Bentong Ginger

I love Bentong as my favourite aunty lives there. If you say Bentong, ill only remember Durians & Chamang Waterfall! My aunt & uncle used to have durian orchard & we get to gobble fresh D24 durians.So, today my main story will be BENTONG GINGER!

     I never go near it because of its price! One beautiful lady requested me to do Bentong gingers before bazaar but i was hooked up . So finally i got some fresh Bentong gingers for my R&D plus costing purpose. What can i say? The smell of sliced & powdered ginger reminds me of my mum's Deepavali cookies! I dont get this memories using normal ginger.

      Bentong ginger is darker, fatter, juicier & better nutrition of course due to its soil. It has a pungent aroma and sharp, spicy flavour (thanks to Gingerol). The process...phewwwww. But my whole house smells good. I can't stop smelling it. Today hubby mixed tea with only quarter tsp of Bentong ginger powder...fuhhhh it was good (btw im not a tea lover). I hate tea coz it gives me bloating problems but i was good today..No Problem😁

    Benefits of it? Too many to list down. In short, its King of Ginger. An old Indian proverb says that “everything good is found in ginger.” I have started this new product. Have a beautiful week ahead everyone:)

I did a small home testing on turmeric adulteration between 1 commercial turmeric powder & my homemade Sena's Spice Blend Turmeric powder gew weeks ago.

Well there was a difference. Adulterated turmeric powder will leave a strong yellow colour in water while settling down. Cloudy water indicated POSSIBLE adulteration.

From the pic below, this commercial powder might not have chalk powder as the water is not cloudy. To check Metanil yellow synthetic dye in ur turmeric powder, acid tests can be done ( we can say its adulterated by colour changes). Will try soon n lets wait for the results as this commercial powder has stronger yellow than natural one.

Im just hoping for negative results (considering the amount that we consume daily is quite worrying). Plz do small tests at home n pay for what u buy:)

Why homemade curry powder is better than commercial ones? 

1. You get to choose good quality whole spices. - Unlike commercial ones, they used to mix few grades (ex: high & lowest quality besides non edible items ) for costing purpose. 

-->it causes bloating and gas problem 

2. Avoid adulterated powders. -industrial dyes may have genotoxic and carcinogenic effects (according to the International Agency for Research on Cancer) 

3. You get to use fresh home ground spices with no any preservatives & flavourings. - volatile oils are brought to life! --> don't keep your spices 4 longer period, use it for maximum nutrition benefit 

4. Don't know how to use my spice blends? -don't worry, Sena's Spice Blend own simple recipies help you to enjoy every meal you prepare -can't believe? check out the reviews:) 

Easy Mushroom Gravy (less than 15 mins)
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1. Wash oyster mushrooms (500g- tear it apart into thin slices) in warm water.

2. Heat oil in a pan/claypot. Add cinnamon & star anise.

3. Add ginger (1 inch) and garlic (8 nos) paste and stir, till brown.

4. Add chopped onions (5 medium size) and stir, till onions are translucent.

5. Add 2 tbs of Sena's Spice Blend Colombo curry powder and stir (~2mins).

6. Add chopped tomato (1 no), stir well, till tomatoes blend well.

7. Add mushrooms, cover the pan with a lid and cook on a low fame, till mushroom is cooked.

➡️TIPS: Do not cook mushroom in water. Mushroom contains fluid which comes out when heated up. Hence it gets cooked in its own fluid.

8. Add water (i only use less than a cup) and salt as required and stir well, till everything blends.

9. Garnish with curry or coriander leaves.

Vegetarian/ Mock Fish Curry
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 1. In a pan heat oil, add mock fish (500g) in batches, deep fry till skin is golden brown. Drain with slotted spoon, and leave them to dry.

 2. In another pan/wok, heat oil, add fenugreek (1 tsp), sliced onions (2-3 medium), saute for a min, add garlic (4 nos), ginger, green chili (1) & a handful of curry leaves.

3. Add Sena's Spice Blend Colombo curry powder (2 tbs), chopped tomato (1 large). Add salt. Stir for few mins. ☆ Turn off the fire, let it cool down a bit n blender the whole thing. It forms a thick paste. U can skip this step. Y i do this? So that my kids n my big baby (hubby) won't be picking out onions, tomatoes, curry leaves😅

4. After grinding process, pour into pan & add required water. Then add tamarind paste (1 tsp).

5. When gravy starts simmering, add fried mock fish, mix well. Add coconut milk (2 tbs). Stir for another minute. Only add last minute (as i used the processed one which contains no preservative, no colouring & no MSG). Don't let it boil longer.

 # can use yoghurt to replace coconut milk.

Introduction

Back then, my great grandma, grandma and great aunts have been making their own spice mixes which was a common practice. In current century, everything changed dramatically. In one click, everything is being delivered to home but can we guarantee our long term health and safety of a food? Food adulteration and unhygienic practices became my primary concern. In my experience as a food research assisstant and a graduate in Food Science & Nutrition, i saw the power of a toxic culture. I started to worry especially after having kids. Whenever its possible, i’ll prepare food from scratch. I was doing my spice blends based on many recipies and love changing accordingly to our taste. The idea of marketing my own blends is new. So far only family and friends were my customers. Its a tedious process but my main objective is to provide healthy & fresh blends and not forgetting the 21st century convenience (postal service-additional charges).

As a customer, im quite fussy and concerned on homemade products. Food safety which include cleanliness are my main criteria in purchasing products. When i became seller in food line, i made sure the same thing. I've completed my KKM course with typhoid jab. Besides that, i have equipped with some knowledge on Food Safety, Nutrition, HACCP, GMP & Basic HALAL training. I did my best in producing my homemade products. My confidence in cooking comes from my own homemade powders. My passion in cooking is growing day by day.Thank your everyone for your support and let Sena’s spice blends to season your life.