Ayurvedic Shitake Lentil Stew|Immune Enhancing for Vata, Pitta, and Kapha
Updated: Oct 10
This delicious meal has a grounding effect on Vata and is satisfying for Pitta, while also providing immune support. Transform your meals into medicine by adapting the recipe to suit Vata, Pitta, and Kapha with our suggestions. Plus, receive a complimentary collection of Ayurvedic recipe eBooks.
Explore more on the Saumya Blog, selected top Ayurveda blogs and websites.
Ayurvedic Shitake Lentil Stew|Immune Enhancing
This is a long time Saumya client favorite. Lentils provide fiber and potassium making them a great choice for managing blood pressure and cholesterol. This stew is also immune enhancing making it perfect for this time of year.
Ayurvedic Shitake Lentil Stew | Immune Enhancing, delicious, and easy to prepare.
According to WebMD, "Shiitake are rich in polysaccharides like lentinans and other beta-glucans. These compounds protect against cell damage, help your immune system, and boost white blood cell production for fighting off microbes. Polysaccharides also have anti-inflammatory properties."
Ingredients:
1 cup dry French green lentils (about 3 cups once they’re cooked)
1 T unsalted butter
½ cup red onion, roughly chopped, optional
½ cup leeks, white and light green parts chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped, or more.
¼ tsp ground cumin
1 T fresh thyme (1/4 tsp dried)
1 cup carrot, sliced
2 cup shiitake mushroom caps, sliced (8-10 caps), I use many more to make the stew very earthy.
2 cup tomatoes, chopped
4 cup (32oz) organic vegetable stock, or make your own.
2 bay leaves
Salt & pepper to taste (red Alaea Hawaiian salt and real black pepper)
1 T red wine vinegar (optional)
2 handfuls fresh baby spinach
Grated parmesan cheese (optional)
Instructions:
1. Bring a small saucepan of water to a boil. Pour the cup of lentils onto a plate and sift through, removing any stones. Rinse in a fine wire strainer. Add the lentils to the boiling water, and reduce heat to simmer 30 minutes. 2. In a soup/stock pot, melt butter and add olive oil. Add the onions, garlic, leeks, cumin and thyme – cooking and stirring for about 8 minutes over medium-low heat (you don’t want anything turning brown or getting crisp – just softened). 3. Add chopped carrots, cooking 5 minutes. 4. Mix in the mushrooms and tomatoes, cooking another 5 minutes. 5. Pour in the 4 cups (entire 32oz box) of good quality organic vegetable stock, and add the bay leaves. Bring back to a gentle boil. 6. Drain the cooked lentils and add them to the soup pot. Taste and season with salt and pepper – start with 2 tsp salt and several grinds of pepper and work from there. 7. Simmer another 20-30 minutes, and add more cumin if needed. Try to find and remove the bay leaves, using tongs helps. Add the vinegar. 8. About 5 minutes before serving, add the spinach to the pot and stir until wilted. 9. Top with grated Parmesan cheese, and crushed red pepper if you like things spicier. Serve with a nice crusty baguette for dipping.
Or, place it all in the crockpot in the morning, go about the day, and have a delicious hearty meal later in the day just waiting for you. Cook until nice and soft. Enjoy it in the cooler months for a warming, hearty, grounding, Vata soothing and Pitta satisfying breakfast, lunch/main meal, or dinner.
I view recipes more as an inspirational template, than a must follow it to the letter. Deck out your dish to make it suit your doshic picture and your palate.
Saumya clients, you know just how to adjust the recipe to fit your custom food program to make this meal maximally supportive.
6 Best Ayurveda Taste By Dosha
Vata: Focus on its best tastes which are sweet, sour and salty
Pitta: Focus on its best taste which are sweet, bitter and astringent.
Kapha: Focus on its best tastes which are pungent, bitter and astrigent
How Do I Know If I Have A Dosha Imbalance?
Peruse these comprehensive and convenient lists of signs and symptoms of imbalances by dosha. Read all three, you might be surprised.
Ayurvedic Shitake Lentil Stew | Immune Enhancing--turn your food into medicine.
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Ayurvedic Shitake Lentil Stew |Immune Enhancing
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Meet Nutmeg, our newest pack member. He is classically Vata natured. His frame is slender with long toes. It is easy to see his bones and has predominant joints. His gait is quick and he loves to run.
As true with Vata, Nutmeg's brown eyes are small compared to his face. He has thin eye lashes and eyebrows and his bark his hoarse or dry.
Nutmeg has an irregular appetite; sometimes he is hungry and sometimes not. He learns quickly, but tends to forget.
As for Nutmeg's emotional tendencies, he can easily be anxious and frightened. He is frightened by loud noise, wind, and cold. He is sweet, seeks reassurance and likes to hide under shrubs to feel secure.