Here’s a cost-benefit analysis of Navratra specials
If Brillat-Savarin’s old dictum, “Tell me what you eat and I’ll tell you what you are” is true, then there’s little question about it: during the Pujas, we’re all shameless gluttons with bottomless pits for stomachs.
The navratra thali, ubiquitous at this time of the year, is the classic example of righteous eating that sacrifices nothing else, neither taste nor potential waistline damage. The ingredients provide the virtue, and add to the widespread myth that navratra recipes are a kind of detox for the body — but it’s the way that the kuttu ki parathas and aloo sabudana tikkis are made that raise them from prasad to indulgence. (Very little in the way of traditional Indian prasad is for the calorie-conscious, anyway.)
Here’s a look at some favourite navratra dishes, and a taste-versus-health comparison.
1) Shakarkandi ki chaat: This grilled sweet potato dish is simple, delicious and often overlooked for fancier navratri staples. (You can tell winter in the north of India by the proliferation of the tiny stands that sell this chaat, the simplest variation just boiled, sprinkled with rock salt and chaat masala, seasoned with lemon juice and eaten with toothpicks.) The upside: Sweet potato is high in potassium, rich in anti-oxidants and contains more beta-carotene than most vegetables and fruits, has massive amounts of fibre if you eat it with the skin on, and is a “good” carb. Definitely a keeper.
2) Singhada alu vada: Made from water-chestnut flour, potatoes and spices, this is one of the tastier staples on the navratra thali, and also one of the unhealthiest.The downside: Singhada flour is high in potassium and other minerals, but water-chestnut is a carb, and combined with potatoes, this dish is big on carbohydrates. Plus there’s the deep-frying. Skip this at dinnertime.
3) Kacche kele ki subzi: Perhaps one of the few times raw bananas migrate from the Bengali kitchen to play a starring role on a thali, this subzi depends on the careful blending of texture — from the green bananas, which should never be overcooked — and light spices. It’s surprising how tasty this can be, even for those of us who associate green bananas with stomachache cures. The upside: For many years, nutritionists warned us off green bananas because they contain more complex starches (resistant starches), which were thought to be difficult to digest. It turns out that these starches are actually beneficial to the digestive system — and green bananas, besides being high in potassium and B vitamins, are also serotonin boosters. Indulge.
4) Kuttu ke puri: It’s a pity we don’t eat this more often, especially in preference to the maida puris (luchis) so prized by the Bengalis. Kuttu or buckwheat flour gives a heavier, more dense and coarse texture to puris that isn’t, however, unpleasant. The inevitable frying and the often liberal bastings with ghee don’t make this a healthy choice for the calorie-conscious, but there are benefits. The upside: Buckwheat flour is an excellent source of fibre, of magnesium, and it’s much lower in cholesterol than traditional atta flour.
5) Makhane ki kheer: Makhane — puffed, fried lotus seeds — are a much healthier option than, say, popcorn, as a snack, despite the oil content. Though lotus seeds are relatively high-carb and low on vitamins, they have the reputation of strengthening the kidneys and spleen, in herbal medicine. The downside: The quantities of full-cream milk and ghee needed to make this dessert are massive —making it as rich, and as heart-unfriendly, as any other non-virtuous kheer. Ask for the protection of the goddess, then, and indulge.
[Nilanjana S Roy is a Delhi-based freelance writer]
