Patricia
“In Newsletter, No 34, Volume 4, the Quinoa Summer Salad recipe reminds us not to combine yogurt with fruits.
I have grown up combining those two all the time and do not quite understand why this is bad for the body.
Would this mean that Mango Lassi is bad for you as well?
My normal breakfast is to eat 1 cooked apple with a few dried apricots and prunes first, followed immediately by cooked
whole buckwheat (to which I’d added some sunflower seeds, green pumpkin seeds, dried goji berries, dried mulberries,
your Madhur Masala, kelp granules, turmeric and ghee). Is this all wrong?
What are some easy food combining rules for Ayurvedic newcomers like me?
And what are the definite no-no’s?
Thanks for any answer you can provide.
Have a nice day,
Patricia”
Vaidya replies:
We have written article on food combining please refer to this article as well: http://blog.vaidyamishra.com/blog/knowledge/indigestion-due-eating-mutually-contradictory-food-items/
Dear Patricia: there is a very concrete reason why Ayurveda recommends we do not combine fruits and yogurt. Ayurveda categorizes edible items in many more ways than western nutrition, because it identifies many more “guna”-s or properties that characterize each edible item. Each property has a very specific effect on the physiology, whether beneficial or imbalancing. In this sense, Ayurveda is much more careful in combining different food items, because many items may carry mutually contradictory properties, or together carry properties that can bring about a greater imbalance. The question you raise about fruits and yoghurts is perfect in this context.
In many culinary traditions, whether american or even some parts of India, the combination of fruits and yoghurt is celebrated in delicious recipes: fruit and yoghurt in different flavors on supermarket shelves, and otherwise the delicious mango lassi sold at almost 99% of indian restaurants! So why does Ayurveda say not to mix yoghurt and fruits? Because both are considered “guru guna” or “heavy” – heavy not in terms of fat content as we understand it in western nutritional terms but heavy in terms of the load it puts on “pachak pitta” or the digestive fire in the stomach. How?
Yoghurt and fruit are considered highly “soma”-genic, and when something is high in content of “soma” it takes more digestive fire to break it down. If it is not broken down properly then it will make semi-digested material known as “ama.” In Ayurveda, “ama” is the root cause of all diseases when it is left unaddressed. When you make “ama” after a meal you will feel heavy, sluggish. But if you don’t do anything about it and let it stay in your physiology, like trash that you allow to sit in your kitchen dispenser that gets to rot and turn acidic, then “ama” turns into “amavisha” and this kind of toxin is virulent, it can clog your channels, and cause stiffness, inflammation in the joints and the muscles. It is what we identify as “free radicals” here in the west, that is the root cause of many inflammatory conditions.
Some people may have the great metabolic capacity to digest fruit and yoghurt together, but most don’t, and most will make “ama” or toxins out of it. Best to steer clear of mango lassi and yoghurt shakes with fruits. If you want to sweeten your yoghurt, it is best to add some raw honey and a pinch of nutmeg!
Regarding your breakfast, number one: any seeds should be soaked overnight; then I advise you to sauté the ghee, turmeric and Madhur Masala. Melt your ghee then add the spices before adding to your other ingredients. Why?
When seeds are soaked, they are easier on the digestive system; also warming and sautéing turmeric and Madhur Masala toasted in ghee this will support your digestive fire instead of adding more load/work on it, and actually be therapeutic. You see, whatever you do not cook outside your stomach needs to be cooked inside, which means more work/load on the digestive system. In Ayurveda, it is always recommended to keep things flowing and going smooth and easy on the digestive system, because as I said, if your digestive fire is compromised in any way, it will semi-cook/digest food and make “ama” and that is the beginning of dis-ease.
If you amend these things for your breakfast, it actually is a very good breakfast to have!
Dear Vaidyaji,
I have few questions regarding food combinations.
1. Since mixing milk with salt is a bad combination, I have a question whether this applies to all kinds of milk like almond milk, coconut milk, rice milk, etc… or just the animal’s milk?
2. Can we mix Heavy whipping cream or evaporated milk with salt?
3. Can we mix baking soda, baking powder with milk as we do in cake baking recipes?
4. Also how long should we wait after having a cooked fruit juice to have our next meal?
Thank you very much for your help,
Pavithra
What if when I will mix pumpkin seeds or charmagaz powder with chyawanprash and hv it in morning empty stomach.Plz tell.no. 8982268859
Dear Zulfiquar: do not consume pumpkin seeds; but charmagaz powder is ok to have. However, make sure it is clean and bacteria-free. This is a good idea to do. Mix 1 tsp of charmagaz powder with 1/2 tsp of Chyawanprash paste. This will cool and settle your mind in the morning.