Negative calorie food and weight loss

To digest the negative calorie foods, we need to spend more calories than the calorie content of the food itself. We can make use of this as an advantage to reduce body weight. To lose weight, burning of more calories than its intake is very much essential.


Our digestive system works hard to digest the zero calorie diet (negative calorie diet).


It is useful to consume negative calorie diet to burn excessive and unwanted fat.


Eat fruits. Avoid drinking juice. The fibres / fibers that give the roughage to bowel movement are not discarded when the fruit is eaten.

Some negative calorie fruits and vegetables:

Fruits:

• Apple, Blueberries, Cantaloupe (Cantaloup, Musk melon or rock melon), Cranberry, Grapefruit, Honeydew, Lemon, Mango, Orange, Papaya, Peach, Pineapple, Raspberry, Strawberry, Tomato, Tangerine, Turnip, Watermelon, etc.
  
  

Vegetables:

• Asparagus, Beet root, Broccoli, Cabbage, Carrot, Cauliflower, Celery, Cucumber, Beans, Lettuce, Onion , Radish, Spinach, Turnip, Zucchini, etc.

Green Tea

Drinking green tea:

• Lowers total cholesterol level, improves the ratio of good cholesterol (HDL) to bad cholesterol (LDL)
• Reduces the risk of cancer
• Inhibits cancer growth
• Inhibits HIV
• Reduces rheumatoid arthritis
• Reduces cardiovascular disease
• Reduces infection
• Helps prevent tooth decay
  
  

Green tea is to be prepared for drinking without over brewing. There are many varieties of green tea. The brewing varies accordingly.

General method of preparation:

• Take 1 or 2 tsp of green tea.
• Add 200 ml of hot water (not boiling water).
• Wait for about 3 minutes.
• Filter and drink.

If brewing tea using tea bag:

• Take a glass tumbler.
• Put the tea bag.
• Add hot water.
• Wait for 3 minutes.
• Discard the tea bag.
• Drink the green tea.

Chicken 65

It is a popular fast food item, which can easily be prepared at home.

Ingredients:

• Chicken (boneless, legs, or thighs: 1/2 kg, cut into small pieces)
• Chili powder: 4 tsp
• Coriander (Dhania) powder: 2tsp
• Turmeric powder: ¼ tsp
• Garam masala powder: ¼ tsp
• Lemon juice: 5 tsp
• Yogurt/curd: 2 tsp
• Ginger-garlic paste: 1 tsp
• Food color: 3 pinch
• Oil for deep frying: 2 cups
• Coriander leaves (for garnishing): 4 stalks
• Salt to taste.

Method of preparation:

• Mix red chili powder, coriander powder, turmeric powder, salt, garam masala, color, ginger garlic paste, lemon juice and curd in a deep bowl.
• Prepare a thick paste.
• Add chicken pieces and stir well so that the masala is coated all over the pieces. Marinate for about an hour.
• Heat edible oil in a wok.
• Deep fry on medium flame until brown color.
• Drain excess oil.
• Garnish with coriander leaves.
• Serve with onion – lemon – tomato salad.

Very tasty to have with rice, biriyani, pulav, kushka, puri, purotta (parantha), etc.

Badam milk shake (Almond milk shake)

It is an easy to prepare, energetic, tasty drink, also called Badaam pal or Baadaam paal.

Ingredients:

• Milk: 1litre / 1 liter (4 cups)
• Almond: ¼ cup
• Sugar: 1 cup
• Cardamom (elaichi / elakkai / yelakkai): 5
• Saffron (kesar / kungumappoo): 1 pinch
  

Method of preparation:

• Boil the almonds and remove their skin.
• Grind with sugar to obtain a fine paste.
• Boil milk.
• While boiling, add crushed cardamom and the almond paste.
• Stir and continue boiling for about two minutes more.
• Remove from flame.
• Garnish with saffron.
• Serve hot or cold.

Cabbage Pickle / Pickled Cabbage

Cabbage pickle is an easy to prepare tasty pickle. It will last for about ten days, if preserved properly in a fridge.

Ingredients:

• Grated cabbage – 1 cup
• Chili powder – 1 tsp
• Mustard powder –1tsp
• Finely grated Garlic pods – 4
• Edible oil – 2 tsp
• Salt – 1 tsp
  
  

Method of preparation:

• Sprinkle salt on grated cabbage.
• Leave it for about an hour.
• Separate water by squeezing the cabbage completely.
• Discard the water.
• Add all other ingredients one after the other.
• Cabbage pickle will automatically be ready within about five hours.
• Tastes good with cooked rice, parotha, chapatti, etc.

Kadhai Chicken

It is also called Kadai chicken curry, murg kadhai, kadhai murghee, Iruppuchchatti kozhi curry, Wok chicken curry and so on.

Ingredients:

• Chicken: 1
• Onion: 4
• Tomato: 6
• Ginger garlic Paste: 4 tsp
• Green Chili: 3
• Coriander Powder: 2 tsp
• Garam masala: 2 tsp
• Red chili powder: 2tsp
• Turmeric Powder: ½ tsp
• Salt to taste
• Edible oil: as required
• Coriander leaves: for garnishing
  
  

Method of preparation:

• Dress the chicken and cut into pieces.
• Chop the onions, tomatoes and green chilies.
• Heat oil in a kadhai.
• Add chopped onions and green chilies and sauté until light golden brown.
• Add red chili powder, turmeric powder, garam masala, coriander powder and salt.
• Mix well.
• Add tomatoes, gingergarlic paste and sauté until the tomatoes become half cooked.
• Add a little water and bring it to boil.
• When the gravy becomes slightly thick, add chicken pieces and stir well.
• Reduce heat. Cover and thoroughly cook.
• Garnish with coriander leaves.
• Serve hot.
  

Taken well with rice, biriyani / biriani, kushka, chapathi, roti, bread, puri / poori, paratha / purotta, dosa / dosai, idli / idly, oothappam / uthappam etc.

Jigarthanda

Jigarthanda, a unique Madurai cool drink is very nice and healthy to have in summer.
Jigar in Hindi language means heart and Thanda means cold. So we can make out it’s meaning as the cooler of heart. It is a type of falooda (faluda), which gives pleasure. Jigar Thanda means Manam kulir panam (Ullaththaik kuliravaikkum panam) in Tamil.

Many attractive names like jil jil jigarthanda, jum jum jigarthanda can be heard in Madurai.


Ingredients:

• Milk: 600 ml
• Almond pisin (Badam pisin): 3 tbsp
• Rose syrub: 2 tbsp (or nannari syrup 60 ml)
• Ice cream: 1 small size
  

Method of preparation:

• Soak badam pisin in water for about eight hours to convert it from gum form into enlarged jelly form.
• Boil milk in low flame. Continue boiling so as to reduce the quantity to 300 ml (half of 600 ml).
• Allow for cooling and keep it in refrigerator.
• Fill half of a glass tumbler with this chilled milk.
• Add soaked badam pisin, rose / nannari syrup and ice cream.
• Tasty, healthy and cool Jigarthanda is ready.

Nannari is a natural coolant. It is called sarsaparilla.
Edible alga / algae (Kadal pasi) can also be used instead of badam pisin.