Namaste and welcome my friends, family, and fellow knowledge seekers to another posting on my blog the Quiet Mouse Strikes Back. Today is a special day. I am a certified professional chef, among other things and talents I possess. So with that in mind, I want to discuss the topic that is herbs and spices.
In my interactions with others, across my travels, and in my own kitchen I have learned a great deal about the culinary arts. I have received praise from 3 former chefs of the year about my "McLaren's sweet heat bbq sauce". I have eaten the finest, richest, and most succulent foods in my lifetime and I honestly believe that the key to building flavors is in the mastery of 3 things:
1) Basic cooking techniques
a) Baking/ roasting
b) Sauteing/ pan frying
c) Deep frying
d) Grilling/griddling
e) Boiling/ poaching
f) Braising
2) Basic food knowledge
a) things that pair well together
b) difference between fruits, vegetables, fats, and animal products such as meat, eggs, and dairy
3) Herbs and spices
Sadly, I have come to see that all too many people are unaware of the plethora of herbs and spices that are in the world. Americans in particular have been lulled to sleep by eating bland, tasteless, and artificially manufactured foods instead of cooking with the bounty mother Earth has blessed us with. I have to caveat this part of my discourse with an obvious fact: there are TOO MANY herbs and spices too accurately mention them all on this blog. Sufficed to say, while attending Le Cordon Bleu, I achieved the highest grade in my class for knowledge of herbs and spices. I scored a whopping 99 out of 100 or 99 percent. So, I know a little bit about the subject. My father and my mother also have inspired my culinary passion, along with teachers, friends, and family.
Moving on... I think the basic 3 spices that Americans are fond of are the basics of SALT, PEPPER, and GARLIC. Which are all fine and well, with salt in moderation, but what of the rest of what is needed to build exquisite flavors?
What about CELERY SEED? BASIL? BAY LEAF? MUSTARD SEED? OREGANO? THYME? ROSEMARY? ONION POWDER? Oh my!
GINGER, PAPRIKA, CAYENNE PEPPER, and CHILI POWDER?
MARJORAM, DILL WEED, CUMIN, PARSLEY, CINNAMON, CILANTRO, NUTMEG, ALLSPICE, CARDAMOM, and CLOVES?
WHITE, BLACK, GREEN, and PINK PEPPERCORNS!!!
Sooooooooooo many kinds of CURRY! TURMERIC! GARAM MASALA! Cajun seasoning. Greek seasoning. Asian 5 spice. Taco and fajita seasonings... et. al...
Oh so many ways to combine these herbs and spices with foods. Oh, and I haven't even started on the different varieties of chilies and peppers. I'll save that for another blog...
The point of all this is to SPICE UP YOUR LIFE!!! Don't just settle for bland and boring. There are stores everywhere selling herbs and spices from all over the planet and some can be expensive, like VANILLA BEANS and SAFFRON, for example. My personal favorite store bought seasoning mixes are ANY of the MAGIC SEASONINGS and TONY CHACHERE'S. Wal mart sells a good variety of herbs and spices for cheap and local Winco stores have herbs and spices you can buy in bulk, which can lower your food costs. Beware of paying extra just for a glass bottle and a fancy brand name...
I hope that all my readers will go out and try a new herb or spice, both, a little bit, a lotta bit, or some combination of flavors...expanding your horizons is paramount in growing and evolving as a human being. Bring some flavors into your meal and SPICE UP YOUR LIFE!!! This has been the one and only Quiet Mouse. You are what you eat. Eat CONSCIOUSLY! Live CONSCIOUSLY!
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