Sattvic Prana Alkalizing

Bitter is Better

Generally, all leaves have a bitter component. Kale and endives are among the last surviving bitters in the grocery store. You might be blessed to find arugula and dandelion greens as well. Bitters enhance and cleanse the digestive tract by stimulating movement (peristalsis) and the release of bile from the liver and gall bladder. Bitters were common in the diets of our ancestors and should be re-introduced as a main ingredient in the modern diet.

Bitter taste pacifies Kapha and Pitta but aggravates Vata. Kale is an excellent bitter but is hard and chewy, and hard to chew usually means hard to digest. Therefore, Kale should be cooked until it is soft and more digestible. The harshness and Vata aggravating components of bitter are offset by the stimulating effects of spices and salt. The sugar, coconut flakes and oil in this recipe add a heavy quality balancing the light quality of Kale.

This recipe is one of our favorite staples on Joyful Belly. For more about bitter taste, click here. For more about Greens, click here.

Raw or Cooked?

Raw food offers nutritional benefits but is more difficult to digest, causing gas and bloating. The nutritional benefits are then outweighed by the toxicity of food fermenting in the gut. Indigestible food is considered poison in Ayurveda. As Dr. Robert Svoboda says, 'Even the nectar of immortality is a poison if the body can't digest it." The measure of good food is not just its contents, but its interaction with our body.

Cooked food is easy to digest but destroys some vitamins and enzymes. Neither is superior. The real answer to the cooked or raw debate depends on the digestive strength of the individual. Pitta people have the strongest digestive strength and can tolerate more raw foods than other doshas. Taken from The Raw Versus Cooked Debate.

Kale, though espoused for its health benefits, is woefully under-appreciated by the taste buds of many. Here, coconut flakes and sweet pungent fennel bring a little pizzazz and appeal to an otherwise bland kale leaf. A bit of oil improves .

1 tsp	Fennel Seeds
1/16 tsp	Salt (Mineral Salt)
1/8 tsp	Black Pepper
1 tsp	Raw Sugar
1 tbsp	Coconut Flakes
2 tsp	Sunflower Oil
1 lbs	Kale

Add a small amount of water to the bottom of the saucepan. Strip kale of the central vein, chop into small pieces, and add to the water. Bring to a boil, add remaining ingredients and cover. Lower heat and simmer until Kale softens and turns a dull green color.

Also works well with swiss chard. I used agave in lieu of sugar.
This sounds wonderful. I love to make Kale sauteed with garlic, olive oil and hot pepper flakes. I then add parm cheese with small white beans. Serve warm w/ a few croutons sprinkled on top for crunch! Really awesome!
Thank you for the raw vs. cooked debate answers. This is what I tell people but they don't believe me until they get sick. It is so important to have good digestion.
All the tastes are here once you add a squeeze of lime, which protects the color, enhances mineral access from the greens. If you use chard instead, this recipe reduces astringency. Added sweetness, whether you add coconut or not, helps cool the heat of some dark leafy greens like spinach and chard. Magic taste transforming chemistry, all these things! I love fennel, sometimes toasty crisp othertimes sweetly plump. Or I choose toasted cumin seed even more often it seems. For those avoiding garlic, use a pinch of hing. 1-3 tsp of finely grated ginger is another choice instead of pepper, which in this version is mild enough to suit summer doshas. Melissa, also your recipe does sound awesome! Greg's chard of course is a much quicker dish than cooking with kale (or sub collards for kale).
Wow great recipe and great suggestions Ysha. Thank you.
I follow a raw diet and made some adjustments that make this easier to digest raw. The secret to eating raw kale is to rub the leaves very thoroughly with fresh lemon juice. Put the chopped kale in a bowl, pour in about 1/4 cup of lemon juice and really rub it in. Just like ceviche, the lemon juice "cooks" the kale to break down the tough plant cell walls. Let it sit for a bit and then you can pour off any excess lemon juice if you like before adding the oil. I also swapped raw coconut oil for the sunflower oil. Coconut oil is a superfood that will kill harmful yeast in the gut. It also add a touch of interesting sweetness to balance out the bitter. You can also add dried cranberries (sulfite-free) or raisins ditto) for the remainder of the sweetness and that way leave out the sugar. I did lightly toast the fennel seeds to bring out their flavor. Not technically raw, but no harm done there. So if you don't need to avoid sour, this is a great way to eat it raw and get the benefit of living food.