THE ESSENTIAL STUFF: CURRY POWDERS

A number of people visiting this blog site yesterday, and on Friday and Saturday, read a post from nearly a year ago about a spice mixture: Koon Yick Wah Kee Curry Powder in San Francisco. Colour me baffled at this point, because I had no clue that it interested so many people.


冠益華記咖喱粉

The reason that I like it, besides it being a decent product with a good flavour, is the glass jars with the sturdy screw-on lids, precisely like the small sized mayonnaise jars had before most factories switched to plastic containers. Useful for samples of pipe tobacco. Of which I have, at this point, an extensive reference "library".

咖喱粉

Indians claim they don't use curry powder, and American curry powder is universally crap. Japanese curries can be unusual, to say the least.
House Foods Vermont Curry? Maple flavour!

Standard commercial curry powders consist of the following: Two parts coriander powder, one part turmeric, one part ground toasted cumin, and one to three parts toasted mustard seed, ground. Plus minor amounts of other spices: fenugreek, cayenne, cinnamon, cardamom.

Hong Kong curry powders usually contain, from much to only a little: chili powder (辣椒粉 'laat jiu fan'), turmeric (薑黃 'geung wong'), star anise (八角 'baat gok'), Chinese cinnamon (cassia, 桂皮 'gwai pei'), dried ginger (乾薑 'gon geung'), Szechuan pepper (花椒 'faa chiu'), and clove (丁香 'ding heung'). Some of them entirely lack ground coriander seed (芫荽籽粉 'yuen seui ji fan'), which is an essential ingredient (and often found in Delhwi garam masala).


Many of these ingredients will be found in most kitchens.


At least I hope so.




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