Hi Everyone, One of the thrilling things about cooking with spices and herbs is that you can use them in many combinations and on each occasion be totally surprised by the flavour. What I especially like is how various cuisines use familiar ingredients in different ways to create a signature taste that distinguishes that cuisine. When we smell and taste cumin (geera), the flavours of India flood our senses. It makes you think of Mexican cuisine too. With star anise, we think of Chinese cuisine, cinnamon and nutmeg makes us think of the Caribbean. Get my drift? The five-spice to which we are accustomed is the Chinese five-spice powder made up of star anise, cinnamon, Sichuan peppercorns, cloves and fennel seeds.
Panch Phoron, a five-spice mix made up of 5 different whole spices offers up a signature taste