Curry leaf was Re: Indian cottage cheese/

[Guest guest]

> According to the " How to Cook Everything " cookbook - curry is a

> combination of nutmeg, peppercorns, cloves, cardamom, cinnamon,

> fennel, fenugreek seeds, cumin, coriander, ginger and turmeric.

> Another recipe just combines peppercorns, cumin, coriander, ginger and

> turmeric. I have never heard of a " curry leaf " .

>

> Sheila (Virginia)

Curry leaf is a green leaf used in Indian cooking, and may be available

in Asian grocery stores. I've done some Indian cooking and just skip it

if it's in the recipe. Here's a link below - shows a picture, and if

you scroll down, it will be in English :-)

http://www.uni-graz.at/~katzer/engl/generic_frame.html?Murr_koe.html

Curry leaves are extensively used in Southern India and Sri Lanka (and

are absolutely necessary for the authentic flavour), but are also of

some importance in Northern India. Together with South Indian

immigrants, curry leaves reached Malaysia, South Africa and Réunion

island. Outside the Indian sphere of influence, they are rarely found.

Curry powder is a British invention to imitate the flavour of Indian

cooking with minimal effort. Some curry powders, or so the books tell,

indeed contain curry leaves, but probably only for historic or

linguistic reasons, since dried curry leaves lose their fragrance

within days.