Google turmeric and you’ll be presented with 62 million articles in a nano second. Turmeric has recently been widely touted as a food supplement for its supposed anti-inflammatory properties. This article, however, looks at turmeric solely from a culinary standpoint.
Turmeric is a member of the ginger family. It’s easy to see the familial resemblance between these two as fresh turmeric root looks similar to ginger root. However, once peeled, the interior of these two is quite different in that turmeric is bright orange. Most likely native to India, turmeric is what gives curry its vibrant yellow-orange color.
Turmeric is actually
the quasi root of a flowering perennial plant.
It requires warm temperatures and lots of water. The hot and humid weather of India and South
Asia offer perfect conditions and turmeric grows wild in their forests. It’s no wonder that the cuisines of both India
and the countries of southern Asia are replete with recipes that utilize turmeric. However, turmeric is also widely used in
Middle Eastern cooking and North African recipes.
Most turmeric is used in the form of a dried, ground powder to impart an intense color. It is the principal ingredient in curry powders. Turmeric gives not only color but provides a pungent earthy, mustard-like flavor. Although used mostly in savory dishes, it is also used in sweet dishes such as ice-cream and baked products like cakes. Similar to its cousin ginger, turmeric can also be used fresh in items such as Asian pickles.
My favorite use of
turmeric is in one of my most beloved recipes, chicken tikka masala:
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