Are you looking for an Ayurvedic herb to ward off monsoon sickness? Doddapatole, also known as Indian borage, is the perfect herb for you. Not only does it boost your immunity and relieve cold and cough, but it can also be used in a variety of dishes. Read on to discover 5 recipes using doddapatole.
Doddapatre, a South Indian Ayurvedic herb that keeps you healthy during the monsoon
During monsoon, everyone loves to relish on crispy pakoras, samosas and sweet ghevar, but this season it is also important to boost your immunity and stay healthy. Apart from seasonal fruits and vegetables, certain herbs also play a vital role in warding off monsoon illnesses like cold, cough and flu. Induru jijika, also known as dodda patole in India, is an item of great importance in Ayurveda.
Found primarily in India, Africa and Mediterranean countries, this tropical herb is known for its sweet, camphor-like aroma and warm, peppery flavour. Widely used in Indian households for culinary and medicinal purposes, the oil extracted from the leaves of this plant is also highly beneficial. Some people confuse it with ajowan leaves and oregano due to its taste and texture, but doddapatole is different from both. In different parts of India, it is called Pathar Choor (Hindi), Pani Kholka (Malayalam), Kalpuravalli (Tamil) and Doddapatole (Kannada).
Mostly consumed in South Indian households, it is known to be effective in treating respiratory problems like cough, cold, asthma etc. Adding dodda patole to your diet also helps in relieving indigestion and bloating. During the monsoon season, this herb is perfect for boosting your immunity and has anti-inflammatory properties.
In cooking, doddapatole is an excellent ingredient for making teas, juices, chutneys, soups, fritters and stews. Many people also use it to flavour meat and fish, and in southern Indian states like Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, the pulp of the doddapatole is used to make dough for roti, chitranna and lemon rice.
Here are 5 dishes you can make at home using dodda patole.
Doddapatre Tambuli is a refreshing, comforting, cold yogurt curry from Karnataka that goes great with rice or dosa. Doddapatre leaves are lightly fried with ghee, jeera and pepper and then cooked with yogurt and grated coconut. Finally, it is seasoned with mustard seeds, curry leaves and asafoetida.
Rasam is made by mixing the leaves with tomatoes, garlic, pepper and cumin into a smooth paste. Spices like mustard seeds, asafoetida and curry leaves are used to warm the paste before making the rasam. This dish can be enjoyed as a soup or eaten with rice.
Panikolka Chamanthi is a Kerala chutney made by sautéing doddapatre with onion, garlic and chillies and grinding it into a coarse paste with coconut. This aromatic side dish is perfect to have with rice or patiri.
Sambarbari Podi Also known as Karpooravari Bonda or Bhagi, these crispy fritters are made from Indian borage leaves, deep-fried in a flavoursome gram flour batter and are a popular teatime snack or lunch item.
Doddapatre Gojju is a thick paste made with Indian borage leaves, spices and lentils. The shelf-stable doddapatre gojju contains spices like cumin, red chilli, pepper and turmeric along with garlic, ginger and chana dal. All these ingredients are mixed together and ground into a powder. It can be eaten with rice, idli or dosa and stays fresh for around a month.
