Cleansing

I am just finishing up an Ayurvedic cleanse called panchakarma. It's involved a restricted diet, massage, and lots of oil.

Tonight, I'm feeling nicely energetic, even after a problematic Monday. If my life were a story, I'd say it was the oddly warm, extremely powerful wind blowing tonight.

I'm at least coming out of panchakarma with a new favorite comfort food, that hopefully is healthier than my previous ones. Kitchari is the main diet during the treatments of panchakarma. It is highly digestible, so recommended for after overindulgence. Or just when you need something comforting. Here is my recipe, slightly adopted from one I got from my practitioner. I can not emphasize how nummy it is and how much you need to be eating it.

Kitchari

Makes 2+ servings

1/2 C mung dal
1/2 C rice or 1/2 C quinoa

2+ T sesame oil
1 t black mustard seeds
1 t cumin seeds

1 t tumeric
pinch hing (aka Asafoetida)
1 T crushed coriander seeds

2 C boiling water

1 T sesame seeds powdered
1/2 T salt
1 T tikka masala
1 T shaved dried coconut

1 T brown sugar
2 T ghee

Soak dal for 1 or 2 hours. Rinse rice or quinoa. Drain and mix.

In a pot, heat the sesame oil. Add black mustard seeds and cumin seeds. When they start popping, add the crushed coriander seeds, tumeric, and hing. Mix. Add the dal and grain. Saute for 3-4 minutes. Add boiling water, masala, salt, powdered sesame seeds, and coconut. Cook on medium heat until almost done. Add ghee and sugar. Stir and cook for another 2-3 minutes on low heat. Garnish with cilantro and serve warm.