KAPHA DIET SHEET

This information has been provided by Dr. Lad, in his book: Ayurvedic Cooking for Self Healing. This book is a good resource of knowledge and menus. Please note the qualities of foods is not universal, and different practitioners have different beliefs about the energetic qualities of food. This is meant to serve as a guideline to help you gain better understanding of yourself, not suppress yourself! Remember a list of balancing foods is not to totally avoid foods not on the list. It just means favor the list, and eat other foods in less quantities. The foods to favor will cause specific influences over time that the designated dosha needs to maintain balance in the body and physiology.

Everyday Vegetables: Use seasonal vegetables. In general use primarily bitter, pungent-spicy, or astringent-dry vegetables. Arugula, asparagus, beets, bell pepper, bitter melon, bok choy, broccoli (rajasic stimulating), Brussels sprouts, burdock root, cabbage, carrots, carrot tops, cauliflower (rajasic stimulating), celery, chili peppers, chives (tamasic dull mind), cilantro, collards, corn, daikon radish, dandelion greens, eggplant (rajasic stimulating), endive, fennel (anise), garlic (tamasic dull mind), green beans, green chills, horseradish, Jerusalem artichoke, jicama, kale, Indian karela (bitter melon), kohlrabi, Chinese ku gua (bitter melon), landcress, leafy greens, all lettuces, leeks (tamasic dull mind), mushrooms (tamasic dull mind), mustard greens, okra, onions (tamasic dull mind), parsley, green peas (especially dried ones), peppers hot, pokeroot, prickly pear, potato (white – rajasic stimulating), radish, rutabaga, scallions (tamasic dull mind), shallots (tamasic dull mind), sprouts (sattvic clear mind), turnips, turnip greens, watercress, wheat grass. Best fresh or dried, not frozen, canned or left over.

Vegetables to Eat Occasionally: Artichoke, cassava, gourd squash, parsnips, pickles (rajasic stimulating), plantain, spinach (rajasic stimulating), winter squash (buttercup, butternut, acorn, spaghetti are OK infrequently but are rajasic stimulating), tomatoes – cooked (rajasic stimulating)

Vegetables to Cut Back On: In general use less sweet and juicy vegetables, beet greens, cucumber, olives (black or green), pumpkin (tamasic dull mind), parsnips (OK occasionally), rutabaga, summer squash (yellow crookneck, zucchini), sweet potato (sattvic clear mind), taro root, tomato – raw (rajasic stimulating), tomato sauce, Campbell’s tomato soup, zucchini

Everyday fruits: Use seasonal fruits, ideally organic. Overall, fruit is sattvic. Apples (rajasic stimulating), applesauce, apricots (tamasic dull mind), cherries, dried fruit, guava (rajasic stimulating), peaches (sattvic clear mind), pears (sattvic clear mind), persimmon, pomegranate (sattvic clear mind), prunes, quince, raisin

fruits to Eat Occasionally: Limited berries, grapes, figs (dried), lemons, limes, peaches, pears, mango (sattvic clear mind), strawberries, tangerine (OK infrequently), tamarind (rajasic stimulating)

fruits to Cut Back On: Out of season fruits, high pesticide fruits like grapes and berries. In general avoid very sweet or very sour or very juicy or very watery fruits. Avocado (tamasic dull mind), bananas (rajasic stimulating), coconut (sattvic clear mind), cranberries (once in a while), dates (sattvic clear mind), figs (fresh – give sattvic clear mind), grapefruit, melons (One in a while you may have them, but “eat them alone or leave them alone”), oranges (OK infrequently – rajasic stimulating), papaya, pineapple, plums (tamasic dull mind), watermelon (tamasic dull mind). Don’t mix fruit with any other food, especially dairy products, eggs or grains.

Everyday grains: Whole grains (unprocessed) and old grains stored more than one year. Barley (sattvic clear mind), blue corn (sattvic clear mind), bran, buckwheat (rajasic stimulating), cereals-dry or puffed, corn (rajasic stimulating), durham flour, granola (dry with NO milk or added sugar), millet (rajasic stimulating), muesli, oat bran, oats, polenta, rye, seitan-wheat meat or wheat gluten meats or “fake meat” (not soy meat), spelt, sprouted wheat bread-Essene, tapioca (sattvic clear mind), wheat bran. If digestion is weak carbohydrates and proteins (e.g., rice and dal) should be taken in separate meals in the same day. It is best to have dry toast with no butter or jam – focus on hard-rough-dry-astringent grains forms, not mushy-soft-sweet.

grains to Eat Occasionally: Amaranth, basmati white rice (sattvic clear mind), brown rice (basmationly – however all brown rice is tamasic and dulls the mind), white rice (basmati only), quinoa. Also processed grains such as barley cereals, barley flour, buckwheat flour, corn grits, cornmeal, corn grits, couscous, millet cereals, oat bran, rye cereals, rye flakes, rye pasta, Japanese soba noodles and Japanese udon noodles are OK occasionally. These should be taken without milk, without butter, without soy milk. If you do add a small amount of warm spiced (cinnamon and cardamom) Rice Dream (rice milk) or hot-spiced organic or raw milk that is OK.

grains to Cut Back On: Bread (containing yeast), oats (that are cooked are sticky mucousy kapha), pasta, rice flour, wheat (tamasic dull mind), whole wheat flour. Never should you add cold cow’s milk to grains cereals or use toast or bread with milk. It is best for kapha to use warm spiced goat’s milk on grain cereals. Don’t mix grains with fruit or tapioca.

Everyday Legumes – Beans: aduki beans, black beans, black-eyed peas, chick peas, lentils-red and brown, lima beans, mung beans, mung dal, navy beans, peas-dried, pinto beans, split peas, turdal, white beans

Seeds: chia, flax, popcorn, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds,

Spices: all spices except salt (saindhava is okay), especially fresh ginger

Condiments: black pepper, chili peppers, chutney, coriander leaves, dulse, kijiki, horseradish, lemon, mustard-without vinegar, scallions, seaweed, sprouts

Beverages: alcohol-dry wine, red or white, aloe vera juice, apple cider, apple juice, apricot, berry, black tea-spiced, carrot, cherry, cranberry, grain coffee, grape, mango, peach, pear, pineapple, pomegranate, prune, soy milk-hot and spiced

Herbal Beverages: alfalfa, bancha, barley, blackberry, burdock, chamomile, chicory, cinnamon, clove, comfrey, dandelion, fenugreek, ginger, ginseng, hibiscus, jasmine, juniper berry, kukicha, lavender, lemon balm lemon grass, Mormon tea, nettle, passion flower, peppermint, raspberry, red clover, sarsaparilla, sassafras, spearmint, strawberry, wintergreen, yarrow, yerba mate

Food Supplements: aloe vera juice, amino acids, barley green, bee pollen, brewer’s yeast, copper, calcium, iron, magnesium, zinc, royal jelly, spirulina, blue-green algae, vitamins A, B, B12, C, D, E, EFA’s (essential fatty acids) found in cold process oils from cod liver, evening primrose, black currant seed, flax seed, borage

Animal flesh: chicken-white, eggs, fish-freshwater, pheasant, rabbit, shrimp, turkey-white, venison

Nuts: charole

Oils: ghee, olive oil, mustard oil

Dairy: buttermilk, cottage cheese-from skimmed goat’s milk, ghee, goat’s cheese-unsalted and not aged, lassi, non-fat milk-goat’s milk (avoid homogenized if possible)

Sweeteners: fruit juice, honey (raw, uncooked only; not cheap, heated filtered Sue-Bee or other cheap honey), rock crystal sugar

SOME THINGS TO AVOID

Frozen, canned, fried foods, leftovers
Big, heavy, or late evening meals
The combination of milk or yogurt with fruits, vegetables, fish (is toxic)
Honey cooked in anything (is toxic)
fruits and vegetables in the same meal
Mushrooms, peanuts, tomatoes, garlic, eggplant (affect meditation)
Sweet, flour desserts after a meal (before is best)
Alcohol, coffee, tea, chocolate, other beverages (affect meditation)
All refined grains and sugar and foods containing them
All food cooked in used fats/oils
Because of significant contraindicating research ALL soy products no longer carry a recommendation.