Scope

The Hindu Compliance System gives direction on cooking science which is compiled from Bhaga Shastra. Bhaga Shastra classifies foods into rajasik, tamasik and satvik types. Rajasik food makes one feel agitated, aggressive, lustful and egoistic. Tamasik food makes a person lazy, sleepy and depressed. Satvik food gives clarity to the person and brings him peace of mind leading to bhakti (devotion), tripti (fulfilment) and ananda (bliss).


Six types of tastes are described in the Bhaga Shastra – salt, sweet, sour, hot, bitter and pungent. It states that every meal should include all these tastes so that the appetite is satisfied and the tongue is neutralized by all the tastes being together. As per the instructions in Bhaga Shastra, in order for all parts of the body, mind and brain to function properly, a balanced diet of all these tastes is a must.


Further, the purpose of having all six tastes is to balance the tridoshas in the body, namely vaata (acidic), pitta (alkaline) and Kapha (phlegm). Every ingredient used in Hindu cooking is classified as per its dosha properties.


For thousands of years, Hindus have been cooking food that is organic, nature friendly and with numerous benefits.  This standard will help organizations, businesses like hotels, restaurants etc. to cook the food as mentioned in Hindu Scriptures.

Ingredient and Process of Cooking

Dosa is a cooked flat thin pancake, originated from South India, made from a fermented batter. It is somewhat similar to a crepe in appearance. Its main ingredients are rice and black gram dal ground together in a fine, smooth batter with a bit of salt. This dish, once confined to South India, is now a popular and much sought after breakfast/snack throughout India. Traditionally, dosas are served hot along with sambar and chutney and can be consumed with idli podi as well.

Historical evidence of the dosa is found in the more than 2500 years old Sangam literature of Tamil Nadu, although in modern day cuisine history it tends to be associated with the Udupi district of Karnataka, probably because of the Udupi restaurants where they gained huge popularity. But, the fact that dosa is described in the Bhaga Shastra, makes this dish atleast 60,000 years old!

Following ingredients are required for making Coconut Dosa. :

  • The basic ingredients in a dosa are black gram dal (urad) and rice, which are fermented for a few hrs before it is ground to a fine paste. A variety of dosas are made using other lentils, semolina as well, making for an amazing array of delicacies out of these simple ingredients.

A mixture of rice and black gram that has been soaked in water is ground finely to form a batter. Some add a handful of fenugreek seeds soaked along with the rice. The proportion of rice to lentils is generally 3:1 or 2:1. The batter is allowed to ferment overnight, after which it is mixed with water to get the desired consistency. The batter is then ladled onto a hot tava (griddle) greased with oil or ghee (clarified butter). It is spread out with the base of a ladle or bowl to form a pancake.

Dosa can be made either thick like a pancake, or thin like a crepe and thin and crispy too. A dosa is served ho and is usually served with chutney and sambar. Dosa can be stuffed with vegetables, the most popular one being a potato filling – this variation of the dosa, hugely popular with people, is called the masala dosa.

grated coconut 12 palam, (420gram)

rice ¼ padi (375 gram)

salt ½ palam (18 gram)

  • Soak the rice in water for an hour, drain the water; mix the salt and grated coconut. Then grind it with water till the texture is light and fluffy when completely ground. Next, repeat the steps mentioned in recipe no. 299 (blackgram dosa recipe) for blackgram dosa.

References

Hindu Bhaga Sasthiram: Click Here

Hindu Compliance Body

The Hindu compliance body was established under the executive order of The Supreme Pontiff of Hinduism, dated August 14, 2020, order number 10010, under the title Reviving the Hindu Compliance System and Body to create, promote, spread and teach the standard procedures for all products and services that are in compliance Hindu Shastras.

Copyright

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