Just a bit
of background first. The Spice Routes linked East to West in days gone by,
stretching over 15000 kilometres and wasn’t a journey for the faint-hearted. As
early as 2000 BC, spices from Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) and China found their way
along the Spice Routes to the Middle East, and from there, across the
Mediterranean to Europe.
In the
1400s, Vasco de Gama - our world-famous Portuguese explorer - was the first to
reach India by sea by way of the Cape of Good Hope, opening up lucrative trade
routes with India and Southeast Asia.
Today, it
may seem strange that the demand for spices was one of the main reasons for
such large-scale trade across such long distances. We take them for granted and
just think of spices simply as flavourings for food, but they used to be a
rarity and much sought after, and the profits to be made from them were
considerable. As spices were small, dried and easy to transport, they became a
money-making cargo.
So
nowadays, can you grow your own? Well, herbs can be grown very successfully,
but have you ever thought of spices? A bit of a challenge maybe, as some have
specific growing requirements, but for someone who is willing to put in the
effort, some can be successfully grown.
Ginger
anyone?
If you
fancy having a go at something relatively easy, try ginger. They are rhizomes
and are an underground modified stem. It is possible to grow them yourself from
store-bought pieces, so the outlay is cheap!
Pick pieces
that have well-developed growth buds or eyes and cut the rhizome into 2.5cm –
3.5cm pieces, then set them aside for a few days to allow the cut surface to
heal and form a ‘callus’.
Soak them
overnight in water before planting, to get rid of any growth retardant that
they may be coated with. Soil for ginger is important, and should be loose,
loamy, and rich in organic matter. Loamy soils allow water to drain freely to
prevent the rhizomes from becoming waterlogged, and a thick mulch can provide
nutrients.
Plant them
around 15cm apart, 5 to 10cm deep, with the growth buds pointing upward. They
can be planted whole or in smaller pieces with a couple of growing buds on each
piece. Ginger plants will grow to about 60 x 120 cm tall and can be harvested
by digging up the entire plant.
Although
they may be harvested at any stage of maturity, the best time is when the plant
is 8 to 10 months old. Ginger thrives best with warmth and humidity, so pick a
spot that provides 2 to 5 hours of direct sunlight, ideally protected from
strong winds.
If you want
to try drying and grinding your own, place your slices, chunks or shredded
pieces on a plate in a sunny spot indoors for 3 to 4 days. Or alternatively,
place the ginger slices in a dehydrator or low oven (no hotter than 150F for 1
– 1 ½ hrs and check every half hour or so.)
Once the
ginger is dry, remove it from the oven or dehydrator, and let it cool and
become completely dry before grinding it into a powder. It should keep for up
to 6 months and can be frozen, though it will lose some of its potency with
time.
As keen
as mustard!
Other
spices to try are fennel seeds or cumin, both from their respective flowers,
and turmeric is a rhizome, to be treated in a similar way to ginger.
Fenugreek
and mustard are others to try, though mustard is not so ‘keen’ on hot weather
and might not be so successful. There are many different mustards with varying
heats, but dried mustard seeds or powders have no real heat on their own –
combined with water the natural enzymes present in the mustard will work to
release pungent compounds from their dormant state.
Mustards
made with vinegar will have a long-lasting, slow burn, while those made with
pure water will be extremely pungent when freshly prepared but lose that punch
more quickly.
Marilyn writes regularly for The Portugal News, and has lived in the Algarve for some years. A dog-lover, she has lived in Ireland, UK, Bermuda and the Isle of Man.
You find less spices in Portugal than in Northern Europe. What happened? Why is Portugal unable to have good spices? Why can't good, fresh herbs be found easily as well?
By S from Other on 21 Aug 2022, 17:42