If you have been keeping track of all the speeches made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, you must have come across the word kadha.
What is a kadha?
In order to ensure a healthy population with stronger immunity against the novel Coronavirus, PM Modi has been advocating going back to our roots. Kadha is one such solution which is synonymous with home remedies or what Indians call gharelu nuskay.
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A kadha is an Ayurvedic herbal decoction that consists of herbs and spices known to naturally heal the body from toxins and diseases, building and maintaining our immunity side by side.
Research too has pointed out that maintaining a healthy immune system is essential to combating infections, including COVID-19 caused by the novel coronavirus. The prime minister shared few essential protocols the AYUSH ministry issued to help overcome the deadly respiratory illness due to the COVID pandemic.
Below are two tried and tested kadha recipes that Indian households can vouch for:
The simple kadha recipe
The word kadha literally means to simmer. The ingredients go through the decoction method of potent extractions by boiling the herbal or plant material.
Here’s a recipe that will keep a common flu, sore throat and fever at bay. For half a liter of the drink, you need:
10 Tulsi leaves (holy basil)
1-inch long peeled ginger
10 whole black peppercorns
Half an inch peeled turmeric root
Honey or jaggery as a natural sweetener (optional)
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Method: Fill a pot with almost 600 ml water and bring it to a boil. To the pot add your tulsi leaves; the best way to extract the goodness out of the leaves is to tear and crush them with your fingers and not with a knife when putting in boiling water. Now crush the peeled ginger and turmeric root and add it to the pot, you just have to hit the roots two-three times till they breaks down and you can see it leave its juices. Make sure not to beat it to a pulp. Add the whole black pepper as it is and let the mixture boil for at least 15 to 20 minutes on medium-low flame. Once it turns into a deeper colour add your choice of sweetener according to your preference, mix it in and sieve the prepared kadha into a thermas and carry it around with you or pour it in glass and serve it warm to the entire family. You can add the juice of fresh lemon to it before having it as well.
Herbal tea for chest congestion
This was a tried and tested technique used by my grandmother. She had learned it during a trip with her relatives in Benaras when she was a young girl. At that time she was made to drink this herbal tea to apparently flush out dust particles (which she later came to call pollution) and relieve one of chest congestion due to cold and cough.
Here’s what you need for two large cups of the tea:
Half a teaspoon of black pepper powder (kali mirch)
Half an inch of peeled ginger
Half a teaspoon of black tea leaves
Half a tablespoon of black salt (kala namak)
Half a tablespoon chaat masala
Juice of one whole lemon
Sweetener of choice (my grandmother always preferred one tablespoon granulated sugar per cup)
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Method: Measure two cups of water and bring to boil. To this add half a cup of water more in case the quantities decrease because of boiling. Now add the black pepper powder, black salt, chaat masala, sugar (or sweetener of choice), and the lightly beaten ginger to the pot and let it boil for 5 minutes. Now add the tea leaves and let it boil for 5 more minutes. Once boiled, switch off the flame and add the lemon juice and stit. You can now sieve it into the cups and enjoy it. It tastes delicious.
Disclaimer: In no way does kadha act as a preventative against coronavirus. It is still imperative we practice social distancing, wash our hands regularly, and stay inside our homes. The kadha recipes we have provided only serve to boost one’s immunity and is just another precautionary step one can take.
Let us know what you think of the kadha in the comment section!
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