In Āyurveda
Jīraka shares its root with jāraṇa, digestion. The texts prize it for doing what few pungents manage: waking a sleepy gut while staying gentle enough for inflamed pitta stomachs. That is why it, not something hotter, is the seed nearly every dal begins with.
Dravya profile · Jīraka
- Part used
- Seed
- Tastes
- pungent, bitter
- Properties
- cooling, light, sharp
- Doshas
- vāta + · pitta + · kapha ·
Traditional indications: Bloating, gas and heavy-feeling digestion (dīpana without heat); Traditional support for mild, IBS-like gut irregularity (grahaṇī); Mildly supportive of milk flow in nursing mothers (traditional use); The standard tempering seed for making beans and lentils agreeable.
Use with caution: Culinary amounts are essentially safe for everyone; Concentrated extracts in pregnancy, as with any supplement, ask first.
Preparation: Jeera water: simmer 1 tsp of seeds in a cup of water for 5 minutes and sip after meals. Whole seeds sizzle in the first seconds of a ghee tadka; roasted and ground, they finish raitas and buttermilk. Chewed with a little rock sugar, the seeds are a traditional after-meal mouth freshener.
Used in 72 recipes
- Aloo Dum in Cashew Broth
- Aloo Gobi Bhaji
- Amti (Maharashtrian Dal)
- Ash Gourd & Moong Soup (Kūṣmāṇḍa Rasa)
- Azhagar Kovil Dosai
- Badanekayi Gojju
- Bas Saaru
- Bengali Chenna Tarkari
- Bengali Pushpanna
- Besan Cheela (Sheela)
- Bottle Gourd Sabzi (Lauki)
- Chana Dal with Diced Potatoes & Coconut Shavings
…and 60 more, found by the ingredient filter on the recipes listing .
References
- Bhāvaprakāśa Nighaṇṭu , Bhāvamiśra (jīraka, digestive, grahaṇī-friendly)
- Ayurvedic Cooking for Self-Healing , Vasant Lad & Usha Lad