Disclaimer:

I would like to clearly mention here that this is purely my knowledge of Balanced diet after delivery
and not a common practice around all places in world. The method of taking care of the new born
baby and delivered mother, the vegetables, recipes are purely my version.
Now I start with my description:

Preparation for Delivery:

From 9 month of pregnancy, daily, the mother should massage the hip and stomach of the pregnant
women with gingelly oil and should gently massage it with warm water.
There may be many chances for a pregnant lady to deliver a baby before the due date. So in 9 month
itself, we should prepare ourselves to take all the necessary things for the delivery. Things like, night
dress, flask, changing dress, inners, dress for the babies, towel, comb, etc should be taken in a
separate bag. We can call this as a labour bag.
When the pregnant woman gets pain, we can check whether it is a false pain or labour pain using
cumin seeds kashayam. Take 1 teaspoon of cumin seeds and and dry fry in a pan, add 1.5 cups of
water to it and allow the water to become cup. Give this to the pregnant women. If it is a false
pain, then the pain will go off. If it is a real labour pain, this kashayam will make the pain develop
further. This is the correct time to start to the hospital. All set to go.
After Delivery:
With Gods Grace the child is born. Mother and baby are fine. Please follow the doctors advice with
respect to food and other things till the new born and the new mother are in hospital. After returning
home, we can start the pathiya samayal.
In olden days, when I was young, for the new mother, the elderly women in house will steam cook
idlys and give only 4 idlys to her. Mother or elderly women in the house cook idly for the new mother
and pour 1 teaspoon of ghee over the idlies and serve with little sugar. For the lunch, it is pathiya
samayal and for dinner it is only Parboiled rice porridge(puzhungal arisi kanji) with manathakali vathal
fried in ghee along with narthangai pickle or sutta appalam. This is the balanced diet for the first 10
days after delivery. Sukku water will be given for the new mother. We have to take sukku(dry ginger)
and make it a powder and mix it with hot water and give it to the new mother. Also, all the 3 times
when the mother have the food, they will be given beetle leaves. She has to eat the beetle leaves
before she feed the baby after food. Beetle leaves are good for digestion.
Punniyajalam:
On the 11th day, we call it as kulimurai. We have to keep ready gingelly oil, ginger and pepper. Heat
the gingelly oil and to it add ginger powder, pepper and remove from flame.

Take a Winnowing basket(In tamil we call as Muram) and put kolam in it. Keep this near pooja room
and place a silk cloth over the winnow. First using the gingelly oil we prepared, bath the baby. Wipe
the baby with a towel and put a new dress and place the baby on the winnow. Elderly woman in the
house has to first take the baby from the winnow.
Then we have to call the delivered mother, and take the gingelly oil and need to massage the hair,
stomach, and hip. Bath her with hot water and massage the hip nicely. Use sheeyakaai powder and
wash the hair. Also apply turmeric powder to the whole body. After bath, wipe the hair and body
completely and give her new clothes. Then immediately give her sukku(dry ginger powder) with
jaggery. Also give her little salt with raw rice and ask her to eat. In the mean time, take a
spatula/slotted spoon and heat at the end and ask the new mother to squeeze mothers milk into the
heated portion of the spatula/slotted spoon using both the breasts. Take care while squeezing as the
spatula/spotted spoon is hot. We should hear a zzz sound when the breast milk touches the hot
region of spatula. Then the new mother can take the new born baby and feed the baby.The same
procedure has to be repeated on 15, 18, and 21st day after the child birth. Based on the delivery
whether it is normal/c-section, we can arrange for a punniyajalam/naming ceremony.
The above said tradition may differ for each families. I have given this based on my knowledge.
Now I am going to start with the Balanced Diet(Pathiya Samayal) Recipes.
Pathiya samayal is a special cooking after delivery. Whenever a mother give birth to a child, especially
in south india, elderly women in house will prepare pathiya samayal for the women who gave birth to
the child. This is to ensure that the delivered mother gets healthy dish which will reach the child
through her milk. Pathiya samayal is a well balanced nutrition rich food for the new mom's. It is
believed that this pathiya samayal will increase the supply of breast milk.
The first 45 days period after delivery is crucial for any mother because whatever she is eating will
have direct effect on the new born child. So mother has to be very cautious in her intake. She should
avoid certain vegetables and usual way of cooking to prevent health issues in new born. Now a days
doctors are advising all the mother to take normal diet after delivery. This pathiya samayal is not
recommended by any doctor, but pathiya samayal has its own advantages. So i recommend all the
delivered mothers to follow the pathiya samayal instead of the usual cooking to avoid any health
issues for both mother and the new born. However seek the advice from your family elder's also
before you follow the below instruction.
General instructions:
1. Take green vegetables and fruits as advised by doctors. We can take more drumstick which aid in
production of more breast milk. Other than this, we can take carrot, beans, green vegetables. Try to
avoid root vegetables. We can include snake gourd but try to avoid this during winter as it is a cold
vegetable.
2. Take food at proper times. Do not skip any session.
3. Dinner has to be completed before 7pm as it will help in digestion. The new moms will have

digestion issue so it is always recommended to eat before 7pm in the night. Eat beetle leaves(Vetrrilai
along with paaku) to enhance the digestion.
4. Drink plenty of water to avoid constipation issue.
5. Do not take oil fried appalam. Better to use sutta appalam.
6. Take oil bath as per the custom of each house. Normally, we take alternate day oil bath and after oil
bath use sambrani to dry the hair to avoid wetness and prevent cold.
7. Do not eat anything too hot or too cold.
8. Do not eat fried snacks or items
9. Include garlic in pathiya samayal as this will enhance the production of mother's breast milk.
10. Avoid gas-causing vegetables.
11. Upto 30 days, after the mother take bath, she should be given marundhu and after that the mom
has to take breakfast/milk/horlicks before seeing the new born kid.
12. Always good to give sweet lime juice mixed in hot water in the afternoon session for the new
moms.
13. After 45 days, on an auspicious day, we can make the mom to touch salt, tamarind and then we
can follow the normal cooking for the new moms.
14. Grind dry ginger powder with jaggery and can be given to the mom. Always better to boil the
water and add dry ginger powder(Sukku) and then give that water to mom.
For oil bath:
Take 2 teaspoon of gingelly oil along with 1/2 teaspoon of urdal, 1 red chilli, 1 pepper, 1 virali
manjal(Turmeric stick) and keep it in low flame and heat the oil. Apply this oil in the new mom's hair
and then ask her to take oil bath.

Recipes:
Kalathu Powder:
This powder is generally used for all curry(Poriyal) varieties and also for rasam.
Ingredients:
Pepper - 1/2 teaspoon
Urdal - 1/2 teaspoon
Hing - a pinch
Ghee - 1 teaspoon
Method:

Heat the ghee in a pan and fry all the above ingredients till the urdal turns golden brown color.

Grind this in a mixer to a nice powder.

Add this to poriyal or rasam along with curry leaves and salt.

Angaya powder
Ingredients :

Dhaniya (coriander seeds) - 2 tablespoon

Neem Flower - 2 teaspoon
Sundaikkai vathal - 2 teaspoon
Pepper - 1/2 teaspoon
Cumin seeds - 1/2 teaspoon
Salt - To taste
Method :

Heat a heavy bottomed pan, and add all ingredients and dry fry the ingredients

Grind all the ingredients in a mixer to a nice powder

Serve the angaya podi with hot rice and ghee. This powder is good for stomach.

Manathakkali Vathal Sadham:

Ingredients:
Gingelly oil - 1 teaspoon
Manathakkali vathal - 2 teaspoon
Ghee - 2 teaspoon
Method:
Heat oil in pan, and fry the manathakkali vathal and take cooked rice and add fried manathakkali
vathal along with ghee and mix well and eat
Paruppu Thugayal(Thuvayal):
Ingredients:
Thurdal - 2 teaspoon
Pepper - 1/2 teaspoon
Salt - To Taste
Gingelly oil - 1 teaspoon
Curry leaves - few
Method:

Heat oil in pan and thurdal, pepper and salt and fry till the dal turns golden brown color.

Grind this in a mixer along with curry leaves and serve with hot rice

Rasam:
Ingredients:
Tamarind - 1 gooseberry size

Kalathu powder(Recipe given above) - 2 teaspoon

Mustard seeds - 1/2 teaspoon
Cumin Seeds - 1/2 teaspoon
Ghee - 1 teaspoon
Method:

Heat tamarind in flame and soak in water and extract the juice in a vessel.

Along with the tamarind juice add the kalathu powder, salt and allow the rasam to boil

Heat ghee in a pan and when the ghee is hot, add mustard seeds and cumin seeds and allow it
to sputter and then add this seasoned ingredient to the boiling rasam and remove the rasam
from flame.

Serve the rasam with hot rice.

Vathakuzhambu:
Ingredients:
Gingelly oil - 2 tablespoon
Tamarind - 1 gooseberry size
Mustard seeds - 1 teaspoon
Urdal - 1 teaspoon
Red Chilli - 2
Thur dal - 1 teaspoon
Manathakkali vathal - 1 teaspoon
Salt - To Taste
Ghee - 1 teaspoon
Curry leaves - few
Method:

Heat the tamarind in flame and soak in water and extract the tamarind juice and keep it aside

Heat ghee in a pan and fry the manathakkali vathal till it turns crisp. Take it in a plate and
keep it aside

Heat oil in pan, add mustard seeds, when the mustard seeds starts to sputter, add urdal,
broken red chilli, thur dal and fry till the dals turns golden brown color

To this add tamarind extract and salt and allow the vathakuzhambu to boil

When the raw smell of tamarind goes off, add the fried manathakkali vathal and curry leaves
and remove from flame

Serve vathakuzhambu with hot rice and sutta appalam

Parboiled Rice Porridge ( Puzhungal Arisi Kanji) :

Ingredients:
Parboiled Rice(Puzhungal Arisi) - 1 kg
Omam - 50gms
Badam - 20
Cashew - 20
Palm Sugar - as needed
Method for preparing porridge flour:

Rinse the parboiled rice in water, and in a clean white dhoti or towel spread the wet rice evenly

Allow the wet rice to dry in the towel

Take the dried rice in a container and add omam, badam and cashew

Grind the above ingredients in a rice mill to a nice powder.

You can also try grinding it in a mixer in home in smaller quantities and sieve to remove lumps
and again grind the lumps to get a nice kanji powder.

Method for preparing porridge:

Clean your hands and vessels to start preparing porridge. Hygiene is more important as this
for the toddlers.

Soak some palm sugar in water, and extract the juice using a filter to avoid sand

After preparing the porridge powder,based on the age of the baby, take little quantity(1
teaspoon) on the first day and add little water to in and stir well to avoid lumps.

Keep the diluted porridge flour in flame and keep stirring and add little water again and make
sure the porridge is cooked completely and it becomes semi-solid.

Add palm/cane sugar, and stir well and remove from flame.

Once the porridge cools off give it to baby in smaller quantities. Make sure this new diet suits
your baby and does not upset their stomach.

Once this porridge suits your baby, then slowly increase the quantity.

Some Home Remedies:

Ezhai Marundhu for Baby:
This is a home made marundu given in olden days for the new born baby after they complete their 1
month. Alternate days this medicene is given to the new born as we bath the baby only in the
alternate days. There are 5 important ingredients which helps in appetizing, sleep, prevent cold,
prevent pain while peeing, helps in digestion.
Take the below ingredients. We can buy these ingredients in our Indian herbal medicine shops.
jadhikkai(Nut meg)
maasikai(Nutgall)
Chittarattai (Rasna)
Pulliyankottai(Tamarind seed)
kadukaai(Gallnut)
Method:

Take one ingredient at a time, wet a clean rough surface with water and rub it in a rough
surface only once.

Repeat the same step for the other ingredients

Take the medicine from the surface and mix with mother's breast milk and feed the baby

We can use sandalwood stone to rub the ingredients

For Toddlers Recipes, you can refer the below link.