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Spice up your everyday with Indian
As the cold weather of winter knocks on our doors, I often seek the comforts of Indian-inspired cuisine. I say inspired only because I can’t pretend to know all the subtleties and regional variations India offers. I find comfort in the simplicity of a homemade curry powder or garam masala. My starting point is eerily familiar with most of my faux-Indian dishes. I sweat onions in butter or ghee, then aromatize my spices before layering in the other elements. Sometimes it’s chicken in the case of my easy curry stew but often there’s no meat, as with my coconut, sweet potato curry. A friend and co-worker, Lindsey Bunin, is vegetarian. I’ve called on her recipe for curried chickpeas and cauliflower to also celebrate the richness of India’s vegetarian table.
Coming over for cumin
Without fail, I find myself running low on cumin. I use it for Mexican, Southwestern, North African, and Indian inspired dishes. It’s earthy, fragrant and delivers a scent that makes me think of homey one-pot dishes of all sorts. While capable of going alone, I find it likes to be married to other “c” ingredients such as cilantro, coriander, and cardamom. It takes a lead role in the recently released Xi’an Famous Foods cookbook’s appetizing spicy cumin lamb dish. I’m not quite sure what cuisine we could peg the recipe to, but sometimes it’s best not to worry about the regional authenticity and focus more on final flavours. If you make this dish, call me, and I will be ‘cumin’ right over.
Thai one on
I look forward to spending a night indulging in Chef Nuit Regular’s Thai cuisine as has been featured recently in SaltWire's food and drink pages. There is a comforting fragrance to Thai cuisine that I can’t help but embrace. Maybe it’s the floral fragrance of cilantro, Thai basil and mint or sweet notes or perhaps the sweet notes of coconut milk? Regardless, I love the thought of a cold night spent enjoying her recipe for red curry pork.
See you next week when we'll offer more great food and drink recipes. Until then, keep following your foodie dreams.
~ Mark DeWolf
Mark DeWolf is a connoisseur of all things food and drink. He's a creative director with SaltWire and local fare is his specialty. Watch Mark whip up seasonal plates in his video series, In a Jiffy, and go deeper with food trends and kitchen challenges weekly
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