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NDTV
7 days ago
- Health
- NDTV
6 Yummy Indian Dishes That Feel Like A Warm Hug On PMS Days
There is no denying that the days leading up to your period can take a real toll on your body and your mood. You're bloated, a little cranky, and the cravings? They are more than ever! One minute you want chocolate, the next you're dreaming of buttery pav bhaji, and before you know it, you want a quick dessert. It's like your body's way of asking for comfort in edible form. Sure, you can always rustle something up in the kitchen, but honestly? On PMS days, cooking feels like running a marathon with ankle weights. That's where your favourite food delivery app can bring you some piping hot, soul-soothing dishes without you having to get out of your blanket. But some people find it beneficial to distract and cook themselves a hearty meal. Regardless of the category you fall into, nothing feels as comforting as some Indian dishes that are just too good to miss. Here are some Indian classics that taste like a hug in a bowl (or plate) and can totally turn your day around. Here Are 6 Yummy Indian Dishes That May Soothe Your PMS Symptoms 1. Dal Chawal Recipe Simple, nourishing, and feels like a warm hug for the soul, Dal-Chawal is the OG food for painful days. Fluffy white rice paired with golden, ghee-packed dal has the power to calm both your tummy and mood. Eat it alongside a crunchy papad or tangy pickle on the side, and you have got yourself a dish that's like an edible cosy sweater. Find an easy recipe for dal chawal here. 2. Rajma Chawal Recipe Slow-cooked rajma in a thick, spicy tomato curry served with rice is the kind of comfort food that doesn't just fill you up, it makes you feel wholesome. It is warm, comforting and definitely a PMS day essential. Honestly, the kind of meal that makes you sigh in relief after the first bite. Sate your rajma chawal cravings at home with this recipe. 3. Pav Bhaji Recipe Is there anyone in this world who would resist pav bhaji? Rich, buttery, and packed with carbs, pav bhaji is like your best friend that comes to cheer you on your low days with a delicious cake. Pull that pav apart, dunk it into the spicy mashed bhaji, and let the butter make you go wow. In fact, ask for extra butter. You deserve it! Here's how you can make pav bhaji at home. 4. Masala Dosa Recipe When you want something crispy, comforting, but not too heavy, masala dosa is the answer. Hot dosas filled with spicy potato filling, paired with coconut chutney and steaming sambar, give you warmth in every bite. Plus, you can eat it in bed without too much mess. Find an easy recipe for Masala Dosa here. 5. Butter Chicken Recipe There is comfort food, and then there is butter chicken. Creamy, tangy and packed with just the right amount of spice, it's pure indulgence. Pair it with piping hot naan, and you have got yourself a meal that screams comfort. Here's how you can make butter chicken at home. Don't feel like getting out of bed? Let your favourite food delivery app do the grind; you can simply order some delicious butter chicken to your doorstep in a couple of minutes! 6. Gulab Jamun PMS and sugar cravings go together like chai and pakoras, right? A warm, syrupy gulab jamun melting in your mouth is a happy ending to any rough day. Warm it up a bit and dig into its lusciousness to keep your mood swings calm. Here's how to make gulab jamun at home. Foods For PMS | What To Eat And Avoid During Periods While we can always curb our cravings with some delicious options, here are some specific foods to eat and avoid during periods. Foods To Eat In PMS: 1. Leafy Greens Vegetables like spinach, kale, and methi are packed with iron. This can help counter period-related problems and fatigue. 2. Dark Chocolate Dark chocolate is packed with magnesium, which can help ease mood swings and cramps. Plus, it is delicious, so win-win! 3. Bananas Packed with vitamin B6 and potassium, bananas can help reduce bloating and regulate mood. 4. Yoghurt Probiotics can help boost digestion and calcium in the body. This can help reduce PMS symptoms and provide relief. 5. Oily Fish Fishes like salmon and mackerel have Omega-3 that can help reduce inflammation and menstrual pain in the body. Foods To Avoid In PMS: 1. Caffeine It can worsen anxiety, irritability and even breast tenderness. 2. Salty Snacks Excess sodium can lead to water retention and even more bloating. 3. Sugary Drinks Snacks packed with sugar can cause energy spikes followed by crashes. This makes mood swings worse. 4. Processed Foods Processed foods are packed with unhealthy fats and additives. These can make your PMS symptoms worse. 5. Excess Dairy For some, too much dairy can worsen bloating and cramps. Make sure to avoid it if you fall in this category. Drinks To Help Manage PMS 1. Ginger Tea Ginger tea has natural anti-inflammatory properties that can ease cramps and nausea. 2. Chamomile Tea Drinking chamomile tea helps relax muscles and promote better sleep. 3. Warm Lemon Water It hydrates and aids digestion. Plus, warm lemon water helps reduce bloating. 4. Coconut Water Packed with electrolytes, coconut water can help combat fatigue and dehydration. 5. Haldi Doodh Made using turmeric, haldi doodh has anti-inflammatory properties that are perfect before bed. So, now you have it! Order these foods to curb your cravings during PMS!
The Hindu
17-06-2025
- General
- The Hindu
Recipe for sukhi moong dal by Sapna Punjabi
We begin the journey into the world of dal with my mom's recipe for sukhi (dry) moong dal. This was my dad's favourite moong dal dish and mom cooked it almost every single week, serving it with warm rotis; and leftovers would end up in our school lunch boxes, rolled inside the roti along with a smear of chutney or achaar (pickle). It can also be served with tortillas, smeared on toasted sourdough bread, or nestled atop a bed of greens for a fun twist on a salad. Sukhi means 'dry', and this recipe uses the yellow split moong dal, which is the split and peeled form of whole moong beans. This variety is one of the easiest dals to cook and also to digest. It is also a zero-waste recipe — even the water in which the dal is cooked is put to good use Ingredients 1 cup (200 g) dhuli moong dal/yellow split moong dal 5 cups (1.2 L) water 1 teaspoon fine sea salt ½ teaspoon ground turmeric 2 tablespoons (30 g) ghee or oil ⅛ teaspoon hing/asafoetida powder 1 teaspoon cumin seeds For the garnish Ingredients ½ teaspoon Kashmiri red chili powder ½ teaspoon toasted ground cumin ½ teaspoon ground coriander ½ teaspoon amchur/dried mango powder ½ cup (30 g) finely chopped cilantro (leaves and tender stems) the yellow split moong dal in a fine-mesh sieve under cold running water until the water runs clear, about a minute. Transfer to a medium bowl, add water to cover by 2 inches (5 cm), and soak for 10 to 15 minutes. Drain. a 3-quart (3 L) pot, combine the soaked dal, water, salt, and turmeric. Bring to a boil for 10 to 12 minutes, skimming off any foam. Reduce the heat to medium, partially cover, and cook until the dal softens when pressed between the fingers but still holds its shape and is not mushy off the cooking liquid and save (see Tips). Transfer the dal to a serving bowl. In a medium skillet, heat the ghee, add the asafoetida followed by cumin seeds, and let sizzle. for a few seconds. Pour this hot mixture over the bowl of cooked yellow moong dal. Garnish with Kashmiri chili powder, ground cumin, ground coriander, mango powder, and cilantro leaves. 1. Tips drained dal cooking liquid makes a lovely broth. Garnish with chopped cilantro and a dash of lime juice, making this a zerowaste dish. you overcook the dal (unintentionally or intentionally), you can retain the liquid in the dal and cook to soup consistency and proceed with the tempering as directed. 1. Ayurvedic notes moong dal is sweet and astringent in taste and cooling in potency. It is tridoshic in nature but mainly calms vata and pitta dosha. It can be enjoyed all year long and should be a staple in our pantries. Add extra ground coriander. Favour ghee or peanut oil. Add extra cilantro; avoid Kashmiri powder. Favour ghee or olive oil. Replace Kashmiri chili powder with ground black pepper. Favour sunflower oil or ghee. with permission from Dal Chawal by Sapna Punjabi, Hardie Grant Books
The Hindu
11-06-2025
- Entertainment
- The Hindu
Sapna Punjabi on her debut cookcook Dal Chawal
I speak to Sapna Punjabi as the clock ticks way past midnight in her Texas home. After donning the hats of a dietitian, Ayurvedic practitioner, and founder of culinary wellness-spice brand beSPICED, Sapna wears a new one, that of a cookbook author. As we sit down to chat about the recently-launched Dal Chawal (published by Hardie Grant Books), Sapna says the idea to pen a cookbook was brewing for a while. 'I wanted to create something that I can share with others in a tangible form. A project that brought together my vegetarian lifestyle, Ayurvedic learnings, and my experience as a neo-natal dietician,' she says. With Dal Chawal, the author has put together 85 vegetarian recipes blending two simple ingredients: dal (lentils) and chawal (rice). With chapters dedicated to dals such as moong, masoor, chana, toor, urad, rice preparations, and another with classic combinations such as handvo and chakkara pongal, Sapna also highlights each dish's Ayurvedic properties. 'The book is a homage to all Indian mothers. The dishes are prepared in Indian homes every day, and my aim was to celebrate these simple recipes,' she says. 'I am a first-generation immigrant whereas my children are American so I wanted these dishes to be cool for my Gen Z kids. For example, I grew up eating sookha moong dal with rotis but I use the recipe as a taco filling for my children. Similarly besan chillas turn into burger patties.' 'The book was not written to impress the Western audience, but to celebrate ghar ka khaana,' says Sapna, who worked as a dietician in Mumbai before moving to the US in the late 1990s. 'I started cooking for myself after moving here, and when I worked as a neonatal dietician, my co-workers were always curious about what I ate and where I got my protein from!,' she says, adding that dal and rice are a complete protein meal in themselves. 'This is also the root of Ayurveda, and something our grandmothers and mothers knew all along,' says Sapna. 'Be it adding hing (asafoetida) to a dal's tadka (tempering), drizzling ghee on hot rice, or having a ginger-turmeric pickle always in our fridge growing up, these techniques aid digestion,' says Sapna, adding that the two additional chapters on pickles and digestive drinks stemmed from this perspective. Which is why, she says, the title Dal Chawal fit the bill for the book's title and theme. 'It brings about an instant connection with readers, and we all have our core memories with these ingredients. Be it a khichdi (porridge) when one is sick, or a sweet preparation for a festival.' Her mother's cooking had a huge influence on Sapna's choice of dishes for the book. 'I'm Sindhi by lineage, my parents were born in Mumbai but had Gujarati influence as they stayed in Ghatkopar, and growing up in Maharashtra gave me exposure to Marathi cuisine,' says Sapna, who wanted to honour India's many regions through the dishes. For instance, the shalgam wali dal (spiced turnips with moong dal) is from Kashmir, chaunsa dal from Uttarakhand, Kumbakonam kadappa (moong dal stew with potatoes) is from Tamil Nadu. These recipes were tested by her several times, and Sapna also roped in friends and colleagues from different ethnicities to test them. 'I wanted to make sure they can be replicated easily. I had them share their feedback and images of the dish they made. A few did not make the cut as they were too extensive and advanced,' she shares, adding that her long-term goal is to incorporate dal-chawal in American food services such as educational institutions, hospitals, etc. 'Tofu and hummus are recognised as go-to protein sources, and I hope to make dal-chawal as mainstream as them,' she says. As for her favourites, Sapna believes there is a dish for every mood. 'While my children love the Sindhi dish sai bhaaji and bhuga chawar (rice with caramelised onions), I love the Gujarati khatti meethi (sour-sweet) dal, kanda bajjis (onion fritters) on a rainy evening, or khichdi after a long journey,' concludes Sapna. Priced at ₹3,296, Dal Chawal is available on
