Hibiscus Tea: The Most Wonderful Drink!!

Hibiscus flowers are so beautiful, and they come in various colors. The most common and popular ones are the Red Hibiscus which are available in plenty everywhere. They don't need much care, also.

The benefits of making Hibiscus Tea at home are many.

Just drinking two cups of hibiscus tea, keeps blood sugar under control, controls the cholesterol levels, lowers BP,  is very high in Vitamin C, so it is good for the skin, hair and the eyes. This tea is good to keep away cough and cold. It also helps in preventing Urinary Tract Infection, if taken along with Cranberry Juice.

Best thing is,  it is very easy to make. here is the recipe:

5/6 hibiscus flowers, plucked from your own garden( doesn't matter, what color they are)

5/6 cups of water

a few tsps of sugar, or honey/ any natural sweetner) I usually don't add sugar at all.

A pinch of salt

1 lemon




Method:

Clean/ wash the flowers gently.

Take only the petals throw everything else.

                                                Throw away this thing, only the petals
                                                             should be there

Boil the water, once it starts to boil, take it off from the stove

You can add sugar/ whatever sweetner you want and also salt.

Put all the petals and cover the it with a lid.

Let it soak for about 20 minutes

Then strain it, it would a deep wine color

Now you can add the juice of 1 lemon, and voila you would immediately see the color of the juice turn to a pretty red color ( I used only Red Hibiscus), I don't know how the color would be if we used other color hibiscus, for I never had the chance of using other colors.

(our dog simply loves eating these flowers especially, the voilet, yellow, orange and the pink ones that I have. So, I never get to see them bloom at all)
                            Caught her in the act. (she was barely 3 months old). She is now a big girl and                                 still loves to steal Hibiscus                                                                                         

This juice doesn't have any taste of its own, so you can even mix it with any other juice you might like, and have it cold also.

Here I have mixed with a herbal Rose drink called Roofza. If you have cranberry juice you can mix it with that too for additional benefits

You can have it immediately as a hot tea or cool it in the fridge and have it later. You can even make a whole lot,  if you have many hibiscus growing in your garden then prepare them in the same way and store it in the fridge and keep using it whenever you feel like.

The pulp of the flower too should not be wasted, it can made into a fine paste in mixer/ grinder and used as a hair mask.

This hair mask can be kept for about 1/2 an hour with the hair covered with a shower cap.

Afterwards,  it can be thourghly rinsed and. No need to apply any conditioner after this treatment. You would find your hair very clean, shiny and bouncy, and you would simply love your hair.

So make the Hibiscus Tea/ Juice and make the Mask and enjoy the benefits .

BTW, the Hibiscus leaves too can be made into a paste and used as a shampoo, it would lather up nicely like a shampoo, but must be rinsed very well.

Gongura Leaves/ Sorrel Leaves: Gongura Puliodhrai

Some of the health benefits of Sorrel/Gongura include its ability to boost eyesight, strengthen the immune system, improve digestion, build strong bones, increase circulation, increase energy levels, help prevent cancer, reduce certain skin conditions, lower blood pressure, increase appetite, slow the aging process, protect against diabetes, strengthen heart health, and improve kidney health.

It is very popular all over India, especially in Andhra Pradesh, where it is considered a delicacy, and dishes cooked in a variety of ways with this spinach kind of leafy vegetable. it has a natural sourness to it, and the pickle made with  it very tasty. You can read about its benefits in the net, and if you can get  it in your part of the country, then make it following various recipes shown in Youtube/ cookery blogs.

Here  I am sharing with you a recipe called "Gongura Puliodaryai" ( Sorrel Rice)

Ingredients:

1/2 tsp, Urad dhal

1/2 tsp, Channa dhal

1/2 tsp Coriander seeds

4/5 Red chillies or according to taste

3 tblsps of Sesame seeds

1/2 cup roasted peanuts

around 1/2 a cup or little more of Sesame seed oil or Refined vegetable oil.

1&1/2 cup of brown rice ( if you don't like Brown Rice then you can use White Rice): Boiled with every grain separate.

1/2 cup of Coconut gratings (optional)

For seasoning : 

a tsp of oil from the oil listed

1/2 tsp Mustard seeds

1/2 tsp Cumin Seeds

1/2 tsp Turmeric powder

1/2 tsp Asafoetida (Hing) 

some curry leaves

1/2 a cup of onions chppped, split green chillies about 2

Two bunches of Gongura leaves (approximately 2/3 big cups of leaves)

The leaves should have been separated washed and dried, no need to cut them, just let them dry between sheets of news paper.

Method:

Boil Rice and spread it out in a plate and leave it to cool

In a non- stick pan, dry roast the Urad Dhal, Channa Dhal, Red Chillies, Coriander seeds and Sesame seeds keeping the flame low,  roast them till slightly golden, don't burn them.

Keep them aside to cool.

After they have cooled grind them into a nice powder and  keep aside. Roast the peanuts keep them aside

Now in the same pan add some oil and fry the Gongura leaves, after some time they would become soft and start to form a big lump, add a little bit of salt, wait till everything combines a becomes like a ball. Take it out of the flame and let  it cool. Now after it has cooled grind it into a fine paste in the grinder. If you see a few red stems just remove them

 

Next heat some more oil in the same pan, and once it is hot, drop the cumin seeds, mustard seeds, and let them crackle, now add some curry leaves  Asafoetida, the roasted spice powder,  turmeric powder and the roasted peanuts and keep stirring everything for a few seconds  in low heat. 

Add salt, but always remember to be careful and add only little, if needed we can add some more salt afterwards. Next add the chopped Onions and just lighty fry them, they should not be fried too much, they should retain the slightly raw kind of crunchiness.

Now add the Gongura ground  paste to it and keep mixing everything till well blended. Take it out of the flame.

Now add the cooked and cooled rice and mix everything evenly, till everything is nicely blended, taste it and if you feel you need to add a little more salt add at this stage and keep on mixing it very nicely.

Finally add the coconut gratings.

Fry some Rice or Dhal Papads (fritters)

Serve it with some Raita made out of curd, raw  onion, and tomatoes, salt and green chilliies.

It is always nice to cook out of the box with these lesser known or less tried recipes, to do away with the boredom of eating the same kind of food everyday.

Also it is a very healthy dish and is a kind of one pot meal.

Enjoy!

Baigan Bhartha : Smoked Brinjal/ Egg Plant

Cooking time: 15 mins
( including the cutting  of the vegetables and the smoking of the brinjal)

Ingredients:
1 medium size Brinjal ( Use only fresh)
3 medium size Tomatoes
1 big green chilly
1 big onion
10 cloves of Garlic peeled and slightly crushed
1/2 tsp of cumin seeds, and 1/2 tsp of mustard seeds
2 or 3 tsps of Garam masala, and 1 tsp of Aam Chur (dry mango powder, optional)
Salt to taste
3 tsps of any vegetable oil.
1 tsp of red chilly powder, 2 tsp of coriander, and cumin powder( Dhanu jerra powder) optional
Fresh chopped coriander leaves

Directions:
Instead of chopping the onions just slice them length wise
Cut the tomatoes too in the same manner
peel the garlic and just crush them lightly
slit the green chilly or you can even chop them finely, depending on your taste
wash and dry the brinjal, and slit a little and keep a few cloves of garlic inside it.
Roast the brinjal directly on the gas stove.
Keep turning around till all sides are smoked and cooked properly and the skin is charred
 Keep  it aside to cool

Take a frying pan and heat the oil in it. Throw in the cumin and mustard seeds into the pan and let them splutter.
Now add the sliced onion  to it along with the garlic, keep the heat in low and let the  onions turn slightly  pink, do not brown it.
Next add the tomatoes
Just lightly toss them
after a few seconds add salt, red chilly powder, dry mango powder and the danu jerra powder. Mix everything and let the tomatoes become slightly soft, do not try to mash them.
Now peel the brinjal remove the garlic cloves, ( just add the garlic to the onion, tomato mixture) and just lightly cut the brinjal, at the same time pressing them slightly with the knife itself, do not mash the brinjal completely.
Add this to the onion and tomato mixture and mix everything together, if it looks too thick add a little bit of water to bring to the right consistency
 Next add the garam masala powder, and keep the dish covered for about 3 minutes on a low flame. This is done to retain the flavour of the garam masala.
Never add turmeric powder to this dish, for the red colour should come only through the tomatoes and the red chilly powder.
People add fresh cream, some even add milk, but then it would taste different, the mild flavour of brinjal will be lost, and it would not get that red colour.
Pour it into a serving dish and garnish it fresh chopped coriander.
It goes best with Paranthas and Phulkas (all Indian breads).
I am aware that there are many ways in which people make this dish, but after trying this method, I found it to be the best, for it brings out the real subtle flavour of brinjal.
I learnt this recipe from a Punjabi friend of mine, whose husband runs a very famous Punjabi Dhaba in Bangalore.

                                                      Sorry for the bad image

                 See the chunks of lightly mashed brinjal, tomatoes and the garlic are visible

The attractive red colour comes out, by not adding turmeric.(this tip was given by my punjabi friend)
Enjoy this super simple dish, and let me know how you found the taste of this Smoked Brinjal recipe made my way.