Cooling foods to eat this summer

COOLING FOODS TO EAT THIS SUMMER

With temperatures rising (and rising!) we are all looking for ways to stay cool. Here’s how you can stay cool from within, with these naturally hydrating and cooling food options. 

Water-based foods

Make fruits and vegetables that have high water content an integral part of your diet. These include watermelon, muskmelon, different types of gourd (ridge gourd, bottle gourd), cucumber, tomatoes, spinach and lettuce. Juice, use in salads, prepare curries, cold soups – your options are aplenty! Plus, vegetables like radish and fruits like oranges have high antioxidant content that has a cooling effect on the body. 

Avoid oily, spicy, fried food
Give these foods a miss. As per Ayurvedic science, such foods have a heating effect on the body. 

Stay hydrated

The best way to stay cool this summer is to hydrate yourself. Make sure you drink plenty of water through the day. Add sprigs of mint to your water for a refreshing touch. Store water in copper bottles and clay vessels to keep it cool naturally. Make juices your best friend – whether it’s watermelon, muskmelon or mixed fruits. Tender coconut water is a must-have this season as is sugarcane juice. Not only will these beverages keep you cool, they will help replenish any nutrients your body loses when you sweat, 

Fennel and Fenugreek
Consuming fennel and fenugreek seeds are some of the best home remedies to bring down body heat. You boil the fenugreek seeds in water, cool it and drink. Or just roast, powder and sprinkle on a bowl of curd. Or eat as is. Similarly, you can eat fennel seeds, or soak in water overnight and drink the water. 

Ambli
Ragi Ambli makes for a meal in itself. It is made by boiling ragi powder, giving you a thin porridge. Once it cools, add buttermilk, salt, hing, curry leaves, cumin and fenugreek to it. This porridge is nutritive, digestive and cooling at the same time!

Rice dishes
Our vote for the most summer-friendly dish goes to curd rice! A light khichdi makes for an ideal lunch option as well – easy to digest and light on the stomach. 

Curd
The best and most versatile ingredient to help you sail through the summer heat has to be curd. You can eat a bowl every day, use it to make buttermilk, a breakfast bowl, curd rice, lightly spiced kadhis – your perfect summer companion.