Have you ever felt comforted by a bowl of rice? Warm, spiced, easily made and versatile, rice is a staple ingredient in Ayurvedic cooking. Basmati rice in particular is a preferred grain for the Ayurvedic pantry. The easily digestible grain has a delicious nutty flavor and aroma, and pairs well with a variety of soups, stews, curries, and spices. Just like rice, ghee is a regular part of most Ayurvedic recipes and kitchens. As a cooking oil, ghee is ideal for high heat applications up to 485 degrees and is an ideal butter alternative with its rich taste and delectable scent. Ayurveda recognizes six tastes: sweet, sour, salty, pungent, bitter and astringent. All tastes are important to meet our nutritional needs, however, there is more emphasis on the sweet taste being the building blocks of our tissues and the base of our meals. In fact, sweet tastes can help build ojas: the subtle building blocks of our vitality. Rice and ghee both fit into the sweet tasting category. Sometimes when we are feeling depleted our body needs us to go back to basics and refuel with some ghee rice. Ghee rice can be the simplest bowl of your favorite rice paired with any variety of Farmtrue ghee.
Sweet doesn’t just mean sugar, but anything that has more earth and water elements. (Think bread, dairy, potatoes, squash and bananas.) Each taste corresponds with an emotional component as well. The sweet taste relates to feelings of comfort, love, compassion, and joy. Ghee rice is both healing to the digestive system and emotionally comforting. Any time one is feeling depleted (physically or emotionally) or is having digestive ailments such as gas, bloating, constipation, or diarrhea, ghee rice is the perfect remedy to soothe our mind and body while being gentle on the digestive system. Making ghee a regular part of your diet can help maintain the integrity of your gut lining and block the growth of bad bacteria. Ghee is a high source of butyric acid, a food from which the good bacteria in our gut thrive on, creating an overall balance in digestion and stronger immunity. Our digestive system and immunity play a big role in our energy levels and the quality of our daily routines.
We love to use organic basmati rice as it’s considered the most easily digestible rice with our traditional or garlic scape ghee. Always be sure to rinse your rice several times before cooking.
You could get creative with turmeric and cumin or your other favorite spices or make your ghee rice sweeter by using our vanilla maple chai ghee, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and cardamom. Add to your favorite bowl, sit quietly and mindfully savor each bite.
Check out another ghee rice recipe and others on our recipes page!