Origins of Spices

 ANISE - not to be confused with STAR ANISE

 

 It is related to the carrot and parsley families. 

The seeds taste of liquorice and come fron a plant with long feathery leaves.  They help counteract wind and are a natural stimulant.  It is said that the Romans used to eat it at the end of a meal in order to aid digestion.  Indians also use the seeds to aid digestion.  It is used in stews, cheese dishes, fish and of course, with curries.  

The seeds of the anise or aniseed plant are used in cookery. They have a very distinctive liquorice flavour and a sweet yet spicy aroma. The dried seeds are ground to make powdered ground anise, which can lose its flavour quickly so it is best to buy seeds and grind them freshly or to buy ground anise in small quantities.

Anise is popular in savoury and  sweet dishes including Indian dishes, bread and fish recipes. Anise adds flavour to biscuits and cakes. It is also the main flavour in many drinks including Pernod, French Pastis and Greek and Turkish Ouzo.

It is probably best to dry-fry the seeds in a hot frying pan for a few minutes until the aroma is released.

This spice is widely used in Middle Eastern, Italian, Indian, German and Mexican cooking. Anise seed is used in Italian biscotti, desserts, and charcuterie.

A quick make it up as you go along Rogan Josh

 

 Ingredients:

 teaspoon of Nigella seeds

 teaspoon of mustard seeds

 a sprinkle of chilli flakes or a whole chilli

 4 heaped teaspoons of paprika

 10 cardamom pods

 salt and pepper

 Quick and easy ginger paste

 Quick and easy garlic paste

 Frozen onions....a good chunk, the more the thicker the sauce

A tablespoon of turmeric

500 grams of fillet neck lamb cut into chunks

1 large soft tomato, cut and chopped

A large tablespoonful of ghee to cook with

Method

I felt lazy today and short of time to cook, so did a quick, from memory, rogan josh. I decided to use the slow cooker as I wanted to go for a short walk too. Good for the mental health during this Covid pandemic, or so they say. It looked like heavy rain, so didn't wander far, just to the postbox and back. Before I went I did this:-

Took the slow cooker internal pan onto the hob and added the ghee, then threw in the frozen onions, quickly followed by the garlic and ginger paste plus the turmeric. At this stage, it looked a little dry, so I threw in a glug of extra virgin olive oil (posh chefs wouldn't approve). Then I fried the lamb and added the paprika, salt and pepper, tomato, yoghurt, mustard and Nigella seeds, cardamom pods and some chilli flakes as the red chilli I found in the fridge had seen better days and went in the bin. I added a little hot water, no measurement, just until it looked enough liquid to cook in, and put the dish back into the slow cooker which I set on high for 4 hours but it was more than ready in two hours, so switched off. Husband made basmati rice with mushrooms, turmeric and peas and I made a sambal of cucumber, tomato, red onions, coriander, crushed cumin, lemon and extra virgin olive oil.

ITALIAN PASTA MEDLEY

 Ingredients: 

500 grams of good quality minced beef

half a red onion and half a white onion, peeled and chopped

two large carrots, peeled and chopped small

two sticks of celery, washed, and chopped in small chunks

8 mushrooms wiped clean and sliced into small pieces

A glug of olive oil for sauteing

Tomato puree

A tin of chopped tomatoes

A tablespoonful of dried oregano

4 dried bay leaves

Salt and pepper to taste

A dash of tabasco chilli sauce

A dash of Worcestershire sauce

A jar of Lloyd Grossman puttanesca pasta sauce

Method:

In a large frying pan (with lid), put in the olive oil, heat a little before adding the onions, carrots and celery.  Saute for 5 minutes.  Then add the minced beef, breaking up any clumps of meat.  Fry some tomato puree with the oil and meat.  Add hot water from the kettle and cook for 20 minutes on high.  Turn down to a simmer and add the mushrooms, tinned tomatoes, salt and pepper, oregano, bay leaves, tabasco and Worcestershire sauce.  Finally add the Puttanesca sauce and leave to simmer for at least 20 minutes, but if you have the time, 30 is better.

 

For the pasta, I used Pastificio Extra di Lusso from our local Italian deli in London.   It cooks in 11 minutes but because we aren't keen on al dente, I did 14 minutes and it was just perfect for us.  I imagine 11 minutes would be OK for al dente.  I have a very large saucepan and filled it almost to the top with water, salt and a splash of olive oil.  I believe the olive oil is not the traditional way for Italians, but we like it.

I am English and usually rinse my cooked pasta in hot water, then add butter and black pepper, serving it separately from the meat.  However, this time, I decided to do the proper thing (my husband likes it) and add the pasta to the meat, with a little liquid to make it slightly starchy.  I wouldn't want it every time, but I was impressed.  It was very tasty, although I say so myself.