Ugadi Pachadi Recipe. Is there a scientific reason behind?

We make Ugadi Pachadi for Ugadi festival. Ugadi is an Indian festival which brings spring (Vasantha Ruthuvu) in India. Telugu and Kannada speaking people celebrate this festival as their New Year. Ugadi brings fresh mangoes and Cuckoo songs.

Ugadi Pachadi has 6 different tastes in it which represent different flavors of life. They are called Shadruchulu (six tastes). Each ingredient will bring a different taste.

Jaggery for sweetness.

Tamarind for sourness.

Chili for hot and spiciness.

Salt for saltiness.

Mango for tanginess.

Neem for bitterness.

In this preparation Neem is the special and very important ingredient. Neem tree has a lot of medicinal values. Some people even call this as "Pharmacy of the Village".

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Ingredients
1 cup of jaggery
1 cup of mango pieces
1 lemon size tamarind ( I used 2 cups of water to extract the juice from tamarind)
A pinch of red chili powder or 1 tsp. finely chopped green chili
A pinch of salt
1 tsp. neem flowers. I used 1/8 tsp. of neem leaf powder because neem flowers are not available for me. You can substitute with grated bitter melon also. But neem leaf serves the same purpose.
2 bananas
3 cardamoms
1 tsp grated coconut
A few raisins
1 cup of water
Preparation
Powder the jaggery. You may grate it or cut it.
Extract juice from tamarind.
Cut raw mango into very fine pieces.
If you are using green chili cut into very fine pieces.
If you are using neem flowers, take them into your hand and rub them between your palms. Petals will be separated from the whole flower. Keep those petals aside.
Slice banana.

Procedure
Mix all the ingredients in a big bowl.
Add 1 cup of water.
Now use your hand to blend every thing. Do not puree the bananas. Just crush them with your hand to bring out the wonderful taste.

Helpful Tips
The final product should be sweet and sour.
Do not use salt and chili too much.
Be aware of that neem powder is very bitter.
You do not have to follow the same recipe. This is just an idea. You can costomize for your own taste. Your taste buds will tell you how you want.
Different people make it differently.

Health Information
There should be a scientific reason behind this Ugadi Pachadi.
Neem has anti bacterial and anti fungal properties.
Neem flowers, leaves, bark of the stem and fruits all parts of the tree has medicinal values.
Neem is used in many Ayurvedic preparations.
It gives a good cleanse for body.
By eating this pachadi with neem, raw mango and tamarind, body prepares us to fight with infections.
In India people use neem to treat skin diseases, viral fevers, diabetes, malaria and many other diseases.
Neem will kill intestinal parasites.