Why traditional Punjabi food is so good for your health

Traditional Punjabi food, made the old-fashioned way, is not just about taste — it’s a powerful source of natural healthcare.

In today’s world of Indian food, now often served as fast food, it’s easy to forget the health benefits of the food our ancestors cooked with love and care, and as my father would say, over a “slow fire”!

In our home and culture the Masala Dabba and kitchen, was not just for cooking. As a child this was my mother’s go-to source of treatments for any stomach ache or minor cold or ailment, and this is an art and tradition that is being forgotten.

Spices: Nature’s Medicine cabinet

The foundation of Punjabi, Indian & South Asian cookery lies heavily in the abundant use of spices, each offering medicinal properties that have been passed down through generations. Haldi, or Turmeric, known as the “golden spice,” is renowned for its anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. It boosts immunity, aids digestion, and even helps in the prevention of chronic conditions like arthritis and diabetes. Paired with black pepper, its benefits are amplified.

If I had a stomach ache, My mother would give me Saunf (Fennel) or Ajwain (Carom), to chew. I’ll admit that I would have preferred a sugary Calpol-type mixture, but now I’m grateful for those natural non Big-Pharma treatments. There is a space and a place for western medical treatments, but let’s not forget nature’s medicine cabinet too.

Ginger and garlic, also staples in our Punjabi kitchens, are known for their anti-inflammatory and immune-boosting properties. These ingredients form the base of many dishes and we tend to think of this only for their excellent flavour, but they also provide health benefits far beyond flavour.

Whole Nutrient-dense Foods

Traditional Punjabi meals are built around wholesome, nutrient-dense ingredients like lentils, whole grains, and healthy fats. Whole wheat, for instance, is an excellent source of fibre, aiding digestion and weight management.

The practice of daily Roti made the old-fashioned way – just Atta and water, is being forgotten, (many Punjabi families now adding excessive oil and ghee to make the Roti into an almost semi-Paratha, because adding fats or oil means they can be made in bulk, and also keep well.  The traditionally-made Roti, much like the French baguette, has no preservatives, and therefore does not keep, and must be made for each day. (Side note – they do freeze, as cooked Roti, very well indeed).

Ghee, often misunderstood in modern diets, is a rich source of healthy fats that support brain function, hormone balance, and skin health. Unlike processed oils, ghee is easily digestible and promotes gut health.

There are fats and there are fats.  Ghee is often seen as ‘bad’.  It is not. Ghee contains essential fat-soluble vitamins like A,D & K, and it should perhaps be pondered, that in Asian communities a deficiency of Vitamin D is now quite common?  Dont’ forget, we are talking about the use of approximately a tablespoon of ghee to make a dish for 4-5 people…not cupfuls!

You can learn more about Ghee HERE, and have a go at making it HERE, which we do using Goat’s or Sheep’s Butter.

Mindful Eating

Punjabi food isn’t just about nourishment for the body — it’s about connection and mindfulness. Meals are nearly always slow-cooked, (as we cant’ stress enough in our Indian Experience cookery workshops where we don’t allow the heat to be turned up – time is used for other food prep!), allowing the flavours to really develop fully while helping the body digest and absorb nutrients more effectively. This mindful approach to eating aligns with modern health principles, supporting gut health and weight management. Meals are also balanced, for example, pulses and rice contain the full set of amino acids needed by the body, so a plate of dhal and rice – one of my go-to lunches, is a very tasty and satisfying way to look after yourself, and ensure you are truly ‘feeding’ your body. (Think of the ‘I’m a Celebrity’ TV show, where they are on minimal calories, and always have rice and beans).

By the way, we batch prepare our Masoor di dhal and freeze it in single serve portions, so we always have it to hand as we’re too busy to cook during the week or when we have cookery workshops and events running. We also freeze our Jeera rice, which also freezes amazingly well.  Caution with rice!  Just be sure to cool rice down as fast as possible, freeze immediately, and to re-heat rice to a very high temperature…and not for children or the elderly as rice has a form of bacteria that is not killed at boiling, and was the true culprit in the case of ‘Delhi belly’

Traditonal Punjabi and Indian food, over the last 40 years, has now become associated with being fattening, fried, unhealthy and luxury foods.

How did this happen?  Restaurant and takeaway food has replaced home-style food as the majority of the diet.  In restaurants and food processing and manufacturing, whole wheats are replaced with refined flour, baking powder, colouring agents and flavourings.  Natural fats like ghee and butter are replaced with cheaper factory-produced oils and trans fats.

Luxury and more indulgent dishes have become more frequently eaten, instead of the occasional treat. Punjabi food is the food of farmers, is it is hearty, filling and substantial, but corresponded to manual labour. A hearty Paratha fuelled breakfast would have started the day, with the simplicity of Dhal & Roti as a family meal.

Langar – Punjabi food at scale!

Langar or communal kitchen started in the Sikh religion in the 15th century. It is a tradition of free communal meals to prmote equality and sharing. It was also to eradicate malnutriton in the community. It has since been engrained wihtin our religion and community, accompanied with Seva, (selfless-service), which means that everyone partiicpates in all aspects of this food preparation and service.

You can read more and learn about this HERE.  It is wonderful to see this Sikh  tradition now being taken out to the streets of major UK cities to feed the homeless.

With all good intentions, this does now occasionally consist of handing out processed and fast-foods as a way of providing a meal. Not a criticism of amazing modern-day Seva, being taken to the streets and extending service to many more, but Dhal, Roti and Sabjhi from the Gurdwara, is true to the orignal intention, which was to provide nutrition.

Health Benefits of the main spices and ingredients that we use in exactly the same way, both as a family and in our business.

In fact our business started with me producing our own family recipe for our first Garam Masala product, because I always made my own for the family, but when looking for a product to stock my speciality & fine food shop, would not buy any product, that I could find across the UK, and so I stocked myself.

Here’s a reminder of the general health benefits of ingredients and spices we always use in our Punjabi food & business.

Beside health benefits, many spices in Punjabi cuisine also have anti-aging properties. Spices like cumin, coriander, and fennel are full of antioxidants that fight skin aging and cellular damage, but this is now lost when people think about Indian food. As a private personal trainer for over 20 years, my clients were always told about these benefits and supplied with our food as part of their training packages!

Haldi (Turmeric) – Anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, supports immune health, detoxifies the body, improves digestion, and helps with joint pain. Also used as a paste for cuts and wounds, and this is used in India when priests shave their heads. Little and often is how we use it – it’s in almost all of our dishes, including our Jeera Rice.

Jeera (Cumin) – Aids digestion, reduces bloating, improves gut health, enhances immunity, and promotes weight loss. Our rice always has Jeera in it, and it’s a critical spice, used in almost everything we make – in the right ratios!

Dhania – (Coriander) Supports digestion, improves skin health, detoxifies, regulates blood sugar, and has antibacterial properties. We use the seeds in almost all of our spice blends, however, the fresh coriander leaf is someting we use very sparingly when we add it to our cooked dishes. TV has led people to think we throw it liberally onto everything, but we don’t!

Ajwain (Carom) – Relieves indigestion, bloating, and gas. Supports gut health and boosts the digestive system’s ability to process food. Acts as an antimicrobial agent, helping to fight infections. Eases joint pain and inflammation due to its anti-inflammatory properties. Quite a distinctive taste. It’s also sometimes translated as Caraway, however it can always be purchased using the Indian name of Ajwain.

Saunf (Fennel) – Aids digestion, relieves bloating, promotes milk production in lactating mothers, and has antioxidant properties. Quite strong tasting when you chew it – epsecially as I had to as a child, for medicinal purposes!

Laung (Cloves) – Antimicrobial, boosts immunity, helps with pain relief, improves digestion, and supports respiratory health. This would be know in old Western teatments for toothache! Used when we make our Punjabi masala cha.

Elaichi (Green Cardamom) – Aids digestion, reduces bloating, improves respiratory health, and enhances circulation. A sweet spice also used in Biriyani and used when we make our Punjabi masala cha.

Badi Elaichi (Black cardamom) – Supports digestion by reducing bloating, gas, and indigestion. Aids in respiratory health, helping to clear phlegm and congestion. Acts as a natural diuretic, promoting detoxification. Has antioxidant properties that protect against cellular damage. Can help reduce the risk of certain cancers due to its anti-carcinogenic compounds. It’s perhaps a lesser know spice to most people, but one that we use regularly, but mixed in with other spices. It’s important to consider ratios when using this spice as it has astorng earthy pungent flavour

Dalchini (Cinnamon) – Reduces inflammation, regulates blood sugar, improves circulation, and boosts metabolism. It’s a sweeter spice and we use the cassia bark more woody version and not the dainty quills seen in supermarkets. Also used when we make our Punjabi masala cha.

Adrak (Ginger) – Anti-inflammatory, aids digestion, boosts metabolism, relieves nausea, and improves circulation. We only use whole root ginger and never any of the processed ‘lazy’ type supermarket brands. We sometime keep the ginger skin peelings and infuse them to make tea, or to use with lemon to drink if feeling a bit unde the weather.

Lehsun (Garlic) – Boosts the immune system, reduces cholesterol, improves heart health, detoxifies the body, and has antibacterial and antiviral properties. In our food, meal kits, our Tandoori Masala & Tikka Paste and sometimes in our home-made Naan bread if we are making them for an event!

Hari Mirch (Fresh green chilli) – An absolute must! Fresh green Birds Eye variety is the only one we will use. Avoid supermarket purchaes and try to buy form Asian suppliers because they get the best quality.

Nimbu (Whole lemon) – We never buy in bottled lemon juice from wholesalers and have a lemon crusher to produce the lemon juice that goes into our Tandoori Masala! The discarded lemon skins are put into our food grinders to clean them!

Methi (Fenugreek) – Regulates blood sugar, reduces inflammation, aids digestion, boosts milk production in nursing mothers, and supports heart health. Fresh Methi can be quite strong-smelling, and like garlic, can come out of the pores! There is also dried Methi leaf and the seeds

Sarson (Mustard seeds) – Improves digestion, relieves congestion, boosts metabolism, and has antimicrobial properties. There is also the fresh leaf – traditonal and orignal recipe for making the Punjabi classic of Saag.

Imli (Tamarind) – Promotes digestion, detoxifies the liver, aids in weight loss, and has antioxidant properties. We use the whole Tamarind block – never the processed bottled type. Learn more HERE, and also makes a delicious Chicken recipe.

Mother’s Food

One of the Punjabi traditions that my mother did, after I had my babies,  was to prepare special food for me. This was food high in protein fat and sugar, intended to build back my strength after childbirth and for breast-feeding.

This came in the form of Besan and Panjeeri.  I cannot tell you how delicious they are, but essentially the base ingredients are from the foods we are talking about here today: chickpeas, or wholewheat, ghee, and the addition of sugar, (which is never avoided or reduced in Indian sweets).  Nuts and sometimes dried fruits are then added.

Besan is pictured below, and is an absolute favourite of mine, which was why we made a meal kit mix for it!  It should be eaten in small quantites, which being a heavy fudge-like dessert, and very nutrient-dense, is easy to do, as it satisfies almost immediately 🙂

Our Pure Punjabi food & Indian meal Kits

We only created our meal kits because an Indian Experience cookery workshop attendee said she wished there were a way she could ‘bag up’ her teachings and send to her son on the other side of the UK, and so we made the original 3-Course meal kit bag for her!

In our mother-daughter business, we created our meal kits range to enable anyone to be able to produce Punjabi food the way we cook it, with the focus on creating meals that are both delicious and health-boosting.

We stress that the fats should be just enough to keep the bottom of the pan ‘glossy’, added more as needed, and judging ‘by eye’, and not swimming in ghee or oil.

We also leave the cook to add chilli, because firstly, this is the decision of the cook, mother/parent and family to decide how much chilli they like, and also because we were taught only to use fresh green chilli, and so we do not add powdered or pre-bought ground or powdered spices for our meal kits.

Our Athlete’s Box Meal Kit combines Indian meal kits that make dishes using lean proteins and our own ground anti-inflammatory spices, ideal for muscle recovery and sustained energy.

Our Weight-Loss Meal Kit offers fibre-rich, low-calorie dishes that help boost metabolism and improve digestion.

Traditional Punjabi spices offer more than just flavour — they provide a natural means of healing. The Ayurvedic principles behind these spices emphasise the importance of balance and harmony in our bodies, using the natural power of food to heal and maintain wellness.

Whether you’re looking for weight-loss, better health to improve digestion, boost immunity, or fight inflammation, these spices and old-school cookery ingredients can play a crucial role in your health, all while honouring the wisdom passed down through generations of old-fashioned home-style Punjabi cooking.

You can explore our range HERE, at our indianmealkits website, and see how many Punjabi dishes we have made available to cook in the old-fashioned ways, via our hand-made artisan Indian meal kits. They all come with digital method instructions, which are auto-sent after purchase on the website.