Healthy Recipes - Contest Entry 04 - Garlic gravy (Poondu kuzhambu) - Renjitham

Ingredients:

Garlic - 200 grams

Big onion - 1

Tomato - 1

Grated coconut - 1/2 cup

Cumin seeds / Jeeragam - 1/4 spoon

Chilli powder - 1 spoon

coriander powder - 2 spoons

turmeric powder - small pinch

Salt - To taste

Oil - 2 spoon

Mustard seeds, Curry leaves - For saute'ing

Preparation

Remove skin from garlic and pulse once or twice in mixie / blender. Make sure that you DON'T make a fine paste of garlic. It should be sort of chunks.

Cut onion and tomato into small pieces.

Blend coconut and cumin seeds into a fine paste in mixie / blender.

Add chilli powder, coriander powder and turmeric powder to the blended coconut paste and mix well.

Heat oil in a pan and splutter mustard seeds and curry leaves.

Add garlic chunks and onion and saute for a few minutes.

Add tomato and let it cook till it gets cooked and blends well.

Now add the coconut paste to the pan.

Also add required salt and required water.

Allow it to boil for a few minutes and remove it from the furnace when it reaches required consistency (kuzhambu patham).

Benefits

Antibacterial and Antiviral - Garlic with its antiviral and antibacterial properties helps boost your immunity.

Reduce blood pressure - Angiotensin II is a protein that helps our blood vessels contract thereby increasing the blood pressure. Allicin in garlic blocks the activity of angiotensin II and helps in reducing blood pressure. The polysulphides present in garlic are converted into a gas called hydrogen sulphide by the red blood cells. Hydrogen sulphide dilates our blood vessels and helps control blood pressure.

Protect heart - Garlic protects our heart against cardiovascular problems like heart attacks and atherosclerosis. This cardio-protective property can be attributed to various factors. With age, the arteries tend to lose their ability to stretch. Garlic may help reduce this and may also protect the heart from the damaging effects of free oxygen radicals. The sulphur-containing compounds of garlic also prevent our blood vessels from becoming blocked and slow the development of atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries). The anti-clotting properties of ajoene help prevent clots from forming inside the blood vessels.

Reduce cholesterol - Garlic has the ability to moderately lower our blood triglycerides and total cholesterol and reduce arterial plaque formation.

Combat allergies - Garlic is known to have anti-inflammatory property. It can help the body fight against allergies. The anti-arthritic property of garlic is due to diallyl sulphide and thiacremonone. Garlic has been show to improve allergic airway inflammation (allergic rhinitis). Raw garlic juice may be used to immediately stop the itching due to rashes and bug bites.

Remedy for respiratory problems - Daily use of garlic might reduce the frequency and number of colds. Its antibacterial properties help in treating throat irritations. Garlic may also reduce the severity of upper respiratory tract infections. Its benefits in disorders of the lungs like asthma, difficulty of breathing, etc. make it a priceless medicine. Its ability to promote expectoration makes it irreplaceable in chronic bronchitis.

Diabetes - Garlic increases insulin release and regulates blood sugar levels in diabetics.

Improve iron metabolism - Ferroportin is a protein which helps in iron absorption and release. Diallyl sulphides in garlic increase production of ferroportin and help improve iron metabolism.