

Constitutional Cooking

For Vata

For Pitta

For Kapha

Practical Tips

Meal Timing

Leftovers

When leftovers are necessary:

Simplicity

Complex meals are not necessary:

Food Combining

Basic guidelines:

These rules can be relaxed when agni is strong, applied more strictly when digestion is weak.

Cooking as Sadhana

Beyond technique, let cooking become spiritual practice:

When cooking becomes sacred, eating becomes sacred, and life becomes an offering.

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