Spices Health benefits of Zedoary valuefood, November 20, 2010November 8, 2014 Zedoary (Scientific name: Curcuma Zedoria) is an ancient spice and a close relative of ginger. It is a native of India, China, Nepal and Indonesia. Zeodary was introduced in the west as early as 6th Century by the Arabs. Today, however it is very rare in the West having been replaced by Ginger. Dried Zedoary is ground in a pestle and mortar. The dried rhizomes of Zeodary plant are used as a condiment and in perfumes, medicines and cosmetics. The Zerumbet has been erroneously confused with the round Zedoary. Continue Reading
Herbs Health benefits of Basil or Tulsi valuefood, October 6, 2010September 2, 2013 Basil (Ocimum basilicum) derived its name from from the Greek ‘basiikon phyton’ which means ‘kingly herb’. French consider it royale, while Indians consider Basil sacred and holy. Every Hindu house has plant of Tulsi or Basil shrub and is worshipped. Basil has refreshing clove like aroma. This aroma is complementary to tomatoes and other vegetables. Hence it is also referred as “Tomato herb”. It is also used in garnishing salads and other foods.Stem and leaves of Basil are known to have health benefits and medicinal use. Basil leaves contains essential oil – estragol, eugenol, lineol, caffine, beta carotene, camphor and Vitamin C. It is rich in vitamins A and C and contains minerals like potassium, magnesium, iron, phosphorous and calcium. Health benefits of Basil are attributed to its properties as antispasmodic, carminative, stomachic, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, antiseptic, insecticide. Health benefits of Basil are summarized below: Continue Reading
Spices Health benefits of Asafoetida valuefood, October 6, 2010November 8, 2014 Asofoetida (scientific name Ferula asafoetida) is also known as Asafetida, Assafetida, Assafoetida, Devil’s Dung, Devil’s Durt, Food of the Gods (Persian), Laser (Roman), Stinking Gum, Hing (Hindi). The name is combination of Persian aza (meaning resin) and Latina foetidus (meaning stinking). Asofoetida has been used as a spice in ancient Rome. Although it is not native to India, Asofoetida is widely used in Indian medicines and cookery for ages. The spice, Asofoetida is hard resinous gum, from sap of roots and stem. The resin is powdered and used. Resin is composed of coumarin. Asofoetida has pungent smell like sulphur, which dissipates on cooking. It adds onion like pleasant flavour to food. Minute quantities of asafoetida is added is added directly to cooking oil or cooking liquid. Health benefits of Asafoetida can be attributed to its medicinal properties like carminative, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory and others. Health benefits of Asafoetida are summarized below: Continue Reading
Spices Health Benefits of Amchur valuefood, October 5, 2010December 11, 2013 Amchur (Raw Mango powder) or Amchoor is popular spice in Asia. The name comes from Hindi names Aam meaining mango and chur meaning powder. Raw, unripe green mango fruit are sliced and sundried to obtain Amchur. The mango tree, native to South Asia, is of such popularity in India and the Far East. Almost all parts of the tree have some medical use. Use of Amchur has been limited to Indian cookery, where it is used as an acid flavouring ingredient or as a condiment. Amchur adds tanginess to dishes and acts as souring agent. It is particularly useful as an ingredient in marinades, having the same tenderizing qualities as lemon or lime juice. Raw mango powder or Amchur is acidic, astringent and antiscorbutic in nature. Raw mango powder has high Vitamin A and Vitamin C content, which attributes to some of the health benefits and medical uses of Amchur. Health benefits and medicinal uses of raw mango powder or amchur is summarized as under: Continue Reading
Spices Health benefits of Ajowan or Ajwain Seeds valuefood, October 5, 2010February 7, 2015 Ajowan or Ajwain (scientific name Trachyspermum ammi pronounced aj’o-wen) is from same family as caraway or cumin. Ajowan also known as carom / Ajave/ Ethiopian Cumin or Omam, is common spice in Indian cooking. Ajowan seeds are often chewed on their own after a meal for medicinal value. Ajowan tastes hot and leave tongue numb for a while. Crushed or cooked ajowan leaves strong and distinctive thyme-like aroma. Oil of Ajwain seeds essential contains Thymol. Thymol constitutes more than 50% of Ajowan oil. Health benefits of Ajowain seeds are known traditionally and it is only because of these health and medicinal benefits of ajowain seeds, it finds its place as home remedies for common ailments. Health benefits of Ajwain seeds and other medicinal uses of Ajwain are summarized below: Continue Reading
Spices Health benefits of Cumin seeds valuefood, October 4, 2010December 11, 2013 Cumin Seeds (scientific name is Cuminum cyminum) is globally popular as spice and used widely due to its distinctive aroma. It is extensively used in Indian Subcontinent and some other Asian, African and Latin American countries, as a condiment or spice. Mineral Content of Cumin Seeds Apart from the distinctive aroma, Cumin seeds have high nutrition value. They are a rich source of Iron and Manganese, which are essential for vital functions of human body. 10 gram of Cumin seeds provide around 50% of daily dietary requirement of Iron. Cumin seeds also contain minerals such as Calcium, Potassium, Phosphorus, Zinc and others. Health benefits of Cumin seeds Helps in Digestion: Traditionally, Cumin seeds are known to be of benefit to digestive system. Cumin seeds, contain aromatic organic substance called Cuminaldehyde, which stimulates salivation and thus facilitate primary digestion. According to scientific research, cumin seeds may stimulate secretion of enzymes from Pancreas, which are necessary for assimilation of nutrients from food during digestion. Continue Reading
Spices Health benefits of Turmeric valuefood, June 21, 2010August 6, 2013 Turmeric or Indian Saffron or Curcuma longa is rhizomatous plant native to South Asia including India. Turmeric roots provide one of the best known medicinal spices. Roots of turmeric have been used in as food additive, medicine, cosmetics, and fabric dying for more than 2,000 years in Asia. Turmeric powder is obtained from boiling Turmeric rhizomes for several hours, subsequently drying and grounding. What is turmeric composed of? Turmeric contains about 6-7% protein, 4-5% fat, 3-4% minerals, 70% carbohydrate and 10-15% moisture. The essential oil from Turmeric is obtained by steam distillation of rhizomes. Curcumin (diferuloylmethane) (3–4% in Turmeric) is a polyphenol responsible for distinct yellow colour and many of its medicinal properties. Health benefits and uses of Turmeric Turmeric has been used since ancient times for treatment of variety of ailments. Turmeric is best recognized as anti-oxidant, hypoglycemic, colorant, and antiseptic. Turmeric leaf oil and turmeric extract can also be used as sunscreens and bio-pesticides. Continue Reading
Honey Health Benefits of Royal Jelly valuefood, May 31, 2010May 23, 2014 What is Royal Jelly? Royal Jelly is sticky jelly like liquid, produced in hypopharyngeal glands, in head of worker honey bees. Royal Jelly is used to feed adult queen honey bee and larvae. What is royal about Bee Royal Jelly? When bees want a new queen, they choose larvae and feed them with abundant amount of royal jelly in specially constructed queen cells. This natural royal jelly stimulates development of queen morphology in the selected larvae, including the fully developed ovaries needed to lay eggs. With the effect of bee royal jelly, the queen bee lives 3-5 years and shows high fertility. Without sufficient bee royal jelly other larvae become worker bees. Royal Jelly is the queen’s royal diet, which make it superior to other honey bees. Other names for Royal Jelly are Apilak, Gelee Royale, RJ and Queen Bee Jelly Continue Reading
Benefits of Monofloral Honey valuefood, May 28, 2010August 21, 2013 Honeybees collect nectar from various flowers to make honey. They visit nearly 100-1500 flowers to… Continue Reading
Honey Health benefits of Honey valuefood, May 25, 2010January 25, 2014 What is Honey? Honey is nectar and sweet deposits from plants, gathered, modified and stored in the honeycomb by honey bees. Honey is made by honey bees in one of the most efficient structure – the beehive. A beehive contains more than 50,000 bees who collectively travel thousands of miles to gather nectar from flowers and make honey. Honey is most popular natural product known since ages for its health benefits. Ancient men who collected honey from forests had realized health benefits of honey. Ancient civilizations have been using honey in various forms for various medicinal uses including healing of wounds, burns, ulcers, infections, etc. Honey has been used for at least 5000 years for its healing properties. Honey forms base of various medicinal preparation of Ayurveda – ancient medicine science from India. Ancient Greece’s Hippocrates, the father of medicine, found honey cleans sores and ulcers on the lips. He also found it heals boils and running sores and other health benefits. Continue Reading
Fruits Health benefits of Mango valuefood, May 23, 2010April 9, 2017 Mango has scientific name Magnifera Indica. Originally from Indian Subcontinent, mangos have been around for over 4,000 years. Mango is now cultivated in most of tropical and sub tropical region, however India produces more than half of world’s mangoes. It is said that Lord Buddha found Nirvana in a mango grove. Mango is consumed in several forms both raw and ripe, processed and non processed. Its leaves are also used in various rituals and ceremonies in India. Nutritional Value of Mango: Mangoes are rich source of phytochemicals like betacarotene, quercetin, astragalin and other nutrients. Calorific value and Nutrient content of Mango: About 100gm of mango gives around 65 calories with 17 gm of Carbohydrate, 0.3g of fat and 0.5g Protein. Continue Reading
Beverages Health Benefits of Green Tea valuefood, April 28, 2010April 1, 2016 What is Green Tea: Tea is produced from processing of leaves of Camellia sinensis plant. Three key varieties of tea in market are black, green and oolong based on different processing methods employed. How is green different from normal tea? Green tea is like regular black tea. Green tea leaves are steamed, or baked soon after plucking, while black tea is not. Green tea is not fermented hence finished tea is green and similar to natural leaves. Since green tea is unfermented it undergoes minimal oxidation and so it has higher concentration of powerful antioxidants called polyphenols than black tea. Tea contains polyphenols such as catechins including epicatechin, epigallocatechin, epicatechin gallate, and epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), along with alkaloid and caffeine. EGCG accounts for more than 40% of the total content. Antioxidant activity of EGCG is about 25-100 times more than vitamins C and E. One cup of green tea may provide 10-40 mg of polyphenols and has antioxidant effects that are greater than a serving of broccoli, spinach, carrots, or strawberries. There is myth that green tea does not contain caffeine. However, all types of tea including green tea contain caffeine. However amount of caffeine depends on the plant from which leaves are taken and oxidation process during processing. Caffeine in green tea is minimal if compared with other teas. A cup of green tea has around one third less caffeine than same cup of coffee. Studies are been taken on methods of harvesting tea and limiting oxidation to reduce caffeine in green tea to the extent possible. Continue Reading
Essential Oil Health benefits of Coconut oil Priya Nair, April 25, 2010December 17, 2013 Common coconut (scientific name: Cocos nucifera) is one of the most valuable plants to man. In Sanskrit, coconut tree is called “kalpa vriksha” or the tree which provides all the necessities of life. Coconut oil is obtained from the fruit/nut of Coconut plam. What does coconut oil contain? Every 100 gram of Coconut oil provides Iron (0.04 mg), Vitamin E (0.09 mg), Tocopherol gamma (0.20 mg), Vitamin K ( 0.5 mcg), Saturated Fatty acids (86.5 g), mono unsaturated Fatty acids (5.8 g), polyunsaturated fatty acids (1.8 g) and energy equivalent to 862 kcal. Continue Reading