Spice Geek

The Classic Pickle Recipe 1. You chop up the quince into little...

Mon, 20 Feb 2012 10:39:00 -0500

The Classic Pickle Recipe

1. You chop up the quince into little square pieces after skinning it.

2. Throw some salt and chilli powder (maybe a dash of turmeric) and let it sit overnight. I just tried it with some grey sea salt and this added to the flavor. (Here’s a pic.)

3. The next day, you heat up some olive oil, and when the oil is hot, throw in a handful of black mustard seeds.

4. When the seeds are popping (mostly popped), you turn off the stove and add a pinch of asafeotida (powdered). (This may be a tough ingredient to find, and smells awkward in powdered form, but once you get to know it it’s indispensable.)

5. You add in the quince mixture, and stir.

6. You can also add in a tiny bit of vinegar to preserve it longer. You can also sprinkle some salt on top.

[This is a variation of a very typical mango pickle that’s made with green, unripe mangoes. Incredibly tasty stuff. Check out the video at Keralatourism.org.]

Quince pickle (South Indian style)

Sun, 19 Feb 2012 13:55:00 -0500

Quince pickle (South Indian style)

Quince (salt + chilli powder) …

Sat, 18 Feb 2012 00:13:32 -0500

Quince (salt + chilli powder) …

recipe

Tue, 06 Dec 2011 13:13:09 -0500

recipe

This is my piece de resistance! A plum & tomato pickle..the...

Mon, 05 Dec 2011 16:30:36 -0500

This is my piece de resistance! A plum & tomato pickle..the recipe is dead simple: cook three or four tomatoes, throw in a couple of plums, chili powder and salt, and finally add popped mustard seeds and asafoetida.

This is really good. Phenomenal.

Monks Indiscretion (courtesy of Sound Brewery)

Mon, 28 Nov 2011 22:26:00 -0500

Monks Indiscretion (courtesy of Sound Brewery)

I’ve had chestnuts a few times, but the last couple of...

Fri, 25 Nov 2011 21:06:19 -0500

I’ve had chestnuts a few times, but the last couple of times I’ve eaten them, the recommendation was to eat them with milk. I wasn’t a big fan. This time around tried out the chestnuts with some Indian spices (a cliantro/chilly powder) & sea salt.

They were on point.

pickle, tomato edition (quickly becoming my favorite!)

Sat, 12 Nov 2011 19:16:29 -0500

pickle, tomato edition (quickly becoming my favorite!)

the Big Kahuna of peppers .. or so said the vendor

Fri, 11 Nov 2011 14:33:08 -0500

the Big Kahuna of peppers .. or so said the vendor

absinthe w/black salt caramels (black licorice isn’t my...

Mon, 31 Oct 2011 20:56:31 -0400

absinthe w/black salt caramels (black licorice isn’t my thing, but these looked interesting)

I’d rather be a ninja too…

Mon, 24 Oct 2011 00:55:53 -0400

I’d rather be a ninja too…

Peppers and Blackberries (pickle)

Sun, 23 Oct 2011 18:04:11 -0400

Peppers and Blackberries (pickle)

HATCH PEPPER & AVOCADO: I’m loving the hatch pepper...

Sun, 09 Oct 2011 17:45:00 -0400

HATCH PEPPER & AVOCADO: I’m loving the hatch pepper salads lately! This time I added celery, carrots, avocado and tomatoes (and a dash of rock salt).

Hatch chile peppers are pretty fiery, and the avocado tones down the fire nicely.

[Here’s an earlier hatch pepper salad I did with pluots and tomatoes.]

TOMATO PICKLE! I’ve had an abundance of tomatoes this...

Thu, 06 Oct 2011 15:05:00 -0400

TOMATO PICKLE!

I’ve had an abundance of tomatoes this summer and had a few bowlfuls sitting around. I had a tomato pickle recipe but never got it quite right. This time it was perfect.

cut a bunch of tomatoes and sprinkle turmeric, chilli powder, and salt on them
saute up black mustard seeds with a pinch of methi (fenugreek powder) (go liberal on the olive oil)
when the mustard pops, add some asafeotida and add in the tomatoes
cook down the tomatoes for about 25 minutes until all the water is cooked out, and add a dash of brown sugar
add salt, brown sugar or chilli powder as necessary

This is one of my favorite pickles. I don’t make pasta sauce very often, so this was my one and only opportunity to slowly stir tomatoes while they simmer, which is an added bonus.

I happened to try a hummus-like spread the other day that was...

Sun, 25 Sep 2011 13:27:00 -0400

I happened to try a hummus-like spread the other day that was phenomenal. It would be an almost obvious idea to add chili peppers & cilantro to hummus, but to date I had never tried this combination. Now I will. Often.

ROASTED PEPPERS: I’ve really been mixing and matching...

Tue, 06 Sep 2011 15:32:00 -0400

ROASTED PEPPERS: I’ve really been mixing and matching stuff lately, and much of it turns out interesting .. here I got some roasted peppers from the market, and sliced in some pluots and tomatoes.

Added in a dash of rock salt & it turned out to be the perfect snack.

it’s amazing how much of a difference fresh ingredients...

Sat, 03 Sep 2011 13:54:48 -0400

it’s amazing how much of a difference fresh ingredients make..

I did a simple zucchini ‘curry’ … I took a zucchini, sliced it thinly, sauteed up urud dal and mustard seeds, added asafeotida and turmeric. On its own, this would have been great, but some curry leaves and a diced green chilli from the garden took it over the top.

I’m sure it’s easier said than done, but padron...

Tue, 23 Aug 2011 01:15:08 -0400

I’m sure it’s easier said than done, but padron pepper farmer sounds like a fun job

dosa with apricot chutney!

Sat, 13 Aug 2011 14:43:13 -0400

dosa with apricot chutney!

snake-infused liquor (I can’t personally attest to its...

Mon, 08 Aug 2011 12:50:00 -0400

snake-infused liquor (I can’t personally attest to its efficacy, of course)