As the Sunday morning sun rose, my craving for some simple yet delicious rasam kept rising. I am quite sure all my South Indian friends will agree it that rasam rice with a spoonful of homemade ghee is the ultimate comfort lunch one can have. And today, that’s what I had and enjoyed eating and cooking too.
While going through the recipe on YouTube, I found out that this delicious rasam has many health benefits too. And you might have guessed what the first thing that came to my mind was. “I want to share this with all my friends out there”. Yes, some of you might be aware of a few benefits. But I am sure there will be some new interesting health benefits you were not aware of.
Rasam…
Rasam is a traditional food with all the ingredients with some medical properties. It is prepared using tamarind juice as a base, with the addition of Indian sesame oil, turmeric, tomato, chilli pepper, pepper, garlic, cumin, curry leaves, mustard, coriander, asafoetida, sea salt and water.
Healthy Rasam Benefits:
Vitamin and Minerals Powerhouse
Rasam is all about Vitamins and nutrients like Vitamins A, and C, folic acid, thiamin as well as niacin. In addition, to being a lip-smacking treat, Rasam is also an excellent source of minerals such as potassium, iron, calcium, zinc, selenium, copper and magnesium.
Young and Supple Skin
Ingredients in rasam like tamarind and tomato are a great source of antioxidants that help your skin look young and supple. The tomato comes with its share of antioxidants and vitamin C which further enhances skin health.
Prevents Constipation
The magic elixir in the healthy and delicious rasam is tamarind juice. Tamarind is packed with rich dietary fibre or non-starch polysaccharides (mucilage, pectin, hemicellulose, tannin and gums) which adds bulk to your food easing the bowel movement. Thus, helps in preventing constipation.
The next benefit is the one we all look for in all the traditional food delicacies…
Weight Loss Management
One of the major ingredients in rasam is the black pepper. Black pepper revs up your body’s metabolism to a great extent by helping in digesting proteins better. Faster metabolism ensures that you don’t put on extra weight. Black pepper ensures that the stomach is signalled to produce more acid for better and faster digestion. Thus helping you maintain your weight and keep it free from any acidity or indigestion.
Helps keep Cancer at Bay
Now, this is something even I was not aware of and kind of surprised to read. However, according to some articles, the black pepper not only helps in weight loss and digestion but also helps in keeping cancer away. Black pepper present in rasam contains a substance called piperine. Piperine has been found to have an inhibitory effect on cancerous cells, along with curcumin, which is found in turmeric.
Last but not least. The one benefit we all are aware of…
Best Home Remedy for Cold and Flu
Curry leaves, turmeric, tamarind juice, pepper and mustard seeds are known to have many health benefits when you have a cold or flu. And when put together works wonders. Curry leaves help in flu-like symptoms while the tangy flavour of rasam helps to clean out your respiratory tract. If you have been down with flu for some time, then rasam can help in loading you with the power of vitamins and nutrients.
Time to enjoy Healthy Rasam…
Rasam is also very beneficial for pregnant women for proper intake of vitamins and minerals. Did you know, that it is also good for introducing babies to solid foods? Semi-solid food is the best type of food for a baby who has recently been weaned off mother’s milk. So, rasam is the best comfort food for all.
Now why wait when we know that a simple and healthy rasam has so much in store for you? Let’s wear our cooking aprons and start making some rasam rice…
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