Holy basil seeds, Batman!
It’s not the most glamorous drink, but it’s been a go-to thing for me for the better part of a year.
Earlier this month, I wrote about my big, ugly fibre-packed bowl of breakfast, and how over the months it’s helped me get on track for getting a solid start to my day.
It’s not the only change I’ve made. Seeds can do a lot of heavy lifting in terms of nutrition; although they can be relatively high in calories for their small weight, they offer a lot in both soluble and insoluble fibre, protein, and omega-3 and other fats.
Holy basil seeds (not to be confused with sweet basil seeds), like other seeds will swell when placed in water. That is, they become coated with a kind of gel, which swells around every seed.
And yup, I sip on it.
I put a teaspoon or so into a jar or a large glass of water, give it a stir, and wait. I also often add a calorie-free flavour. The one you see in the photo on top is a fruit punch flavour … or so it says on the label. In any event, it makes the water a little more interesting.
So, two benefits. First, it’s hydration, which is an issue 12 months a year, and not just in these warmer months. Second, I get another hit of fibre. Not a huge amount, but a few extra grams of fibre, likely between three and five.
The mucilage, as it’s known, makes the seeds kind of slippery, and this is where personal taste comes to the fore.
If you like tapicoa pudding — a big childhood memory for me — or products like bubble tea, you might like this kind of drink. (I put chia seeds into Greek yogurt, and the same phenomenon occurs.)
But some people cannot handle the texture. “Slimy” is a word I’ve heard more than once. I don’t get that sensation at all.
The seeds get to swell quite a bit, and after a bunch of sips, I’ll notice that the bottom of the jar is kind of blocked with this gelly mixture. The solution (pun not intended, at least at first) is simple: I just add more water and swirl it all around.
A consumer caution: I’ve bought holy basil seeds by mail order. For the latest batch, I had selected the product searching for the name but wound up getting regular (i.e., sweet) basil seeds. Which by the way are fine. A lesson to look more closely at the product description.
A final note: you can, of course, use the seeds to start plants. In fact, it is incredibly less expensive than buying a small package at the store!