Spice: A Cook's Companion

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Mark Diacono… has such a friendly, self-deprecating and comfortable voice you want to follow him into the kitchen.

The Cooks Companion | Harvey Jones The Cooks Companion | Harvey Jones

For each blend Mark tells us about the origins of the blend, how it’s used, and lists out recipe ingredients (with amounts). Rather he has created a very personal collection of “ forty-odd spices and a similar number of spice blends” to share. These are covered alongside familiar spices that I know and use regularly but still appreciate learning more about. Bigger Things is full of dishes that are suitable for a main meal (from breakfast through to dinner) and offers recipes like Chipotle eggs in purgatory, Za’atar fruit fattoush, Chorizo and Merguez sausages, Spicy Scotch eggs, Paradise cauliflower soup, Yuki Gomi’s Spicy ramen, Bourride (a French fish soup), Mouclade (lightly curried mussels also from France), Li Ling Wang’s Mapo tofu, Bún riêu (a Vietnamese noodle soup), Lara Lee’s Sambal goreng tempe, Domi-yangnyeom-gui (a Korean fried fish dish), Blackened fish (southern US-style), Maunika Gowardhan’s Punjabi chicken curry, Nanjing salted duck, Doro wat (an Ethiopian spiced stew), Annie Grey’s 18th century English chicken curry, Juniper-brined roast chicken, Babi guling (a Balinese roast pork dish), Barbecue ribs, Zuza Zak’s Bigos (a Polish winter stew), and Pastilla (a North African filo pastry pie). Caraway seeds are used in both the pastry and the tart filling, alongside mustard and fresh parsley, but it’s in the pastry that the spice really shines.The book will explore the many origins of spice, when and how to use them effectively, and how, through the use of spice, we can applaud and appreciate cuisines from around the globe. The chicken pieces in José Pizarro’s Pan-fried chicken with Pimentón de la Vera were fabulous, and really simple too. Beginning with a guide to 50 of Mark’s much-loved spices and blends, the book then offers over 100 innovative recipes that make the most of your new spice knowledge.

Spice: A Cook’s Companion by Mark Diacono Kavey Eats » Spice: A Cook’s Companion by Mark Diacono

Focusing on the familiars including cumin, turmeric, vanilla, pepper and cinnamon, Spice will also open the door to some lesser-known spices.Beginning with a guide to 50 of Mark's much-loved spices and blends, including their legacy and main culinary affinities, the book then offers over 100 innovative recipes that make the most of your new spice knowledge.

Spice: Recipes and Techniques to Transform Your Mastering Spice: Recipes and Techniques to Transform Your

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We used this Hungarian spice mix instead of German lebkuchen gewürz – both are very similar gingerbread spice mixes – and it was just right. To that end he notes that whilst many of the ingredients showcased in the book are seeds and dried fruits, there are roots such as ginger and turmeric that he includes in their ground form but not in their fresh, and even some berries, such as juniper, make it in when many do not. I’ve come across references and recipes featuring achiote (aka annato), anise seeds (not the same thing as star anise), cinnamon berries, grains of paradise, kokum, tonka beans, and wattleseed before but never cooked with them.

Spice by Mark Diacono | Hardie Grant Publishing

It’s easy to forget how versatile spices are in sweet dishes, not just savoury, and to this end Mark provides many tempting recipes in the Sweet Things chapter.I’m drawn to Rice pudding with sweet dukkah, Blueberry and coriander clafoutis, Alissa Timoshkina’s Russian gogol-mogol (whipped egg and sugar dessert), Wattleseed shortbread, Nicola Miller’s Buñuelo with piloncillo syrup (Spanish and Latin American doughnuts), Qalat duqqa plum cake, Nargisse Benkabbou’s Ras el hanout and chocolate banana bread, Sweet long pepper cream, Tahini, prune and star anise ice cream with sweet dukkah, Ethiopian passion berry and tonka bean ice cream, Sarit Packer’s Pistachio and golden raisin baklava, Caraway and fennel toffee apples, and Cumin and coriander fudge. Not all recipes have photos, but many do and these are all taken by Mark; some show the finished dish in its cooking pot or pickle jar, the rest show food or drink served in homely crockery on pleasingly plain surfaces. The caraway was such a revelation in Basan’s dish that we were immediately drawn to Mark’s Bacon and Caraway Tart as the first recipe to make from Spice. Focusing on the familiars including cumin, turmeric, vanilla, pepper and cinnamon, Spice will also open the door to some lesser-known spices such as grains of paradise, asafoetida, tonka beans and passion berries.