I’ve posted on the whole vata thing before – it’s an Ayurvedic diagnosis for A-types who move and talk fast, get flighty and unearthed easily, as well as, well, get toxic. You know, joint-achy and congested and bogged up.
Me, basically.
And many of you, I suspect. I made the point in my previous post that contemporary culture has made us vata-ish.
Anyway, this time of year it’s VERY important to eat right for the vata type. That is to eat warm, mushy foods. Root veggies are great. Salads are not. A bit of sweetness is also good (root veggies satisfy this criteria, too). And so it was that I found this recipe on my new favourite food blog My New Roots (thank you to Ness at thelowflygingduck). It combines all the things we Vata’s need right now, PLUS the added bonus of coriander (cilantro).
Why coriander? What’s the big deal? Well, I recently found out I have high levels of heavy metals in my system (remember the toxic cosmetics story? Yeah, well…the toxic reading was quite extensive…I have mercury poisoning, too). To deal with this, one has to “chelate“. I’m doing it with Chlorella powder. Which has been interesting. I spent a week throwing up and racing to the loo in the most violent of manners as it did it’s work. It’s calmed now. And besides this is a Tuesday Eats food post!
The other effective technique is to eat a stack of coriander.
Which is what makes this recipe so good – it makes use of a massive whack of the green stuff…
Rhubarb and sweet potato stew with coriander oil
- 1 cup red lentils
- 2 Tbsp ghee or coconut oil
- 1 Tbsp mustard seeds
- 1 Tbsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp turmeric
- 5 cardamom pods
- 1 star anise
- 1 tsp cayenne (or to your taste)
- 1 ½ cups diced onions
- 2 Tbsp Tamari
- 5 cloves garlic, minced
- 3 Tbsp fresh ginger, minced
- 1 large sweet potato, cut into bite-size pieces
- 7 stalks rhubarb, cut into bite-size pieces
- 5 cups water
- 1 to 2 Tbsp. honey
- Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- Steamed brown rice, quinoa, millet, or toasted whole-grain pita, for serving
Wash lentils well by covering them with water in a large bowl and swishing around until the water is murky. Drain and repeat until water is clear (usually 3 to 4 times). Set aside.
Melt the ghee or coconut oil in a large pot on the stove. Add the dried spices and stir constantly, ensuring that they do not burn. When the spices smell fragrant, add onions and tamari and cook for about 5 minutes until the onions have softened. Add the garlic and ginger. If the mixture is too dry, add a little water to prevent burning.
Add remaining ingredients, cover and simmer until lentils are cooked, about 30 minutes. Stir in the honey and season to taste with salt and pepper.
Serve over steamed brown rice, quinoa, millet, or with whole grain pitas. Drizzle with Coriander Oil (below).
Coriander Oil
- 1 cup chopped fresh coriander
- ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 Tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1 tsp honey
- Pinch sea salt
Add all ingredients to a blender or food processor and blend in high until the sauce is relatively smooth. Season to taste. Serve over stew. Store leftovers in the fridge.
I also liked My New Root’s warm salad recipes, like this one…
Have you chelated? Got any other great rooty, Vata-kind eating ideas you’re trying out now?
thanks for the mynewroots blog link – lots of new recipes for em to try!
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What a lovely blog. Thanks for pointing us to it!! And a fellow Canuck, too.
I’m actually going to run out to the supermarket right now so that I can try one of her meals.
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Sarah what do you think of calcium d glucarate for expelling toxins?
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Thanks Sarah. Being a Vata type gal I love my warm and nourishing food, especially this time of the year. Those recipes look really good as do those blog links. One vata quality I noticed recently which wasn’t food related but I thought I’d mention was that we vata’s aren’t big on excessive motion type exercise such as running. I think you’ve mentioned previously about running injury/issues so maybe there’s a connection. Food for thought anyway..
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July 5th, 2011 at 12:08 pm
I know…we’re not MEANT to do strenous high-octane exercise…these days I jog, not run.
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Chelating sounds like an awful process! You poor thing. I hope you are feeling better now. Do you notice a difference in your healthfulness and energy levels now the awful stuff is out of your body?
You have convinced me to give up my raw salads for a while to try a cooked lunch. (I wasnt feeling good eating them anyway, I dont feel well on cold drinks or food this time of year, I even heat my drinking water!) Going for salmon, broccoli and rice today, and Im finally taking the plunge and picking up a slow cooker for dinners. See if it makes a difference!
I love your Tuesday eats by the way, they always start such interesting conversations and get me thinking!! Thank you Sarah. xx
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I have a question going round in my head at the moment about whether i should cut out a few certain foods that i enjoy. I have hashimoto’s and am a pretty healthy eater but have recently been having worse symptoms so haev been investigating diet info.
Dairy, eggs and legumes keep coming up as possible things to avoid. I love all of these and don’t do gluten or sugar so feel that if i took these out of my diet as well my choices would become to limited.
I am interested in getting others views on these foods.
Thanks
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July 5th, 2011 at 3:01 pm
I dont do gluten or sugar either, and I find it really hard too. How do you know what to avoid & what not to avoid? Some people say give up red meat its dangerous, some say DONT give up red meat cos vegetarianism is dangerous. Some say dairy is good, others that it is evil. I have even heard people with Hashi’s claim that vegetables and fibre are evil.
My suggestion would be to cut out one of those foods at a time, for a month at least, and see how you go? I have tried it a few times with different things (dairy, sugar, alcohol, etc) and you get a fairly definite idea if you feel better or worse. Unfortunately as Hashi’s tends to be up and down a lot, you need to give it at least a few weeks to really be sure its the food!
Honestly, my personal feelings are that dairy, gluten and meat substitutes are sometimes worse than the food they are replacing. All that processing cant be good.
Sorry for the essay and I hope that helps! xx
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Sarah, did you see this on My New Roots?
http://mynewroots.blogspot.com/2011/06/green-dream-chlorella-cream.html
Maybe a slightly nicer way for you to get your dose of Chlorella… =)
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I love Sarah B’s blog too! Such a great find.
I like to make warm salads by roasting or steaming a yam/sweet potato and tossing it with fresh greens to wilt them. Or I’ll marinate some kale and toss with freshly cooked brown rice. Or, you could make a breakfast porridge with cooked, ground up rice and lentils. With plenty of cinnamon and a bit of honey or yogurt, it’s delicious and comforting! Another favorite is baked oatmeal– tastes like dessert.
I don’t know if I’m truly vata-type, but I can definitely appreciate a warm, mushy meal.
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How much chlorella were you taking the first week?…
Buy organic chlorella, myco-toxins + vata =
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Sarah,
I took the test and, as I suspected, I am Vata dominant. So today I did a little experiment and ate like a Vata and I can’t believe it but… this was probably the first day in a very long time where I felt balanced and even-keeled pretty much all day long. I stuck with warm, mushy foods for each meal, drank warm beverages, did my normal yoga practice and so on. For all this time, it’s the food that’s been missing and keeping me from out of balance but it makes so much sense now that I think about it. Anyway, I just wanted to share this and thank you for helping open my eyes!
~Amanda
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Great blog My new roots! I love it and have done a big back reading of her old posts. It’s gorgeous like cannelle et vanille blog. My two favourite and both suggested by you. Thanks Sarah. It really gives me motivation to be health and kind to my body and eat fresh, seasonal, whole food.
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Great dish Sarah – however while cooking, I closed my eyes and thought I was in the Hari Krishna cafe at Byron! Hubby enjoyed it as well, and I woke feeling great – amazing, the positive impact something like that has on your digestion.
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LOVE your blog! I am also a Vata girl so any recipes you post are so helpful to me. Keep up the fab work. I am also about to go sugar free as well so your blog is a major inspiration. Cheers, Peta @ Pilates Evolution Now
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[...] All that raw, cool talk aside, its good to complement things with something grounding. Silly Season can blow out our vata. This one’s a great grounding recipe, after all the over-stimulation. Calm your system down with this densely nutritious meal. Find the full recipe here. [...]