Chillies and ginger from Redmart to include in your diet

Any good diet plan that you come across suggests you to include a lot of vegetables in your diet. Fresh vegetables seem to have turned into miracle foods that need to be consumed in at least seven portions a day. Vegetables can provide you with a plethora of benefits but it is also important to remember that different vegetables come with different benefits. So, sticking with your favourites is not a good idea. 

Vegetables can act as comfort food. Green leafy vegetables are full of magnesium which helps in preventing anxiety, migraines, and stress. Many vegetables that are rich in Vitamin C like tomatoes, capsicums, and broccoli help in collagen formation resulting in youthful glowing skin. So, if you want to improve skin texture or reduce wrinkles, eat more of these veggies. Then there are vegetables that are loaded in fibre which help in digestion and removing toxins. Talking of digestion, ginger is an excellent food to improve digestion, soothe a sore throat and provide relief from colds. When you buy vegetables, it is important to pick the ones that are green and more colourful to get the most nutrition from your serving. 

How to preserve chillies?

More often than not, we end up buying chillies or have a lot of them leftover in the refrigerator. But these chillies can be preserved and used all round the year by simple methods. These methods are simple to follow and help you use the product for a longer time. The first step is to wash your chillies thoroughly and let them dry well. Now you can choose to split the chilli open or leave them intact. Thick skinned chillies work well in this case. Set the dehydrator setting in your oven to about 50 degrees Celsius and preheat for 10 minutes. Lay out the chillies on a tray, keep in the oven and let the process do its job. Depending on the oven and amount of chillies you are drying, the time taken will vary. It will also vary with external humidity and temperature so you need to see what works best for you. 

It is important to remember that dehydration is a slow process but not a difficult one. You will know they are dry when you can break them instead of bending. Thicker chillies may not turn completely dry but they can be easily stored in a freezer still. The freshly dried chillies can be stored in airtight containers. Remember not to keep them in plastic bags, unless you want to freeze them. Keeping them in air tight containers will ensure the chillies last for years. Dehydrated red chilli can be crushed to use as chilli flakes or powdered if required. You can also use these to flavour your gravies and rice dishes!