Some Handy Tips for your Kids' Lunchtimes

• Moderate. Your child needs to have a wholesome lunch, but do not overwhelm your little one with too much food! Send as much food as they can comfortably finish, ensuring that they have a sense of achievement. It is never too early to teach them not to waste food!

• Variety. Excite your child with a wide variety to choose from, be it a Rava Dosa (using Soulfull's Rava Dosa Mix) or some rolls. Mix and match to make lunch an exciting affair!

• Non Messy. Make sure your child's school lunch box is packed to avoid leakage. Pack it in a way that is easy for them to handle, be it chutney smeared Soulfull Idlis or grilled sandwiches.

• Attractive. Keep in mind that the visual is the strongest driver for kids' appetites. Make sure that your school lunches look yummy!  

• Fun. Add a dash of fun to your lunch box, a li’l reward for the child. A handful of Soulfull Ragi Banana Flakes to be had as a nutritious dessert after lunch, perhaps.  

• It is a good idea to make chutneys and spreads over the weekend to use for packing in as accompaniments during the first few days of the workweek. Just mix a little curd, mustard and chili sauce, salt, pepper, chopped tomatoes, chillies, onions and coriander leaves or cheese to make a salsa!

• For Dosas, you can sauté one onion, tomato, green chilli and grind with salt and coriander leaves to spread inside the dosas.

• Lastly, take it easy. You should not be huffing and panting after packing your kids' lunch boxes. Make sure you choose fun, and easy to make options (like the Soulfull Rice Idli), that can be made in a jiffy, and that are nutritious too!

This blog is powered by Soulfull.

Healthy Eating during the quintessential Indian Monsoon Season

In India, monsoons are much cherished and with the first rains comes an anticipation and a sense of excitement from one and all, to welcome in another phase of the calendar year. At the same time however, it is very important to keep cases of monsoon illnesses to a bare minimum, by ensuring clean food and water and a healthy diet regimen overall.

We list out foods ideal for the Indian monsoon season, and also throw in some pointers on what to avoid to maintain the healthy body you so deserve!

Soups

When you are staying indoors during the rains, a bowl of piping hot soup in a flavour of your choice can elevate your soul. It is however best to include vegetable soups in your diet. These will not only keep the cold at bay, it will also ensure that you get the day's nutrients and remain hydrated.

Tea

On a rainy evening, a cup of  masala or ginger mint tea is a perfect compliment to the sunset. If you love to be outdoors, go for a ride to soak in the rains and then stop at a roadside tea stall to have your share of cuppa. Try it out for biscuits to elevate it into a savoury snack! 

Veggie Sticks & Dip

Easy to make and great to have on a rainy day! Curl up with a book and savor your veggie sticks with a cheesy dip. Or better still pick up your favourite DVD and then enjoy the movie with your fill of sticks and tomato ketchup if you wish! 

Savouries:

Say no, to fried dangers like samosas and pakoras, but satiate your tastebud with deliciously healthy Adai Dosas, Rava dosas, Rava Idlis, Rice Idlis or Rice Methi idlis. These are perfectly healthy, and a great way to celebrate the monsoons. One can pick up Soulfull's instant mixes for each of the above, and spring a delicious surprise on the family when the showers hit us.

What to Avoid:

Avoid juices when it rains, especially from a street vendor. If you are absolutely craving for a natural juice, prepare it at home and consume immediately. Also shy away from salads and any such raw food in the monsoons. Any semi-cooked food can result in food infection and other health issues.

Foods to Beat the Indian Summer

Summer; it is that time of the year when cotton clothing, airconditioners, soft drinks and chilled foods are seen everywhere and used by everyone. In India, summers are very hot, and more so in the southern parts of the country. It is very important to partake in a proper diet in summers to keep the body cool and keep diseases like dehydration, vomiting, and diarrhea at bay. This article suggests a variety of foods to keep you cool in summers, and you may include them items into your daily diets and beat the scorching Indian summers this calendar year and beyond.

1. Curd

Arguably the most popular food for the quintessential Indian Summer is curd and yogurt. Life without curd is simply impossible, and curd can typically be consumed in various forms like ratias, chhach (buttermilk), shrikand, or even as a lassi! In South India, people also prefer to eat curd rice in summers. Above all, Curd contains proteins which keep allergies and ulcers away. Any curd based dish is effective to keep one cool in the summers up ahead.

2. Coconut Water

Coconut water is a superb drink and rehydrator. It has the same electrolyte concentration as in our blood, meaning that it gets absorbed very quickly. Furthermore, it contains a lot of beneficial vitamins and minerals that also help in weight loss and in maintaining a healthy metabolism throughout.

3. Watermelon

As the name suggests, Watermelons, as well as litchis and musk melons contain high levels of water. Hence, they should be consumed in bulk during the hot summer months. Watermelon is 91% water by weight and you can find any watermelon vendors at almost every nook and corner in the country when the months of April and May roll by. Put simply, a slice of watermelon a day will help you beat Indian summers with ease.

4. Kokum

Not the most commonplace of foods, it is found in only India and resembles a small, dark purple plum. Though it might possess the same sour taste as a tamarind, a glass of kokum juice a day prevents dehydration, loss of nutrients and improves appetite, whilst also cleansing blood from time to time.

5. Mango

Last but not the least, we have the Indian mango! Unripe mangoes or kacchi kairi is especially very effective during heat waves as it protects us from heat strokes. Aam panna is a drink made in almost every home in India during summers, and so are mango chutneys, murabbas and pickles whichcomplement the Indian food fabulously.

This blog post is brought to you by Soulfull, who produce and market a wide variety of Healthy Breakfast based dishes on Ragi on Finger Millet, a cereal that is great for summer !  You can buy Soulfull's deliciously healthy breakfast cereals and Dosa and Idli mixes  at their dedicated shopping portal, www.soulfull.in

How to Balance out a Breakfast

We've all been there before. You wake up - chow down a couple of biscuits, and rush out the door only to find your stomach growling at work an hour later. The likely culprit? An unbalanced breakfast, or none at all.

Eating in the morning jump-starts our metabolism, resulting in the production of energy. Some foods do this quickly, but briefly, therefore leaving us starving well before a 9 AM meeting has run its course. Other kinds of food keep us charged and focused all morning. It is in your interest to thus build a balanced Breakfast by choosing a food from each of these four key categories. Once you do so, you’ll stay energized right until lunchtime and more.

1. Protein (The Foundation)

Ample protein in the morning sets the stage for the day up ahead. It controls cravings and keeps you focused right through your day job. Start with Eggs, Milk or Beans, and feel free to diversify with other foods such as Dal or Yogurt if you are in the mood for something heavier as the days whizz by. All of these foods ensure that proteins are never in short supply within, to your advantage. Adding protein also ensures be satisfied for longer, because it helps keep blood sugar stable.

Also feel free to read our blog post on the benefits of protein from a few months ago.

2. Carbohydrate (The Energizer)

Without adequate and complex levels of starch at Breakfast, you might find yourself lagging behind the rest of the day as early as noon. So remember to pack in sufficient quantities of whole grains and fibre into your diet, in addition to vegetables and fruit to ensure enough antioxidant power and filling fiber. Studies also show that eating whole grains lowers the risk of many chronic diseases, such as coronary heart disease, diabetes, and cancer, and also contribute to body weight management and gastrointestinal health. Some rich sources of carbohydarates include rice and wheat, as well as high fibre cereal and nuts.

3. Fat (The Marathoner)

Fat is in it for the long haul, keeping you full and on the ready for several hours at a time. Of course, you'd be much better off choosing healthy options within the genre, such as avocado, nuts, or seeds. Cheese and Butter work as well, but keep them to a bare minimum to prevent cholesterol levels from shooting up over time. As a thumb rule, when choosing fats be careful to stay away from the bad fats - the saturated ones can cause you a lot of harm.

4. Garnishing (The Flavour)

Try a cinnamon into your bowl of yogurt, some slilces of fruit with Cereal. Pleasure your palate with a sensory boost of flavor to round out your breakfast. Get creative every morning at Breakfast!

Soulfull is a popular pan-Indian producer of some healthy and popular Breakfast items, with generous quantities of all the ingredients and nutrients listed above, and are overall rich in protein, fibre and flavour! Head over to their e-commerce portal at www.soulfull.in to stock up on some of their products today!

Saluting Women: Nutrition in Traditional Cooking

Foods from the land and sea once provided everything for people. Today, a mix of market and traditional food is common for most people, but the latter remains an important source of many nutrients, both in North and South India. On this hearty occasion of Women's Day, we elucidate on the rightful need of the nutrients that only traditional cooking can bring, with a pat on the back on all the women in the country who remember their recipes in this globalized, cosmopolitan society.

Indian cuisine reflects a 5000-year history of various groups and cultures interacting with the subcontinent, leading to diversity of flavours and regional cuisines found in modern-day India. Later, the Mughals, British, and Portuguese influence added to the already diverse Indian Cuisine with the assimilation of their own dishes and tastes, but Indian cuisine as a concept forged ahead and still remains highly relevant today.

The traditional Indian diet is one characterized by little meat, plenty of pulses, vegetables, rice and wholegrain wheat, making it low in fat and high in fibre. In the past, ghee tended to be used sparingly as it was expensive for less-wealthy families, but the situation is different today, and the benefits of ghee far outweigh the price in any case. In addition, dairy products are readily available and two glasses of milk a day provide just the right amount of calcium to the growing Indian child. Indian sweets and jaggery are given as a treat, and are not something to be eaten daily.

Since a lot of the side dishes are full of vegetables, beans, and lean protein, the nutrition in Indian food is abundant. There will always be a whole wheat option for naan, called roti, and typically you will find brown Basmati rice can be subbed for the white rice which is the usual base. Therefore, Indian meals provide nutrition in the form of antioxidants, fiber, vitamins and minerals.

As far as the numbers go, there are 152 calories in a 1 small cup serving of South Indian Sambar. Coupled with only 1.2g Fat, this liquid serving is often mixed with carb-rich rice to provide for a full meal - often lunch or dinner in the average South Indian home. Newer substitutes have tried to flaunt their style, but the Sambhar has remained strong, alongside many of its pan-Indian counterparts - Kheer, Rasam and Pulao among them.

So go ahead ladies, celebrate the wonderful occasion of women's day by delving into the age old and nutrition-rich recipes from your region. Rice, Wheat or Ragi - you know it's good for health!

A popular ethnic Indian cereal is the aforementioned Finger Millet, known as the Ragi, particularly in South India. Soulfull is a popular manufacturer that specializes in the production and marketing of a wide variety of Fills, Flakes, Idli and Dosa mixes. Head over to soulfull.in to stock up on your favourite items on the occasion of Women's Day today!

Essential Indian Cooking Techniques

It is important to understand the culinary mechanisms behind a few simple cooking techniques before you begin your journey into the world of Indian cooking, as many would tell you so! These techniques can be used individually in recipes, but more often they are used in unison. By understanding the jargon behind them all, you can ensure the success of your recipes sooner rather than later.

1. Steaming

This refers to cooking the food in its own steam. In olden days, the lid of a cooking pot was sealed to the pot using wheat flour dough, thus ensuring that the steam would not escape. This pot was then placed on hot charcoals, and the dish was allowed to cook. You will notice that many recipes direct you to cover the cooking pot with a lid and reduce the heat to complete the cooking process. This is the modern-day version of dum — it helps the dish retain its aroma and helps the flavors seep in.

2. Tempering

Tempering is the process of seasoning a dish with hot oil seasoned with spices. This can either be done at the beginning or recipe or at the end, depending upon the dish, and involves heating the oil until it is almost smoking, reducing the heat, and then adding the spices to imbibe an immediate dash of flavour into the eventual recipe.

It goes by different names yet, in other parts of the country -  Tarka, chowkna or Ghee durust karna all stand for tempering as well.

3. Sautéing

This is the mostly commonly used cooking technique in Indian cooking, and requires sautéing ingredients over a medium to high flame whilst constantly stirring. In the recipes where sautéing is required, you can add a bit of water to the ingredients to keep them from sticking to the pan.

It also allows the ingredients to release their true flavors into the mixture, and to ensure that the ingredients are fully cooked, continue to sauté until the fat begins to separate from the spice mixture or the masala that is being cooked, and your meal will not suffer in the slightest.

4. Grilling

Traditionally, roasting in the Indian kitchen was done in clay ovens called tandoors, hence the title. If a recipe calls for a dish to be marinated prior to grilling, tandoori grilling is the way to go. Make sure to follow the recipe's directions as to how long it should be marinated to ensure that the marinade is able to exude its flavors, and eventually discard any remaining marinade leftover at the end of the process.

5. Deep-Frying

Another key cooking technique used in Indian food is deep-frying. Traditionally, a deep vessel, referred to as a kadai, is used to heat the oil, around which batches of vegetables are fried. The key to deep-frying is to let the oil return to frying temperature between fried batches. Large quantities of oil are not allowed to deep-fry either - the quantity is always just enough to immerse the ingredients, and about 1 or 2 inches of oil is usually sufficient for most dishes.

This post describing five traditional Indian cooking techniques is powered by Soulfull, a South Indian Breakfast manufacturer. Feel free to visit their shopping portal over at soulfull.co.in to explore their wide variety of fills, flakes, and mixes - all available for purchase.

Stress Free Living During Exam Season

Exam season may well be the most difficult time of year to monitor what you eat and how you behave, but it is also the most crucial. It’s an annual ritual that causes panic and anxiety for students, and parents too. In our society, exams are a mark of success and the burden lies on the student to pass them all with flying colours - or else.

Midnight hunger or skipping meals altogether is increasingly becoming common with teenagers during examination season, and worse, the pressing need to wake up at night and eat whatever lies in the kitchen is an acute health risk as well, leave alone at such a crucial time of the year.

Following are some useful tips on how you or your child can beat the typical devils of stress during exam month around the corner:

1. Start Studying well before the Exam

You can almost never hit the ground running with your syllabus for any major exam. So make sure your schedule provides for sufficient time to pore through the portions - both front to back - as well as providing for enough revision time. As any good test-taker will tell you, the revisions are more important than the first time study. Similarly, attempt to memorize important concepts or formulae by writing them down instead of merely reading them. Again, writing is several times more effective than reading through it all just the one time.

2. Designate a Study Buddy

A classmate who is an expert in the subject you have trouble in works, as you can approach him or her with any questions you have in mind. In most cases, this helps the other person as well, negating any sense of complacency and providing a silent revision tactic for all concerned.

3. Be Creative

While taking notes as mentioned above, attempt to use as many diagrams, graphs, figures and illustrations as possible. Not only does a figurative picture tell the reader a thousand words, but it also helps you make several crisp revisions at the last moment!

4. Plan Well

Remember, this is fighting half the battle in itself. You'll be much more at ease attacking the syllabus with a clear mental roadmap rather than in a haphazard manner where you would inevitable lurch from one crisis to another, your morale sinking in the process. Prepare a solid content page for starters, alongside a strategy to dive into the content however suitable to your style.

5. Get Plenty of Sleep

Clocking up on sleep is often as important as the exam itself. It's way more stressful to memorize lots of information or comprehend complicated concepts with less than six hours of sleep, so ensure that you far outstrip that amount every night during exam month, not the least the nights before the actual exams themselves.

6. Exercise Regularly

Physical exercise like running, jogging or skipping for 15-20 minutes everyday will make you feel stress free and mentally fit. Ideally during the month to come, aim to wake up at an early hour to do some yoga, which will really set you up for some intense study in the day up ahead. Simple yoga exercises abound online, and you can always substitute them with similar exercises in the same vein if you're unfamiliar with the art.

7. Have a Hearty Breakfast

It's not for nothing that it's labelled the most important meal of the day. Never compromise on its content and quantity, and make sure you get the right amounts of fruits, vegetables, vitamins and nutrients to power up your day and keep you well fed and energetic throughout. Avoid snacks or fast-food during this meal; only a full, wholesome plate or bowl of the good old stuff will do!

Pertaining to that last point above, make sure you include the wares of the, healthy Breakfast brand Soulfull. Producing and marketing a wide variety of Fills, Flakes, Dosa and Idly mixes, the brand has redefined Breakfast dining in Indian homes, accelerated with the recent launch of their online shopping portal at soulfull.in. If you're looking for a staple brand for all the Breakfast options at home, be sure to pick up all they have to offer.

Best of luck to all the exam takers this summer!