In Ayurveda, which is India's traditional medicine, they say that to feel completely satisfied with a meal, you need to experiment the full spectrum of flavours—sweet, salty, sour, pungent (spicy), bitter, and astringent.
Everyone knows very well what sweet, sour, and salty taste like, but what about these other flavours that you can add to make each meal a fulfilling one?
Pungent taste includes ginger, peppers, onions, mint, peppermint, cinnamon, and all spicy food.
Astringent taste is found in beans, peas, lentils, berries, figs and green tea. Also in coffee.
Bitter includes all green and yellow vegetables.
Complete your meals with a salad, including bitter leaves, such as watercress, escarole, radicchio, and endives. Add some chicory to stimulate digestion and a few leaves of dandelion (liver’s best friend).
Also, remember that dairy products, grains, and bread are sweet; citrus fruits, some berries, and tomatoes are sour; and there is salt in almost everything, so if you have to add it, choose a good salt—unrefined with mineral traces—such as Maldon salt, sea salt, or even Fleur de Sel.
I know this sounds a bit strange, but try it!
I tried to consciously build my meals around these six tastes, and it did work! And really, it is not complicated at all.
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