Why you should add some ‘sabja’ in your summer pantry

Come summer, and one ingredient comes back to take its place under the sun. This along with kalonji (black cumin) and black sesame seeds, can be called the men in black in your pantry, and are easily mistaken for each other, especially if you open the kitchen cabinet in a half-asleep or sleep-deprived state. They are the perfect use case for labelling your bottles. I’m talking about sabja, also called tukmaria or basil seeds.

An ingredient that goes into falooda and Madurai’s jigarthanda is now doing its lap of fame due to The Great Indian Social Media Recipe Propagation System.

With all due respect to our ancient sciences, I must make a point about sabja, the claim that it regulates body temperature and the whole system of heating foods, cooling foods, temperature-maintaining foods (I made that last one up). If a single food could heat or cool your body, the elegant and sophisticated thermostat your body has built to keep your core temperature between 36.1 degrees Celsius and 37.2 degrees, despite scorching summers and freezing winters, would have lost its marbles. You’d see people collapsing from hypothermia and hyperthermia all around us. I’m sorry to bust the bubble, but adding one teaspoon of sabja seeds to your coconut water will not “cool down your system”.

Another popular misconception floating around social media: sabja seeds are better than chia seeds for Indians because sabja is “cooling” and chia is “heating”. And wait for it... because, sabja seeds are Indian while chia seeds are foreign. At this point, logic has migrated from the chat.

If you want an honest nutritional comparison between chia and sabja, you run into a problem. Chia seeds have a standardised entry in the USDA (US Department of Agriculture) database. Sabja seeds have none, not in USDA, not in the nutrition tables published by the National Institute of Nutrition, India. Taking an average of published values across peer-reviewed studies, this is the conclusion I have arrived at. Sabja seeds are comparable to chia in calories and protein. Chia scores over sabja in calcium and omega-3 fatty acids. Sabja edges ahead for dietary fibre per serving. Neither seed is a superfood. Both are useful additions to your diet if you’re looking for fibre, healthy fats, and plant-based protein.

Now that the facts are sorted, let’s look at the packet of sabja seeds in your pantry. Stir a teaspoon into chilled coconut water, lemonade, mint sherbet, or watermelon juice, and you have a refreshing summer drink. Adding 2-2.5g of fibre to your glass with this level of ease is no laughing matter, and it comes with a fun, falooda-like texture.

Its neutral flavour and the gel it forms on soaking make sabja an excellent addition to homemade salad dressings, or even an egg replacement in bakes. Gels made from flaxseed, chia, or sabja can replace a maximum of one to two eggs in a recipe. Push beyond that and you’ll notice a significant change in texture. You can also grind sabja seeds to a powder and add a tablespoon to the flour for muffins or oatmeal bars. Note that you may need extra liquid in the recipe to compensate for the absorption.

Here are some pointers to remember while working with sabja seeds. It is best not to have sabja seeds raw, to prevent digestive discomfort. Soak them in plenty of water as it swells to nearly 30 times its size. 10-15 minutes soaking time is a minimum, but 30 minutes ensures it gets enough time to absorb maximum liquid. Soaked sabja can be stored in an airtight jar in the fridge for two-three days.

And for the love of good cooking, label that jar. Your kalonji doesn’t deserve to end up in a falooda.

HAPPY GUT SMOOTHIE

(9 distinct plant ingredients in one glass)

Serves 2

Ingredients

400ml soy/oat milk

1 tbsp sabja seeds

1 ripe banana

1 tbsp peanut butter (or peanut butter powder)

1 tbsp flaxseed powder

2 soaked dates

2 tsp raw cacao powder

Half tsp ground cinnamon

Handful of tender spinach leaves (optional), washed

6-7 ice cubes

Method

Soak sabja seeds in a half cup water for 30 minutes.

Combine all the ingredients in a blender to get a smoothie. Divide between two glasses and serve chilled.

BANANA OAT SABJA SNACK BARS

Makes 9 pieces

Ingredients

One and a quarter cups rolled oats

1 tsp baking powder

Quarter cup desiccated coconut

Pinch of salt

1 tsp cinnamon powder

2 tbsp sabja seeds

Half cup milk (dairy/plant based)

2 large overripe bananas

3 tbsp peanut butter (any kind)

6 tbsp honey

3 tbsp coconut oil

4 tbsp chocolate chips (milk/dark)

1 tbsp desiccated coconut

Method

Soak sabja seeds in half cup of milk and keep aside for 30 minutes.

Line a 8x8-inch square baking pan with parchment and keep aside. Preheat the oven at 180 degrees Celsius.

In a large bowl, combine oats, baking powder, desiccated coconut (quarter cup), salt and cinnamon powder.

In a small bowl, mix the soaked sabja, mashed bananas, peanut butter, honey and oil. Whisk well to combine. Transfer this to the bowl with the dry ingredients and mix well with a spatula. Scrape the mixture into the baking pan. Sprinkle chocolate chips and desiccated coconut. Smoothen the top with the spatula, pressing down the toppings.

Bake at 180 degrees Celsius for 30-35 minutes until a skewer comes out clean. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 2-3 hours or refrigerate for 3-4 hours before cutting into 9 pieces. The bars will be chewy and full of texture, and not spongy or cake-like.

Store in an airtight container in the fridge. Consume within 3-4 days.

Double Tested is a column on vegetarian cooking, highlighting a single ingredient prepared two ways. Nandita Iyer (@saffrontrail) is a doctor, wellness advocate and author.