Five of the best spices

Living

11 Oct, 2015 02:25 AM2 mins to read

Sid Sahrawat's top five spices. Photo / iStock

Sid Sahrawat’s modern Indian restaurant, Cassia, in Auckland’s Fort Lane, draws on his cultural heritage growing up in India, as well as his flair for flavour and passion for New Zealand products. Now, Sid is building on the restaurant’s reputation for innovation with a new $70, five-course tasting menu to complement Cassia’s existing selection. Here are Sid’s top five spices. For more information visit cassiarestaurant.co.nz

1. Cardamom

Cardamom can be bought whole in pods or powdered. I prefer to use whole pods, cracking them so the seeds that carry the flavour can infuse the cooking. At Cassia we use green and black cardamom in various sauces and purees. We make a cardamom icecream and love how the warm flavour imparts the cold icecream. Green cardamom can be easily found in most supermarkets and black cardamom can be picked up in specialty stores or Indian grocers.

2. Coriander seeds

Coriander seeds add a subtle base note and flavour to dishes. They come either whole or powdered - we use whole seeds at Cassia. We dry-roast them in a pan then use a spice grinder to make a fresh blend of coriander and spice blend garam masala. Coriander powder and garam masala are integral to Indian cooking and are used in most dishes. A great way to use them is to add a sprinkling of both to stir-fried vegetables with some chilli.

3. Star anise

Star anise has a unique shape and one is usually powerful enough for a whole dish.

Star anise gives a subtle and unique flavour to food and is used equally in Asian as well as Indian food. At Cassia, we use it to create stock-based sauces, such as crab bisque.

4. Kashmiri chilli

Kashmiri chilli is a specific type of chilli from the northern parts of India. You can buy it either as a whole dry red chilli or powdered. The whole chilli can be used for tempering and the powder is a great addition to curry pastes. I prefer Kashmiri chillies over regular types of chilli as they are not overpowering and are more aromatic. They can be easily picked up at Indian grocers.

5. Nigella seeds

Dry-roasted onion seeds - also known as nigella seeds - are great for flavouring breads, batters, sauces and vegetables. We often use onion seeds before cooking naan in the oven. They add a delicious crunch to a variety of our Cassia dishes and impart a light onion flavour.