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5 Pickles that will impress your taste buds

Canning pickles

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Today, we will disclose some of the amazing pickles which are super yummy but are not so mainstream like lime and mango pickle. Every meal is incomplete without pickles and hence, it is considered as the soul food. It has a magical ingredient which tickles your taste bud like no other food. The combination of native spices and oil along with blessings from lord sun renders a perfect pickle. Before we tell you about our unique pickles, let us ponder upon some of the health benefits of same.

 

 

Unknown health benefits of pickles

Pickles

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Due to overflowing oil and stuffed spice, pickle is not considered as healthy. But is it true? We know you are hoping for a ‘no’ and it is certainly a ‘no’. We do agree that it has an excess of spice and oil with extremely tangy flavour. But, it also possesses some unbelievable health benefits that you will love reading about. So let us get started with a handful of them!

  • With so much of sun’s energy trapped into it, pickles are amazing antioxidants for a human body. The raw fruits and vegetable are preserved as it is, and hence their true nutrient value remains intact. It prevents the cellular activity from getting damaged by the attack of free radicals. Pickles have micronutrients which can neutralize the free radicals.
  • A pickle, due to prolonged preservation, becomes a source of probiotic bacteria. These are extremely helpful for your intestine and digestive system. Due to fermented salts and minimum chemical content, the digestive system function is restored.
  • In case you didn’t know, pickle is like a reservoir of nutrients and minerals kept in a jar. It has vitamin A, C, K, folate, iron, calcium, and potassium. All these nutrients combine to cure anaemia and improve your immunity system.
  • For some reason, the acetic acid present in vinegar-based pickles is helpful in improving the haemoglobin content in the blood of diabetic patients. Just make sure, you do not consume salted ones because that may elevate your blood pressure level.
  • Regular consumption of pickles will reduce the effect of highly acidic gastric fluids. It will further protect you from gastric ulcers too.

 

Now, that you are well-versed with amazing health benefits of pickles, we can list out some yummy pickles for you. Check them out below!

 

Banana flower pickle

This is an authentic pickle which is prominently available in southern part of India. Banana flowers have a pungent flavour which can add taste to any dish. It is also used to make gravy side dish, but pickles will take your rice and bread to another level. It is helpful for the reproductive health of both men and women. The string-like texture soaked in tangy spices will give you an unbelievable flavour. So grab this pickle recipe as early as possible or buy pickles from a reliable online store.

 

Curry leaves pickle

Needless to mention, curry leaves are a backbone to entire dishes made in south India. It has a unique flavour which takes any dish to another level. Just imagine the wonders it will do in pickled form! It is rich in fibre, vitamin C, E, and B. It has the capability to reduce hair fall and improve the shade and texture of your hair as well as skin. It also helps in protecting your body from skin and scalp infections.

 

Stuffed red chilli pickle

It is undoubtedly the best choice when someone is so much into the spice and pickles. Not everyone can complete the red chilli pickle because, though tasty, it is extremely hot. With an amazing blend of spices and naturally fermented salts, the stuffing adds a bonus to your pickle. Red chilli being packed with vitamin C helps in reducing migraine and joint pain. Also, due to its spicy flavour, it relieves you from sinus congestion.

 

Stuffed olive pickle

Buy pickles online

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So you thought olives are good on pizza bread? You might have certainly not tasted the stuffed pickle made out of it. We already know the importance of olive oil, hence, it would be needless to elaborate its significance. It is already rich in healthy fat which reduces the risk of atherosclerosis as well as coronary artery disease. The natural tangy taste of olives with finely roasted and grounded spices will be worth spending money on. The natural fermentation of this pickle will increase its shelf life as well as taste.

 

Bitter gourd pickle

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It is obvious that bitter gourd is not a favourite vegetable to many of us. But, its pickle can be pinned on your cravings’ list if you give it a try. We are all aware of the incredible benefits of this vegetable from Cucurbitaceae family. It is a reservoir of all subdivisions of vitamin B, zinc, phosphorus, manganese, and fibre. Although it tastes bitter, with the combination of aromatic spices and salts, it is worth tasting. It is prepared with a tedious procedure to ensure that only required bitterness is retained in the pickle. Once you taste this pickle, you will never want to run away from bitter gourd.

Bonus Tip: As we are discussing pickles, we would like to give you a small tip for its longevity. Do not touch your pickles with bare hands. Canned pickles are extremely sensitive to fungus, bacteria, and microbes. The ones present on your hand may spoil the entire bottle of the pickle. So take care of that.

 

Therefore, after having a look at these 5 unique pickles, we know you would definitely want to try them all. There are innumerable varieties of pickles available to us and the most loved are sweet pickles. But, when you will try the above mentioned which are prepared with a different major ingredient, you will love it. Even though it has several benefits, we would request you to consume it in considerable quantities so that it does not create an imbalance in your digestion. Excessive consumption of pickles can harm the enamel of your teeth and also cause piles. So eat wisely and live well. Grab your set of pickles and enjoy the meal with your loved ones.

 

External references

7 Surprising Benefits of Pickles

Pickle Archives

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7 Unexpected snacks to recreate with banana chips

banana chips

Who does not like to cheer up their mood with banana chips after a long tiring day? It has always been the most preferred snacks of all time. Be it with tea or coffee; banana chips goes along with all types of drinks and beverages perfectly. Since we are already impressed with this versatile snack, we thought of trying it in different ways. Now that will create a pop-up in your mind asking what are those different ways. Let us make it clear for you!

Usually, banana chips are taken in baked, salted, and fried form. And it is so yummy that we hardly thought of recreating something with banana chips. But now, to enhance your snacking time we have recreated the form in which banana chips are consumed. But before that, let us take a look at few points about banana chips.

An overview

Banana crisps

Banana chips are commonly used as a snack in India, Indonesia, as well as the Philippines. Most of the times, it is prepared with unripe bananas by frying the sun-dried bananas. It is one of the most nutritious snacks because banana chips are loaded with potassium, magnesium, and carbohydrates. The best of banana chips are found in Kerala when they come out freshly fried in coconut oil. It is worth a try!

Recreations with Banana chips

As we already mentioned, here we will let you know about some of the amazing snacks which you can prepare with the help of these chips. Take a look and serve a fantastic delicacy to your kids every evening. Check them out!

Spicy banana crisps

It is one of the easiest things to try when you are bored or hungry. Just mix half teaspoon chilli powder, pepper powder, black salt, dried mango powder, and homemade cumin powder. Take a bowl full of banana chips and sprinkle this mixture. Toss the banana chips and serve these spicy wafers during the rainy season along with hot coffee or tea.

Caramelized chips

Doesn’t it sound interesting? Yes, certainly! Anything in caramelized form reaches to another level without any doubt. All you have to do is melt 3 tablespoons of sugar and add 2 tablespoons of milk cream in that. Prepare caramel and toss one by one banana chips in the caramel. You will get a delicious combination of sweet and salty snacks.

One can also use jaggery, which is really common in Kerala during Onam. Sweet banana chips are really yummy when the sweet part is added by jaggery.

Honey chilli banana wafers

Fried bananas

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This is just another form of caramelized chips with a small twist. But, the point is that you will love having this wonderful snack. Just heat few teaspoons of honey and add chilli flakes to it along with some soy sauce. Again, toss chips into it and have it before it becomes soft. You will love the tangy and sweet flavour in the crispy chips. Can you imagine the taste right now? We hope you have added this recipe to your to-do list.

Banana chips and sauce

This is already a much-known method of consuming chips in Mexican culture. So why not try it in Kerala style? It will be yum! Add olive oil, chilli flakes, sauces, mayonnaise, and chopped tomatoes. Mix it well to prepare a yummy side dish for your Indian nacho. Now, you can use it as a dip and it will go perfectly with banana chips.

Cheesy fried banana chips

Banana chips

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Who doesn’t love cheese? It has the power to take anything to another level. Ever thought of adding a bonus to your chips with the help of cheese? If not, then do it now! Add a layer of mozzarella cheese along with red pasta sauce and oregano sprinklers. Then spread a layer of banana chips properly and then add cheese spread along with another layer of mozzarella and oregano sprinklers. This will prove to be a yummy combination of chips and it can cheer up the mood of any person. Bake it accordingly and serve it hot. This is undoubtedly the best way to have banana chips in a crisp form.

Double fried banana chips

This may seem a bit oily but not unhealthy. If you have baked chips, then you can heat 3 teaspoons of olive oil and add oregano and chilli flakes to it. Then turn off the gas and add two tablespoons of cheese spread. Mix it well to prepare the thick mixture and toss the chips in this while it is hot. This will definitely provide a yummy coating to your chips and you can enjoy it like never before.

Indian style masala chips

There are innumerable fans of Indian pickles and one cannot deny this fact. So we thought of bringing a fusion of chips and pickles. Just coat the layer pickle on banana chips and bake it for about 4 minutes. Allow it to dry over the chips and then you can have it with mayonnaise or some other dip. This can be your Indian style masala chips and you can serve it in crispy form.

 

Hence, after looking at all these recreations of banana chips, we can come to a conclusion that taste buds have no boundaries. One can experiment as many things as possible. Little did we know that banana chips could be used in such wonderful ways. If you are already a fan of banana chips then you will love trying out these new recipes which are yummier than before. So try out these amazing tricks and let us know few more if you have any. We would love to publish another set of recreations in the same way!

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Health benefits of eating traditional snacks

traditional_indian_snacks

With the change in time and introduction of new food items, our habit of eating has seen a tremendous change. We have completely ignored our traditional snacks and shifted our interest towards other eatables. It is really sad that today’s generation has failed to understand the importance of consuming traditional snacks. We no longer see kids getting excited about the laddus made by their grandmothers. Instead, they would love to have French fries and burger from outside. In this context, we have taken a small effort to rejuvenate the trend of traditional snacks. It is high time we should bring back the essence of our tradition in snack ideas.

 

What is exactly a traditional snack?

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The staple food is the best concept to understand the importance of traditional snack. The staple is the common food which is consumed by people of a particular area. It is based on the climatic condition and soil of that respective area. Have you ever wondered why Chhole Bhature is concerned with Punjab and Pav Bhaaji with Maharashtra? Give it a thought!

Similarly, traditional snacks are concerned with people of different culture and belonging to different parts of our country. It has more or less, staple ingredients in them with more taste and health benefits. It is obvious traditional snack will improve your health and turn you into a more productive individual.

Why should traditional snacks be preferred?

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There are many amazing benefits of consuming traditional as well as healthy snacks. One should not limit their choices to certain brand names and preference of taste buds. It is always good to explore traditional snack recipes. It may not be as delicious or cheesy as other snacks but will satisfy you in terms of health. Let us jump into the benefits of the same!

Doesn’t make you fat

The best part about consuming traditional snack is that it does not add much fat to your diet. When you closely take a look at the entire range of Indian snacks, you will see nutrition value in each of them. Our ancestors accordingly prepared these snacks by keeping health benefits in mind.

Better nutrition in less effort

Traditional snacks are extremely easy to make and will help you cope up with the energy loss in the body. It is made up of healthy ingredients which contribute significantly in boosting up your energy. It has balanced amount of carbohydrate, protein, fibre, and fat.

Too light to make you feel heavy

Usually, we sense a feeling of heaviness in our stomach after consuming the ready-to-eat snacks in a packaged form. This will not be the case when you have your traditional snacks. It will keep you light and will be easily digestible for your stomach because of its balanced nutrition value.

Preserves your mental health

We already mentioned that canned snacks are likely to make you lethargic. It may not be wise for students and young working professionals to consume such snacks. It will reduce your focus and you will start feeling drowsy after few hours of consuming it.

Long lasting and portable

Have you ever noticed the viability of Indian snacks? Let us particularly focus on south Indian snacks. Buy crunchy murukkus and you can travel the entire nation without missing burger and pasta. Traditional snacks are really long lasting. They do not easily get affected by fungus and microbes if cooked properly.

Myths and facts about snacking

There are several rumoured facts that we come across about snacks available to us. Is it necessary to believe or do research about each one of them? Certainly not! If you want to believe anything, just remember that “it’s all in mind.” Believe this fact and you will never complain about negative effects of snacking.

It is clinically proven that if you take appropriate snacks in subsequent quantities then you are likely to gain 72% less weight. One must know the technique of combining yum with healthy ingredients. If you love cheese, you can consume it along with a salad. This will help you in compensating the fat, vitamins, fibre, and carbohydrates.

Similarly, one must eat the traditional snack when hungry after breakfast or before dinner. It will prevent accumulation of abdominal fat. We have been repeating the fact that traditional Indian snacks are made from the staple raw ingredients. Hence, it will hardly add extra calories to your body.

Who said reducing the portion of your meal will flatten the curves of your body? It is all about balancing your calories and maintaining the nutrition value. There are people who consume two meals and feel lethargic. But, there are also people who consume three meals and three snacks and still manage to maintain their flat tummy. The mantra is to increase the frequency of intake and work enough to balance the calories.

Properties of an ideal traditional snack

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How can we not let our readers know this important part about snacks? One must know the food they eat and only then it will be possible to balance the nutrients in your body.

  • It should be lighter than your regular meal.
  • It should not make you feel drowsy, lethargic, or heavy.
  • Consuming 3 ounces of traditional snack should comfort your feeling of hunger.
  • One should be able to prepare it with limited ingredients in less time also.
  • It should remain safe from getting rotted for at least a week.

 

Hence, after analyzing the importance of traditional snacks, it is our duty to aware other people, especially youngsters, regarding this. For a healthy and productive living, one should take good care of eating habits. We are living in an era of modernization and food items are available in tetra packs, tin cans, etc. But is it really safe for your health? Are you doing justice to your body by relying on such stuff? Think about it and your conscience will prick you. Traditional snack is one of the most sustainable food items that will not only satisfy your hunger but will also nourish your body. Adopt this healthy habit from now and we wish you happy snacking!

External References

 

Traditional Indian Snacks with health benefits

http://www.snacknation.com/blog/healthy-snack-delivery-service-benefits/