Spices are one of the ingredients that really set a good curry apart. Here are a few tips to make your spice cookery as delicious and stress-free as possible.
find a good supplier
Like most things, it pays to find a good suplier for your spices. A specialist spice merchant is more likely to have a fresher range and higher quality that your local supermarket. That being said, supermarket spices are better than no spice at all.
only buy spices with a use-by date
Make sure you’re buying spices that have a date on them. Otherwise you’ll have no idea how old they are.
throw out spices past their use-by date
Make sure you clean out your collection every now and then and get rid of the oldies. A few months out of date is fine but if you’re unsure, have a little smell. If it smells like the spice in question it’s still fine to use, if it smells like cardboard or dust it’s time for a fresh packet.
store in an airtight container
Especially for ground spices, exposure to air leads to oxidation and loss of flavour, so an air tight container will keep your spices fresher for longer. And if you have a choice, a plastic zip lock pouch that you can squeeze the excess air out of each time you seal it is better than a jar which will have more air in it as the container gets emptier.
store in the dark
Light can also increase the degradation of your spices so keep them happy in the dark.
don’t stress about grinding your own
I can’t tell you how many cookbooks I’ve read that go on and on about the superior flavour of freshly ground spices. i used to own a specialist spice grinder but I found it was such a hassle I hardly ever used it and just felt guilty about buying pre-ground spices.
Then I was lucky enough to interview the best spice merchant in Australia and he assured me that as long as I was using my ground spices within their use by date, I wasn’t missing out on any flavour. Phew.
do invest in a good quality pepper grinder
Of course there’s an exception to the ‘no-grinding’ rule. Black pepper loses its fragrance very quickly once ground and since it’s so versatile, it’s worthwhile getting a good quality pepper grinder.
Nutmeg is another which I like best when it’s fresh. A microplane grater is fine for grating whole nutmeg as you need it.
don’t be a spice snob
Don’t feel like you need to make all your spice blends from scratch. A good qulity garam marsala or curry powder can save you a heap of time and end up tasting better than any blend you might try yourself. I prefer to leave the delicate task of blending spices to the masters. Most of the time, anyway.
back to Twenty Minute Curry Overview
Add to my Old Favourite Recipes