SPICE IT UP
By Lalitha Aravind
“The family that eats together stays together” is an expression that has been around for decades.
Now, an Ashburn-based food business called Prana Kitchens proposes an extension to that. “We believe a community that eats together stays together,” said Sri Giridharan.
Giridharan – who moved from New York to Ashburn’s Belmont Chase neighborhood in 2020 – created the company with her best friend, Aruna Sankaranaray. The friendship goes back 30 years to when they first moved to the United States from India and met as classmates in graduate school.
Founded in 2022, Prana Kitchens’ main products are spice blends meant to be used in cooking. The more than a dozen different spice combinations include ones called Coconut Curry Masala, Laiju Black Pepper and Forbidden Rice Congee.
Prana has other products as well, including grains such as rice and millet and several types of spiced nuts.
But these spices and products probably are different from many of the ones you’ll find on the shelves at a local Harris Teeter. That’s because they have a deeper meaning – one that goes back thousands of years in Indian culture.
You see, the selection and formulation of the spice blends at Prana Kitchens is informed by what’s called “Ayurveda knowledge.” According to Johns Hopkins Medicine, Ayurveda is a holistic system of medicine that began in India more than 3,000 years ago.
The medical center based in Baltimore goes on to note that Ayurveda beliefs say everything in the universe is interconnected, and when something in your life or body is out of balance, illness and disease can occur.
One of the treatments Ayurveda promotes is a special diet using a wide variety of spices. Prana Kitchen wants to meet at that intersection – good spices that can be used in everyday cooking while also offering additional benefits to adherents of Ayurveda.
“I was watching people like Aruna, my sister and my husband go through health complications,” Giridharan said about what compelled her to create Ayurvedic products. “The journey is by no means easy. Ayurveda isn’t just a quick fix. It is literally a shift in lifestyle.”
Prana Kitchens has several different lines of spices, and the prices range from roughly $13 to $23, depending on the blend.
Recipes are available on the Prana Kitchens website, along with suggestions on how to best use the spices. The Coconut Curry Masala, for example, can be used on roasted vegetables or with a tofu stir fry. A spice blend called Amalaki Paccadi can be used in yogurt or added to a smoothie.
Currently, Prana Kitchens sells through its online retail website and at local markets. In Northern Virginia, Giridharan makes regular appearances at the EatLoco Farmers Market at Ashbrook as well as a farmers’ market in Arlington.
Sankaranaray, who lives in Georgia, pitches Prana Kitchen’s products at events in the Atlanta area.
The Prana team is proud that they source their ingredients from small farms in their native India. They currently support half a dozen different farmers in the states of Tamil Nadu and Kerala.
The eventual goal is to open a brick-and-mortar store in the Ashburn area to reach more customers.
“If we can reinforce the message of families cooking and eating together, they will be investing in their long-term health and happiness,” Giridharan said.
Lalitha Aravind is a junior at Lightridge High School, where she is associate editor for her school’s news organization. This is her first article for Ashburn Magazine.