Spice Road Spices
Artisan Spice Merchants
The Art of Flavour
Wine and food pairing To start it should be appreciated that all this wine pairing business is, most definitely, not an exact science.
Given the great variation in personal tastes this is obvious.
Holy Basil, The Queen of Herbs. Reprinted from the Epicurean Post ebook.
Hi everybody Six months ago I had never heard of the herb, Holy Basil. This is not the fault of Holy Basil. It is because Holy Basil is mostly seen as a tea. And six months ago I did not drink tea.
And you would think that if it is viewed as a herbal tea (often described as Tulsi Green Tea) then it has no logical place in this Epicurean Post ebook. You do not readily reach for a herbal tea when searching for flavour in your recipe ! . Holy Basil in the Kitchen But as a tea the health benefits of this herb are staggering. More on this in a moment. For the kitchen and to maintain our epicurean interest, note that along with the tea, the dried leaves are a staple in Thai cooking. Look to the Beef Pad Gaprao or Pad Kra Pao Pork recipes.
On this day around 2000 years ago a "Caravan" loaded with Turmeric and Ginger, the spice "gold" at the time, left Southern India bound for Rome.
The "Caravan" travelled by primitive boat to the North Indian port of.......then travelling across.... braving and defending bandit attacks they arrived in.......and departed on a further sea voyage the Persian Gulf and the markets of Alexandria in........
Are we adding flavour in moderation with everything but Salt ?
Hi everyone. Several readers have questioned the heading - The Art of Flavour in each issue of the Epicurean Post.
Simply, the heading came from my observation that maybe we are much too timid when adding flavour to favourite recipes.
From this I don't suggest just bunging in handfuls of spices and herbs, any old way, without regard to proper flavour balance, That will not will not make things right.
You may have noticed that in most Epicurean Post recipes we invariably mention that a rich, Home Chef style stock be used in the recipe rather than the supermarket cardboard version with limited flavour, compensated with salt.
So we thought it might be useful to look at how Home Chef stocks can add a wonderful flavour foundation to a recipe and how easily they can be made . No doubt many of our subscribers are creating their own unique stocks or broths and we would love to share your comments and suggestions.
Chicken Stock and Health
When it comes to flavour, being born in Morocco gives you a solid head start.
And to be rated alongside the flavour of Palestinian Za'atar Spice Blend or the Berebere Spice Blend from Ethiopia places the exciting Moroccan Chermoula in very special company .
Our wine making friends will not like to read this but frying or grilling with grape seed oil is not a good move.
For home chefs there seems little point in working towards a full health diet to then stuff it all up by frying or grilling with grape seed oil.
Not wishing to start on too dramatic a note but Salt can sometimes cause health issues.
Extending this to our campaign for healthy and fresh ingredients, our view at Spice Road Spices and the Epicurean is that it would seem rather pointless to rattle on about the acknowledged health benefits of Farmers Markets and Grass Fed Beef, then stuff it all up with an overload of salt.
This is a special Blog covering unique Salt Free Recipes and News for an enjoyable Salt Free diet.
Plus a curated selection of premium Salt Free Spices to create your own special flavour in your recipe. Toasted and ground on the day of dispatch for your freshness