Globe amaranth tea

Simplicity Coimbatore , The Vaadaamalli tea

Working within a specific budget is when the creative mind has to come up with low cost options which still fit the brief. That’s when we tend to look around us not with just the eyes but also by opening the mind and thinking a little more out of the box than we ordinarily would.

In the past week ,when I was asked to help out with some design elements,my thoughts kept going to the beautiful vadaamalli. At at an event some months ago,a friend had scattered the beautiful globe amaranth buds across the table set for evening tea and it made for the prettiest sight. Also that was the first time a lot of us had seen shades of pink vadaamalli. Usually we are accustomed to the bright purple variety which is commonly available.

When it came to sourcing more of these it seemed a good idea to get a little more information on these spike like petaled  blossoms.Imagine my surprise to learn that these were edible ! Not just the flowers, the entire plant from leaf, stem to root is said to have medicinal properties. Apparently the plant is a close cousin to amaranth , kozhikondai (cock’s comb) and spinach.

I gazed at the small handful of flowers which my friend had brought and couldn’t help but marvel at the many wellness ingredients which are available around us and how little we actually know about it ! In a few days we would have actually tossed away the dried blossoms into the compost.

The flowers are edible but the pokey texture prevents it from giving a good mouth feel. Globe amaranth tea is a popular way of imbibing the goodness this plant has to offer. Not only is it a plant which grows very well in Coimbatore but it takes up very little space and needs minimal care. The flowers add a burst of colour and are often known to liven up corners at the entrance of a gate or by the side of a compound wall.

Have you heard of blossoming teas ? These are very popular in China (if only they limited their food experimenting to just brewing teas ), where the dried tea leaves are wrapped around one or two dried flowers and packed. When left to steep in hot water ,the leaves unfurl, allowing the blossom to open up and release the colour and properties into the hot water. It’s rather dramatic and adds to the tea experience. The globe amaranth is one of the most sought after variety of blossoming tea!

The tea is also made with the fresh flowers, especially if they grow in one’s own garden. The benefits are so immense that I must mention them here. It is apparently good for a stomach upset, to treat colic in babies,in regulating blood pressure, prevention of hair loss and greying ,boosts immunity,reduces cholesterol and contains excellent antioxidant properties.

Now if you don’t want to try some for the reasons we just mentioned,let me tell you what prompted me to make myself a cuppa. It was the colour ! It wasn’t a pale pink or a bright pink but a candy pink, transparent ,like that of a boiled sugar candy sweet or lollipop. It truly was a kid in a huge candy store moment. The recipe says to steep it for about 4- 5 minutes before straining. It’s important to give the flowers a gentle but thorough rinse, even if they grow in your own garden because we don’t want any bug protein being ingested inside along with the petals!

The flowers quickly leach their colour into the boiling water and turn a glorious shade of pink.We used a few purple and some pink blooms. About 6 for 3 cups of water.

It comes well recommended in the list of herbal teas. Some recipes suggested adding honey but I did not want anything to taint that beautiful colour.The aroma was soothing. We do get scented candles, agarbathi,potpourri which talk about relaxing fragrances but this one really did work. And it wasn’t even something we expected. It tastes mildly fruity more than earthy. There is no bitterness or astringency. It felt comforting when we drank it warm. It’s also supposed to soothe the throat and help with laryngitis . I actually had two cups because I really did enjoy it.

With the afternoon sun flooding the home with it’s intense beams,a light tea like this does hit the spot. It’s one of those teas which can help settle the stomach after a heavy meal or to just sit in a corner ,eyes closed and sip away while the mind wanders. I drank it post lunch after a busy morning ,multi tasking , e-mails, phone calls and calming down a cantankerous  farmer who was upset that the hens were getting old and not laying enough eggs. Did I also mention that he chooses, whenever convenient, to be hard of hearing ?!

So, after all of that, the vadaamalli tea helped. I re-centered my thoughts , got through the rest of my day in a more relaxed manner and put away the rest of the globe amaranth brew in the refrigerator to see how it tastes in iced tea form.

Going back to the original intention of searching for these flowers, they are drought resistant, grow throughout the year and are available in the most eye catching of colours. So while we wait on the seeds for the red, orange,pink and white vadaamalli, we recommend that you source some of these flowers from a kind neighbour (who says no to pesticides) and make yourself a soothing cup of ‘pink’ tea !