When I was a child, I would watch my grandma cook; I loved it when she would fry potatoes. Fried potatoes were always my favourite; I never needed anything else to eat with my bowl of rice.
In most Khasi homes, eating rice for breakfast is a common thing. For some, it is such a habit that they feel as though their hunger is not curbed, the leftover rice from the night before would be breakfast. We call it ‘ja pjah’ in Khasi or 'cold rice' when translated. If there was no curry left then sometimes, we would fry an egg or some potatoes because they are such quick dishes.
My grandma would slice the potatoes thinly, add some salt and turmeric and mix them up good and deep fry them in a pan - a simple 5 minutes recipe.
So, turmeric has always been a spice that my mother and grandmother would not miss adding to their dishes. I never thought too much about it until recently when I started to cook in the kitchen.
Spices and herbs are condiments you would add to your food to make it delicious and leave you craving more.
However, Lakadong Turmeric has changed the way I look at spices and herbs. They not only make your food delicious, but they also make them nutritious.
In this blog here, I wanted to share four ways of how I use Lakadong Turmeric in the kitchen.
Morning Blends
I usually start my day with a nice warm glass of water. Then I do a 30 to 40 minutes exercise after which I whip up my morning blend; it is a simple recipe,
All you need is a blender and these ingredients:
- Pineapples or any fresh fruits of your choice. I chose pineapples because I love their juiciness. If you have acidity, then I would advise you to take this blend after your breakfast or choose other types of fruits like apples or bananas.
- Lakadong Turmeric - I use the blended version, Lakadong Ker, but you can use just Lakadong turmeric as well.
- Some liquid - I prefer water, but you can use coconut milk or just milk too.
- Nuts or seeds - adding nuts or seeds is a good source of omega 3. I chose flax seeds which I have already roasted and ground. I store them in a bottle to use in my morning blends. You can use other nuts like cashews, walnuts, or seeds, like sunflower and pumpkin.
- Sweetener of your choice. Preferably a natural one like honey.
All you need is a blender and that’s it! This is why I call it my morning blend because all you need to do is blend all your ingredients together. For two glasses of this morning blend, cut up half a pineapple or any fruit of your choice. Put them into the blender and add half a cup of water, blend them up. Once the fruits are nicely blended, add in your flax seeds, Lakadong Turmeric, honey, and another cup of water. Give everything a nice, good blend and pour it into your glass and enjoy the goodness of all these ingredients and begin your day.
Turmeric Tea
After I have sorted out my plans for the day, I would then look forward to breakfast, where I would make my Turmeric Tea, another simple recipe that requires only these four ingredients:
- Black tea leaves or green tea leaves, whichever you prefer.
- Raw honey, I use Zizira’s Mawsynram Honey.
- Lakadong Turmeric or Lakadong Ker.
- A slice of fresh lemon.
Take a ¼ of a teaspoon of Lakadong Turmeric, pour it into a cup, and then add another spoon or two of honey depending on how sweet you prefer it. Then you can either steep some black tea or boil it and add it to your cup. You can enjoy this tea as part of your breakfast.
Black Sesame Rice or Ja Nei Iong
This is another simple recipe which is one of my favourites where I use two of my favourite spices - Lakadong Turmeric and black sesame seeds.
Rice is a staple food for the people of Meghalaya, and over generations, we have learnt to get creative with rice.
This recipe is simple; here are the ingredients you would need:
- 2 onions
- 1 inch of fresh ginger or 1tsp of ginger powder
- ½ tsp of Lakadong Turmeric
- ½ cup of black sesame seeds
- Salt to taste
- 2 to 3 tablespoons mustard oil
- 1 cup of rice
Preparing ingredients before you cook makes cooking easy and smooth.
So, I begin by dicing up the onions and ginger. Then I roast the black sesame seeds till they pop, and then blend them to a paste and put them aside. Next, wash and drain rice grains.
Now, we begin the cooking process,
At my house, we used a pot called ‘khiew mizo’; which we still use to this date. My grandma would tell us how this is the best pot to make rice in. Well, even till today we do not have a rice cooker at my house. Which is why you will need a pot for this recipe. So, in a rice pot, add a generous amount of mustard oil, about 2 to 3 tablespoons. Then let the oil heat up and add in the diced onions and garlic. Let them slightly caramelize and add in turmeric and black sesame seeds.
Sauté for a minute and then add rice grains and sauté for another minute. Add about 2 cups of water. Depending on the grains, you will have to adjust the water until it cooks. Let it cook for 20 to 30minutes. Enjoy this Black sesame rice with curry and salad.
Golden milk
And my favourite drink to end the day with is Golden Milk.
I know that this may not be for everyone, as milk can make some of us gassy and uncomfortable. If that's the case, you can always opt the milk out and choose water.
Well, by the end of the day, I'm usually exhausted and I would just want to snuggle in bed.
Which is why this recipe is the simplest of all!
You will need three ingredients:
- Milk
- Honey
- Lakadong Turmeric or Lakadong Ker
First, heat the milk. I usually microwave it for a minute and then I add in ¼ of a teaspoon of Lakadong Ker or Lakadong Turmeric and 1 teaspoon of Pure Wildflower Honey. That's it! Our Golden Milk is ready.
And those are the four ways I use Lakadong Turmeric in my kitchen.
We are all concerned about our fitness and health. We all think, 'I will start exercising and eating healthy tomorrow' and tomorrow turns into six months and eventually into never, at least for most of us.
Exercise feels like something extra to do, an addition to our daily routine. So when we think of exercising and eating healthy as something extra that requires effort, it's very easy to give it up.
Therefore these four ways to use Lakadong Turmeric are just substitutes to what you would do every day - drink tea in the morning, eat rice for lunch or drink a glass of milk every night before bed.
Well, you can do the same by introducing something healthy to it.
I hope you enjoy these four ways of how to use Lakadong Turmeric and incorporate them into your life.
1 comment
Indu Kalra
Can we use this Lakadong turmeric in everyday use as the curcumin content is very high and is very potent or it should only be used for medicinal purposes