Techniques

Tempering spices

Blooming whole or ground spices in hot fat so their aroma opens before liquid goes in.

Why it works

Many flavour compounds are fat-soluble. A short fry in oil or ghee carries them through the rest of the dish.

How to do it

  1. Heat fat until a cumin seed sizzles.
  2. Add whole spices first, then pastes, then ground spices for a few seconds.
  3. Do not burn. Burnt chilli is bitter forever.
  4. Add onions, tomatoes, or liquid as the recipe says, quickly if the spices are already dark.

Common mistakes

  • Dumping ground spices into a dry scorching pan.
  • Walking away. This step is thirty seconds of attention.

Recipes using this

Source photograph of Butter chicken

Butter chicken

मुरग़ मखनी

Delhi restaurant gravy: tandoori-style chicken in a tomato-butter sauce. Famous, modern, and not a stand-in for 'Indian food'.

2 hr 5 minMedium🌶️

Source photograph of Mapo tofu

Mapo tofu

麻婆豆腐

Sichuan tofu in a chilli-bean sauce with minced pork, Sichuan pepper, and enough oil to carry the mala.

35 minMedium🌶️🌶️🌶️

Before you start cooking

Your pantry, saved recipes and meal plans are stored on this device so the site works — that part can't be switched off. Google Analytics counts page visits. Google AdSense may show ads (not in Cook Mode) and set advertising cookies. Separately, we can count anonymous feature usage in our own database. That part is your call, and it stays off unless you say yes.

What gets stored