Pongal, Makar Sankranti, Lohri, Pedda Panduga, Magh Bihu — no matter what we call the harvest festival celebrated all over India, it’s a time that marks the end of winter (Hemant), the beginning of spring (Vasant), and the period during which a transition is made(Shishir). Like most things in India, underlying the celebrations, run deeper philosophies of health and happiness.
Nutrition first
“The festive foods cooked and served at this time all over India have a few very distinct characteristics: because they’re from the harvest, they’re at their freshest, which makes them very high in antioxidants and phytochemicals,” says Delhi-based dietician Manjari Chandra. These help the plant fight disease, so when we ingest them, it helps our bodies do the same. Farm-fresh produce scores over cold-storage produce in terms of minimal degeneration of nutrients.
“All the preparations eaten at this time are also anti-inflammatory in nature,” says Manjari. Take biotin and choline. “Peanuts and sesame are high in the former, while sweet potato is very rich in the latter — and both form essential parts of several cultures’ celebrations. Biotin increases our body’s metabolic rate, while choline is great for the digestive system. Both are recommended as supplements when people have high markers for inflammation,” she says. Instead, we’re getting them in their best form — from nature.
In winter, we’re supposed to up our exercise, to get our kapha (fire) going in the body, says Dr Zankhana Buch, the Medical Superintendent at AyurVAID Hospitals, in Bengaluru. If you avoid exercise, and you’re binging on a lot of party (junk) food during the time, your body is sure to be acidic. Yam and jaggery are great alkalising agents for the body, again, foods popular at this time. Amaranth, says Manjari, is also rich in potassium.
All this helps, with the build-up of viral infections in the air, whether it’s swine flu or respiratory trouble. “You can pick up your immunity before all this hits,” says Manjari. For starters, stick to the traditional foods that are usually dual-ingredient (jaggery-sesame laddoo, khichri), rather than trying to add too many ingredients that may not work together.
Food joy
If you’re trying to begin a meditative eating practice, it’s the best time to begin, because it’s simple food at its freshest. Plus, there’s the texture: the crunchy brittle of sesame and jaggery laddoos, the robust flavours of khichri, the hearty mix of seasonal vegetables and steaming hot bajra roti topped with melting ghee.
Dr Archana Gaonkar, an Ayurvedic physician, says that because the digestive power (agni) is at its height, skin and hair become dry. “The festive diet provides the required nutrients,” she says. Sesame comes into focus. “Sesame is sweet, pungent, bitter, and astringent in nature. It balances the body and provides lubrication,” says Gaonkar. It provides warmth, is good for the respiratory system, is rich in iron and is a cardiac tonic.
It’s the best time to eat the last of winter’s goodness, and then prepare the body to cut down on food. How do you do that? Take khichri. Dr Buch says at this time it’s made at its thickest, like pongal. As the season changes, so does the consistency, until it reaches its thinnest at the height of summer.