New Delhi, December 2 (IANS). Pulses and vegetables seem incomplete without coriander, but very few people would know that green coriander is not just a decoration but is a natural medicine in our plate. Be it winter or summer, eating coriander in every season has its own benefits. Ayurveda considers it as a tridosha balancer, digestion improver and blood purifier plant. Modern science calls it a super herb rich in micronutrients and antioxidants.
Small leaves of coriander are filled with Vitamin A, C, K, potassium, calcium, iron, magnesium and many types of enzymes. Not only this, a handful of green coriander provides as many antioxidants as an apple. It is very effective in cleaning the body and protecting the cells. Therefore, in Indian kitchen it is considered as the fresh tonic of the plate.
Now the question is why is it added to every pulse and vegetable? The biggest reason is temperature balance. Cooked vegetables produce some heat in the body, whereas coriander is cooling in nature. Both together make digestion comfortable so that food does not feel heavy.
Apart from this, coriander helps in removing toxins, heavy metals and harmful elements from the body. It is considered a natural chelating agent. This is an easy way of cleaning the body.
The special aroma of coriander is also not just a fragrance. As soon as you smell it, the brain immediately activates digestive enzymes, which increase appetite and speed up digestion.
Coriander is also called the detox switch of the liver. Its enzymes speed up the liver cleansing process. If there is a burning sensation in the stomach or gas formation, coriander juice provides relief in just 15 minutes. It is especially beneficial for those taking sodium or having high BP as it helps in reducing the sodium level in the blood. There are very few foods that balance Tridosha (Vata, Pitta, Kapha), but coriander is one of them.
Coriander water eases kidney function by flushing out uric acid and excess salt. That’s why many people drink it on an empty stomach in the morning. But the benefits are doubled only when it is eaten in the right way, like do not add coriander after cooking it, but add it after turning off the gas so that Vitamin C and its essential oils are not destroyed. It becomes even more powerful with lemon because lemon increases the absorption capacity of iron.
–IANS
PIM/ABM