Entice With Spice. Shubhra Ramineni
to call a “roach” when I was a kid! If you shop in ethnic markets, you may also see small white cardamoms, which are simply the green ones that have been bleached for aesthetic purposes and result in a milder flavor. Cardamoms are used to flavor Garam Masala (page 36), rice and meat dishes and add a special touch to tea and desserts. To open a pod to release the flavorful seeds, place it on a cutting board. Place a small knife on its side over the top of the cardamom and press on the knife to crack it open. You can also tap on the pod with a rolling pin to break it open and then pry it apart with your fingers. If I am just cooking for my family, I simply bite the cardamom pod between my teeth until it cracks open and then I pry it apart with my finger. Cardamom pods also make good breath fresheners. Simply pop a whole pod in your mouth and chew on it and eventually you can swallow everything.
Carom seeds (ajwain) Also called “bishop’s weed,” these tiny brown seeds are a great natural remedy for an upset, gassy tummy. Even to this day, when I complain of an upset tummy, my mother will tell me to take a teaspoon full of carom seeds with water. I like to use carom seeds when cooking seafood dishes. The seeds look small and harmless, but if you bite into them, they release a peppery punch, though they are not spicy. Carom seeds can be found at Indian markets and are more commonly known by their Hindi name ajwain. If you cannot find them, you can use dried thyme leaves as a substitute but it will not have the exact sharp flavor of carom seeds. Do not confuse it with caraway seeds.
Chapati flour (chapati ka atta) This is a finely milled whole wheat flour that is used to make Indian flatbreads. Some bags of Indian chapati flour say “100% whole wheat flour” on them. If you compare that flour to American whole wheat flour, you might notice the American one is darker. This is due to different crops of harvested wheat that have slight variations in color, and also variations in the milling process. If you do not have chapati flour, in general, you can use a 1:1 whole wheat to all-purpose flour (white flour that is non self-rising called maida in Hindi) ratio, although sometimes I use a 3:1 or 4:1 ratio ratio of whole wheat to all-purpose flour if that is easier to measure for a recipe. Chapati flour can be stored in an airtight jar in your pantry up to three months. Because chapati flour has natural oil in it, it can go rancid if kept over three months. Keeping it in the freezer can prolong the life of the flour for at least up to six months.
Chili peppers, green (fresh, whole) (sabut hari mirch) There are hundreds of varieties of chili peppers, varying in length, thickness and spice level. Generally, the smaller the pepper, the hotter it is because there are more seeds proportionally and the heat comes from the seeds. In Indian cooking, many types of chili peppers are used but I use the spicy hot bird’s eye chili pepper (also sometimes referred to as the “Thai chili pepper”). The bird’s eye chili pepper is thin and can be found in ethnic markets and some American grocery stores. You can also use fresh chili de arbol, Serrano chili pepper or the easy-to-find jalapeño pepper. Slicing or halving the chili pepper exposes the seeds and allows it to release more flavor and heat. When green chili peppers are left on the plant long enough to fully ripen, they turn red and are then plucked and dried for use in cooking. Wash your hands thoroughly after handling a chili pepper so you do not irritate your eyes, nose or lips if you touch them afterward.
Chili peppers, red (dried, whole) (sabut lal mirch) Red chili peppers are green chili peppers that have been allowed to fully ripen and turn red on the plant. Afterwhich they are plucked and dried. Because the dried bird’s eye chili pepper is not typically available in regular grocery stores, I use the easy-to-find dried red chili peppers of the chili de arbol variety, which are usually found in small clear bags in the spice section or the Mexican international section of a regular grocery store. Sometimes these dried peppers are even found in the fresh produce section. When cooking with dried red chili peppers, I sometimes first dry roast them (See "Roasting and Grinding Whole Spices," page 16.) to release their flavors. I also sometimes tear these chili peppers before tossing them in the hot pan to expose the seeds, which release more heat into the dish. Usually, dried red chili peppers come with the stems removed but if they are not, just tear them off. Different types of dried red chili peppers are also ground into a fine red pepper and used frequently in Indian cooking. In American grocery stores, the closest substitute is ground red pepper (cayenne). Dried red chili peppers can be stored for at least up to six months in an airtight jar in your pantry.
Cilantro See “Coriander leaves,” page 21.
Cinnamon (dalchini) Cinnamon sticks are intensely flavored woody rolls of inner bark from the cinnamon tree. When using cinnamon sticks, it is important to use just a small piece because it gives a very strong flavor. You can break a cinnamon stick with your hands but to get smaller pieces, lay the stick on a cutting board and hit it with a rolling pin to break it up. Ground cinnamon is also used in Indian cooking—from meat dishes to spiced teas and vegetable pickles. When making Garam Masala (page 36), I first dry roast the cinnamon stick to develop its flavor more and then grind it.
STORAGE AND FOOD HANDLING TIPS When purchasing ingredients, try to buy the smallest packages available so items can be used quickly and stay fresh. You can store all of your individual spices and rice in airtight jars in a cool, dry place and out of direct sun, such as your kitchen pantry, for up to at least six months. However, lentils and flours are best kept up to three months in the pantry to ensure they are in their optimal state. Flours may also be frozen up to six months. Roasted and ground spice blends, such as Biryani Masala (page 72), lose their flavors more quickly and are also best if kept up to three months only. When handling spices, rice, lentils and flour, always use dry hands and utensils when removing them from or adding them to storage containers.
Citrus (nimbu) Citrus fruit, such as green limes and yellow lemons, are used commonly in Indian cooking to add zing to dishes and also to make paneer, a homemade Indian cheese. Limes tend to be less expensive than lemons, and they are easily found, so I use them. But if you have lemons on hand, you can use them instead. Limes come in different varieties and sizes from the small key lime to the common lime, and all are usually smaller than lemons. If limes are left on the tree long enough, they will eventually turn from green to yellow (but they are still limes!), but they are usually plucked before this happens. To add confusion to the lime/lemon discussion, limes are sometimes called “lemons” in India, but in the end it does not matter if you use a lemon or lime when making the recipes, or what variety you use. If a recipe calls for the juice of one lime and you’d like to substitute lemon juice, use the juice of one-half lemon. And if you use key limes, you can use two of them to equal one lime. Before cutting open a lemon or lime, if you press on it while rolling it back and forth a few times on the counter, it will loosen the fibers inside and allow the juice to come out easier and in greater quantity. Then cut the citrus in half crosswise and squeeze it over a small sieve to catch the seeds or use a citrus squeezer to squeeze out the juice. You can keep citrus fruits in your refrigerator for up to two weeks. Unused portions of lemons or limes should be wrapped tightly in plastic wrap and stored in the refrigerator for up to three days.
Cloves (long) Cloves have a very distinct flavor and aroma and should be used sparingly so as not to overpower a dish. A clove is a small brown woody piece with a pronged, rounded tip, which almost resembles a tiny nail. Cloves are grown on tropical evergreen clove trees and are actually the unopened flower buds that grow in clusters. After the green buds are fully grown and just about to open, they are picked off the tree and sun-dried until they become dark brown and woody. Cloves are sold whole or ground, but I prefer to buy the whole cloves so that I can grind them when I need to make Garam Masala (page 36)