Turmeric is a yellow spice that can be used every day in the kitchen. Turmeric is also known as yellow saffron. This spice is has a mild flavor, a bright look and surprising health benefits. It is used daily in the cuisines of India, but also used very often in China, Tibet, Indonesia and the Middle East. We know about it but only really use it for certain recipes. This oneHOWTO article will explain how to use turmeric in cooking.
Turmeric is consumed daily under the name E100, as a food colorant which is added to cheese, butter, milk shakes and mustard. But the amount is so small that it you can hardly taste it.
Turmeric is one of the ingredients of curry powder, giving it its characteristic yellow color. You can add two pinches of turmeric to many sauces and Indian cuisine dishes such as moong ki daal, you'll notice the extra taste. An adequate amount to add to a dish would be one dessert teaspoon combined with other spices such as pepper, for example.
Turmeric also goes well with other rice dishes such as risotto, especially mushroom or broccoli risotto.
You can also use turmeric with veggies. It combines especially well with potato, cauliflower and turnips, which is why sprinkling a teaspoonful of turmeric when roasting them in the oven will give you a delicious flavor. Try adding turmeric to your vegetable stir fry too.
Soups are also a good way to use turmeric when cooking. Adding it to butternut squash soup, carrot soup or tomato soup will give you that umami taste you've been craving.
You can also use the turmeric in fish and egg dishes. This is why the combination of both ingredients with turmeric make such a good match. Try adding a pinch into your tuna deviled eggs mixture and notice the difference.
Turmeric also goes really well with chicken. Add a pinch to your kebab or in a Chicken and vegetables stew.
You can use it to replace the saffron, turmeric is cheaper, but the taste is different. You can use it to create the yellow color of a Spanish paella if you haven't go any saffron around, for instance.
You can use it for making sauces, just add a level spoon of turmeric. This is why it's a perfect complement for pasta dishes.
As you may know, one of the benefits of turmeric is its weight loss properties. The best way to benefit from this is to make turmeric tea.
To get used to its aromatic flavour we recommend that you add it in to your cooking progressively, so that it has time to cook and release its flavour.
If you want to cook with Turmeric root, get hold of a fine grater and grate it on the dish you want to season.
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