LOTUS ROOT & ARBI 

in tamarind sauce

Ingredients:

fresh lotus root : sliced thin 2 cups

fresh Arbi: peeled and cut in strips 3 cups

Tamarind paste  : 3 Tbs soaked in water

Olive oil extra light : 3-4 Tbs

Turmeric : 1/8 tsp

grind ajwain seeds : 1/2 tsp

cumin seeds: 1 tsp

pink salt: 1/2 tsp or to taste

dry cillantro : 1 tsp

Method:

Boil lotus root for 10 mints on med-high boiling water. Drain and run under cold water. Peel and cut into 4 quaters and slice each quater into thin slices and set aside. Peel arbi (edoes yam) and slice thin in strips and leave soaked in water. Soak tamarind in hot water 1/2 cup to and squeeze the juice out and strain it and set aside. In deep skillet heat oil and drop cumin seeds & ground ajwain seeds. Add turmeric and salt & then add the washed boiled peeled and cut lotus & arbi. Stir to coat the oil and spices adn then cover with lid and let cook for 5 minutes. Add the tamarind juice 1/2 cup to the vegetable and cover and cook for another 5 minutes. Add remaining tamarind and cook on medium high heat untill veggies are cooked and glazed nicely with tamarind. Add 1/8cup of tomato paste and cook on high heat for 2-3 minutes and add cillantro dry on top and cover for 5 minutes with heat turned off. Serve hot as a side dish.

Benefits:

Lotus is sattvic in quality, tonic & rejuvenating foods, with strong astringent & hemostatic & Nervine properties, nutritious addition to a simple meal, Ajwain seeds excellent digestive aid, turmeric source of anti-oxidant & anti- biotic, balance sugar metabolism , tamarind is mild laxative & nutirtive and recent research says it can increase availability of ibuprofin in the body suggesting it could be used in arthritis to reduce the dosage of aspirin type medicines.