Good Morning everyone and welcome once again to Wacky Wednesday.
It is the early 2019, the second day of a Brand New Year and somehow, New Year's Eve,
New year in India is associated with Goa.....with the land of surf and sand... with the land
of wine and Fenny and Yes, oh who doesn't like to get drunk on New Year's Eve and then
the hangover last way into the New Year.
So Goa which has the best of wines in India, the best of surf and sand, the best of Fenny,
the best of fish, Yes, Goa also gives you something which is antidotal to all these
hangovers, which is a great preventive for gastritis, induced by overuse of alcohol,
which protects your liver from the abuse of alcohol, Yes, it also helps the inflammations
of the Bowel.
Dear friends, from the land of Goa, sour, the tarty, kokum.
Yes, the closest name for this dried cover of a fruit.
The fruit is called "Ratamba", can be Sour Plum and the closest that I found to this
drink in Singapore was the Sour plum juice.
But believe me this particular species, which comes from Goa is very different.
Ask any Goa and they will swear by it and what a lovely name a Juice of kokum is called!!!
It is called as a "Amruth kokum".
"Amruth" means the 'Elixir' of kokum and mind you, after a drunken night, when your head
is hurting and when you can't think straight a shot of 'Amruth Kokum' will bring the head
right back to reality.
So if you are having a hangover of 31st night, if you are feeling or so groggy, do try and
get hold of this Kokum or the Kokum juice as a 'Amruth Kokum' is called and then open
it up, I have closed it a little bit too tightly because otherwise it can spill off and this
is the Himalayan rock salt and mind you coconut trees are abundant in Goa so, this is coconut
sugar.
Everything natural...
Now where did and how did this "Kokam" juice come about??
So when they take the kokum fruit there are Ratamba which looks kind of similar to the
mangosteen and split it open juice drips, that juice is collected as Amruth Kokum then
the two shells are dried and that becomes this 'Kokum'.
This "Kokum" is added instead of Tamarin or Tomato to flavor the Goa fish curries or even
the Goa vegetable curries...
Ah.... the curry that we make Mugagathi... made from the "Green beans"... "Green beans
sprouts".
I tell you, it is Yummylicious.
So today for all those of you, who are suffering from the 'Gastritis' of overindulgence of
31st.
I'm going to show you, how we are going to prepare this "Amruth Kokum" or "Elixir of
Kokum".
So, take a few spoonfuls of this 'Kokum' juice and if you can't find it you can even put
a 'Kokum' in the water.
But mind you, you might have to boil it a bit.Then put a little bit of coconut sugar,
a pinch of Himalayan rock salt, stir it.... pour some water and delicious....
I think I'm gonna add a little more of..... my Goa genes just want a little more of Sour
tarty flavour.
Stir it and Yummylicious, "Amruth Kokum" or "Kokum sharbat" is ready.
Now, in this if you were to add coconut juice or coconut milk, you get "Soul Kadi".
Ahh....
The name suggest, "Kadi" or "Curry" for the 'Soul'.
Believe me, it is a great digestive.
It helps you digest all the fish that is eaten in the 'Goan cuisine'.
You see, Goa was a Portuguese colony.
So a lot of Portuguese cuisine has been incorporated in the Goan traditional cuisine.
So, we have the 'Zaku tea' and 'Vindaloo'.
Yes, but the "Soul Kadhi" is a great antidote for digestion for any of these difficult digestive...
but yummy foods.
Yes, it also helps lower your LDL and mind you it takes care of the oxidative stress.
So it is also a friend of the diabetics, but just add a little less sugar.
Hmm.... anyone for Amruth Kokum Koka it is just so refreshing.
It helps reduce Heat stroke, it does.
So, when you're out on that beach, in that blasting Sun, come back to your hotel room
or come back to your home or to your Airbnb and have a class Glass of "Kokum Sarbat" or
when you get those Hives on the body, I remember I had a lot of them when I was a child, my
mom would just put some "Kokum" and water and rub me with it.
The hives would settle down.
So quietly and those of you out there who have migraine, that pounding terrible headache.
Make "Kokum" your friend add it to your curries, just drinking in water or have the great 'Soul
curry'.
Believe me, not only it is yummy, it is vegan and it is healthy.
On that point, have a great 'Kokumee January" Thank you.