03/06/2026
Another lovely WI monthly meeting last night with the wonderful Nasim Desai giving us a masterclass in spices. I feel we may notice the warming smell of spices wafting around Fairford over the coming days! Beth B-G very kindly took some notes for us so here you go:
Nasim’s talk on cooking with spices
Following the talk on spices at our recent meeting, here is the list of spices which Nasim keeps in her special spice tin, which saves having to take the lid off 7 individual spice jars. These are the ones she uses in most of her curries.
Turmeric – also good for coughs when used in warm milk with honey
Ground cumin and coriander, mixed
Fenugreek
Mustard seed
Garam masala
Chilli powder
Cumin seed
Asfoetida was handed round and just a pinch can be added to hot oil when making a curry. Useful, flavoursome onion replacement for those who can’t eat onions.
Other spices shown were cardamom pods (split open to use), saffron, cloves, cinnamon, and dried chilli. She uses cloves and cinnamon in rice to flavour it. Always basmati rice.
Fresh ingredients used in most curries were onions (fried until well cooked and browned), fresh ginger and garlic with fresh coriander added at the end of cooking. She suggested crushing and freezing ginger and garlic in ice cube trays and keeping in the freezer ready for use when in a hurry.
Happy curry making!
