6 Healthy Food Recipes For Yogis

6 Healthy Food Recipes For Yogis – Complete Details

Now, you can enhance your yoga practice, with the best foods. Yoga teaches the practitioner, that the main life force of the body is prana. Food also has prana. So, does air and water around us. Thus, the fresher your food is, the better it is for you. A good, yogic diet can nourish the body, mind, and also the soul. Before you proceed with the recipes, it is important that you know a bit about the gunas that each food has. 

The three types of food are Sattvic, Rajasic, and Tamasic foods. 

Different Gunas for Your Food 

Sattvic food is full of prana. It gives life and promotes health and vitality. The foods which have more of Sattva are fruits and juices, vegetables, and greens, whole grains, nuts, and seeds. However, they perform better when organically grown, unprocessed, and without any additives. Such foods also tend to cool the body and provides relaxation. Sweet and bitter foods cool the body, as well. 

Rajasic food is over-stimulating in nature. Moreover, it agitates the body and mind. A person who eats more Rajasic foods, is always excited. Foods that are Rajasic in nature include red meats, fish, spices, eggs, and tastes like spicy, pungent, hot, and astringent. 

The third category, comprises Tamasic food. It is overly-processed, stale, and processed food. Alcoholic drinks contain more Tamas. These are also very addictive. You should also stay away from packaged and canned food, for the very same reason. Deep-fried foods are also Tamasic in nature. They lead to a dull mind and laziness. 

The food you choose for a yoga diet, should be pure, and governed mu ahimsa. All the food that a yogi ingests must have sattvic qualities. Fresh and organic foods are said to have the highest prana. They also have the highest vibration. As a practitioner of yoga, your food choices should vibrate with your individuality. Be self-reflective when eating food. Moreover, you should eat food according to your age, health condition, and lifestyle. 

Most yogis practice mindfulness in their daily yoga practice. Therefore, you also need to be mindful while eating. You should also eat slowly and feel the taste inside your mouth. A fast lifestyle can cause numerous health problems. So, you must practice slow eating habits. Conscious eating is extremely important for yogis, especially. Here are a few things you should practice while eating. 

Practice Good Habits While Eating

• You should eat at a specific time every day. Moreover, you should keep at least 20 minutes aside for your meals. 
• You should not watch TV or listen to any music, while eating. It may act as a distraction, and you may overeat. 
• Practice a state of complete awareness, as you savour each grain or chunk, in your mouth. You should chew your food atleast twenty times. 
• Mindless snacking is also best avoided. Avoid snacking while eating. 
• You should also serve the food in a nice and decorative plate, as it provides a lot of interest. 
• Never skip the first meal of the day, and that is the breakfast. It is the powerhouse that keeps you moving all day long. 
• Eat home-cooked food. When you cook food at home, you have total control over the ingredients. It is a better investment, than gorging on unhealthy pizzas and fast food, and you do not even know, what went into it. 

6 Healthy Food Recipes For Yogis 

Now, you will read about the top 6 healthy recipes for yogis. 

• Baked Stuffed Apples 

You can make a healthy dessert at home, if you are craving for one. There are lots of ready made desserts in the market. However, they are unhealthy for your stomach, mind, and yoga practice. The desserts like ice creams and chocolates are also very calorie-rich. 

Here is the recipe:

• 4 big apples 
• 1/2 cup granola
• 2 tbsp maple syrup
• 1 1/2 cups apple cider vinegar

You can prepare the dish in an oven. You have to scoop out the flesh from the apples, and leave the base intact. Place them on a shallow baking tray. Preheat the oven to 350-degree F. Now, you have to fill in each cavity with the required quantity of granola, and also drizzle some maple syrup. You can pour the apple cider on the baking tray. 

You have to bake until, the apples are tender. If the apple cider has evaporated, you have to pour again. You can serve the apples at room temperature. 

• Ayurvedic Stir-Fry 

This is a great Ayurvedic recipe that suits yoga practitioners as well. You would normally associate stir fry with high heat and unhealthy oils. However, this one is different. You should use medium heat to cook the meal. This recipe contains zucchini, carrots, and collard greens. You can also add bok choy, sweet fennel, and asparagus, if you want to. 

Here is the recipe:

• 1 tbsp ghee
• 1 tsp chopped fresh ginger
• 2 tsp ground coriander seeds
• 2 tsp ground fennel seeds
• 2 dry curry leaves
• 2 carrots chopped into strips
• 1/2 zucchini chopped into strips
• 2 handfuls chopped collard greens 
• 1/2 tsp mineral salt
• Water
• 1 tbsp chopped coriander leaves 
• Lime juice

You can prepare the meal in a cast iron or steel pan. Heat the ghee and add the seeds, curry leaves, and chopped ginger. On medium flame, you have to add the remaining vegetables like carrots, zucchini, and sauté lightly. Slowly add the greens. Add water and let it simmer. Cover the pan and cook. You can add the fresh herbs and lime juice, when the vegetables and greens are soft. Turn off the heat and then allow the lid to be present for some time. 

• Healing Khichdi

It is one of the staple dishes in India. It is a mixture of two different types of grains. You can digest the food easily. If you ever feel that you have over-indulged with your eating habits, you can eat this one-pot meal. 

Here is the recipe:

• 1/4 cup of yellow broken moong dal
• 1/4 cup of basmati rice
• 1 zucchini chopped
• 2 carrots chopped
• 2 celery sticks chopped
• 2 tsp ginger grated
• 1 tsp turmeric powder
• 1tsp cumin seeds
• 1/2 tsp cumin powder
• 1/2 tsp coriander powder
• 3 tsp Himalayan salt
• 2 tbsp olive oil or ghee
• Fresh coriander chopped

You have to clean and soak the moong dal for 30 minutes. Wash the rice as well, and mix with the dal. Add the mixture in a pressure cooker. Thereafter, you can add the vegetables and spices. You need to add around 5 cups of water to the mixture. After the rice and dal is cooked, you can add some ghee and the chopped coriander leaves as garnishing. The best part about this, is that Khichdi can balance all three doshas. 

• Coconut Cilantro Potato Salad

Now, we are going to learn about some cooling foods. Salads are extremely good for health. Coconut, cilantro, and mint are some of the foods which are cooling on the body. If you are practicing yoga in the summer, you must get this cooling summer salad. 

Here is the recipe:

• 1/3 cup fresh cilantro
• 1/3 cup coconut shredded
• 1 1/2-inch of ginger
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp roasted cumin seeds
• 1/3 cup celery chopped
• 4 potatoes 
• Mint leaves chopped

This is one recipe, which you can prepare in about 20 minutes. You need to boil the potatoes first. Allow it to cool down. In the meanwhile, you can gather the ginger pieces, shredded coconut, fresh cilantro, and salt and grind the mixture with half a cup water. Pour the mixture over the boiled potato pieces. Garnish with cumin seeds and celery. You can also add the mint leaves for garnishing. Now, you can have this tasty fusion as a snack or lunch. You can even combine this with sauteed vegetables. 

• Aromatic Forbidden Black Rice 

Black rice is known for its nutritious profile and has a deep flavor. Earlier, only the rich and the wealthy had it for their meals. But now it is accessible for all. If you have good agni, then, you can definitely have this dish. If you have medium agni, you can still have it mixed with basmati rice. It will add some nutty flavor to the black rice. It also increases its digestibility. This dish has the power to balance Vata prakriti. Pitta people, can also have it. You can also have this dish with sauteed or steamed vegetables. 

Here is the recipe:

• 1 tbsp ghee
• 1/2 cup black rice 
• 1/2 cup white basmati rice
• 1 tsp ginger grated
• 1 kaffir lime leaf
• 1/2 tsp rock salt
• 1 1/2 cup water

Garnishing:

• 1 tbsp coriander seeds
• 1 tsp aniseed
• 2 tbsp ghee
• 2 dried rosebuds, crushed

You have to ensure to rinse and soak the rice for at least 2 hours, preferably overnight. Heat the ghee in a pressure cooker, and then add the ginger and lime leaf. Once the aroma starts emanating, stir in the salt, and ass the rice mixture. Pour water into the pressure cooker, and then pressure cook for 18-20 minutes. Before serving, you can add remaining ghee, and toasted coriander seeds and aniseeds. Finally, when you serve the rice, you can add few dried rosebuds for more aroma. 

1. Apricot and Strawberry Breakfast Bowl

Some of you may have the notion, that fruits do not last for long in the stomach. So, in such cases, many people are reluctant to have them for the morning meal.

However, if you lightly cook fruits with ghee and a few spices it can lead to nourishment. You should eat a good number of fruits, as they get digested easily. Additionally, fruits are rich in prana. So, as a yogic practitioner, you should have them aplenty. 

Here is the recipe for one:

• 1 tbsp ghee
• 3 fresh apricots chopped
• 10 strawberries chopped
• 1 fresh peach chopped
• 1 salt as per taste
• 1 pinch cinnamon
• 1 pinch dried jasmine or rose petals
• Water as required
• Vanilla essence 
• 1 tsp mint leaves chopped for garnishing

You have to take a heavy-bottomed pan, and heat it on medium fire. Pour the ghee into the pan and allow it to warm up. You can add some salt, cinnamon, and dried flowers thereafter. After you are done with it, and can smell the aroma, you can add the fruits, spices, and the water. You should stew the fruits on low heat. Take care, not to burn the fruits. You can take it off from the heat, and then garnish with mint leaves. You can experiment a bit as well, with this dish. Instead of peaches apricots, and strawberries, you can also add fresh seasonal fruits. The idea is to eat fresh and still satiate your hunger. 

Final Words

Now, these are six recipes, that all yogis follow or can start following from now on. These are extremely easy to prepare and does not require elaborate rituals. You can have them aplenty and at the right time. You also need to follow the times of the day, and the season, before you consume anything. One of the goals of Hatha Yoga is to purify the physical body.

Only when you are able to do so, can you bring changes in the spiritual or emotional self. Avoiding stimulants and chemicals can affect your body is a huge manner. You should also ensure to keep a gap of 2 hours before your asana practice. Make the lunch time meal, the biggest meal of the day. It will satiate your hunger like no other. Moreover, you will not feel the urge to eat snacks in the evening. A fit body and a flexible one at that, can help you to do different asanas with complete ease. 

You should also remember to eat cooked food during dinner, The reason, is that the body can digest cooked food faster, than raw foods. Your body is at rest at night, so this is essential. 

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Pramod Sahoo

Pramod came from a spiritual family. He loved meditation and yoga from a young age. He spent 7 years in an Ashram, learning ancient Himalayan yoga and meditation traditions. After that, he traveled and taught yoga in many places like Mumbai, Rishikesh, New Delhi, Italy, Austria, and Germany. He believes in a peaceful and joyful world for everyone, which inspired him to create Hari Om Yoga Vidya School.

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