Biggest Gift of Indus Valley Civilization to the

Mankind – The Terracotta Cutlery

“One small change can make your food much healthier and tastier.”

We are very careful about the things we eat then why not with utensils we cook in!
Earthenware / Terracotta pot is one of the best medium to cook food in and actually
benefits your health! In the olden times, people in rural India along with
storing water in earthen pots or Surahi, also used to cook in clay pots or Handi,
which was healthy and flavorsome. Earthenware / Terracotta had always been an
intrinsic part of Indian households, however, now with different types of utensils
available, earthen pots are barely used. You will see many urban households have
earthen cum Earthenware / Terracotta cutlery as showpieces, but not many like
cooking in them as the food cooks slower than usual. However, it is also difficult to
get pure clay pots as they are glazed and may be hazardous with constant use.
Cooking in a clay pot not only has a variety of health benefits but also makes for an
easier cooking process and in the end, a more flavorful and nutritious dish. Cooking
in a clay pot is much better than cooking in a normal utensil, not just for its various
health benefits, but also makes it much simpler to cook and improves the quality
of the food at the end. The porosity and natural insulation properties of clay causes
heat and moisture to circulate throughout clay pots. This makes cooking in a clay
pot a much slower process but has added benefit of preventing amateur cooks from
burning their dishes. More importantly, this causes the moisture and nutrient loss
while cooking in clay pots to be much lower compared to cooking in metal or
enamel lined utensils.

The use of terracotta related clay products is not very abundant in modern days.
However, a few restaurants, as well as food joints having a traditional theme, have
attempted to bring back clay products in the form of food serving vessels, thus
providing a subtle and classy appearance. Apart from the kitchen related utensils,
some people even use them for gardening purposes.
Introduction
In the earlier days, cooking was done with natural ingredients. Most importantly,
the cookware used was also made out of natural materials. And that helped them
lead a healthy life. Later the introduction of non-stick pans, plastics and other kinds
of artificial cookware impacted our lifestyle. People started choosing non-stick pans
and plastics for their convenience. Enough of the diseases it brought to us. Let the
dangerous diseases like cancer, reproductive problems and every other immunity
disorders vanish.
Let’s explore the traditional ways of native & indigenous Indian style of cooking,
and lead a healthy lifestyle. Clay is a natural material which was used to create
wonderful cookware for generations. It is magical that sand can create such
fascinating objects. Food that is cooked in clay cookware tastes much better than
that of other artificial cookware. To say about the health benefits, it’s outstanding
& unbelievable.
Clay pots add many important nutrients like Calcium, Phosphorous, Iron,
Magnesium and Sulfur to food, which is extremely beneficial to our body. Oil is not
necessary for cooking in a clay pot and thus, it is observed that food cooked in clay
pots are much lower in fat than food prepared in any other cookware. The clay
products from ‘The Indus Valley’ are good for health and of course the
environment.

Advantages of Earthenware / Terracotta Cutlery

1. Health Benefits - The first and foremost advantage of clay is the goodness, it
brings to our health. Clay is a natural substance and hence it does not add
poisonous or artificial materials into the food that is cooked in it. And
surprisingly, mud contains most types of vitamins. Since it’s alkaline in
nature, it neutralizes the food that is cooked in it and acts as a natural detox.
Well, we all want a healthy life! So why wait? Let’s get back to the clay era!
2. Good Quality Food - The porosity and natural insulation properties of clay
causes heat and moisture to circulate throughout clay pots. This makes
cooking in a clay pot a much slower process but has added benefit of
preventing amateur cooks from burning their dishes. It preserves the flavor
of the food in a good way. It helps in retaining the nutrients in the food and
hence a healthy option. The food does not lose its quality. And that’s the
reason why traditional cooking tastes and feel much better.

That is why the food cooked in an earthenware clay pot may contain lower
amounts of fat and calories compared with the food prepared in metal
utensils. Clay cookware is safe for almost all types of cooking. You can use it
to fry, bake, braise, grill, brown, and to serve hot and cold foods.

3. Clay pot cooking does not require added fats. Clay pots should not be used
on top of the stove. Add liquids sparingly -- as any food you're cooking will
 throw off liquids and you don't want the pot to overflow. Because it retains
heat, a clay pot will continue to cook after you take it out of the oven.

For baking, with some recipes, clay vessels can change the crumb and crust.
This is because the thicker clay wall heats up and radiates heat slower and
differently than thin metal. It also cools down slower. Cast iron pots are
about the same.

4. Unglazed clay pots can be seasoned over time with oil to create a non-toxic
non-stick surface. Metal coatings that are non-stick have toxic parts that
come off over time. Some unglazed pots like tanjine help slow the cooking.
Some types of low-fire, high grog ware can be used on flame or coals. They
help distribute the heat in a different way than metal would. High fire pots
would crack in this case.

5. Tasty Food - Food cooked in Clay pots are tastier than any other cooking
Pans. Because, Moisture content of the food is retained thus making your
 food juicer, tender and fresher than conventional cooking. This is unique to
clay cooking and helps carry spices and seasoning much deeper into the food,
giving it that extra special touch in flavor.

6. pH balance of the food - Clay as a material has alkaline properties. It

neutralizes the pH balance of the food by interacting with acids in food.
Hence acts as a natural detox.

You will be surprised to know that mud contains all the possible vitamins;
even Vitamin B12.

Acidic foods like tomatoes will take some natural sweetness and give the
food a fantastic taste when cooked with earthenware vessels. Clay acts as a
natural sweetener and any acidic foods like potato, meat, rice will take some
natural sweetness from the earthenware pot. This is the reason why liquids
like water, tea and coffee tastes better in clay than any other vessel.
7. Maintain 100% Nutrition in food - Earthenware vessels have unique quality
of keeping in all the steam and vapor that evaporates during cooking. It helps
to retain all the nutrients of the food. It reduces the need to add more oil
and/or water.

8. Less Oil usage - A fat free meal is possible while cooking in earthenware
vessels as they have a non-stick property. This helps in lesser usage of oil
while cooking in clay pots, resulting in a drop in your bad cholesterol and a
slimmer waistline. An added advantage is that this also helps you reduce the
use of salt.

9. Retains heat for longer time - Terracotta is a bad conductor of heat but the
advantage is the amount of heat it conducts is just about perfect to cook
food without over heating or cooking at high pressure. Hence hot food
remains hot and cold food remains cold longer.
10.Environmental benefits - Clay is an environment friendly substance, as they
are completely natural, inert and non-toxic. When taken care of these clay
pots properly they can last quiet a long time.

11.Easy Cleaning - Because clay is porous, you cannot clean it using soap or
normal dishwashing detergent. The soap will soak into the clay and end up
leaching into the next meal you cook in the pot.

Instead, you need to clean a clay pot using hot water and a stiff brush. Baking
soda can be used to remove the odors especially if you have cooked with
onion and garlic. For stubborn stains, take rock salt in a scrub pad and scrub
it nicely. Fill the pot with hot water and wait for half hour. Discard the water
and wash it again.

12.Cost effective and reliable - Unlike other trendy cookware, clay cookware is
cheaper and feasible. Buying clay cookware might be a hard task for people
in big cities.
13.Dry plants sustainability - Dry plants such as cactus do not require watering.
Since the evaporation rate is higher in case of clay pots, the sustainability of
these dry plants is never at risk.

14.Recycling - Clay pots are an aid to Eco-friendly surroundings. Since these pots
are easily broken, they can reuse as the base upon which new pots can be
kept.

The most important utility of terracotta related products is its biodegradable

property. Once unused, they automatically decompose not to create any
harmful effects. The usage of such products may be tedious but one should
not overlook the bunch of advantages these products offer.

15.Beautiful – You get pottery or earthenware in all shapes and sizes and for all
purposes. Use a kulhad instead of a plastic or ceramic cup for your morning
chai. Store cool water in a matki instead of in the fridge and the water will
 have a natural sweetness to it! These clay pots are beautiful to look at and
come in various colors, shapes and designs. They add a touch of class and
ethnicity to the dining table.

16.Perfect for milk and milk products – Mishti doi or sweetened curd is every
Bengalis pride. Try making mishit doi in a mitti ki handi and set another batch
in another vessel – you will instantly know what makes the ones from Bengal
so fabulous! Same goes for curd – set curd in an earthenware pot. Boiling
milk or even brewing you morning cup of tea or coffee in an earthen pot adds
that fabulous robust aroma and taste to it!

17.Types and options galore – There are various types of earthen ware available
since it is such a rage these days. Right from ceramic to cream ware to pots
and pans made with pure terracotta – there are a number of options to
choose from. Use ones that are lightly glazed so you can use these to cook
food at high temperatures without losing out on the benefits.
GramKala is now one of the trusted cookware brands in India. We have the solution
to your problem. Our clay cookware is available at reasonable prices with assured
quality. We have clay water bottles that are suitable to store water for a long time.
Since they are porous, they cool down the water in them.

Types of Earthen Cookware Available

Following are the types of earthen cookware products available to buy in the
market.
@ Clay Cooker - It is always better to return to our basic tradition and replacing our
modern cooker with a clay cooker. In modern cookers, excessive pressure breaks
the nutrition of our food.
Clay cooker ensures that the food is being cooked in adequate amounts of pressure,
thus making the food rich in nutrients.
@ Clay Kadai - A clay kadai can be used for cooking a variety of dishes like chicken
kadai, paneer kadai. Apart from that one can boil vegetables, rice, cook lamb,
seafood, etc. in a kadai.
@ Simple Clay Tawa and Non-stick Clay Tawa - A tawa is an essential in every
household for cooking parathas and chapatis. Using a clay tawa will ensure less
usage of oil in your parathas and thus will reduce the fat content of your food. The
non-stick range of clay tawa available in the market prevents the food from sticking
to the pan and thus helps in the easy cooking of chapattis. It also ensures easy
cleaning of the tawa as the food does not adhere to the surface.
@ Clay Biryani Pot - When it comes to serving your guests or your relatives,
Biryani is the most loved food by every individual, be it a vegetarian or a non-
vegetarian. The biryani cooked in the pot will be well cooked, delicious and
healthy.
Going through the above benefits of earthen cookware we can conclude that they
can be highly preferred over a normal utensil. Integrating the benefits of old
traditions with the need of modern times, the best earthen cookware mentioned
are available at GramKala at extremely pocket-friendly rates.