Turmeric Recipes for Everyday Cooking

Turmeric is at its best when it is cooked briefly in fat or warmed in milk — that is when the colour blooms and the raw, dusty edge disappears. Here are three ways we use it every week.

Warm one cup of milk with half a teaspoon of turmeric, a pinch of black pepper, and a small piece of crushed cardamom. Simmer gently for three minutes, take it off the heat, and sweeten with raw honey once it has cooled slightly. Drink it before bed.

Heat two tablespoons of ghee, add sliced garlic and cumin seeds, then take the pan off the flame and stir in half a teaspoon of turmeric and a quarter teaspoon of red chilli powder. Off-heat protects the spice from burning. Pour over daal, rice, or plain yoghurt.

Toss cauliflower, potatoes and carrots with oil, one teaspoon of turmeric, half a teaspoon of coriander powder, salt and black pepper. Roast at 200°C for 30 minutes, turning once. Finish with lemon and fresh coriander leaves.

Good turmeric is potent — start with less than you think you need. If a dish tastes bitter, the haldi was added too late or burned rather than bloomed.