The principles behind the meals you will eat at a centre, and how to carry them home.
Last reviewed · Massvaa Care Wellness editorial teamOn this page
The principles
Ayurveda treats food as the foundation of health, and pays as much attention to how and when you eat as to what. At a centre, the physician adapts meals to your constitution and programme; the principles below are the common ground.
- Eat warm, freshly cooked food, and avoid leftovers and very cold drinks.
- Make lunch the main meal, when digestion is considered strongest, and eat a light dinner early.
- Eat without distraction, sitting down, and stop before you are completely full.
- Leave time between meals rather than snacking.
- Sip warm water through the day.
- Eat with the season: lighter in spring, cooling in summer, warming and nourishing in autumn and winter.
The six tastes
Ayurveda recognises six tastes (rasa) and aims to include all of them across a day’s meals, in proportions that suit you.
Rice, wheat, milk, ghee, sweet fruit
Yoghurt, citrus, tamarind, fermented foods
Salt, seaweed
Ginger, pepper, chilli, garlic
Leafy greens, bitter gourd, turmeric
Lentils, pomegranate, green tea
What you will eat at a centre
Rice and mung dal cooked together with spices: simple, and central to many programmes.
Clarified butter, used in cooking and, in some programmes, taken as prescribed.
Cumin, coriander, fennel, turmeric, ginger and black pepper, used generously but rarely hot.
Usually cooked rather than raw, especially during cleansing programmes.
Warm water boiled with herbs, or spiced teas, in place of coffee.
Light rice gruels (kanji, peya) during and after intensive programmes.
Food combinations
Classical texts describe some combinations as viruddha ahara — incompatible — such as milk with sour fruit, or fish with milk. Centres follow these conventions in their kitchens. Tell your physician about allergies and intolerances; those always come first.
Want to learn to cook this way? See our Ayurveda cooking and lifestyle course.
Official sources
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