Asian cuisine

I am so fascinated with galangal,which is a rhizome similar to ginger, and is used much in the same way, only galangal is harder and denser than ginger.

There are two types of galangal: Greater galangal, which is native to Indonesia; and lesser galangal, which mostly grows on the southeast coast of China and in India.Although the name might be unfamiliar to most westerners, galangal had been imported in large quantities to Europe ever since the Middle Ages to be used as a medicine and a spice. Continue reading →

In theory, five spice (also known as Chinese Five or 5 Spice Powder), came about as a result of the Chinese philosophy of balancing the five main flavors of sweet, sour, salty, bitter and pungent. These flavors were representative of all the five elements of wood, fire, earth, metal and water.

Traditionally, Chinese five spice is a blend of cinnamon, ground cloves, fennel seeds, star anise and Szechuan pepper. Although, in other countries, specifically in Arabic cookery, they may use a blend seven spices made with different ingredients, such as allspice, black pepper, cinnamon, clove, fenugreek, nutmeg and ginger. Continue reading →