Ian Hemphill can’t remember when herbs and spices were not a part of his life. The younger son of John and Rosemary Hemphill, who pioneered Australia’s love of herbs and spices in the 1950s, Ian would earn his pocket money picking herbs. He is still known by the schoolboy nickname this background earned him – Herbie.
The shop he and his wife Elizabeth opened in 1997 in the Sydney suburb of Rozelle is called Herbie’s Spices. He is the author of Spice Notes, a cook’s compendium complete with recipes, and Spice Travels, which tells of sourcing spices from all over the world and also of tours the couple conduct to places such as India, where, as we have a Wheat Board, they have a Spices Board. Spice production in India outstrips any other country’s by a big margin, yet only about 10% is exported – the domestic market is huge.
Coriander seed is considered a foundation spice in curries. “When the small, oval coriander seeds have hardened and ripened to a pale fawn colour they are one of the most deliciously fragrant of all spices used in cooking,†says Herbie. It has hints of lemon peel and sage in its taste.
Herbie says it is almost impossible to use too much coriander, and he calls it the great amalgamating spice. If you have been too heavy-handed with a pungent spice such as cloves or cardamom, he says, simply add twice the amount of coriander as you have used of the dominating spice and the blend will come back into balance.
Although coriander is used very liberally in some recipes, Herbie says its volatile flavour notes evaporate quickly after grinding, so buy in small quantities, or grind the seeds yourself. For Indian, African and Asian dishes the seeds can be dry roasted before grinding, but don’t do this if you are to add the powder to an apple dish, where coriander teams well with cinnamon.
Cumin is a hot-climate plant, usually sourced from India or Iran, the biggest grower. Herbie describes the flavour of cumin as “pungent, earthy, slightly bitter, warming and makes one think predominately of curryâ€. It’s also used with rice and vegetables and in breads and chutneys. It also is “surprisingly effective†in balancing and rounding out the bouquet of other spices, he says, but is not suitable for mild dishes.
Dry roasting cumin – keep the seeds or powder moving in a clean pan with no oil – brings out a nutty flavour and reduces some of the bitterness. Cumin powder will keep for a year, and the seeds for three years.
Curry powders almost always team coriander and cumin. They are also partners in spice mixes such as baharat, used in Arabic and Iraqi cooking; chermoula and ras el hanout from Morocco; dukkah the Egyptian mix and hot harissa blends.
Finally, we asked Mrs Herbie, Elizabeth, what the couple recommended for grinding spices. At home, she said, they use a mortar and pestle for grinding herbs. An electric grinder, say a small coffee grinder, is quicker, but it generates heat which can drive off some of the volatile oils, so if you do use one for spices, process them in short bursts (and have a separate one for coffee).
And, in the same way a curry or casserole is often better on the second day, Elizabeth says when mixing your own curry blend from scratch, you have to wait a day to know if you have it right.
“You can’t judge it immediately after you’ve made it,†she said. “The next day it will have rounded out and you can tell is the spices are in balance.â€
Keep spices and herbs in an air-tight container, in the dark, away from heat. The see-through packaging Herbie’s Spices are sold in is a compromise, because people want to see what they are buying. You won’t, however, be able to confirm you choice with a sniff – even the pungent aroma of cumin does not escape from the high-barrier laminate used in the packaging.
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