On a chilly December morning, what is it that you really really enjoy! A hot cup of tea/coffee/cocoa right? For some people (like me) it doesn’t end with a morning cuppa… I crave a tall mug of something hot and sweet all through the day!
I used to be a HUGE coffee lover. I could drink 5-6 coffees a day and feel absolutely great. Not just any coffee, I am talking sweet, milky and super strong south Indian filter coffee! Then when I was pregnant with my daughter I decided to cut down on coffee and slowly switched to tea. After that I never really got back to coffee. It’s been 2.5yrs now and I only have coffee once in a blue moon. I really missed coffee in the beginning but I think my body felt a lot better without coffee. Every time I had my occasional coffee my skin would break out or I would have painful mouth ulcers.
Till recently I was comfortable with my big mugs of tea, sometimes green, herbal, sometimes black, with or without lemon but most of the time the regular Indian sweet milk tea/chai. I used to make it with different spices like ginger, cinnamon and cardamom too. But a few weeks ago I started feeling a little strange even with tea, my skin looked like I have had coffee! I think I was drinking too much tea, thanks to lovely Bangalore weather. I couldn’t have more than a mug of tea a day. That really made me sad.
‘How do I live without tea’ I thought! ‘I have to drink something hot and sweet’. I really enjoy first few hours of my morning with lots of tea. That’s when my mom suggested switching to Kashaya! ‘Ewww… Kashaya, No way!’ was my first response. Now let me clarify, before you jump into conclusions, Kashaya is nowhere close to ‘Ewww!’ But my only memory of Kashaya was from my childhood, where anything healthy was considered not tasty. I know I am not the only child who hated this delicious herbal drink but now that I have a much better palette, I decided to give this drink one more chance!
‘Kashaya’ is a sweet herbal drink made out of several Indian spices. Different combinations of herbs and spices used result in many variations of this drink. Mine; which is the most common one, consists of Coriander seeds, Cumin seeds, Fennel seeds and Black Pepper. All spices are slowly dry roasted till fragrant and ground into a powder. This spice powder is then boiled in water with some jaggery and a little bit of milk is added to it at the very end.
Each one of the spices used in this drink has a long list of health benefits. This drink is in fact very medicinal. It has a beautiful earthy fragrance which (though I couldn’t enjoy as a kid) I completely love! It’s sweet, slightly spicy from the black pepper with a deep flavour from all the spices used.
If you like any one of the spices used in this recipe, especially coriander seeds, please try this once! I have been enjoying tall glasses of Kashaya every day and my body feels so much better after switching to this wonderful healing drink.
All medicinal ingredients, completely homemade, healthy and hearty, a hot cup of Kashaya is my drink this winter!
Ingredients:
For the powder:
- 1 cup coriander seeds
- ½ cup cumin seeds
- ¼ cup fennel seeds
- 1 tbsp black pepper
For kashaya:
- 2-4 tbsp milk
- 1 tbsp jaggery
- 1 tsp kashaya powder
Dry roast all the ingredients in low flame till fragrant. Let it cool completely and grind into a powder. Store in an airtight container.
To make kashaya:
Boil 1 cup water with 1 tsp kashaya powder and 1 tbsp jaggery for 2 mins. Add 2-4 tbsp milk and turn off the heat. Strain and enjoy the drink hot.
30 comments :
Cold Sweet Vanilla Finger Millet Porridge | love food eat March 18, 2013 2:07AM
[...] year I had shared the recipe of my favorite winter drink ‘Kashaya’. This year it’s going to be my favorite summer drink! Full-blown summer is here in Bangalore [...]
lakshmi March 17, 2013 6:19PM
Is it OK if we just boil 1tsp of powder in 1cup water without milk n jaggery
Chinmayie March 18, 2013 1:46AM
Yes Lakshmi. You can drink this without milk too.
Subha February 13, 2013 5:36PM
Love the recipes in your website. the pictures and instructions attract and makes me try them.
Reg Kashayam-these ingredients will also make the tea taste wonderfully adding to the health benefits
dry dinger (chukku)
licorice root (adhimadhuram)
Palm sugar (panang kalkandu) (instead of jaggery)
The licorice root is basically very sweet, so reduce the amount of sugar while making the tea.
Chinmayie February 14, 2013 3:59AM
Thank you so much of the tips Subha
I added cardamom, dry ginger and cinnamon to it when I made the powder yesterday. Will surely try licorice root next time.
Anupama November 9, 2012 6:11PM
Chinmayie, I am so going to love your blog. Its my first visit and I am sure I will be dropping by often
(sorry chai !)
I came here on seeing the Kashaya link on FB. After reading this post…”same pinch”….I too was an ardent coffee lover but switched sides with chai. Though I love chai cant have too much of it. The side-effects as you mentioned + sleeplessness
Kashaya however has been my fav and I also let my 4yr daughter have it occasionally since its herbal. (Its ok rit ??)
I always used the fresh seeds in making, but your method of keeping the powder ready seems much easier and probably will encourage me having more frequently or alternate to chai
Thanks a bunch dear and keep your great work going
enjoy maadi !
Shelley January 20, 2012 3:27PM
This sounds so tempting. I do have a question though, I don’t know what jaggery is????? HELP!!
Chinmayie January 21, 2012 3:34AM
Hey Shelley! Jaggery is unrefined whole cane sugar traditionally used in Indian cooking. You can replace it with any cane sugar/sweetener of your choice.
Loren January 18, 2012 3:24AM
As someone who is about to graduate from a 3 yr. Design + Photography program and has an insatiable curiosity for food I am delighted to find your beautiful blog filled with gorgeous imagery and tasty treats of all kinds. Lot’s of vegan too – I bow to you. Cheers.
Loren January 18, 2012 3:40AM
PS
Your photography is stellar – I just read your ‘About’ section and can’t believe you only started taking photo’s recently. Wow.
Chinmayie January 18, 2012 4:20AM
Thank you so much Loren
So happy to know that you like my blog, recipes and photography!
Madhavi January 2, 2012 10:43AM
I just made the powder and drinking my kashaya. I love the taste the hint of pepper. May be next time I will add some ginger too. This will be my drink from now on. Thanks for sharing.
Siri December 22, 2011 7:30AM
Beautiful pictures Chinmayie. Loved reading the post about our age-old Kashayam
Siri
foodwanderings December 21, 2011 8:53PM
I think my mom and my grandmother used to make something similar to that but I never developed a taste for that. If it has good skin healing and other qualities though I am all over that and your photos do a good job tempting!
Have a great Holiday season Chimnayie!
Kiran @ KiranTarun.com December 21, 2011 7:18AM
Beautiful photos — I could never survive without a mug of either tea or occasional coffee.
Never had kashaya before, but I want to try this recipe. Looks delish
Jackie December 20, 2011 7:12PM
I’ve never had anything like this, it looks amazing!
And I saw your photos all over the place yesterday, great job
sarah December 20, 2011 5:40PM
This sounds fantastic- and perfect for our chilly grey days. Your pictures are beautiful as always!
Cara December 20, 2011 3:54PM
What an incredibly beautiful sounding tea! And your pictures are so lovely, Chinmayie. You might be able to convert this coffee lover
Keerthana December 20, 2011 11:38AM
Kashaya for me was always eewww too. But I too have changed my lifestyle and we drink the jeera-coriander kashaya at home. You have made it look so good Chinmayie!
Ajanta Chandan December 20, 2011 11:18AM
Kashaya!!!! my all time favourite drink, infact i forced my sons to drink this today morning
nice wrtie up and pictures too.
Deeps @ Naughty Curry December 20, 2011 5:18AM
Took me back to my childhood days where kashaya was forced down my throat by mom everytime i was down with flu! i share the ‘ewww’ sentiment, but somehow u have made it look so apetitising! hehe
Sanjeeta kk December 20, 2011 5:03AM
Here is another Kashaya lover..and I don’t mind drinking the same during summer as well..with a few side effects of course..but hardly matter. Lovely clicks and wonderful presentation, Chin!
Sharmilee December 20, 2011 5:02AM
Soothing drink for this climate
Eron December 20, 2011 3:30AM
Thanks so much for sharing this recipe and your beautiful photos! It was so lovely to see kashaya — I had this drink in Rajasthan a number of years ago, made with love for me when I was fighting a cold. It brings back fond memories.
Brooke December 20, 2011 12:08AM
Sounds delicious!
Priya December 19, 2011 8:26PM
oooh, and did you like Michael Pollan’s book ?
Priya December 19, 2011 8:25PM
aah! sounds like the perfect antidote for cold winters. I simmer milk with dry ginger, ajwain, pepper and turmeric – not sure if it also falls under kashayam (telugu) but definitely does the trick. And like you I’ve had really bad memories of drinking kashayam as a child, but now during winters my body craves for something that warms me up from within.
Yadsia @ShopCookMake December 19, 2011 7:12PM
Sounds like soup broth to me. Something to enjoy slowly with a piece of bread.
shrikripa December 19, 2011 5:23PM
Hi Chinnu, try to add little methi,1/4 cup whole wheat, 1/4 cup ragi,and 2 elaichi to the above ingredients.It will be really tasty.
Sarah Naveen December 19, 2011 5:03PM
I have had something similar to this many years back…Beautiful Pics sweets!!!