Born in a typical South Indian household,  food was always the main focus of our day to day life whilst growing up. Food had a way of teaching us about the mind, body and soul. We’ve all heard the saying ‘the way to man’s heart is through this stomach’, but it was Amma who showed us everyday that food is the one aspect that connects the mind, body and soul. Appa is a foodie and Amma an amazing chef,a match made in heaven, so much so that her culinary expertise is no short of Michelin standard. For her it is all about the  “balance of flavours.”  If only her expertise was nurtured, she would probably be the Tarla Dalal of South India. For that matter, I think all of us would feel the same way about our parents.  In this era of fast food and quick take aways,  when one mentions holistic nutrition, I am only reminded of Amma’s everyday meal plans.

Every meal was balanced. Our daily meal constituted of one steamed veg curry, one salad or kosmalli( mixture of veggies & lentil) as it is called, one freshly ground thuvayal, kheerai masiyal and sambar.  She took a lot of care in planning the daily menus.  The combination of veggies was very important.  For example – we never had two starchy vegetables like potato and plantain for the same meal.  Fried veggies were saved for the weekend and rasam with kootu was mainly  made for a light night time meal.

Amma also has a lot of rules in how things need to be cooked i.e., how much to roast the spices etc.,

We also had a monthly ritual of a dose of castor oil to detoxify our system.  The day after the detox our menu would invariably feature a concoction of various herbs and spices – Aingaya podi and inji lemon rasam.  As much as I detested it then,  I am amused by how all the Ayurvedic practitioners suggest and advertise thisas a  miracle powder.
Aingaya podi is said to relieve fatigue, upset stomach, pains and other symptoms. It is one of the main item included in a pathiya samayal. The medicinal benefits of this powder comes from ingredients used like arisi thippili, kandanthippili, dry ginger, black pepper, vepampoo etc.,

Below is Amma’s recipe of this powder.  I have tried and tested this many times and it is true to its word of being a miracle powder.

Ingredients

1 inch Dry ginger (chukku)
1 piece kandanthippili
1 piece Arisithipli
1-2 Dry Red Chilli
1 teaspoon Toor Dal
1/4 teaspoon split Urad Dal
1/4 teaspoon Chana dal
1 tablespoon Dried Neem Flowers (vepampoo)
1 tablespoon sundakka vethal
1 tablespoon Manathakkali Kai Vathal
1/2 teaspoon Cumin seeds (Jeera)
1 teaspoon Coriander (Dhania) Seeds
1 teaspoon Whole Black Peppercorns
1 small piece dry tamarind
Salt, to taste
1 pinch Asafoetida (hing)
In a heavy bottom kadai dry roast the ingredients individually ( except salt and hing)
Cool the ingredients and grind to a slightly coarse powder.  Store in an air tight container.
Aingaya podi is sure to leave you cleansed and refreshed.  All the above ingredients are available at siddha medicine shops or naatu marunthu kadai. I know most of the ingredients might sound like they’re from Greek and Latin, so write into us to know more.

Happy cleansing!