Uncommon Ingredients
Almond Meal: Raw almonds, skin and all, ground into a powder to be used as a flour; high in protein; also called almond flour.
Apple Cider Vinegar: A higher acid vinegar made from fermented apples. Unfiltered, it retains more nutrients.
Asafetida: A traditional Ayurvedic spice, strong tasting, used in place of onion and garlic; also known as hing.
Ashwagandha: A deeply revitalizing tonic in Ayurveda; the root is powdered and dried for medicinal use; commonly known as Indian ginseng and Indian winter cherry.
Bragg Liquid Aminos: A nonfermented soybean sauce.
Cacao Powder: The cacao bean is shelled, dried and fermented, and broken into bits called nibs, which are cold pressed and ground to make cacao powder. This process maintains nutrition that is otherwise destroyed when the cacao is roasted to make cocoa powder.
Cardamom Pods: A cooling spice often used in sweets and beverages; available in black and green pods. This book calls for the seeds found inside the green pods.
Chickpea Flour: Dried chickpeas ground into flour; high in protein; a common ingredient in Indian sweets. Can be found at Indian markets and in bulk at natural foods stores.
Coconut Flour: The fiber, protein, and fat remaining in the coconut meat after oil extraction, which is ground to a powder that can be used as a flour.
Coconut Sugar Crystals: A sugar produced by tapping the flowers of the coconut palm to withdraw the nectar; available in block, syrup, and granular forms.
Coconut Water: The sweet, cooling water from the inside of the young green coconut; whole coconuts are cracked open so the water can be drunk through a straw. Packaged coconut water is now available in stores for a treat.
Cold-Pressed Coconut Oil: Oil that has been removed from the meat of the fresh coconut through cold pressing. This method does not introduce heat, which can make the oil rancid.
Dulse: A salty sea vegetable that grows on cold coasts, such as those of the United States, Japan, and England. Dulse is red in color when dried; very high in B vitamins.
Gingerroot: The rhizome of the ginger plant; can be used fresh, as well as in dried and powdered forms.
Green Mung Beans: Small, green-skinned beans prized in Ayurveda for their ability to nourish the body without encouraging any imbalances.
Kabocha Squash: A sweet Asian variety of winter squash with thin green skin and orange flesh; related to the Hubbard and Buttercup varieties. The term can also refer to other varieties of Asian winter squashes.
Kombu: An edible kelp harvested on ropes in the oceans of Japan and Korea.
Legume: A type of plant that grows edible seeds inside pods; commonly called beans or pulses.
Medjool Date: A variety of date from hot, dry climates that retains some of its moisture after being packaged; more moist and sweet than the deglet noor variety.
Miso: A salty, fermented paste made from legumes and grains, commonly soybeans, barley, and chickpeas; widely used in Japanese cooking.
Mustard Seed Oil: An oil made from pressed mustard seeds; used in Ayurvedic massage to warm and mobilize conditions of heaviness or stagnation.
Nori: A sweet, dark green, highly nutritious sea vegetable, usually pressed into sheets for sushi.
Raw Honey: Honey that has not been cooked in processing. If a label does not state that it is raw, the product has been heated. Ayurveda considers cooked honey indigestible and a potential toxin.
Rice Vinegar: A Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Vietnamese condiment made from fermented rice; milder and sweeter than most Western vinegars.
Saffron: An orange-colored spice commonly used in Indian sweets; in cooking the stamens of the plants, called threads, are used. Saffron is a blood purifier.
Sambar Powder: Red in color, a coarse, powdered combination of roasted lentils, dried whole red chilies, fenugreek seeds, coriander seeds, asafetida, curry leaves, cumin, black pepper, and other spices; used in tomato-based soups.
Sesame Oil: The oil cold pressed from sesame seeds. Can be purchased in toasted, raw, and refined forms; for massage buy organic oil that is refined for medium heat.
Split Mung Beans: Green mung beans with their skin removed, split in half; light yellow in color.
Tahini: A paste made by grinding sesame seeds; can be found made of roasted or raw seeds.
Tamari: A salty, fermented soybean condiment, very much like soy sauce, but wheat free.
Tamarind: A tree native to Africa, now cultivated in other tropical regions. A paste can be made from its partially dried fruits. Extremely sour, the fruit has both culinary and medicinal uses.
Tonic: A medicinal substance taken to increase a feeling of vigor and well-being.
Tulsi: A medicinal plant of Indian origin, commonly used to boost the immune and respiratory systems; also known as holy basil; widely available as a tea.
Urne Plum Vinegar: A Japanese condiment, the brine by-product of the pickling of umeboshi plums; contains salt and red shiso leaf. Tastes are salty, sour, and sweet.
Unrefined, Dehydrated, Whole Cane Sugar: A sugar produced by pressing the juice from sugarcane and dehydrating it to make brown crystals. This product is more nutritious than conventional white or brown sugar. It has different names in different parts of the world. In Ayurveda, it is called jaggery; also known as Sucanat (a brand name), rapadura, muscovado.
Abhyanga: A massage in which one applies warm oil to the body using strokes in a specific pattern to support movements of energy according to Ayurvedic principles.
Agni: The fire element; also refers to the digestive fire.
Ahara Rasa: The nutritive liquid resulting from chewing and digesting food; the building block of all bodily tissue.
Ama: A thick, sticky by-product of incomplete digestion; in Ayurveda it is believed to be the root of all disease.
Amia: Sour taste; combination of fire and earth elements.
Charaka Samhita: The principal texts of Ayurveda, said to be three thousand years old, and still the main reference sources for most Ayurvedic practitioners.
Dal: A classic soupy Indian dish made from any variety of legumes. Originally the term referred to the legume of the pigeon pea bush, known as tur dal.
Deepana: To kindle digestive fire.
Dinacharya: Literally, “to follow the day”; used to reference daily routines that establish balance.
Dosha: That which causes imbalance; essential biological compounds present in the body.
Gunas: Qualities or attributes found in the five elements and therefore in all things.
Kapha: The energy of structure and lubrication, cohesion; combination of earth and water elements.
Kashaya: Astringent taste; combination of air and earth elements.
Katu: Pungent taste; combination of fire and air elements.
Kichari: A general term in Ayurveda for a soupy rice and legume dish.
Lavana: Salty taste; combination of fire and water elements.
Madhura: Sweet taste; combination of water and earth elements.
Nasya: To administer medicines through the nasal cavity.
Neti: To irrigate the nasal passage with saline water, usually using a special vessel called a neti pot.
Ojas: Literally, “vigor”; the cream of the nutrient fluid in the body; the essence of immunity.
Pachana: To digest; in Ayurveda, a means to improve digestion.
Panchakarma: Literally, “five actions”; an Ayurvedic detoxification treatment using five different methods.
Pancha Mahabhutas: The five great elements; ether, air, fire, water, earth.
Pitta: That which transforms or digests; combination of fire and water elements.
Prajnaparadha: Crimes against wisdom.
Prana: Vital energy of the universe.
Rasayana: Literally, “path of essence”; the science of lengthening the life span; a medicinal combination of substances to improve immunity.
Rtucharya: Seasonal regimen; the changing of the seasons.
Sattva: The energy of peace, clarity, and inspiration.
Tejas: Metabolic energy; the subtle energetic essence of pitta; gives luster to the body.
Thali: A meal consisting of rice and several regional meat or vegetable dishes.
Tikta: Bitter; combination of ether and air elements.
Vata: That which moves; combination of air and ether elements.
Vipak: The postdigestive effect a substance has on the body.