Chef David Lawrence

Our pal, Chef David Lawrence of Los Angeles, was thrilled when I chose to focus on the spice cardamom last month. I published his recipe for Masala Chai, but David wants to share another great recipe with Organic Authority readers.

If you haven’t yet picked up cardamom at your local organic or natural food store, you’re missing out on one of Mother Nature’s most versatile spices.

“Cardamom imparts a slight lemony-orange flavor and has a wide range of applications—from savory meat dishes to sweet pastries and beverages,” says David, a private chef, cooking instructor and coauthor of KidShape Café. (Visit his website for more information on the KidShape program.)

“Cardamom is widely available today in any well-stocked supermarket and comes both ground and as whole pods,” he explains. “I recommend the whole pods because the spice loses flavor quickly when ground. Although the pods may look a bit scary, they’re pale green on the outside and have sticky black seeds inside. They are nothing to fear and simply need to be crushed [to release the seeds] before adding them to a recipe. Look for the green pods, as they have slightly more intense flavor and fragrance than the yellow or white ones.”

Here’s Chef Lawrence’s recipe for Spiced Lemon Rice—a perfect weekend meal accompaniment.

Spiced Lemon Rice

Serves 4

1 cup basmati rice
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 teaspoon curry powder
1 dried red chile
1 cinnamon stick
2 whole cloves
4 cardamom seed pods, crushed
2 teaspoons whole cumin seeds
1/4 teaspoon ground turmeric
Zest and juice of 1 lemon
1½ cups water
2 tablespoons cilantro, roughly chopped, for garnish

1. Place rice in a strainer and rinse thoroughly under cold running water. Drain and set aside.
2. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large saucepan; when it’s hot, add the curry, chile, cinnamon stick, cloves, cardamom, cumin and turmeric. Stir-fry for 20 to 30 seconds and add the rice. Stir-fry for two more minutes, taking care to coat the rice completely with the spices.
3. Add the lemon juice, lemon zest and water. Bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer over a low heat and cover pan tightly. Cook for 10 to 12 minutes.
4. Remove from heat and keep covered, undisturbed for 10 minutes.
5. Fluff rice with a fork and shower with chopped cilantro before serving.

Read More About Cardamom

Mashed Sweet Potatoes and Apples with Pecan Streusel Topping
A Passage to India
Masala Chai
White Hot Chocolate
Cardamom Flan

Those of us who shop for organic food are usually pretty good about watching our salt intake. I’m certainly not anti-sodium (a main component of salt), as it’s essential to keeping the body functioning, but I tend to watch my salt intake.

Sodium helps transmit nerve impulses, makes muscles work and maintains the proper balance of body fluids. Some of us, however, are sodium-sensitive (swollen ankles and water retention, anyone?). Others suffer from hypertension and need to reduce their sodium intake. But even if you don’t have high blood pressure, limiting sodium as part of a healthy organic diet may decrease your risk of developing future problems.

Our taste for salt is both acquired and reversible. As we use less salt, our preference for it diminishes. The February issue of Mayo Clinic Women’s HealthSource offers several ideas for controlling sodium intake:

• Eat more fresh foods and fewer processed foods. Fresh foods are naturally low in sodium. Most sodium in the average American’s diet (77%) comes from eating processed and prepared foods, such as preserved meats, canned foods, frozen foods and commercial baked goods.
• Shop for products low in sodium. A low-sodium product contains 140 mg or less of sodium per serving—5% or less of the recommended daily sodium intake.
• Limit use of sodium-rich condiments. About 11% of sodium in the average diet comes from adding salt or condiments (ketchup, mustard, salad dressing, soy sauces) to foods while cooking or eating.
• Use herbs and spices for added flavor. To enhance vegetables, try parsley, basil, chives, ginger, cumin, oregano or lemon. For meats, add bay leaves, peppercorns, ginger, rosemary, sage or even cranberries.

I’ve been writing this week about the joys of cooking with fresh wasabi, as well as favorite organic wasabi products. In fact, during this time of year, many individuals turn to spicy foods like chili peppers and wasabi to clear their sinuses as they endure seasonal allergies, a winter cold or the flu. It seems like a perfectly sensible approach to personal care—but you may be setting yourself up for trouble.

According to the latest research, eating wasabi and other spicy foods offers brief relief, causing your nose to run, itchiness to disappear and your sinuses to drain. But in reality, your nasal congestion will worsen, making you even more miserable. Here’s why: Allylisothiocyanate—the pungent ingredient found in wasabi, horseradish and mustard—causes a transient burning sensation in the nose, and the dilator naris muscle temporarily allows more air to enter. Receptors within the nose then tell your brain that you’re breathing easier.

Unfortunately, your nose is fooling your brain. Eating spicy foods ultimately produces greater nasal congestion and increased mucus production, according to a clinical study conducted by Drs. David S. Cameron and Raul M. Cruz of the Department of Head and Neck Surgery at Kaiser Permanente Medical Center in Oakland, California.

So, Mom may have known best after all: Drink plenty of fluids, particularly hot beverages like organic tea and chicken soup (often referred to as “Jewish penicillin”).

“For a long-term effect, we recommend rinsing the sinus cavity twice a day with a saline solution,” says Dr. Mark Kerner, an otolaryngologist (ear, nose and throat specialist) with offices in Encino and Northridge, California. “See a qualified otolaryngologist who specializes in sinusitis if the problem continues.” He or she will want to rule out a bacterial sinus infection.

Chef Tracy Griffith

Wasabi, or Japanese horseradish, has become increasingly popular among educated American foodies, not to mention sushi devotees. A member of the Brassica vegetable family (broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, Brussels sprouts), it aids in digestion and even helps slow cancer cell growth.

Chefs generally prefer to use fresh wasabi instead of prepared wasabi powder or paste. Be sure to peel it before grating it, says Chef Tracy Griffith of Rika Restaurant on Los Angeles’ Sunset Strip and author of Sushi American Style. (She’s also actress Melanie Griffith’s sister and the first female graduate of the prestigious California Sushi Academy.)

“Peel it with the back of a teaspoon to get the gnarly bits off,” she tells Organic Authority. “Then use a ginger grater or wasabi grater to grate.”

Feel a bit intimidated? Not to worry.

“If you can peel and grate ginger, you can peel and grate wasabi,” Chef Griffith says. “Fresh wasabi is wonderful—much sweeter and complex-tasting than the paste you usually get in sushi bars. This is because wasabi is so very expensive—about $30 an ounce—but you don’t need much. It’s worth the expense!”

Cardamom pods

Pods or ground? That’s the decision you need to make when you cook with cardamom.

“Whether you choose the ground spice vs. pods depends on how you plan to use the ingredient,” says Chef Anis Toumi, a chef instructor at the California School of Culinary Arts in Pasadena.

“Roasting and grinding a fresh pod leads to a stronger flavor vs. using the spice pre-ground,” he tells Organic Authority. “You can use the full pods to infuse flavors and then discard them, whereas if you use ground cardamom, it cannot be removed.”

Here's Chef Toumi’s recipe for a cardamom-flavored flan. Note: Because you follow an organic lifestyle, Organic Authority recommends using certified organic ingredients, when available, in all recipes to minimize your risk of exposure to pesticides, chemicals and preservatives.

Cardamom Flan

8 ounces sugar (for caramelizing)
2 ounces water
12 fluid ounces milk
3 pods or a pinch of ground cardamom
3 eggs
2¾ ounces sugar

1. Combine 8 ounces of sugar and the water in a saucepan to make a caramel. Bring to a boil and cook until mixture becomes golden and caramelized (not too dark, not too light).
2. Let caramel cool; coat the bottoms of several ramekins with it.
3. Pour the milk and cardamom into a saucepan. Bring to a simmer.
4. Whisk the eggs and 2 ¾ ounces of sugar in a separate bowl. Add the milk to the mixture.
5. Strain the custard and pour it into the ramekins.
6. Place the ramekins in a shallow baking dish. Add enough hot water to reach halfway up the sides of the ramekins (a “water bath”). Bake at 300°F to 325°F until set.
7. Chill for 24 hours. Unmold upside down onto a plate.

Read More About Cardamom

A Passage to India
Masala Chai
White Hot Chocolate
Mashed Sweet Potatoes and Apples with Pecan Streusel Topping

“I love cardamom!” says Deborah Racicot, pastry chef at the famed Gotham Bar and Grill in New York City.

The spice adds a subtle eucalyptus/mint flavor, she tells Organic Authority, cautioning that “it can be overwhelming if too much is used. It’s nice because it’s not super-strong like cloves and cinnamon.”

Chef Racicot enjoys combining unusual ingredients that set her desserts apart from other chefs’ creations. In her crowd-pleasing recipe for White Hot Chocolate, she uses green cardamom (not black cardamom, which is peppery) to impart that mint flavor. You can serve this beverage hot during the winter or on ice during the summer.

White Hot Chocolate

Makes 6 to 8 cups

2 cups milk
1 cup coconut milk
1/4 stalk lemongrass
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 cardamom pods
Pinch of nutmeg
Pinch of salt
8 oz. white chocolate, chopped

1. Place all ingredients, except the chocolate, into a saucepan. Let the mixture come to a simmer.
2. Drop the chocolate into the pan. Allow all of the ingredients to steep for 15 minutes.
3. Stir well and strain.
4. Pour into mugs and serve.

Read More About Cardamom

A Passage to India
Masala Chai
Mashed Sweet Potatoes and Apples with Pecan Streusel Topping
Cardamom Flan

Chef David Lawrence

David Lawrence is a huge fan of cardamom—a spice he frequently uses in his favorite recipes for Indian cuisine.

“Indian culture and influence are steadily gaining popularity in the United States and finding their way into everything from music to fashion to food,” says the Los Angeles private chef, cooking instructor and coauthor of KidShape Café. (Visit Chef Lawrence’s website for more information on the KidShape program.)

“This trend sees more home cooks stocking their spice cabinets and experimenting with the exotic spices of that culture: among them, turmeric, curry blends and cardamom,” he says. “If you’ve ever tried Indian cuisine, sipped a chai latte or used the spice blend garam masala, chances are you’ve had cardamom.”

Here’s Chef Lawrence’s recipe for Masala Chai.

Masala Chai

Serves 4

1 half-inch piece fresh ginger root, roughly chopped
6 whole cloves
2 cinnamon sticks
5 cardamom seed pods, crushed
2 cups water
1 cup milk
3 Darjeeling tea bags
3 tablespoons raw sugar

1. Place all ingredients in a heavy-bottomed saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat.
2. Reduce heat to low, and allow to steep for 2 to 3 minutes.
3. Strain mixture through a fine sieve, and serve hot in mugs.

Read More About Cardamom

A Passage to India
White Hot Chocolate
Mashed Sweet Potatoes and Apples with Pecan Streusel Topping
Cardamom Flan

If you had to pick the “hot” new spice for 2006, which would it be?

You may be surprised to learn that cardamom tops the list, according to chefs interviewed at a recent American Culinary Federation conference.

“Use of this spice is going through the roof,” notes J. Hugh McEvoy, a certified executive chef with the ACF. In fact, industry statistics reveal cardamom sales have increased 650% over the last year.

Cardamom is one of the most common spices used in Indian cooking, cultivated from the dried, unripened fruit of the perennial Elettaria cardamomum. Tiny fragrant brown seeds are encased in green pods. (You may purchase cardamom as dried whole pods or ground seeds.) Many home cooks mispronounce the spice as “card-a-mon,” but notice that its name is correctly spelled with an “m” at the end.

Cardamom’s popularity may be attributed to Americans’ growing fascination with Indian cuisine, but it’s showing up in Asian, Arabic, Latin American and North African entrées, as well as Scandinavian desserts and coffee drinks, McEvoy notes.

This week, Organic Authority will feature a series of top chefs’ unique recipes featuring cardamom—from traditional Indian fare to one-of-a-kind desserts and spiced beverages. If you’d like to submit a recipe for consideration, please email me at organic@journalist.com. In the meantime, stock your organic pantry with this highly flavorful spice.

Sources for Organic Cardamom

Frontier Natural Products Co-op
Mountain Rose Herbs
Well, Naturally Products Ltd.

Read More About Cardamom

Masala Chai
White Hot Chocolate
Mashed Sweet Potatoes and Apples with Pecan Streusel Topping
Cardamom Flan