Spice of Life
Spices That Cure
Asian food, generically, is perceived to be spicier than its western counterpart. Though this was true for a long time, the reason does not happen to be taste or color alone.
In the tropical climates, the presence of various types of bacteria and other micro-organisms makes it necessary to set up a food system that, while nourishing the body, takes care of its defense system too. Cooking methods play an important role and so do condiments and spices. There are various spices that are used across Asia, indeed, in other tropical countries too.
In Indian food, the basic spices that one can find in every main course, across the length and breadth of the country are turmeric and cumin seeds. The influence of Central Asian invasions is seen in the foods but by and large turmeric based (or at least using) cuisine is pan Indian.
Turmeric is one of the strongest Antiseptics known to man. Its healing properties are beyond belief. In India, it is used in cooking without even a second thought to its medicinal properties.
Turmeric is a rhizome of the biological family Zingiberaceae. In fact its close relation to the ginger family is reflected in its Chinese name – jianghuang, which literally means ‘yellow ginger’.
Though it is a produce of South East Asia, it traveled to China before the seventh century and also spread across Polynesian islands as far as Hawaii and even Easter islands. It has been mentioned in the Vedas, carries a Sanskrit name and was commonly used as a medicine in ancient India and China.
It s brilliant golden yellow color is because of the presence of the curcumin chemical that also makes it a brilliant and active dye. It is aromatic and is considered to be a stimulant for body systems. Apart from having excellent antiseptic and antibacterial properties, it has been, since time immemorial, considered good for strengthening the stomach and as a blood purifier.
Traditionally, it has been considered good as an expectorant for children’s irritating cough, dissolved in milk. Grandmas across Asia recommend a glassful of milk with two teaspoonfuls of turmeric to asthmatic and bronchitic children. It is said to have the ability to clear phlegm and reduce spasms of asthma also. Turmeric powder combined with caraway seeds or bishop’s weed is considered an effective cure for colds in children.
For people suffering from skin disorders like spots, acne, dryness or discoloration of any kind, turmeric is a God-send. A paste of turmeric, fresh cream and sandalwood powder makes for an excellent rejuvenating cream, especially for dry, discolored or ageing skin. The turmeric gives a glow to the skin, while cream keeps it soft. In fact this was one of the best kept secrets of ancient Indian cosmetic knowledge, and royal ladies as well as commoners have been using it for centuries. Even today, in India, turmeric is considered an essential part of a rejuvenating face mask, that needs nothing but natural ingredients, usually off the kitchen shelf.
In aid of beauty, turmeric also helps remove adipose tissue and cuts through cellulite from the body. In fact, mixed with honey in equal proportions and taken twice a week works wonders for reducing body weight, by cleansing the toxins and water retention, making the body look slimmer and toned.
When mixed with buttermilk or diluted yoghurt, it is an excellent cure for stomach disorders and when made into a paste, it rejuvenates the liver. For expelling intestinal worms, turmeric juice (of raw rhizomes), taken daily, is very effective.
The list of its uses is endless, it would seem. But today, its best and most recognized use is as an essential part of curry powders, and is responsible for their strong colors. Usually, curry powder contains 24% of ginger by weight. It also forms an intrinsic part of Indian preservative foods like pickles and wafers. Indeed, it is hard to imagine an Indian dish without turmeric.
Ayurveda, the oldest documented science of food systems as diagnostic and thereuptic, specifies turmeric as a cooling spice, essential for a pitta diet ----people with pitta diet are said to develop a good amount of determination, energy and determination. Ancients consider this to be a good state to be in. It has been prescribed as an essential part of food to cure flatulence and remove toxins from the blood.
Turmeric , most associated with hot, pungent, dark colored curries, is more of a medicine than a taste enhancer, and we need to learn this from the forefathers of medicinal sciences in Asia, particularly India and China.
By Kanika Goswami
Published: 2/18/2004
www.buzzle.com/editorials/2-17-2004-50655.asp
The little cumin was born in Western Asia, a couple of thousand years ago. It belongs to the corriander family.It has found mention in Biblical works, Isaiah xxvii. 25 and 27, and Matthew xxiii. 23, and in the works of Hippocrates and Dioscorides. It finds mention in the list of medicinal plants that were in use in Egypt in 1550 BC. The ancient Egyptians used it both to flavor their meats and to mummify their dead. Pliny has also mentioned the qualities of the cumin in his writings and he has called it the best of condiments. So we can gather it was cultivated not only in West Asia but also the Eastern and Southern European areas, specially the warm temperate climate zones. Today it is cultivated across India, Iran, Indonesia, China and the South Mediterranean. Cumin is frequently used in Mexican dishes such as chili con carne and hot tamales.
The word Cumin in English is derived from the Latin cuminum, which itself was dervived from Greek kyminon. An interesting fact is that in most Morthen European cusiines, cumin is not given any place at alone, let alone a place of homour thought it addas life to the flavour of meats and even vegetables. It was long considered some form of twisted relative of the caraway seed and this can be traced to the different names it has got in different languages. Countries that use caraway consider it a foreign form of cumin and the countries that prefer cumin call a foreign form of caraway. In every cuisine, thus, it is a foreigner, mostly considered to be of exotic origins, and this name is affixed to it in most languages-- Roman caraway, Eastern caraway, Egyptian caraway, and Turkish caraway to name a few. It is not a very regular part of Italian cuisien yet the rest of Europe insists it is Roman caraway. In fact Charlemange was responsible for making it known in Northen Europe, whatever little, because of his herb edicts..so in these areas cuimin is viewed as an Italian (Or Mediterranean )type of caraway seed. Talk of mistaken idnetities!!!.
But in medevial Erope, a lot of myths were attached to the cumin seed, the most important being that it would stop cattle from wondering away…and by some stretch of imagination, prevent a spouse from wandering too. This was the reason why Germans carried dill, cumin and salt in there pockets during wedding ceremonies. Among ancients Greeks, the cumin symbolized cupidity.
It was also used in native medicine in Southern European cultures, Indian as well as Chinese traditional medicine. However, it’s most common use today is as a flavoring in cuisine, an essential part of curry powder and it is now imported from Indian cities like Mumbai and Calcutta, Morocco, Sicily and even Malta (where it is called Hot Cumin because they call anise sweet cumin).
The seed itself is largely used in centenary medicine. The main composition is a mixture of cymol or cymene and cuminic aldehyde. The seed is useful as a stimulant, especially digestive stimulant and when eaten with curd, helps clear the system of accumulated waste materials. Its carminative qualities are traditionally considered superior to that of fennel or anise. However, it does not have a very agreeable taste, unlike fennel, so is now used mostly as a carminative in animal medicine.
In traditional Eastern medicine systems, cumin seeds are used extensively to stop morning sickness, jaundice, nausea, vomiting, colic. It can cure diarrhea and dysentery, in addition to being a calming food, to induce sleep. Scientists in Israel and India are also studying its anti-caricenogenic properties, it has been fund, in some cases, to block the growth of a cancerous chromosome by up to 83%.
In addition to all these, it is a powerful anti-bacterial and a cumin decoction protects against hookworm infections too.
An old wives tale is that cumin seeds mixed with milk and honey, taken once daily during pregnancy eases childbirth, helps in development of the baby and even increases lactation. In traditional medicine, it has also found great favor as a corrective for flatulence and indigestion. It is supposed to increase lactation and reduce nausea in pregnancy.
It enjoys wide culinary uses, In addition to being an inseparable part of the Indian curry masala, it is also used as a part of the marinade for meats in Eastern, Middle Eastern Mexican, Portuguese and Spanish cuisine. It finds a lot of use in stews, especially of lamb and chicken dishes. Since it has a very strong and sharp taste, it can be used to flavor steamed rice, toss aubergines, beans and cakes. In some things like Portuguese sausages it is an essential spice but in Central Europe it is mostly used to spice cheese. It is used as a pickling ingredient in cabbage and sauerkraut. In the Middle East it is used in fish dishes, grills and stews. Cumin together with caraway flavors Kummel, the famous German liquer.
By Kanika Goswami
Published: 5/13/2004
Spice of Life
Spices That Cure
Asian food, generically, is perceived to be spicier than its western counterpart. Though this was true for a long time, the reason does not happen to be taste or color alone.
In the tropical climates, the presence of various types of bacteria and other micro-organisms makes it necessary to set up a food system that, while nourishing the body, takes care of its defense system too. Cooking methods play an important role and so do condiments and spices. There are various spices that are used across Asia, indeed, in other tropical countries too.
In Indian food, the basic spices that one can find in every main course, across the length and breadth of the country are turmeric and cumin seeds. The influence of Central Asian invasions is seen in the foods but by and large turmeric based (or at least using) cuisine is pan Indian.
Turmeric is one of the strongest Antiseptics known to man. Its healing properties are beyond belief. In India, it is used in cooking without even a second thought to its medicinal properties.
Turmeric is a rhizome of the biological family Zingiberaceae. In fact its close relation to the ginger family is reflected in its Chinese name – jianghuang, which literally means ‘yellow ginger’.
Though it is a produce of South East Asia, it traveled to China before the seventh century and also spread across Polynesian islands as far as Hawaii and even Easter islands. It has been mentioned in the Vedas, carries a Sanskrit name and was commonly used as a medicine in ancient India and China.
It s brilliant golden yellow color is because of the presence of the curcumin chemical that also makes it a brilliant and active dye. It is aromatic and is considered to be a stimulant for body systems. Apart from having excellent antiseptic and antibacterial properties, it has been, since time immemorial, considered good for strengthening the stomach and as a blood purifier.
Traditionally, it has been considered good as an expectorant for children’s irritating cough, dissolved in milk. Grandmas across Asia recommend a glassful of milk with two teaspoonfuls of turmeric to asthmatic and bronchitic children. It is said to have the ability to clear phlegm and reduce spasms of asthma also. Turmeric powder combined with caraway seeds or bishop’s weed is considered an effective cure for colds in children.
For people suffering from skin disorders like spots, acne, dryness or discoloration of any kind, turmeric is a God-send. A paste of turmeric, fresh cream and sandalwood powder makes for an excellent rejuvenating cream, especially for dry, discolored or ageing skin. The turmeric gives a glow to the skin, while cream keeps it soft. In fact this was one of the best kept secrets of ancient Indian cosmetic knowledge, and royal ladies as well as commoners have been using it for centuries. Even today, in India, turmeric is considered an essential part of a rejuvenating face mask, that needs nothing but natural ingredients, usually off the kitchen shelf.
In aid of beauty, turmeric also helps remove adipose tissue and cuts through cellulite from the body. In fact, mixed with honey in equal proportions and taken twice a week works wonders for reducing body weight, by cleansing the toxins and water retention, making the body look slimmer and toned.
When mixed with buttermilk or diluted yoghurt, it is an excellent cure for stomach disorders and when made into a paste, it rejuvenates the liver. For expelling intestinal worms, turmeric juice (of raw rhizomes), taken daily, is very effective.
The list of its uses is endless, it would seem. But today, its best and most recognized use is as an essential part of curry powders, and is responsible for their strong colors. Usually, curry powder contains 24% of ginger by weight. It also forms an intrinsic part of Indian preservative foods like pickles and wafers. Indeed, it is hard to imagine an Indian dish without turmeric.
Ayurveda, the oldest documented science of food systems as diagnostic and thereuptic, specifies turmeric as a cooling spice, essential for a pitta diet ----people with pitta diet are said to develop a good amount of determination, energy and determination. Ancients consider this to be a good state to be in. It has been prescribed as an essential part of food to cure flatulence and remove toxins from the blood.
Turmeric , most associated with hot, pungent, dark colored curries, is more of a medicine than a taste enhancer, and we need to learn this from the forefathers of medicinal sciences in Asia, particularly India and China.
By Kanika Goswami
Published: 2/18/2004
www.buzzle.com/editorials/2-17-2004-50655.asp
The little cumin was born in Western Asia, a couple of thousand years ago. It belongs to the corriander family.It has found mention in Biblical works, Isaiah xxvii. 25 and 27, and Matthew xxiii. 23, and in the works of Hippocrates and Dioscorides. It finds mention in the list of medicinal plants that were in use in Egypt in 1550 BC. The ancient Egyptians used it both to flavor their meats and to mummify their dead. Pliny has also mentioned the qualities of the cumin in his writings and he has called it the best of condiments. So we can gather it was cultivated not only in West Asia but also the Eastern and Southern European areas, specially the warm temperate climate zones. Today it is cultivated across India, Iran, Indonesia, China and the South Mediterranean. Cumin is frequently used in Mexican dishes such as chili con carne and hot tamales.
The word Cumin in English is derived from the Latin cuminum, which itself was dervived from Greek kyminon. An interesting fact is that in most Morthen European cusiines, cumin is not given any place at alone, let alone a place of homour thought it addas life to the flavour of meats and even vegetables. It was long considered some form of twisted relative of the caraway seed and this can be traced to the different names it has got in different languages. Countries that use caraway consider it a foreign form of cumin and the countries that prefer cumin call a foreign form of caraway. In every cuisine, thus, it is a foreigner, mostly considered to be of exotic origins, and this name is affixed to it in most languages-- Roman caraway, Eastern caraway, Egyptian caraway, and Turkish caraway to name a few. It is not a very regular part of Italian cuisien yet the rest of Europe insists it is Roman caraway. In fact Charlemange was responsible for making it known in Northen Europe, whatever little, because of his herb edicts..so in these areas cuimin is viewed as an Italian (Or Mediterranean )type of caraway seed. Talk of mistaken idnetities!!!.
But in medevial Erope, a lot of myths were attached to the cumin seed, the most important being that it would stop cattle from wondering away…and by some stretch of imagination, prevent a spouse from wandering too. This was the reason why Germans carried dill, cumin and salt in there pockets during wedding ceremonies. Among ancients Greeks, the cumin symbolized cupidity.
It was also used in native medicine in Southern European cultures, Indian as well as Chinese traditional medicine. However, it’s most common use today is as a flavoring in cuisine, an essential part of curry powder and it is now imported from Indian cities like Mumbai and Calcutta, Morocco, Sicily and even Malta (where it is called Hot Cumin because they call anise sweet cumin).
The seed itself is largely used in centenary medicine. The main composition is a mixture of cymol or cymene and cuminic aldehyde. The seed is useful as a stimulant, especially digestive stimulant and when eaten with curd, helps clear the system of accumulated waste materials. Its carminative qualities are traditionally considered superior to that of fennel or anise. However, it does not have a very agreeable taste, unlike fennel, so is now used mostly as a carminative in animal medicine.
In traditional Eastern medicine systems, cumin seeds are used extensively to stop morning sickness, jaundice, nausea, vomiting, colic. It can cure diarrhea and dysentery, in addition to being a calming food, to induce sleep. Scientists in Israel and India are also studying its anti-caricenogenic properties, it has been fund, in some cases, to block the growth of a cancerous chromosome by up to 83%.
In addition to all these, it is a powerful anti-bacterial and a cumin decoction protects against hookworm infections too.
An old wives tale is that cumin seeds mixed with milk and honey, taken once daily during pregnancy eases childbirth, helps in development of the baby and even increases lactation. In traditional medicine, it has also found great favor as a corrective for flatulence and indigestion. It is supposed to increase lactation and reduce nausea in pregnancy.
It enjoys wide culinary uses, In addition to being an inseparable part of the Indian curry masala, it is also used as a part of the marinade for meats in Eastern, Middle Eastern Mexican, Portuguese and Spanish cuisine. It finds a lot of use in stews, especially of lamb and chicken dishes. Since it has a very strong and sharp taste, it can be used to flavor steamed rice, toss aubergines, beans and cakes. In some things like Portuguese sausages it is an essential spice but in Central Europe it is mostly used to spice cheese. It is used as a pickling ingredient in cabbage and sauerkraut. In the Middle East it is used in fish dishes, grills and stews. Cumin together with caraway flavors Kummel, the famous German liquer.
By Kanika Goswami
Published: 5/13/2004