Indian spices - shop recommendation Dublin City centre

V1llianous

I am looking to buy a load of indian spices and pastes for a weekend of experimentation

Can anyone recommend a place in Dublin City Centre, I understand there was a shop on Georges' Street not sure if it is still there.

TIA

qwertyphobia

best place I would say is the one on Mary st, The indian restraunt just down from it is one of the best and most varied as well

The Sweeper

Hey V1llianous

Do you cook with spices a lot, or just trying it this weekend?

[Possibly teaching you to suck eggs]

I'm only asking because basically, spices have a limited shelf life. They lose their pungency and flavour if stored for a long time and eventually start to taste like sawdust. Ethnic stores often have spices (ground cumin, coriander, tumeric) in 500g bags for what is a good price per kg relative to the supermarkets, but considering you use a half to one tsp of each spice in most dishes, that's a LOT of cooking to get through those volumes.

If you're experimenting, I'd say the cheapest thing to do is go to your supermarket and buy the Sharwoods refill packs - not the jars, the cardboard boxes wth plastic sachets in them. They may not be cost effective compared to the large bags from the ethnic stores, but if you don't cook with spices a lot, they'll be better than you spending more money on bulk items that then sit in your cupboard for ages.

I cook with spices pretty frequently, and the following is what I use a lot of:

Cumin - buy the whole seeds. You can grind them in a mortar and pestle if you need ground cumin. (Obviously if you don't have a M&P, buy the ground as well. ...it's cheaper than a new M&P.) Whole seeds are great in boiled rice (just chuck a 1/2 tsp in the water while it's boiling) and scattered over lamb chops. Ground cumin is great in chili, curries and even added to a pack of two-minute-instant noodles.

Coriander - buy the whole seeds, and again you can grind them as you need them. I used this in curries and marinades for chicken.

Turmeric - great for colouring pilau rice, also use it in paella. It has a very specific flavour - I find if I'm making curry it's either cumin or turmeric I use most of, but rarely do I use both together strongly. It's also good in marinades for chicken. It'll dye any cloth it touches, and if you have a laminate counter top mind where you put your stirring spoon - it'll leave a yellow stain that's a bitch to get out.

Smoked Paprika - A sweet, smokey peppery spice, not too hot, adds a very distinctive flavour to whatever you use it in (chili, curry, stroganoff, meatballs). A little goes a long way.

Cardamom - buy the whole green pods - I use these at the start of curries for flavouring at the the oil, ginger, garlic and onion stage.

Cloves - buy them whole, they have lots of uses - curries, studding ham, put them in onions to flavour milk for cheese sauces, use them in sweet dishes.

Nutmeg - again I buy them whole and I have a Peugeot nutmeg grinder (hey I like my nutmeg okay?) - useful in curries, stroganoff, strangely good in tomato-based italian dishes, great in sweet dishes, finely ground adds a spin on top of hot chocolate.

Cinnamon - I buy whole sticks for adding to curries, and the ground powder for flavouring sweet dishes - my mortar and pestle won't cope with a whole stick of cinnamon to grind it to a powder, and I don't want to put it through the coffee grinder because then everything that comes after tastes of cinnamon. Works nicely with a little turmeric and a little more cumin for a simple spiced moroccan lamb dish actually. And again with the hot chocolate.

Chili Powder - I buy mild to medium, and this is probably the spice I use the most, with cumin a close second. I'll put chili powder in lots of things - chili con carne, obviously, but I'll also add it to everything from frying fish to baked beans. I likes meh chili.

Garam Masala - the closest thing I'll buy to "curry powder" - a blend of indian spices designed to be added just before the end of cooking a curry, helps round out the flavour. A little can, again, go a long way. I also add this to two minute noodles if I'm having a lunch on the run day. (Instant noodles - the one quick n easy food I have a love affair with.)

Chili flakes - great to add heat to dishes, but often hide a kick like a mule.

There are a LOT of other spices I use less regularly:

Fenugreek seeds - aniseedy, I'd buy them and use them once in a blue moon. They're good used ground to flavour pork chops. It's just a case of remembering to get them out when it's pork chop time.

Things I nearly never use and so have stopped buying unless a recipe catches my eye include star anise, chinese five spice powder, caroway seeds (a sort of round, sweet, peppery flavour - fab in carrot cake, but I never make it), mustard seeds, poppy seeds, celery seeds, black cardamom and allspice. Saffron is too expensive for my tastes, and I've never used fennell seeds for anything.

I still buy plain paprika because it adds flavour and colour to dishes without the smoked flavour of, well, smoked paprika. I used to buy a lot of cayenne pepper, but these days tend to prefer to get heat from fresh chili or chili flakes.

[/Possibly teaching you to suck eggs]

Anyway - I could have just told you a load of stuff you already know, but it was the word "experimenting" that set me off.

(What can I say, I've been that experimental solider. The funniest was when I bought curry leaves off the internet. I wanted fresh, but didn't realise they came dried. I also didn't check the bag weight for sense. 500g. Yep, thought I, 500g sounds right, I've bought my peppercorns, my seasalt, my chili powder, my rice etc. in that and heavier.

Have you any idea HOW MANY dried curry leaves make up 500g? I got a pillowcaseful of dried leaves delivered in the post. Plus because they were dried they were just poxy and nobody would take them off me. My brother, Minder, generously recommeded some solutions like adding them to bottles of oil to make curry oil, but there was still no way I was ever going to get through a pillowcaseful of dried leaves. They sat in a cupboard all of their own in the kitchen for about nine months until we moved, gently curry-scenting the bills and utility instruction manuals in the drawer above.)

Alun

Whole spices don't lose their pungency as quickly as ground ones do, so for cumin and coriander don't buy the ground version, buy the whole seeds and grind them yourself in small quantities yourself. You can do the same for chilli powder too. You can either do that in a pestle and mortar for small quantities each time you cook, or use a (dedicated) coffee grinder and do up small batches every now and then if you use the ground spices fairly often, as I do.

I make my own Garam Masala too, it's pretty simple, but if you ask 100 people for a 'recipe' you'll get 100 different answers, so I won't give you mine. Google it and experiment a bit.

I have to say use mustard seeds a lot, especially in vegetable dishes. Throw them into the hot oil and stand well back

I've got loads of more obscure spices lurking in the back of my cupboards too .. onion seeds (kalonji), black cumin seeds, asafoetida, that I hardly ever use. I really ought to have a 'purge' one day and get rid of some of the stuff I never use, also because it's probably several years old by now, but I can't do it .. I mean, you never know when you might need it

qwertyphobia

Coriander seeds are great, they are lovely cracked and baked in the oven with courgettes

The asain market beside the Jervis st luas stop is also great for picking up more of the Thai flavours like Galangala or Kafka leaves.

The Hill Billy

Mostly what MAJD said, but I'd buy small packets of "whole" spices in an asian store. They'll be cheaper than even Sharwoods refill packs.

There are 2 good asian stores beside each other in the lane between Harcourt Road and South Richmond Street. Try the Achar Mango Pickle that the shop on the left stocks. It is fantastic!

Krusty_Clown

Nutmeg - again I buy them whole and I have a Peugeot nutmeg grinder (hey I like my nutmeg okay?)

Curries and Hot chocolate.. Right.. We believe you...

Great write-up. I too have been/still am that soldier.. Just to add a couple of points/tips:
Sharwoods refills (even in the cardboard/plastic packs) will cost you about the same amount of money as the much larger bags you'll pick up in somewhere like the Asian Food Emporium. Sharwoods products (IMHO) are over-priced, and generally a poor substitute in terms of quality.

I generally put the spices in individual sandwich bags, in a tub, and then put the tub in a zip-loc bag. Prevents that phone-bill contamination.

Saffron: All you need is a couple of strands. In fact if you use more, the flavour can be over-powering. Try to get someone on holidays to look out for some (where it is so much cheaper). Greece, northern Spain, Italy, Asia.. Avoid fake Saffron, which can take the form of silk strands among other things!

Cumin: Throw a pinch in with some butter on your boiled carrots. Incredible!

Cardamom: Throw a few pods into a cup of coffee, for a twist. Also, grind the seeds with some coriander seeds, peppercorns and some cumin seeds. coat your pork fillet slices, fry and add some cream and milk to make a delicious subtle-spiced dish (Ballymaloe recipe).

Coriander - Fresh coriander stems/leaves are a completely different flavour to the seeds, and both compliment each other very well in dishes (use the leaves/stems at the end of cooking).

Fresh Chillies - Less of a spice/more of a vegetable, supermarkets now carry large numbers of varieties (try Superquinns exotic fruits(?) section. Fresh chilies add incredible flavour to a dish. the Asia food markets also carry a many varieties.

Others:
Sichuan (Szechuan) peppercorns have an incredible flavour. Great for those Chinese dishes. Dry fry (roast) them to bring out the pungency and grind.

Galangal, ginger, garlic - Essential roots/vegetables for Chinese / Thai / Indian cookery.

Off-topic, but other staple flavours I use frequently:
Hoisin sauce - Chinese barbecue flavour.
Chilli Bean Sauce - hot but fantastic flavour
Toasted Sesame oil, Oyster sauce, Black beans, 5 spice, Sweet Chilli (make it myself on occasion, but the Thai variety in Superquinn is cheap and very tasty), Fish sauce, coconut milk, lime leaves, limes, Rice vinegar, soy sauces (several). The rest I buy on demand..

V1llianous

qwertyphobia wrote:

best place I would say is the one on Mary st, The indian restraunt just down from it is one of the best and most varied as well

Just back from this place now, they had everything I needed and nice friendly helpful staff too.

Hill Billy wrote:

Mostly what MAJD said, but I'd buy small packets of "whole" spices in an asian store. They'll be cheaper than even Sharwoods refill packs.

I didn't get this advice till I got back but you are right. I bought the spices in 100g bags for €1.50 which is cheaper than the Sharwoods / Shwartz refill bags that are a lot smaller.

Impressed with the lot, got enough for about 15/20 meals spice-wise for €12 only need to get the meat and fresh coriander & ginger each time now so will be a very good saving over jars of sauce at €5 each.

Thanks for all the advice guys !

Tazz T

Remember that hunk of ginger goes a long way if you freeze it - it's also easier to grate. And with the weather we're having these days it a cinch growing your own fresh coriander. I've a huge tub full of it at the moment. You can even use the seeds when it flowers.

Krusty_Clown

Tazz T wrote:

Remember that hunk of ginger goes a long way if you freeze it - it's also easier to grate. And with the weather we're having these days it a cinch growing your own fresh coriander. I've a huge tub full of it at the moment. You can even use the seeds when it flowers.

Did you grow it from seeds, or from a bought pack in a supermaket?
My basil and chives are thriving, but I can never keep the coriander alive for more than a couple of weeks..