June 2012 – Page 2 – Food and Tools

Lightly smoked foods like this Dal Makhani have a wonderful taste and this can easily be achieved at home with a very simple technique called “Dhungar” which is a quick way of smoking foods… popular in some regions of India.

This age-old method of smoking can be used both during and after the cooking process and imparts a wonderful unique smokey flavour to dals, meat, rice, raita and breads or whatever else you fancy smoking… it’s my little tandoor oven!

When making makhani dishes at home, infusing a final smokey flavour into the dish using this simple technique… really does make all the difference! If you have not tried this simple technique of smoking, I suggest you only smoke a small portion of your cooked dish first, taste… see if it’s a flavour that gets your own taste buds going!

Experiment with timings when infusing smoke into the food, taste is personal! I like applying this technique sparingly on food, not overpowering the main flavour of the dish, this way I can appreciate it more!

Use only natural lump charcoal for this method of smoking… do not use any fast lighting briquettes or any other charcoal that has chemicals added to it… trust me on this one! This site offers some reading on the subject of charcoal!

The Dhungar Method of Smoking

You will need:

1 onion, peeled and the center hollowed out
1 small piece (about 2 inches) of natural lump charcoal
1/4 teaspoon clarified butter or ghee which can also be mixed with some whole spices lightly ground, if desired

Place the piece of natural lump charcoal directly on top of a gas burner. With the heat on full, burn the charcoal directly over the flames, turning the charcoal around using long tongs, so the flames reach all sides of the charcoal. The charcoal might spark a little but I have not found this to be a problem.

Center the onion in the saucepan or dish (a lid is needed) containing the food ready for smoking, make sure the onion is not completely submerged in the food. Once the coal is ready use the tongs to transfer the hot coal into the center of the onion.

I usual do the next part outside on my kitchen windowsill, apart from not wanting to set the fire alarm off, the smoke can leave a lingering smokey aroma in the kitchen for a day or two, which you might not want!

Taking a quarter teaspoon of clarified butter or ghee (maybe mixed with some spices), drop this over the hot coal. The coal will immediately start emitting a dense white smoke, have the lid ready and quickly cover the saucepan or dish. This smoke trapped inside will infuse a unique smokey flavour into what ever food has been placed into the saucepan or dish. Usually I smoke the food for about 30 seconds to a couple of minutes, depending on the recipe.

Afterwards carefully remove the onion with the hot charcoal from the food, leave to cool before discarding!

Some delicious recipes using this easy smoking technique will follow!

Garam masala means warm or hot spice mix and is a blend of spices used extensively in Indian cooking. There are many variations of garam masala as there are cooks and this depends on taste, the recipe being prepared and the region.

Sometimes garam masala is referred to as a finishing spice and can be sprinkled over the surface of a finished dish just before serving or added towards the end of cooking, enhancing the dishes fragrance and flavour. Also this spice mixture (whole or ground) can be added to recipes at the beginning stages of cooking.

Making a visit to the souk (spice section) in Manama, I managed to stock up on some whole spices, some of which will be used to make a fairly basic garam masala which I use when cooking Dhal Makhani... which happens to be one of my favourite Indian dishes! Usually I grind small batches of the whole spices using my electric spice grinder which does the job, although not as finely ground as shop bought! An electric coffee grinder can also be used, solely for the purpose of grinding whole spices… unless you are happy to consume spiced ground coffee!

Bahrain’s shops, supermarket’s and souk’s are stocked with a huge array of ground spices and spice mixes (which I buy at times) and that means never needing to grind another spice! However, grinding whole spices at home will provide maximum freshness, bringing the aroma and flavour of the spices to another level!

Garam Masala

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons coriander seeds
2 tablespoons cumin seeds
2 teaspoons black peppercorns
6 green cardamom pods
1inch piece cinnamon stick
3 blades of mace
6 cloves
2 dried bay leaves

How to make:

Heat a heavy-based frying pan over moderate heat and lightly roast each spice (except the bay leaf) seperately, moving the frying pan around until the spice releases a fragrant aroma, this does not take long, about 30 seconds. Immediately transfer the roasted spice onto a cold plate.

Grind all the cooled spices plus the bay leaf in an electric spice grinder or coffee grinder and store in an airtight container.

Note: After dry roasting the cinnamon stick and blades of mace, break them up into smaller pieces using a pestle and mortar! Your spice grinder or coffee grinder will thank you for this! Also tear up the bay leaf.

If you are not a big cardamom fan, break open the pods and use only the seeds.

If you can’t find mace blades use 1 whole nutmeg instead, break into chunks before dry roasting.

To dry roast or not to dry roast! I guess that depends on the recipe in question and may also be a preference! I tend to dry roast the whole spices if I am going to use the ground garam masala towards the end of cooking!

Storage: Spices are best kept in airtight containers away from direct heat and sunlight. The recommended keeping time for ground spices and whole spices varies, with ground spices loosing their potency faster than whole spices! Let your nose, eyes and taste be the judge when checking the freshness of your spices! It is always best to buy small quantities of spices and replenish often.

Do you make up your own spice blends? Do you have any thoughts on dry roasting spices?