Book Review: Spice Market by Jane Lawson
Nov 16th, 2009 by admin
Cloves © Helen Yuet Ling Pang
Before I even laid eyes on Jane Lawson’s Spice Market, I knew it was my type of book. And when I finally leafed through the 450 pages, my instincts were confirmed. Apart from offering 250 recipes, the book is a comprehensive guide on the history and culinary uses of over 40 spices from around the world. Like many people, I buy spices on an ad hoc basis, when I need something to make a particular dish. As a result, my collection of spices is somewhat eclectic, to say the least, and there are some that I have used just once. Spices also start to deteriorate if not stored properly (and even then, the volatile oils fade over time, taking with them the spices’ true flavours, colours and aromas). I hope that by using Spice Market on a regular basis, I’ll not only learn more about the background of each spice, but I’ll also be able to make the most of the spices sitting in my cupboard.
Saffron © Helen Yuet Ling Pang
I started by reading up on a few of the spices that I already own, as I thought that would be the best way to tackle this tome and start cooking with them.
Saffron – also known as azafran
My jar of saffron has been languishing in my spice drawer for a few years now, but I could never throw out such an expensive spice. The handpicked stamen from a flower of the crocus family, saffron is grown in Iran, Spain, India, Greece, Morocco and Italy. It is the most expensive spice in the world, but a tiny amount goes a very long way. The recommended recipes in the book include risotto milanese, arancini, seafood paella, poached pears in saffron syrup and saffron buns.
Cardamom © Helen Yuet Ling Pang
Cardamom - related to galangal, ginger, turmeric
I bought cardamom last year to make cardamom kulfi and karahi lamb chops, but since then, the pods have just been sitting in their storage jar looking pretty. Cardamom is regarded as the world’s third most expensive spice by weight after saffron and vanilla. There are two types, green and black or brown cardamom, both of which are native to India and Sri Lanka, but most recipes call for the green one. Apart from being commonly used in Indian, West Asian and Middle Eastern dishes, it’s also popular in Dutch and Scandinavian baking and of course in Turkish coffee. I particularly like the sound of cardamom pear shortcake and honey and cardamom biscuits!
Cloves – related to allspice (top photo)
Cloves are ‘the dried and unopened flower buds of an evergreen tree from the myrtle family’, and because they are so pungent, only a small amount is needed. They also form an intrinsic part of spice mixes, including Chinese five spice and Indian garam masala, and are used as a painkiller for toothache (‘biting into a whole clove releases an intense, almost antiseptic taste’). The recommended recipes include Kashmiri lamb cutlets and clove-studded honey-glazed ham.
Juniper berries © Helen Yuet Ling Pang
Juniper berries -
Juniper berries are the edible fruit of a shrub that grows in the Northern Hemisphere, and should be lightly crushed before use to release their flavour. I was pleased to read that juniper berries are commonly used in Scandinavian cooking, because I’m going to Sweden next month and hope to find more inspiration from the dishes that I try there. Out of the recipes featured, I very much liked the sound of vodka and juniper cured salmon, duck confit and venison with juniper berries.
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This is a book every home cook should have on his or her shelf, not just for the variety of recipes, but for the wealth of information on spices all in one place. I for one will be using this as a handy reference book before shopping for more spices, particularly when visiting spice markets around the world! Hopefully my spices will be used more regularly in the future…
Spice Market is published by Murdoch Books and costs £18.95. Thank you to Murdoch for sending me a copy.
I agree, this is a great book, and for those readers that live in the US it goes by the title The Spice Bible. As far as I’m concerned you hit the high points with the spices you featured. Thanks for sharing the fun and entertaining info. Looking forward to seeing what Japanese spices you’ll add to the mix.
Helen, I was curious to see how you thought the writing of this book compared to her other book Snowflakes and Schnapps, which as I recall, was not what you were anticipating. I haven’t found that book in the US, so have no basis of comparison.
Suechef Reply:
November 17th, 2009 at 10:03 am
@OysterCulture,
I was rather underimpressed with Snowflakes and Schnapps, which was a pity (I collect cookery books and have about 5000) – nicely produced but rather ordinary recipes, I thought. Will look at this one though.
OysterCulture Reply:
November 17th, 2009 at 2:40 pm
@Suechef, 5000 cookery books! My goodness, and I thought I had a decent sized collection. I’m still in the triple digits mostly do to space and moving frequently. Nothing like having to pack books on a regular basis to cull a collection.
I know who to go to with any questions going forward! I imagine you picked up some good Japanese cookery books to fill out the collection and looking forward to the reviews.
I have always wanted to see if I can ever find a book where they will show pictures of the trees or shrubs that these spices are plucked from. Does this book have anything like that?
Suechef Reply:
November 17th, 2009 at 10:00 am
@Chee,
A couple of years ago, we visited a spice garden in Kerala, South India – a fantastic place. It was also visited by Michael Palin for his series “The best 80 gardens in the World” or something like that. If you look at the book of the series, you may find pictures of the shrubs etc in that.
Sounds a great book – thanks for the review.
Chee Reply:
November 17th, 2009 at 6:29 pm
@Suechef,
I do thank you for that information. I love Michael Palin’s travel books but this one you mentioned is new to me. Will put that on my Christmas wish list:))
Saffron used to be grown in Cornwall too in centuries past, I believe. The Cornish do a good line in saffron cake and saffron buns, if you’re looking for something else to do with it…
Oooh your photos are absolutely gorgeous!
This book looks great… I’m pretty familiar with some spices, namely those used regularly in Indian recipes, especially those on my mum’s website. She even has a spices list with translations between Hindi and English.
But there are so many other spices, used more commonly in other cuisines, that I’m not familiar with at all.
As the book only lists 40 spices, did you find any surprising ommissions or did the choices cover all those you would have expected to find in such a book?
Kavey
I particularly like bashing up cardamom and throwing it in the rice cooker when cooking rice to accompany a curry, it lends a great fragrance.
And of course, juniper berries make GIN! Lovely photos.
OysterCulture – thanks for the American title! In terms of usefulness, this ranks much higher than Snowflakes and Schnapps in my opinion. I really enjoyed learning from it!
Suechef – wow, your cookery book collection is rather impressive! I think I have just under 30…
Chee – I don’t recall seeing photos like that, only closeups of the actual spices, sorry…
Hazel – thanks for that information on saffron and the Cornish connection…
Kavey – thanks! The book seemed really comprehensive actually, and I don’t recall any glaring omissions.
Lizzie – thanks for the cardamom in rice tip!
Helen Yuet Ling