Spice up your life
We all talk about it, but just how do you go about spicing up your life? Well, you could always start with your cooking. Which is where old friends Cyrus Todiwala and Tony Singh come in. They are on a two-man crusade to get Britons using the exotic flavours many of us too readily overlook. And as their new cook book, The Incredible Spice Men, reveals, a simple sprinkle of turmeric or a dash of cumin can make everyday food fresh, fun and exciting again.
They certainly know what they are doing. Between them, they have been an awarded an OBE (Todiwala) and won the much-coveted chef of the year gong (Singh). Todiwala was even selected to cook the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee dinner. And now they have just completed a tour of Britain, exploring the country’s greatest culinary traditions – and then giving them their own exciting twist.
In most cases, it really is as simple as adding some spice. Does your shepherd’s pie lack va-vavoom? Try a little cumin and ginger. If your Sunday roast chicken tastes a little too, well, everyday, boost the flavour with some cinnamon and honey. Spices are nothing to be afraid of. In fact, with some experimentation and a little imagination, they can give your cooking a whole new lease of life.
For the allspice ice cream
For the ice cream, pour the milk and cream into a pan, stir in the allspice and bring to the boil. Beat the yolks and sugar together until the mixture becomes thick, smooth and creamy.
Very gradually pour the hot cream mixture through a fine sieve (to strain out as much of the allspice as possible) into the sweetened yolk mixture, mixing as you do so. The hot liquid needs to be mixed in slowly at first, to avoid curdling; once half is added, you can add the rest more quickly, mixing well.
Return mixture to a low to medium heat. Stir constantly for about 10 mins or until it is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Remove from the heat and leave to cool, then refrigerate overnight.
Churn the chilled mixture in an ice-cream machine, following the manufacturer’s instructions. If you don’t have an ice-cream machine, pour the mixture into a deep, wide dish and put it in the freezer.
After 45 mins, as it’s starting to freeze around the edges, remove from the freezer and whisk the mixture to break up any frozen pieces. Return to the freezer for 30 mins and repeat this process. Continue to do this at 30-minute intervals until you have the desired texture.
For the pear and honey tatin, peel the pears, cut them in half lengthways and remove the core.
Heat a heavy-based 25cm ovenproof frying pan over a medium heat. Add the butter, honey and sugar, and heat until smooth and liquid, stirring occasionally to help the sugar dissolve. Then allow to bubble, stirring occasionally, for about 5 mins or until the mixture is a deep golden-brown caramel; don’t let it get too dark as it will caramelise a little further during baking.
Add the pears, cut-side up, to the hot caramel in the pan and leave to cool for about 15 mins. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 180C/gas mark 4.
Roll out the puff pastry to a 5mm-thick circle slightly larger than the top of the pan. Drape the pastry over the pears and caramel, and tuck it in at the sides so that it goes down the inside of the pan. Bake for about 40 mins or until the pastry is cooked.
Remove the tatin from the oven and leave to cool in the pan for 5 mins. Turn out the tatin by placing a deep-sided plate or shallow dish over the pan and flip the pan over. Be really careful when doing this, as hot juice may spill out as you flip the pan. Serve warm, topped with the ice cream.
Serves 4
For the Bombay aloo
For the salad
For the classic vinaigrette
For the Thai mayonnaise
For the salmon
For the Bombay aloo, cook the potatoes in a pan of boiling salted water until cooked but still firm. Use a slotted spoon to remove them from the water and set aside to dry out. Retain the cooking water.
Over a medium heat, heat 1 tbsp of the oil in a frying pan and fry the cumin, mustard and sesame seeds until they start to pop. Transfer to a small plate, retaining the oil in the pan. Put the ginger in the pan and fry for 1 min, then set aside with the popped seeds.
Heat the remaining oil in the frying pan and gently cook the onion until softening but still opaque, then add the turmeric, chilli powder and mango powder if using (but not the lemon juice), and cook for a further 2 mins.
Add the popped seeds and cooked ginger and stir. Add a splash of the potato cooking water and some lemon juice if no mango powder was used, then stir in the garam masala. Increase the heat and add the potatoes, and stir gently until fully coated and dry. Season with salt.
To prepare the salad, cook the eggs in rapidly boiling water: quail’s eggs for exactly 2 mins; hen’s eggs for 3½ mins. Remove with a slotted spoon and plunge into cold water for a few minutes or until cool enough to peel by hand. Set aside.
Put the remaining salad ingredients, except the coriander leaves, in a bowl. Mix together the vinaigrette ingredients and dress the salad generously. Mix well and divide among 4 wide serving bowls or plates, then set aside.
Make the Thai mayonnaise by mixing together the two ingredients and set aside.
To cook the salmon, put the stock, thyme, lime and lemon grass in a large pan and bring to a simmer. Continue to simmer for 5-10 mins for the flavours to infuse. Add the salmon fillets and poach gently for 5-10 mins. Remove the pan from the heat and leave to cool.
Remove the fillets from the poaching liquor and flake one on to each salad bowl or plate. Slice the peeled eggs in two and add to the salad. Top each serving with some Bombay aloo, sprinkle coriander leaves over and serve with the Thai mayonnaise.
The Incredible Spice Men, by Cyrus Todiwala and Tony Singh, with photography by Haarala Hamilton, is published by BBC Books, priced £20, on 15 August.
They certainly know what they are doing. Between them, they have been an awarded an OBE (Todiwala) and won the much-coveted chef of the year gong (Singh). Todiwala was even selected to cook the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee dinner. And now they have just completed a tour of Britain, exploring the country’s greatest culinary traditions – and then giving them their own exciting twist.
In most cases, it really is as simple as adding some spice. Does your shepherd’s pie lack va-vavoom? Try a little cumin and ginger. If your Sunday roast chicken tastes a little too, well, everyday, boost the flavour with some cinnamon and honey. Spices are nothing to be afraid of. In fact, with some experimentation and a little imagination, they can give your cooking a whole new lease of life.
Pear and Honey Tatin with Allspice Ice Cream
Serves 6For the allspice ice cream
- 400ml milk
- 400ml double cream
- 2 tbsp ground allspice
- 4 egg yolks
- 100g caster sugar
For the tatin
- 6 pears, as ripe as possible
- 100g unsalted butter
- 100g honey
- 75g soft brown sugar
- 375g all-butter puff pastry
For the ice cream, pour the milk and cream into a pan, stir in the allspice and bring to the boil. Beat the yolks and sugar together until the mixture becomes thick, smooth and creamy.
Very gradually pour the hot cream mixture through a fine sieve (to strain out as much of the allspice as possible) into the sweetened yolk mixture, mixing as you do so. The hot liquid needs to be mixed in slowly at first, to avoid curdling; once half is added, you can add the rest more quickly, mixing well.
Return mixture to a low to medium heat. Stir constantly for about 10 mins or until it is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Remove from the heat and leave to cool, then refrigerate overnight.
Churn the chilled mixture in an ice-cream machine, following the manufacturer’s instructions. If you don’t have an ice-cream machine, pour the mixture into a deep, wide dish and put it in the freezer.
After 45 mins, as it’s starting to freeze around the edges, remove from the freezer and whisk the mixture to break up any frozen pieces. Return to the freezer for 30 mins and repeat this process. Continue to do this at 30-minute intervals until you have the desired texture.
For the pear and honey tatin, peel the pears, cut them in half lengthways and remove the core.
Heat a heavy-based 25cm ovenproof frying pan over a medium heat. Add the butter, honey and sugar, and heat until smooth and liquid, stirring occasionally to help the sugar dissolve. Then allow to bubble, stirring occasionally, for about 5 mins or until the mixture is a deep golden-brown caramel; don’t let it get too dark as it will caramelise a little further during baking.
Add the pears, cut-side up, to the hot caramel in the pan and leave to cool for about 15 mins. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 180C/gas mark 4.
Roll out the puff pastry to a 5mm-thick circle slightly larger than the top of the pan. Drape the pastry over the pears and caramel, and tuck it in at the sides so that it goes down the inside of the pan. Bake for about 40 mins or until the pastry is cooked.
Remove the tatin from the oven and leave to cool in the pan for 5 mins. Turn out the tatin by placing a deep-sided plate or shallow dish over the pan and flip the pan over. Be really careful when doing this, as hot juice may spill out as you flip the pan. Serve warm, topped with the ice cream.
SALMON NIÇOISE WITH BOMBAY ALOO (pictured top)
Serves 4 For the Bombay aloo
- 300g potatoes, peeled and cut into bite-size cubes
- 2 tbsp rapeseed oil or vegetable oil
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- 1 tsp mustard seeds
- 1 tsp sesame seeds
- 15g chopped fresh root ginger
- ½ large onion, diced
- 1 tsp turmeric
- ½ tsp chilli powder
- 1 tsp mango powder (or a squeeze of lemon juice)
- 1 tsp garam masala
- salt
For the salad
- 16 quail’s eggs or 4 hen’s eggs, at room temperature
- 200g fine French beans, blanched in boiling water and refreshed in cold water
- 24 cherry tomatoes, halved
- 24 plump black olives, stoned
- 2 large shallots, sliced into rings
- small handful of fresh coriander leaves
For the classic vinaigrette
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard
- 1 tbsp white wine vinegar
- 3½ tbsp olive oil
For the Thai mayonnaise
- 4 tbsp mayonnaise
- 1 tbsp sweet chilli sauce
For the salmon
- 1.5 litres fish stock
- few sprigs of fresh thyme
- 4 slices of lime
- 4 lemon grass sticks, bruised and roughly chopped
- 4 x 150g salmon fillets, skinned and boned
For the Bombay aloo, cook the potatoes in a pan of boiling salted water until cooked but still firm. Use a slotted spoon to remove them from the water and set aside to dry out. Retain the cooking water.
Over a medium heat, heat 1 tbsp of the oil in a frying pan and fry the cumin, mustard and sesame seeds until they start to pop. Transfer to a small plate, retaining the oil in the pan. Put the ginger in the pan and fry for 1 min, then set aside with the popped seeds.
Heat the remaining oil in the frying pan and gently cook the onion until softening but still opaque, then add the turmeric, chilli powder and mango powder if using (but not the lemon juice), and cook for a further 2 mins.
Add the popped seeds and cooked ginger and stir. Add a splash of the potato cooking water and some lemon juice if no mango powder was used, then stir in the garam masala. Increase the heat and add the potatoes, and stir gently until fully coated and dry. Season with salt.
To prepare the salad, cook the eggs in rapidly boiling water: quail’s eggs for exactly 2 mins; hen’s eggs for 3½ mins. Remove with a slotted spoon and plunge into cold water for a few minutes or until cool enough to peel by hand. Set aside.
Put the remaining salad ingredients, except the coriander leaves, in a bowl. Mix together the vinaigrette ingredients and dress the salad generously. Mix well and divide among 4 wide serving bowls or plates, then set aside.
Make the Thai mayonnaise by mixing together the two ingredients and set aside.
To cook the salmon, put the stock, thyme, lime and lemon grass in a large pan and bring to a simmer. Continue to simmer for 5-10 mins for the flavours to infuse. Add the salmon fillets and poach gently for 5-10 mins. Remove the pan from the heat and leave to cool.
Remove the fillets from the poaching liquor and flake one on to each salad bowl or plate. Slice the peeled eggs in two and add to the salad. Top each serving with some Bombay aloo, sprinkle coriander leaves over and serve with the Thai mayonnaise.
The Incredible Spice Men, by Cyrus Todiwala and Tony Singh, with photography by Haarala Hamilton, is published by BBC Books, priced £20, on 15 August.