Vazhaipoo paruppu usili

Indian medicine systems recommend all the ingredients that have an astringent flavor such as banana blossoms (vazhaipoo), pomegranate, red gram (toor dal), Indian blackberry (naval pazham), etc. for women’s health as they keep our uterus strong & healthy. Consuming cooked banana blossom with curd or yoghurt is believed to be one of the most efficient ways of treating excessive bleeding during menstruation as it increases the level of progesterone. So it a good practice to serve vazhaipoo paruppu usili (lentil crumble) with yoghurt curry (mor-kuzhambu).

Kootanchoru

Kootanchoru is a traditional one-pot meal prepared for lunch, and it is a complete meal with the carbs, protein, vitamins & minerals. My grandmother used to prepare this flavorful rice dish at our family gatherings especially in the summer vacation every year. She preferred to use the locally grown vegetables like drumsticks, drumstick leaves, raw banana, raw mango, jackfruit seeds, etc. and served us kootan-choru with home-made fried appalam & vadagam. I still remember the mixed flavors of vegetables, spices and deep-fried vengaya vadagam emanating from her kitchen when we all played in the courtyard. The main attraction for the kids in those days were the nutty jackfruit seeds & the mango seed encapsulated by tangy fleshy mango.

Murungai keerai idli

Drumstick leaves (moringa leaves or murungai keerai) contain all the nutrients required for active mind & body. So murungai keerai idli is the perfect breakfast for the energetic children, dynamic professionals and busy women as it meets their daily dietary requirements. Apparently, weight-watchers, diabetics, and all the health-conscious people prefer to take these idli over plain idli. These are so filling compared to plain idlis. Hence we can reduce the intake of carbs to a good extent.