Spice it up!

Last year I had the privilege of attending the World Spice Congress, a bi-annual event co-hosted by the Spices Board, the premier Government Body responsible for and in control of spices exports out of India and the All India Spices Exporters Forum, an industry organisation that represents the spice exporters in the country. So habituated I was with the availability of various spices around me that I was literally taken by surprise that there was a body to regulate all this! My thoughts immediately went back to the little spice box in my kitchen, a regular with every Indian family - a round box with spice bowls in it to store various everyday spices, keeping their aromas and flavours intact!

With spices available in plenty every nook and corner and some growing in our backyards, it made me wonder how we end up taking things for granted! Which is why, I thought this morning, how about sharing some interesting Spice Trivia on our everyday spices... Who knows, we may end up respecting and appreciating these value adds a lot more, soak in their aromas and cook better using all our senses of smell, touch, taste!

Read on a few and ponder!

• Giants of Spice Consumption: India is the largest producer, consumer and exporter of spices in the world today, contributing to about 48% of the world's requirement of spices!

• Mint: Small, green, fragrant leaves adding that dash of flavours to our raita, salads, buttermilk, icecreams, chocolates, chutneys and the likes! Available in plenty, did you know that Mint happens to be the largest exported spice from our country?!

• Asafoetida: Some simply cannot stand the strong aroma of asafoetida! This potent spice, used in both powdered and block forms has a novel ability of letting go of its pungent odour and taste and rending great flavour to food. In some cultures, it is often used instead of onion and garlic and has great medicinal value. It releases its flavour well in hot oil and the ideal time to add it is while tempering.

• Saffron: Said to be the costliest of the spices in the world, it is known for its rich aroma and a beautiful golden hue it renders to various Indian dishes, especially desserts. Known to be harvested only for a few weeks in a year, did you know that about 70,000 to 80,000 flowers yield about a pound of saffron! It is also said that saffron strands should always be soaked before adding them towards the end of cooking a dish.

The Kokum fruit and dried kokum used in cooking

• Kokum: A purple berry and the dried fruit, it is widely used as a medicine as well as a spice in most Maharashtrian, Gujarati and Goan delicacies and is a native of the Western Ghats and Konkan Region. Its culinary uses range from seasoning to canning to colour and flavour while health benefits such as digestion, healing wounds, reducing body heat, skin care are in plenty! 

These were just tidbits on few of the many spices available around us... Spices take different times to release their flavour, which is why they are added at different intervals during the cooking process. Respect them, experience their richness, flavours and add that little spice and zing to your next dish!

Watch out this space for more interesting trivia!