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Thursday, August 16, 2012

Bring Out Your Inner Punjabi! Recipes for Spicy Nights. "Vegan Indian Cooking" by Anupy Singla. Cooked Vs. Raw Broccoli. Chop Your Broccoli!



Bhindi Masala (crackling okra).  Besan Poora (gluten free chickpea flour bread).  Methi Palak Aloo (Fenugreek Spinach Potatoes).  All from "Vegan Indian Cooking".



You guys know how much I loved Anupy's first book, "Indian Slow Cooker".  Nearly all the recipes were vegan & easily oil free.  Gluten Free.  Delicious.  Well, her second book is equally as amazing & all types of recipes! I have already blogged about a few of the dishes I have made, but included my Amazon review just to give a general idea of the entire book.




My Amazon Review:


You NEED this book in your life.I just got this book a week ago, and have made at least a dozen recipes so far! I didn't think I could love any Vegan Style Indian book more than her first one (The Indian Slow Cooker), but this is just as great! SO excited about this ALL VEGAN book!! So many veggies including kale, okra, sweet potatoes, cabbage. Soups & Breads. Salads that sound amazing-think spicy fruits, carrots, daikons! Slow Cooker & Stovetop recipes. Can't wait to make the South Indian Crepes. The dishes are already very healthy with emphasis on whole foods & dried beans. Anupy uses small amounts of oil and salt. I have found that you can skip both of those and still have great food. Last night we had the Kale Pizza breads-a super quick snack. Oh, and it has Anupy's best on the planet Chai recipe. And the drink section includes Iced Coffee & Green Drinks-for those of us who don't just do one or the other! Very inexpensive on Amazon and a lifetime of Indian food. Ingredients are inexpensive. Now should I whip up another dish with the cabbage before hubby comes home....decisions.....



Fenugreek Spinach Potatoes.  Look for Methi at your Indian Food store.  Dried version is easiest to find.

Just a few of the recipes I have tried so far....Besan Poora (Chickpea Flour Crepes), Street Corn Salad, Jeera Aloo (Cumin Potato Hash), Punjabi Khardi (Chickpea Flour Curry with Veggies), Band Gobi (Punjabi Style Cabbage), Samosas, Cabbage with Mustard Seeds and Coconut, Methi Palak Aloo (Fenugreek Spinach Potatoes), Bhindi Masala (Crackling Okra), Sweet and Sour Potatoes, Spicy Plantains, Jeera Chawal (Cumin Rice), Tofu Curry, Mock Keema, Masala Tofu Scramble, Chickpea Poppers...

I made this with zero added oil & zero salt.  Of course you can add salt to your taste.  But I find that Indian food is so rich in flavor, that I don't really miss it. 


Looking forward to trying the homemade yogurt (vegan of course!), Dosas, Spice Mixes, Chai, Chana & Split Moong Dal with Pepper Flakes, Panchratna Dal (5 lentil stew), Brown Rice and Adzuki Bean Dhokla, Tandoori Tempeh, Pomegranate Chaat, Tofu Pakora, South Indian Tomato and Tamarind Soup, Mattar Paneer, Curried Winter Melon, Lemon Brown Rice, and the list continues. Chutneys, Breads, Salads, Legumes, Dips.



Next Up: Bhindi Masala. 







Gluten Free Chickpea Flour Crepe.

Fenugreek, Spinach, Potatoes.


Curried Tofu.





OH. Fabulous thing about slow cooking is that you cut up all those great things like cabbage, garlic, onions, etc...and then it takes time for the slow cooker to heat. This is perfect because that way we actually get those immunity boosting compounds out of the food. Either eat them raw or cut them up and let sit for 40 minutes. This book has both slow cooked & stovetop. And it seems like every ingredient is a REAL superfood. Affordable, everyday superfoods.


Eat your medicine!! Cumin, Fenugreek, Chiles, Lemons, Ginger, Cilantro, Mustard, Onions, Garlic, Cardamom, Cloves, and more. All touted to be supernaturally high in antioxidants & healing powers...........Side Effects? A Belly Full of Healthy Food!

     Lay Flat Binding makes it so inviting. And Anupy spells all the "Indian Jargon" out, making it simple for first timers to flirt......

Flirt all you like, but I am ALL in!! Husband VERY happy with his Spicy Nights! (Obviously, you can adjust the spices.....But I'm experienced :)



Mushrooms & Peas. Yum!!


We all hear about "the enzymes", right?  Tim VanOrden was the first person (followed up by evidence outlined in Brenda Davis's book) that alerted me to the fact that raw foods are truly better for us because of what we are NOT getting.  The PAH's, the AGE's, and other nasty stuff that happens to our food (and the toxins on it), when exposed to heat.  Not to discredit the "enzyme" theories, and both may be true.  However, we have real scientific evidence regarding AGE's and PAH's and not as much about Prana or a consensus on what happens when food hits our gut.  However, the raw fooders seem to be "right" about the enzymes on certain foods.  And in that group"  Cruciferous Veggies.  You know those "C" fighters?  Well they may not fight the "C" very much, UNLESS prepared properly.  Bummer, because NO ONE I know cuts their broccoli and waits 40 minutes prior to preparation. 

Summary of the Video Above
  • Sulforaphane is basically inactivated by cooking.  So the good stuff in your cruciferous veggies.......well, steaming doesn't give the most bang for your buck. 
  • One would have to eat 10 cups of cooked broccoli to get the same amount of sulforaphane in 1 cup of raw broccoli.
  • OR you can Chop the Raw Broccoli up first, then wait 40 minutes for the enzymes to do their thing, and then you can "cook the heck out of it".  (But who does this??)
  • PreChopped Broccoli might be better than the florets, because it has been chopped up & the enzymes have done their job already.
  • And in another part of Dr G's Video Series, we learn that Broccoli Sprouts are the cheapest way to get your broccoli!

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