The Goodness of Raisins
Not many people are fond of wrinkles on their faces. I remember fondly that the wrinkles on my grandmother were always fun to touch. When it comes to fruits, wrinkles on apples and pears are most certainly not appealing. But on grapes, it's a different story. Why? Because of a certain treat called raisins.
Raisins are dried grapes. Depending on the size, color, and shape of the grapes, a variety of raisins are formed. Most of the raisins are either golden, brown, or black in color.
Are Raisins healthy?
Of Course! Raisins have a high sugar content, but since its fructose (fruit sugar), its not much to worry about. In fact, raisins are consumed to curb sweet cravings, usually post-meal.
I would suggest you to keep a small pack of raisins on your work table or on your dining table. Whenever hungry just pop in two-three raisins and you will feel better.
Raisins are good laxatives and aid digestion too, due to its high fiber content.
Soak some raisins overnight and it helps improve the antioxidant levels of the dry fruit, also helps to absorb the nutrients easily in the body.
The potassium content of raisins helps control blood pressure people.
Young girls and women should be consuming raisins daily to keep anaemia at bay.
The calcium content of the raisins improves bone density too.
How do we consume Raisins?
As mentioned above, raisins can be soaked overnight and had in the morning.
Raisins can be added to help manage the sweetness of the recipe. Add them to your smoothies, in cakes and cookies too. I have a fond memory of a bakery that added big black raisins in the rusk loaf which we used to buy when we were kids.
It can be treated as an after-meal sweet snack instead of chocolates. Even dark chocolates have raisins to give a hint of some sweetness to the product.
Indian desserts like kheer, payasam, suji halwa..all are loaded with raisins. Even pulaos and biryanis have this humble dry fruit to give a distinct taste to the dish.
Sprinkle them on salads and ice creams too.
It is important to know your source of Raisins!
Most of the golden raisins are treated with sulphur dioxide to give its bright golden color. Even black raisins are treated with sulfur during the commercial drying process.
Most of the raisins are sugar induced too and are treated with preservatives to improve the shelf life.
So, before purchasing your stock follow the basic tips
Make sure you know the source
Raisins should be sun-dried or solar-dried instead of commercially drying
Labels should say no preservatives, no sulfur, and should be sun-dried.
Check www.vedusfoods.com
How to store:
Keep them refrigerated if you have a 3-4 months stock. Small quantities can be kept outside at room temperature, but only if you'll finish them quickly!
Beautiful and interesting. Nice article.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much Swapnil
DeleteLovely ,tempting and delicious
ReplyDeleteThank you 😊
Delete