Are you dieting? Are you eating too much? Are you eating too much sugar? Did you try XYZ diet? It works for me!! Do you find yourself trapped by a society that gives more importance to shape than health? Unfortunately it’s true for all of us. If you are putting aside Food lovingly prepared by Amma because you are on some new diet than you may not lose inches but your health you will.
Amma Knows!! So should you!!
Andhra food is good for you and is yummy too. There are core ingredients that make up our traditional diet and these have got a bad name. Growing up in a world where what is super food today is not tomorrow, why give up what is proved good over ages?
Ghee – Continuously bashed up as fattening but so delicious, ghee is quite central to Andhra cuisine. Ghee is by nature lipolytic and it thus a fat burner. Unlike popular belief Ghee de-stresses you and your liver produces less cholesterol. It is a great anti-oxidant and keeps you healthy and ageing at bay. Panchamrit is not so named just like that, is it?!
Coconut – Contrary to popular belief coconut cuts down the risk of cholesterol and helps you burn fat. People with diabetes can partake this dish comfortably and known to make you feel full faster, coconut helps you reduce food portions. Do not cut out this good fat from your diet.
Rice – Not brown but white. Yes, white rice is not just carbohydrates but amino acids, vitamins and phytonutrients too. It is good for you and the carbs it provides fuel you keep fit. It promotes digestion and keeps your hair healthy. For a coastal area like ours, rice is predominant in our diet and while too much of anything is too bad, rice in moderation is good for you.
These are just a few but the most misjudged in our cuisine. There are countless ingredients that we are cutting out from our diet for the sake of a fit body unrealistic prototype. You are eating wrong if you are not eating a normal diet.
Next time Amma or your wife or your husband give you hot and yummy coconut rice with a dollop of ghee, don’t break their heart. Fads and diets come and go, foods loved since generations that we grew up on will never hurt us. Wear western if you fancy but let your heart and tongue decide what you eat. Don’t starve and under-nourish yourself because healthy will always be in fashion.
Bon Appetit!!
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