Indian Home Tips

Garlic pods can be peeled easily by warming them in a pan without oil.

Put garlic cloves in an oven for 30 seconds to one minute. You can peel them with ease.

To control the hiccups - take equal parts of dry dates, kishmish, sugar and long pepper (pippali) and make it powder. Take 1 tsp of this powder and mix it with honey. It will control the hiccups and also breathing problem.

 To control loose motions, take cream on curd and mix it with honey. It helps to control loose motions.

Remove the seeds of ripe tamarind if you want to store them. Insects get into the seeds and spoil the tamarind. Put in the sun and store them in plastic bags.

Drink the carrot juice to strengthen the body and to get relief from cough and joint pains.

Apply honey on wound scars regularly that will make scars disappear.

Eating 10 fresh fully grown curry leaves every morning for three months is said to prevent diabetes due to heredetiry factors.

It also cures diabetes due to obesity, as the leaves have weight reducing properties.

As the weight drops, the diabetic patients stop passing sugar in urine. 

A tea made from the herb alfalfa, especially from its seeds, has shown beneficial results in the treatment of arthritis.

One teaspoon of alfalfa seeds may be added to one cup of water and bring it to boil.

Three to four cups of this tea should be taken daily by arthritics for at least two weeks.

To peel the garlic flakes easily and with in a few minutes, add a teaspoonful of groundnut oil to about 200 gms of garlic flakes and keep in sunlight for 10-15 minutes.

 Sandwiches stay fresh if placed on lettuce leaves. This comes handy during parties and picnics.

When placing ice-creams or other desserts in the freezer to set, cover the dish tightly with polythene and a rubber band, to prevent icicles from forming.

 To clean severely greased pans and pots, rub the container with the inside of a banana peel and rinse it.

 To remove iron stains from clothes, rinse the cloth in boiling water, then rub a cut lime and then wash with boiling water.