Teas

Vata Tea

2 cups water
1/2 tsp fresh grated ginger
1/2 tsp. ground cardamom
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ajwan
 
Boil water, add spices. boil for 2-3 minutes and then take off heat. Sweeten  with barley malt, molasses or rock sugar.​​

Pitta Tea

2 quarts water
4 mint leaves
1/2 tsp. fennel
½ tsp rose petals
1/2 marshmallow root
 
Heat water. add rest of the ingredients and boil for 5 minutes. Add 1/2 tsp. rock sugar. Put in a thermos and drink during the day.

Kapha Tea

• 3 cups water
• 4 cloves
• 2 pinches nutmeg, ground
• 2 pinches cinnamon, ground
• 2 pinches cardamom, ground
• 1/2 inch piece of fresh ginger, chopped fine
• 1 tsp black tea/ honey

Put spices in water and boil for 5 minutes. Tulsi maybe added for a new flavor. Add tea and let steep for 1 minutes. Take off the heat and cool until you can put your finger in the tea. Then add the honey. Honey is hot and scraping and good for the kapha dosha

Tridosha Tea. CCF

Cleanse Teas

Cardamom, Cinnamon and Fennel Tea

3 cups of purified water
1 teaspoon whole cardamon seeds
1 cinnamon stick
1 teaspoon whole fennel seeds
In a small pot, combine seeds with 3 cups of water. Bring to a boil, then take off the heat and let the tea simmer for 5 minutes.! For a stronger brew, boil the tea for 10 minutes. Store the tea in a jar or in the refrigerator, but do not drink it cooler than room temperature.

Ginger-turmeric tea

1 quart of purified water
15 ¼” slices of fresh ginger root
5 slices of fresh turmeric root or 1 ½ teaspoons of dried turmeric powder

Place all the ingredients in a pot and simmer for fifteen minutes. Turn off the heat and let the pot cool. Discard the herbs and store the tea in a thermos or in the refrigerator. Drink three cups of this tea, either warm or hot, three times a day.

½ teaspoon of raw honey added to each cup you drink (optional) –In Ayurveda we do not recommend that you cook the honey, simply add it as needed.

Milk

According to ayurveda, milk provides special and unique nutrition that cannot be derived from any other type of food. Milk, when digested properly, nourishes all the tissues, promotes balanced emotions, and helps to balance all the doshas. It is one of the most important foods to promote ojas.

According to ayurveda, ojas is a refined substance the body produces from the most subtle level of proper digestion. Ojas brings strength, strong immunity, happiness, and contentment. Therefore, milk is a very important food to include regularly in one’s diet, especially if you follow a vegetarian lifestyle.

In order to digest milk properly, one should avoid drinking cold milk right out of the refrigerator. Milk should be brought to a boil. Allow the milk to foam up, and then bring the heat down so the milk is on a slow boil for about 5 to 10 minutes. Heating the milk changes its molecular structure so it is much easier for human consumption, and it reduces Kapha, making it lighter to digest. While cooking it, you may add a pinch of ground turmeric, a pinch of ground black pepper, a cinnamon stick, or a few pinches of ginger to reduce the heaviness of the milk and reduce any mucus-causing side effect.

If you have trouble digesting milk and have not consumed it for a while, then it is recommended that you start again in a gradual fashion to help your body acclimate to it. Start with drinking ⅛ of a cup of the boiled milk with ginger. Then gradually increase the amount to about a cup over a ten-day period.

Milk should be organic, whole and non-homogenized. Homogenized milk is very difficult to digest and can easily clog the finer channels of circulation. It is probable that milk that is not certified organic may contain rBGH. These are hormones that artificially increase milk production in the cow. The only way we know to avoid rBGH is to purchase organic milk, because currently the FDA does not require labeling on milk products that may have come from cows injected with the hormone. Ayurveda feels that Cow’s milk is considered to be the best, but raw goat milk is fine to use too.

Milk should not be mixed or eaten with sour, bitter, salty, astringent, or pungent tastes. That means the old American tradition of drinking a glass of cold milk with dinner should be avoided and the milk replaced with warm spiced drinking water. When combined with incompatible tastes, milk becomes indigestible and causes the build-up of harmful toxins in the body. Meals cooked with milk and fish or meat should be avoided, such as in the popular clam chowder. However, warm milk may be consumed with sweet tastes such as rice, cream of wheat, dates, mangos, and almonds. If you wish to have warm milk, then it is best to wait at least one hour after you have eaten a meal.

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Hot Milk Recipes
1 cup of organic milk
2 tsp. organic almond powder
2 cardomom pods
5 strands saffron
Pinch of nutmeg
Put all the ingredients in a pan and heat until boiling. Allow to cool slightly and add sweeetner, honey , jaggery etc depending on the constitution.

You can also use the following Ayurvedic herbs with milk or mild subsiitute for specific symptoms.

Ashwagandha for stress, nervous disorders, aphrodisiac or general tonic.
Date milk for back pain, fatigue and hydration.
Raisins, fennel and black strap molasses for stomach regulation and to decreases acidity. Rose milk for aggravated Pitta dosha. Garlic for pain