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Tips and Ideas

Spice girl

On August 4, 2011 by Meghalee Das
I love spices. Indian, Chinese or Italian, every dish seems incomplete unless I add at least three different types of spices or herbs to the dish. Yes, this post will not have any recipe but only my ramblings about how much I love spices. My blog, my space.
I am not a morning person. At. All. It’s a different matter that I have to wake up early nowadays (6.30 am every weekday, I want a medal). But even when I lived alone, stumbling to the kitchen in the morning or afternoon depending on when I woke up, there was one thing which lifted my mood like getting a green light at every traffic point when you are late for work. Spices. I had a round translucent dabba with a pink lid (I love pink, I am a girlie girl). And inside there were little containers where I kept all my spices. The heady fragrance that wafts around the kitchen when you first open the lid or crush them in a mortar, the sizzle in the oil when you first add them, the changing colours of the food you cook, the heavy steamy aromatic air around you, and finally the resultant taste — balancing the hot with the sweet, the pungent with the tangy — that’s what made me fall in love with cooking.
When I first came to Austin, the first thing I noticed was that the food, although really good, seemed a tad bland. I was just not used to it. Growing up in a Bengali home and then living in Delhi had totally conditioned my taste buds. Although A had thankfully stored the basic ones in the kitchen, I discovered there was no garam masala! What… how… biryani…. abort abort!!! But that is history now; we went to an Indian store and I was lost in the choices offered and that sense of familiarity. Now I fondly look at the kitchen cabinets and there they are — my little glass and plastic containers of cumin, cardamom, cloves, pepper, cinnamon, coriander, amchoor, garam masala, chilli powder, mustard, paanch foron, bay leaves, besides oregano, parsley, basil, thyme, a bottle of Chinese spices and other readymade masalas. There are so many more I can buy but these are the fundamental ones, so I am happy. I really wish I can have my little kitchen garden next summer where I can grow my own herbs, picking them fresh and chopping them… 😀
Just a note: If you live in a hot and humid region, always keep spices in the fridge. You can keep some in a container in your kitchen, but you hardly use the whole packet at one go, so keep the rest in the refrigerator. Random thought; I got a nice sturdy stainless steel spices container as a wedding gift too (bless you whoever you are, should have written your name!) Unfortunately, the baggage limit did not allow me to carry half my things including my wedding presents 🙁 But I will use it one day, so it’s ok.
Another thing which  want to add is that the spices I get here are not as strong in flavors as those found in India or freshly-ground ones. In fact, in India I would probably have to use only 1/2 tbsp of fresh garam masala powder compared to 1 tbsp here. So when I give measurements in my recipe, please remember to make adjustments if necessary, according to your taste, preference and the quality of the spices.   
I know some of you do not like ‘spicy’ food, but spices need not always be ‘hot’, the ones that make you cry and affect your tummy. They are often misunderstood; in fact, they not only add flavour but also help to bring out the subtle flavours in your dish and that’s a good thing. Well, there can always be food without spices, but where’s the fun in that?! So explore, experiment and let me know what your favourite spices are!
Written by Meghalee Das

Meghalee Das is a former journalist, who occasionally writes as a freelancer. She loves traveling, camping, hiking, kayaking, gardening and of course, cooking. Currently she is doing her MBA from Texas State University and updates her blog whenever she gets the time!

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