4 Ayurvedic Spices to Add to Your Diet

2 min readJul 20, 2022

If you’re feeling a bit “off”, Ayurveda is bound to have an answer. And not just any answer, recommendations for your specific dosha and on how to restore balance based on the sensations in your body and your state of mind.

The wisdom, rituals and herbal medicines of this millenary medicinal system have a long history of soothing our many ailments. Here are some key Ayurvedic spices to add to your pantry.

1) Ashwagandha

Ayurvedic tastes: Bitter, astringent-cold-pungent

Benefits

Ashwagandha is the Sanskrit name for the bark of Ashoka Tree used in Ayurveda. Along with turmeric, this is one of the main ingredients of golden milk, the healing drink that is becoming more popular each day. It’s mostly known as an adaptogenic herb that helps us balance our body when we’re stressed or anxious.

How to incorporate it to your meals

Drink it in golden milk.
Some places sell it as a powder or pill.
If you’re lucky, you may find Ashwagandha-spiced ghee to spread on toast or add it to warm milk or tea.

2) Cardamom

Ayurvedic tastes: Sweet-hot-pungent for the large seed and slightly cold for the smaller seed.

Benefits

The seeds of the cardamom plant are known to have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. While its oil and extracts are just as valuable, the seeds are more commonly used to improve digestive health for all doshas, especially Pitta.

How to incorporate it to your meals

One of the most common ways to use cardamom is by drinking it in Chai tea.
Some desserts contain it for its unique sweet, spicy and nutty flavor.
Consider getting the powder and adding it to granola for an interesting twist.

3) Triphala

Ayurvedic tastes: Astringent, hot, sweet, pungent, bitter,

Benefits

Triphala is a blend of three Indian fruits: amalaki or amla, bibhitaki, and haritaki. This is a powerful mixture of antioxidants, anti-inflammatory and antidiarrheal. In fact, it’s particularly good to improve digestion, especially in Kaphas.

How to incorporate it to your meals