Spice mixes are so easy to have prepared.

Spice mixes are so easy to have prepared.

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There are a lot of things out there that are purely for our convenience, that can easily be made at a much lower cost and in a much larger quantity, see the Dukkah recipe for a great example of this.

Until recently I thought that spice mixes were a waste of time and money, if I had the ingredients and a fair knowledge of my spices and herbs then why would I have pre-mixed spices. I have now changed my mind. Rumaging through the spice jars to get the same combination of spices out for a style of meal, toast, pound and grind them before adding to the food, although therapeutic in a strange way, is such a waste of time. Combine that with accidentally pouring the cumin seeds into the fennel seeds and not wanting to spend hours trying to sort them. I decided that as they are often used together why not make up a mix that uses both of them and is always ready. So here are a few to get started and I will add to them as I make new combinations.

HERB SALT

Make herb salt by pounding the following in a mortar until fine and the herbs are all spread though the salt. Dry slowly in the dehydrator or oven, then store in an airtight jar.

  • 1 stem sage,
  • ¼ bunch thyme,
  • 2 stems Rosemary
  • ¼ cup salt – or more to absorb the oils from the herbs

SALT AND SZECHUAN (or Sichuan)  PEPPER

  • 1 tbs Szechuan pepper
  • 4 tbs sea salt flakes
  • 1/4 tsp dried chilli flakes
  • 1/4 white pepper
  1. Heat a small pan over low heat. Add Szechuan pepper and cook, stirring, for 1 minute or until they begin to “pop” and become fragrant. Do not overcook.
  2. Remove from heat and set aside until cool then add the sea salt flakes, pepper and chilli and grind in a mortar and pestle.
  3. Serve with/on any chicken, duck, pork and salt and pepper prawns

Version 2

  • 1 tbs Szechuan peppercorns
  • 1 tsp coriander seeds
  • 1 tsp cloves
  • 1 star anise
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp chilli flakes
  • 1 tbs sea salt
  1. Heat a small pan over low heat. Add spices and cook, stirring, for 1 minute or until they become fragrant. Do not overcook, remove from the heat as soon as you can smell them.
  2. Remove from pan and cool. Grind in mortar.

Goes well as a meat rub or spice on sautéed vegetables.

 Salad Herbs

  • Dried Coriander
  • Dried Parsley
  • Dried Dill
  • Dried French Tarragon
  • Chives
  1. Either gather the fresh herbs at the end of the season and dry and crush them to last through winter or make up out of dried herbs.

Use in scrambled eggs, omelets and quiche or add to salad dressings or mayonnaise.

 Spiced Salt

  • 3 tbs salt
  • 2 tbs paprika
  • 1 tbs garlic powder
  • 1 tsp ground cumin
  • 1 tsp pepper
  • ½ tsp chilli powder
  • ½ tsp celery salt
  1. Mix all together and bottle.

Great with any vegetable chips and almost anything else that is fried.

Meat Rub

  • 2 tbs coriander seeds
  • 1 tbs cumin seeds
  • 1 tbs fennel seeds
  • 1 tsp smoked paprika
  • 1 tsp pepper
  1. Toast in pan until just aromatic.
  2. Remove from heat and allow to cool before grinding with a mortar and pestle.

Use on any meat/steak/roast. Rub in with oil and allow to sit for a while before cooking.

Italian Herb Mix

These are approximate quantities, it is fairly flexible. Either use dried herbs or pick your own from the garden, wash, dry and put in the dehydrator to dry.

  • 2 tbs dried basil
  • 2 tbs dried oregano
  • 2 tbs dried parsley
  • 2 tbs dried marjoram
  • 2 tsp dried thyme
  • 2 tsp dried rosemary
  • 2 tsp dried sage
  • 2 tsp garlic powder

Add to chicken, pasta sauces, pork, salad dressings.

See lemon salt and lemon pepper for other salts and pepper.

There are some great pre-made spice mixes here (Herbies Spices) for more ideas.