Apparently, there is a subset of Indian culture near Banaras (a holy city, the most sacred place on the 1,560 mile course of the sacred Ganga river) that eats only vegetarian food prepared without onions, garlic, or very many spices. This does seem odd, considering that mostly all I’ve eaten lately is garlic, onions, spices, lots of bread products, and the occasional vegetable or piece of fish.
The reason for this restriction is because spices have an affect on the body and mind (like a runny nose for example : ) , and in order to attain spiritual enlightenment, you should keep your senses under control. (I’m assuming they also don’t drink alcohol or participate in any other substance use, but the article didn’t say anything about that). It’s a similar reason for onion and garlic. They generate heat, and supposedly act as aphrodisiacs. Hm, I don’t know about that. Anyone who’s tried to kiss someone else after eating onions and garlic might disagree with that claim.
So if anyone’s interested, here’s the article where I found the information. I had heard about this from some coworkers so decided to investigate. http://www.uppercrustindia.com/6crust/six/banaras1.htm
Monday, August 08, 2005
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2 comments:
It's true! As the article mentions, it's tied to certain religious beliefs, and you can use asafoetida to give food some of the same flavors. Asafoetida powder smells truly noxious straight out of the jar, like a rotten egg. That's because it's full of sulfur, just like onions and garlic. When you put it in hot oil, it gets a more balanced smell and flavor.
Apparently asafoetida is made from dried gum taken from the rhizome of certain plants in the fennel family, which I didn't know until just now.
Indian cooking without garlic and onions sounds like italian cooking without tomatoes, but perhaps that just goes to show I'm still a long way from spiritual enlightenment.
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