Invest in your Immunity

We’ve been following the 20-second hand wash drill, wearing masks when stepping out of the home and trying to stay indoors as much as possible. But, there’s another important aspect to being precautionary during this pandemic, and that is eating right. We’re definitely craving our favourite meals from our favourite restaurants while we’re stuck eating ghar ka khaana mostly. However, when done right, your home-cooked meals can help boost your immunity, which is an absolute need of the hour.

TURN UP THE HEAT
Author and practitioner of Integrative Lifestyle Medicine and Life Coaching, Luke Coutinho shares some interesting recipes you could try your hand at.

For the little ones: Ragi porridge
Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup ragi flour (finger millet flour)
• 2 cups water (increase as per desired consistency)

To temper:

• 1 tsp A2 ghee
• 1/4 tsp mustard seeds
• 1/4 tsp jeera
• Grated veggies as per choice
• A small sprig of curry leaf

Instructions

1. In a pan, add ragi flour. Roast it for 2 mins. No need for the colour to change. Now add water.
2. Whisk it well so that there are no lumps. Now start cooking in low flame.
3. First, it will start to thicken here and there, so keep stirring to avoid lumps. Use a whisk.
4. Cook until it forms a thick pudding-like consistency.
5. When it starts to thicken switch to a ladle and keep stirring.
6. Keep cooking low flame and keep stirring continuously.
7. Now, tempering. Heat ghee in a tadka pan and add the tempering ingredients. Let it crackle. Now transfer it to the porridge.
8. Add pink salt and grated vegetables as per choice and mix well.
9. Check consistency and let it cook for 5 min. in slow flame
10. Serve hot.

For the grown-ups: Simple Dal Khichdi
Ingredients:

• 1 cup Parboiled rice (soaked for 8-10 hours)
• 1/2 cup dhuli dal (split moong dal)
• 2 tbsp organic A2 ghee
• Pinch of Ceylon cinnamon
• 2 elaichi / cardamom pods
• 1-2 cloves
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 1-inch grated ginger
• 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
• 1 pinch hing / asafoetida
• Half cup veggies (bottle gourd, peas, carrots)
• Salt to taste
• 5 cups water

Method:

1. Rinse and soak rice and dal for 8-10 hours respectively to make it more digestible.
2. Heat ghee first and roast all the whole spices in it .
3. Now add ginger, turmeric, and hing.
4. Add the veggies.
5. Add salt and water.
6. Pressure cook for four whistles.
7. Relish it with a dollop of ghee.
8. Heat ghee in a pan add cumin seeds, black peppercorns, curry leaves, cashew nuts, turmeric powder and jaggery.
9. Add the dry grated coconut and stir, now add the rinsed beaten rice, salt and continue stirring it till semi-solid consistency.
10. When we use the parboiled rice, we add the rice and pressure cook with other ingredients above for about 4 to 5 whistles.

For the Old-timers: Sweet potato soup
Ingredients

• 500 gm sweet potato
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• ½ tsp organic turmeric powder
• Pink Himalayan salt and pepper – as per taste
• 3-4 cups water
• 3 sprigs fresh thyme (herbs are optional and as per availability)
• 2 tsp A2 cow ghee
• ½ cup coconut milk (optional)

Steps:

1. In a pressure cooker, add ghee over medium-high heat.
2. Add onion and garlic and sauté for 5 minutes until tender.
3. Add sweet potatoes and sauté for 5 minutes.
4. Season with salt and pepper.
5. Add water (about 3-4 cups) and bring to a boil.
6. Cover the pressure cooker.
7. Reduce heat to medium and pressure cook for 2 to 3 whistles.
8. Turn off the burner.
9. Open the lid and using a hand blender, puree the soup in the pot until smooth.
10. Stir in thyme, turmeric, coconut milk (if desired) and salt and pepper as per taste and cook for 2-3 mins. more.
11. Relish and enjoy the super immunity-boosting soup.

Variations:

• Adding some coconut milk will bring about a creamy texture.
• Can add fresh greens like spinach, spring onion – as per availability along with the sweet potato for more variations.
• Top it with soaked pumpkin seeds too for the extra crunch.
• A natural remedy

Ayurvedic nutritionist Dimple Jangda tells us that this pandemic is nature’s way of saying ‘I have hit pause to reset my normal state.’ This is a sign from nature that we need to acclimatize. Circadian rhythm and Ayurveda say that you must imitate nature. If nature is active, you become active. If nature has hit pause and reset, we must also hit pause and reset our health to its natural state by staying in quarantine and boosting immunity. At the same time, practise letting go of all old baggages in your wardrobe, personal, professional or emotional life before we get back to a brand new world.

Till a vaccine is discovered, we can rely on our grandmother’s age-old knowledge and nook says from a 5000-year-old science like Ayurveda. Here are a few tips she shares:

Neem ka patta – Take the leaf, wash it nicely, grind it with pestle and mortar, make a paste without adding water and put it at the back of your throat and swallow it. Follow it with jaggery or khadi sugar or mishri. Avoid water or breakfast for an hour because it takes a while for the neem to work in the body. Have this early in the morning on an empty stomach.

Phyllanthus niruri (stone breaker) leaves are available in capsule form or powder form. Take 50g of the leaf, wash it and make a paste and have it on an empty stomach every morning. Have breakfast after one hour. Neem and Phyllanthus niruri capsules are available in medical stores and online. Ideally, these capsules should only be taken for 15 days because too much of good is also bad. They may cause excessive heat in the body. Pregnant women, children and senior citizens should avoid these.

Chyawanprash 1 tsp in the morning and evening followed by a glass of warm milk + haldi is perfect for children from the age of 4 to senior citizens up to the age of 90. Milk is a good carrier of medicines.

Amalaki (Indian gooseberry) is anti-inflammatory and anti-carcinogenic. It has 1000x more vitamin C than lemons. It is present in Chyawanprash. You can have one raw every morning. You can have the sweetened version if you like. If you don’t have the raw amla, get the juice and have 10ml or 20ml every morning.

Bramhi – tablet or powder. Boil herbs in water to make tea or mix in ghee and have. (not recommended for pregnant women)

Sip ginger tea, dried ginger, or ginger chews, or fresh ginger. Take it before every meal to increase your immunity.

Most importantly, don’t worry about it! Do what you can, but don’t stress because stress weakens immunity.

FOLLOW YOUR GUT
Dietician and nutritionist Neha Ranglani shares some quick tips to follow through the day. The best way to up your immunity is to heal and repair your gut.

• Starting your day with ginger lemon turmeric warm water and fruits is the best way to calm your gut.
• Sip on a green smoothie as a mid-meal drink. Including fresh salads with your meals and millets in place of wheat is also a good option.
• A concoction of saunf jeera ajwain helps to calm the gut and improve digestion.
• Soups and stir fry for dinner along with a light meal helps to ease digestion through the night. Make sure to add superfoods like coconut, mulethi, aloe vera, pumpkin seeds, chia seeds and walnuts to your diet.