TOP PICK OF THE WEEK: Oregon Chai

The chai craze began sweeping across America some 15 years ago. It leaped to the mainstream from Indian restaurants and tea parlors, The formal name of the tea in Hindi is masala (spiced) chai (tea*, from the Mandarin cha). It originated on the Indian subcontinent. Americans shortened the term, and chai (CHY) it is. Its…
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Indian Spice Blends: Chaat Masala vs. Garam Masala & More

[1] Amchoor, an ingredient of chaat masala. A fruity spice powder made from dried unripe green mangoes, it adds citrusy notes (photo courtesy La Boite NYC). Asfoetida[/caption] [2] Asafoetida, the dried gum of the taproot of an herb, is ground into a powder (photos #2, #4, and #6 A.I. generated). [3] Black rock salt or…
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TIP OF THE DAY: Building Up Canned Soup

Soups from the can, even when they’re good, can be made even better with a few added ingredients. In this tip, we’ll show you how we enhanced one of our favorites, and inspire you to do the same. We adore Thai chicken coconut soup (tom kha gai, translated as chicken galangal soup—photo #1). It’s a…
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