Project Description

Six Tastes and a Tasty Salad!

What makes a good salad?

This month marks the month where salads all over the world are celebrated!  And what a better place to celebrate then here as we focus on nutrition and health.

The summer season provides us with a bounty of vegetables, fruits and leafy greens, so why not fill our plates with these lighter, delightful foods that not only give nutrition, but helps our body detox of the heavier winter foods and daily toxins.   If carefully thought out, every salad (and meal) you craft can be a detoxing, rejuvenating piece of nutrition.

In the summer, we naturally want lighter foods.  So eating salads are a perfect way to give our body foods that naturally detox our system, keep us cool and from feeling heavy and bloated.  Look for foods that are:

  • easily digestible (salads – check!)
  • packed full of rich nutrients (salads – check!)
  • light and low in calories, (salads – check!)
  • and of course, they must be delicious! (salads – check!)

What makes a good salad?

According to Ayurveda Medicine, 6 tastes can be identified by the tip of your tongue, literally.  Theses 6 tastes are:  sweet, sour, salty, bitter, pungent, and astringent.   To make each meal satisfying to the body, each of these 6 tastes should be included.

The following chart (taken from Eat Taste Heal) below describes each of these 6 tastes, common properties of each as well as sources.

Taste Primary Actions Common Sources
Sweet Builds tissues, calms nerves Fruit, grains, natural sugars, milk
Sour Cleanses tissues, increases absorption of minerals Sour fruits, yogurt, fermented foods
Salty Improves taste to food, lubricates tissues, stimulates digestion Natural salts, sea vegetables
Bitter Detoxifies and lightens tissues Dark leafy greens, herbs and spices
Pungent Stimulates digestion and metabolism Chili peppers, garlic, herbs and spices
Astringent Absorbs water, tightens tissues, dries fats Legumes, raw fruits and vegetables, herbs

Taken from:  The Six Tastes of Food: Sweet, Sour, Salty, Bitter, Pungent, Astringent (eattasteheal.com)

In Ayurveda Medicine, it is said the body knows what it needs and provides us a guideline with our tongue.  Including each of these properties in each meal can stop cravings, and provide the body with what it is looking for, giving a sense of satisfaction.

This salad contains all of the above characteristics (6 tastes), and is a super detox food as the high-nutrient ingredients help give the body what it is to open the detox pathways, nourish organs, and eliminate toxins.  So dig in!

Super Tasty Detox Salad

This recipe was adapted from a recipe I found on Make Yourself Skinny.

https://veronicashealthyliving.com/super-tasty-deto…kes-a-good-salad/U