How Does This Ayurvedic Food Improve Wellness?
CONSTITUTIONAL MEDICINE INSIGHTS
![Recipes with Poppy Seed: Poppy Seed Sleepy Time Tea]()
Recipes with Poppy Seed: Poppy Seed Sleepy Time Tea
Poppy seeds (
Papaver somniferum) are tiny, dark, nutty-flavored seeds that are naturally heavy, unctuous, and slightly sweet. They are especially grounding for Vata and calming for Pitta, while best used in moderation for Kapha.
Properly cleaned seeds contain negligible amount of the opium alkaloids found in the latex. However, commercial products generally contain trace residue of the alkaloids from surface contact with the pod's latex, giving seeds a relaxing, sleep inducing effect.
The seeds were traditionally used in soothing tonic pastes and warm milks (including for pregnant or nursing women and children), best kept to normal food quantities. Avoid "unwashed" seeds or extracts/teas, which can concentrate opium alkaloid residues.
These nutritive seeds calm the mind, ease restlessness, and gently rebuild strength. In culinary amounts they can take the edge off restlessness and help rebuild strength through nourishing oils and minerals.
Nourishing Tonic
Poppy seeds are a serene tonic for those who feel chronically depleted and worn down. They are rich in minerals and oils, and are known to restore the body. Ground-up, they create an oil-rich paste that is dark & earthy, a substance that embodies night's stillness and nurturing yin. According to Chinese Medicine, their deep blue color indicates that they strengthen the kidneys, which is fundamental for building vibrancy and vitality.
Since poppy contains moisturizing oils, adding them into your diet will nourish and tone your skin. Steeping your poppy seeds in nourishing milk increases this tea's tonifying abilities - called a "rasayana" in Ayurveda. An effective nourishing tonic such as this tea will relax your central nervous system, putting your body in "rest and digest" mode, so your body can use its energy to rebuild strength and resilience.
Reduces Pain
Poppy seeds are also known as a mild painkiller and muscle relaxant. Mildly sedative and analgesic, poppy seeds and nutmeg soften the harsh edge of chronic pain so you can relax enough to finally sleep. They are anti-spasmodic, meaning that poppy seeds have a special ability to allow muscles to relax, another element that helps soften muscle twitches, headaches, joint pain, painful digestion, and even toothaches. In fact, pain relief is the main use of poppy seeds in Chinese medicine.
Stool Bulkening Agent
Poppy seeds are mildly astringent and high in fiber, enabling your colon to absorb more water from the stool. The sedative and antispasmodic properties of this tea will relax and quiet your lungs, while plentiful oils will nourish injured lung tissue.
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About Poppy Seed
Poppy seeds are taken from the same plant as opium.
While the culinary seeds themselves contain little to no of the opium alkaloid used in narcotics; small residues of the pod's latex are typically found on the seed's surface, giving them the relaxing properties associated with morphine / codeine.
Cooking Poppy Seed
Poppy seeds are tasteless until roasted, when they take on a nutty flavor. A coffee grinder may be the easiest way of grinding the seeds for use in teas. Poppy seeds have a variety of uses. In New York where I come from they are common as a decorative garnish on kaiser rolls & bagels.
Poppy seed paste is a popular filling in many baked desserts in eastern Europe and the middle east. A delicious paste can be made by combining roasted poppy seeds with honey. The pastes may be flavored with lemon or orange zest, alternatively coconut butter. Fennel, saffron, cardamom and nutmeg combine well with poppy seeds flavor wise.
In Bengali poppy seeds are added to potato dishes, shrimp recipes, or simply in rice. Poppy seeds many be fried in ghee or butter and drizzled over your favorite dishes. Or, pressed to yield delicious poppy seed oil.
Ground poppy seeds are used as a thickening agent in many soups, especially white poppy seeds because they do not alter the color of the soup. They thicken by adding bulk and emulsifying fats (like cashew), not by forming a gel (like cornstarch).
Buying & Preparation
Buy fresh, as the seeds are high in polyunsaturated fats, which make them vulnerable to oxidation and turn rancid. Note: The seeds are so small that a single pound contains between 1 and 2
million seeds.
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