4 min readJul 12, 1997 12:00 AM IST
First published on: Jul 12, 1997 at 12:00 AM IST
India continues to occupy its historic position as the largest producer of spice in the world. There is something magical about the way Indian herbs and spices transform simple ingredients into exotic dishes. Spices are usually the dried, aromatic parts of the plant. This includes the seeds, berries, pods, roots and sometimes even leaves and flesh. The medicinal uses of herbs and spices, in the past, were often indistinguishable from its culinary uses. In medieval times, apothecary’s used to prescribe herbs and spices not merely for digestive problems, but for all types of ailments. They are truly a natural form of medicine.
In the past, it was a common assumption that when it comes to cooking, the role of spice was to disguise food that was well past its best. It is not until the middle of the 17th century that a more discriminate use of spices and herbs was discernible. And it coincides with the British love affair with Indian food which also dates as far back as the early 17th century.
Edward Terry, one of the first Englishmen to taste Indian food and appreciate it in all its goodness, talked about onions, ginger, herbs and spices with meat pieces being used in well-proportioned quantities. It is said that he described the food as cooked in a manner to please all palates’.
And even today, Indian food has a special place in British hearts. In the United Kingdom, if you conduct a word association test and say quot;spicyquot;, the immediate response would be quot;curryquot;. Assuredly this is a perfectly rational association. No other food is so inextricably linked with aroma and flavour than Indian curry. The smell of curry excites the taste buds in a unique and inimitable way.
Curry powder has been known and used in Britain and Europe since the 18th century. There is no standardised curry powder that can be called true or authentic curry powder. It is judged more by its brand name than its aroma, taste or flavour. Cumin Jeera is an essential for curry powder and is used to flavour quite a few gravies, apart from being used as a key tempering ingredient in most Indian food. Cumin is the dried fruit of a small herbaceous plant. Even in Biblical times, cumin was quite popular as both an efficient digestive and a food flavour for ceremonial feasting. It is native to Egypt and the Mediterranean, but now it is mostly produced in India.
Cumin has an intensely strong flavour much similar to caraway. It grows abundantly in the mild, equable climate of Gujarat and Rajasthan. The rich, well drained, sandy, loamy soil and the sunny climate of both states are a conducive environment for this spice. Closer home, in Gujarat, the regions of Ahmedabad, Mehsana, Surendra Nagar and Banaskhantha account for over 40 per cent of the total cumin production of India. Cumin’s flavour is aromatically spicy rather than hot and it is an essential ingredient in most North African, Middle Eastern and Indian cooking. Light roasting or broiling of cumin in a dry frying pan before use brings out cumin’s interesting aroma and flavour. It can also be powdered and used. It is advisable to store it in an airtight container. Ground cumin loses its flavour in about one month.
Roasted cumin seeds and powder are always welcome in Indian food, be it jal jeera or dahi vada.
Chef Sanjeev Kapoor is the executive chef at Centaur Hotel, Juhu and also hosts a weekly cookery show Khana Khazana on Zee TV
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