Best summer recipes: Summer is here and the best way to beat the heat is through one's diet. It is the time to let go of fatty foods and greasy gravies, and instead switch to light meals and seasonal veggies. You will be amazed how easily your diet choices can help you stay refreshed throughout the season. And who says summer meals need to be boring? There are many ways you can spruce up lauki, cucumber, squash, melons and fruits like mangoes, pineapples, litchis and jamuns to delight your taste buds like never before.
An important point to remember during the summer months is to stay hydrated. Therefore, include a lot of body cooling beverages and rehydrating soups that will also help in providing your body the much needed vitamin and mineral doses. Picking seasonal veggies and fruits like lauki, mangoes, jamuns, et al, is also crucial because they are needed to keep the body cool. So toss up refreshing salads and even light curries using vinaigrette, hung curd, honey, lemon, fruit juices, etc for the dressing. You can also have fun in the kitchen with the little ones by making interesting popsicles, flavoured water, mango and jamun ice creams and sorbets. Dare to explore with different flavours to tickle your senses and make the most of the season.
To help you get started, here are our 11 best summer recipes:
1. Sol Kadi (Konkani Kokum Drink)
Sol Kadi is made from Kokum or Aamsol and coconut milk. It cools down the digestive system after eating spicy food. It is a natural digestive, and supposed to be an excellent antidote for acidity.
This is a famous drink from Maharashtra's Konkan region.
2. Spicy Watermelon Soup
A fruit soup! What is more summery than a crisp, chilled watermelon? This is a fairly easy recipe but for the laborious deseeding of the watermelon.
Tantalise your taste buds with this interesting soup recipe.
3. Stuffed Lauki
Bottle gourd is one of those green veggies which are not loved by many but with this interesting twist, you are sure to garner a few fans. Blanched bottle gourd marinated in lime, stuffed with cottage cheese and baked beautifully.
Lauki was never this tasty. Surprise your kids with this lip-smacking lauki recipe.
4. Prawn and Litchi Salad
This one is an extremely easy salad, quick to put together and perfect for those days when you just can't be bothered.
A true seafood lover cannot afford to not taste this yummy seafood salad.
5. Four Melon Salad with Canola Mint Chutney Pesto
Here's the weekly winning recipe of the Guilt Free Contest. A chunky salad with refreshing melons drizzled with a sweet and minty dressing.
Love fruits? Try this colourful melon salad.
6. Drunken Salmon Cucumber Rolls
Easy to make, this refreshing treat is guaranteed to be a big hit in any party. Smoked salmon, sour cream and cucumber slices are spiked with gin to give it a heady twist.
Impress your guests with these beautiful salmon cucumber rolls.
7. Yellow Squash Spaghetti
Thinly shredded yellow squash and bottle gourd, stirred in with green chilies, basil leaves and herbs, and sprinkled with cheese.
Give a twist to your evergreen Italian dish with some Indian veggies.
8. Mango Curry
A lovely Indian curry made with yogurt, mango, gram flour, and jaggery.
All the mango lovers cannot resist from tasting this amazing mango curry!
9. Mango Kulfi
Popular kulfi recipe but with a twist, flavoured with mango. Summer is never complete without indulging in mangoes.
This evergreen Indian ice-cream is a perfect after dinner dessert.
10. Jamun Mint Popsicles
Use the tarty summer fruit to create pretty purple-hued popsicles to impress your friends. Ridiculously easy to make, you can sprinkle some black salt or chaat masala too for a desi twist.
If not kulfi, try this jamun mint Popsicle for a change in taste.
11. Mango Squash Recipe
An easy to make, delicious mango drink that will please one and all. Sip on the ecstatic taste of mango nectar coupled with lemon juice and sugar.
Ditch chaas and lassi, try mango squash to beat the heat.