The summer coolants

With these summer foods, you will not only stay hydrated, but will also feel less tempted to guzzle down fizzy drinks, writes Ishika Konar

Every summer, the scorching heat and rising mercury levels make us slather sunscreen and pull out our fancy sunglasses and scarves to beat the heat. Even as cool drinks are sipped away to glory and ice-creams finished off by the tub, they do nothing but add guilt for having broken our resolution to stay healthy. Fear not, we have a list of four summer foods that will help you beat the heat and ensure that you do not put on unnecessary calories. These summer foods will not only hydrate you, but will also fill you up with their high water content.

Watermelon

Watermelons are practically just water in a nice red colour! Consisting of almost 90% water, watermelons are the ultimate summer food. Besides water, melons are rich in lycopene that help prevent cancer and protect the skin from sun damage. So, cut yourself a big slice and dig right in! You could also throw in some pieces along with some mint leaves in the juicer to get an awesome watermelon cooler.

Cucumber

Not just your BFF during a facial, cucumbers are a super summer food! Apart from having high water content to hydrate you, it contains plenty of fibre to keep constipation at bay. It also has potassium that helps increase metabolism. Slice and dice it up to add to your salads or add it to some yoghurt to whip out a nice raita.

Coconut water

Tough on the outside, soft inside, coconut water is packed with minerals, electrolytes and potassium to help maintain the electrolyte balance of the body, keeping one hydrated for long. Best consumed within minutes of opening the shell, the malai is the bonus you get for having steered away from the bottle of cola!

Add some milk to coconut water and some malai to make a coconut punch.

Curd

In India, curd equals comfort food. It’s cooling, soothing, nutritious and light. Curd offers many benefits like:

It improves digestion: One of the many benefits of curd include improving digestion, which is mainly due to the nutrients available in the curd. Eating curd will make it easier for the body to absorb nutrients from other food items that we eat.

It boosts immunity: The presence of good bacteria — also known as probiotics — in curd can strengthen our immune system.

(The author is executive
chef, Atmantan)