Diwali Digestive | Fusion - WeRIndia

So here is Diwali, with its overload of sweets, savouries and delicious meals in all the houses that you drop into.

Ironically, you need some medicinal scoops too to keep up your festive pleasure, instead of falling ill!

What is the medicine that will help you? It sure sounds good—’leghiyam’ is what it is called in South India.

However, it doesn’t taste so delicious. After a heavy meal, you could take a teaspoon. As it rolls down your gullet, some bitterness and a tangy feel will linger in your mouth when you top your meals with the leghiyam.

You can prepare the leghiyam at home. You need:

• Two tsps of black pepper, two-and-a-half tsps of cumin seeds, two-and-a-half tsp of coriander seeds, 25 gms of ajwain or omam seeds, about 10-12 sticks of kandathippili, one medium-sized sukku  or dry ginger, 2 cardamom seeds, 1/4 cup of ghee and 100-125 gms of powdered jaggery.

• Pound all the ingredients, soak them for half-an-hour and then grind them into a smooth paste.  Dilute it further and heat the paste in a thick-bottomed pan till the raw smell leaves it and the water evaporates. Then add powdered jaggery and boil till it becomes thick, like  halwa. Keep adding the ghee little by little.

• You could even buy the powdered ingredients, add powdered jaggery and dissolve in hot water till it becomes soupy. Boil it till the raw smell leaves it. Add jaggery and heat further. Cook till you get a thick, halwa consistency.

• So there you are. Enjoy your food and see that you take a teaspoon of leghiyam to feel good at the end—till the next meal, at least!

Photo by Navita Bhatia from Pexels (Free for commercial use)

Image Reference: https://www.pexels.com/photo/carom-seeds-ajwain-3995663/