The journalपत्रिका

Notes on spice, from our kitchen to yours.

Technique, buying guides and the small habits that make everyday Indian cooking taste better.

Seasonal

Cooling spices for a long Indian summer

Not every spice is about heat. As the mercury climbs, the kitchen turns to fennel, mint and cumin to cool things down.

4 min read · Read →
मसाला
Technique

A beginner's spice pairing map

You do not need fifty spices to cook well. You need to know which six talk to each other, and how.

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Spice Notes

Building heat: a short guide to Indian chilies

Heat and colour are two different things. Once you learn to control them separately, your cooking gets a lot more precise.

6 min read · Read →
Technique

Why you should toast your cumin

Raw cumin is fine. Toasted cumin is a different, better spice. The change takes ninety seconds.

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Buyer's Guide

How to buy real saffron (and not get fooled)

Saffron is the most adulterated spice on earth. A few simple tests separate the real thread from the dyed corn silk.

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Blends

Garam masala is not one recipe

There is no single 'correct' garam masala. Every region — and every family — carries its own. Here's how to read the map.

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Spice Notes

Cardamom, the queen of spices

Sweet or savoury, chai or biryani — few spices move as easily between worlds as green cardamom.

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Pantry

Whole versus ground: a freshness argument

Whole spices keep their soul locked inside. Here's why grinding your own — even just sometimes — changes how your food tastes.

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Technique

The anatomy of a perfect tadka

Tempering is the thirty seconds that decide whether a dish tastes flat or alive. A short guide to getting it right every time.

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Wellness

Golden milk and the quiet case for turmeric

Before it was a café menu item, haldi doodh was the drink your grandmother reached for at the first sign of a cold. Here's why it still earns its place.

5 min read · Read →