Creole Seasoning

Let your imagination run wild with this creole seasoning – don’t feel limited by its traditional uses!

I’ll be using this in some future recipes, but in case you’re feeling a bit stumped in the meantime, this can be used as a dry rub, to flavour soups and various other dishes (even scrambled tofu!) and to make sauces. The most recent sauce I made with this included tomato paste, fresh chopped tomatoes, balsamic vinegar and water blended together with some of the seasoning. It was an impressive, quick throw together, but unfortunately I don’t have any quantities for you.

The vegetable “holy trinity” of creole cuisine is considered to be onion, capsicum (bell pepper) and celery – those veggies are a good place to start with this if you’re feeling unsure.

Yields 1 Heaped Cup

2 TBSP Onion Powder
2 TBSP Garlic Powder
2 TBSP Dried Oregano
2 TBSP Dried Basil
1 TBSP Dried Thyme
1 TBSP Cayenne Pepper
1 TBSP Celery Seed
5 TBSP Sweet Paprika
1.5 TBSP Mixed Peppercorns, bashed in a mortar & pestle (I used a black/white/red mix)

• Mix together all above ingredients and store in an air tight, glass jar.

Taco Seasoning

Makes almost 1 Cup

2 TBSP Onion Powder
1 TBSP Garlic Powder
1 TBSP Garlic Flakes/Granules
2 TBSP Smoked Paprika
1 TBSP Ground Cumin
1/4-1/2 tsp Cayenne Pepper
1 tsp Chickpea Flour (also known as “besan”)
1 tsp Raw Sugar (optional)
Salt to taste

Mix all ingredients together evenly and store in an air tight jar in a cool, dark place.

Panch Phora (Bengali 5 Spice)

I’ve been keeping myself very busy this weekend. Among the many house chores I took on, I decided to finally fill up my new herb/spice jars and label them because I tend to be a little crazy about having things in the kitchen organised. Unfortunately I underestimated how many jars I’d need and below this drawer is another full drawer of little bags of herbs & spices with pegs holding them closed!

I hope y’all don’t feel that today’s post is a bit of a cop out because trust me – it’s an awesome spice mix and it’s going to come up on this blog more than a few times. It has many uses; my favourite is Mr. AA’s fiery Burmese style laksa (a cross between laksa & khao suey). The particular recipe I’m sharing with you today is based on one published by Charmaine Solomon.

2 TBSP Yellow Mustard Seeds
2 TBSP Nigella/Kalonji (these look like little matte black sesame seeds)
2 TBSP Cumin Seeds
1 TBSP Fenugreek Seeds
1 TBSP Fennel Seeds

Mix together and store in an air tight jar!