This highly nutritious Ayurvedic recipe detoxifies the body, kindles agni (digestive fire), and sharpens the mind. It promotes weight loss, reducing swelling and water retention. Mung beans are available from health food shops, Indian grocers, and some supermarkets. They come in green or yellow varieties. Green is more detoxifying. To relieve symptoms of toxic buildup and sluggish digestion, eat only mung bean soup for three to seven days and nothing else! You can eat as much as you need to satisfy your appetite, once the previous meal has digested (leave three to four hours between each meal). Make up a fresh batch for each day, reheating only as much as you need for each meal so the meal is as full of prana (energy) as possible. A food thermos will keep the soup from losing its nutritional punch if you don’t have a kitchen for preparing a fresh batch at work. Try not to use a microwave!
Less gas producing and easier to digest than other legumes, mung beans help remove toxins from the body (including heavy metals!) and boost gut health. The following nutrient-rich mung bean soup recipe will balance all three doshas and detoxify your body by cleansing the liver, gall bladder, and vascular system of any ama (undigested toxins).
400 grams mung beans (whole green or split green or yellow
Ghee or olive oil for sautéing
½ tsp. turmeric powder
2 pinches asafoetida2 liters water; fresh ginger root
2–3 cloves garlic, chopped1 inch of fresh root ginger, chopped
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp coriander seedsRock salt or herb salt
Choice of spices
Lime or lemon juice
Makes 5 generous portions
Wash the mung beans and soak for at least four hours or overnight. Heat ghee or olive oil in a pan, and add teaspoon of turmeric and 2 pinches asafoetida (to prevent gas). Sauté for a few seconds and then add the beans, fresh water, and fresh root ginger root. For one part soaked mung beans, you need about four parts of water. Simmer for 30–40 minutes, adding more water if necessary, until beans are soft. In a pressure cooker, this takes 8 minutes once the desired pressure is reached. You can then turn off the heat and leave the pot to cool for an additional 10 minutes before opening it. Once the beans are cooked, heat ghee or olive oil in another pan, add 2–3 cloves chopped garlic (if you wish), and sauté lightly for a minute until soft. Add chopped fresh ginger root, then one teaspoon of cumin and coriander seeds plus any other herbs or spices (except chilies)—e.g., cardamom, black pepper, cumin seeds—and briefly sauté. Add these sautéed spices plus some rock salt to the beans, and simmer for a few more minutes. Serve soup warm with a squeeze of lime juice and some fresh coriander leaves, finely chopped. You can also add green leafy vegetables, pumpkin, leeks, courgette, fennel, parsley, mint, coriander, or basil, as well as yams, carrots, and other seasonal veggies. The addition of 1 teaspoon of ghee, or—if you are vegan or do not like the taste of ghee—1 teaspoon of an omega 3/6/9 oil, will enrich the soup with beneficial fats. Omega oils should be added to food after it has cooled down a bit to prevent them from breaking down into harmful compounds. These oils are not heat stable, which also makes them unsuitable for cooking.