Summer is the season of heat. Well, at least in the Northern hemisphere. Ayurveda associates heat with pitta dosha. When the heat in the environment is rising, your body is naturally creating more heat too. So, pitta dosha in your body is rising. According to the laws of ayurveda—borrowed from the laws of nature—like increases like and opposites decrease each other. What that means to us is that on hot days, we’ll want to do things and eat foods that have a cooling effect on our bodies. That’s why we naturally gravitate towards cold showers, and boatloads of cucumber water, watermelon and coconut water in the summer. And that’s why aloe is so popular for sunburn. These are all cooling things. Assuming that you have no imbalances or diseases that require special attention, here are some cooling foods to consider during the warmest season.

1. Cooling fruits

Apple, (green) banana, avocados, (most) sweet berries, coconut, date, fig, black/purple/red grapes, lime, green mango, melons, pear, pomegranate, prune, raisin, raspberry, strawberry, watermelon

2. Cooling vegetables

Asparagus, beet, bitter melon, broccoli, cabbage, carrot, cauliflower, celery, cilantro, cucumber, fennel (fresh), green beans, kale, lettuce, okra, parsnip, peas, sweet potato, white potato, spinach, sprouts, summer squash, zucchini

3. Cooling herbs and spices

Caraway, coriander, fennel, lemongrass, rosewater, saffron, tarragon, vanilla

4. Cooling grains

Amaranth, barley, durham flour, oat bran, dry oat, cooked oat, wheat pasta, quinoa, basmati rice, white rice, tapioca, wheat

5. Cooling oils

Avocado, coconut, canola, ghee, olive, soy, sunflower

Happy cooking!

Feeling inspired? Try our Cooling tea with premium organic raspberry leaves, lemongrass, rose and fennel.

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