The story of vanilla is one of conquests, travels over tropical seas and a slave boy’s clever idea.
Think vanilla and the first thing that pops into mind is vanilla ice cream. Liberally speckled and gently fragrant, vanilla is the perfect flavouring that enriches apple pies and chocolate cake. Almost all home cooks would reach for their bottle of vanilla flavouring as they cream their cake batter or turn out the cookie dough. But few would give a thought to the fact that after saffron, vanilla is the next most expensive spice in the world.
Its pedigree is impressive. Vanilla comes from the orchid family, which is the largest and oldest flowering plant in the world. And in this august family, vanilla is its only edible fruit. For one so rare, it is unsurprisingly fastidious and exacts a tribute from those who wish to consume it. Because vanilla is the most labour-intensive agricultural product in the world, thus also making it very expensive.
After it is planted, the vine cutting takes up to one and a half years to flower. Then it has to be carefully hand pollinated—there lies another story—and the pods left on the vine for another nine months. Once harvested by hand, the pods go through a long process of curing and drying.
They are first blanched in hot water, then placed in containers to sweat for up to two days. Then they go through a process of sunning in the day, and sweating at night, for anywhere between five and 15 days. Next, they are left in racks to dry slowly for up to a month. Finally they are bundled, then shipped to their final destinations. All in all, it takes about one year from flower to finish.
Denne historien er fra November/December 2018-utgaven av WINE&DINE.
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Denne historien er fra November/December 2018-utgaven av WINE&DINE.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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New Blood
The next-generation is breathing new life into the forgotten art of spice-mixing, peppering the traditional trade with renewed ideas and fresh perspectives.
Sharing Is Caring
Compared to its flagship at Serene Centre, Fat Belly Social at Boon Tat Street is a classier and bolder affair, in more than one sense.
Nutmeg's Role In Singapore's History
From tales of it being used to ward off the plague in mid-1300s Europe to one of the ingredients in dessert, we have all known, tasted, or at least heard of nutmeg. But not many know of the spice’s role in Singapore’s history.
New And Improved
The ever-profound chef-owner Kenjiro ‘Hatch’ Hashida finds more room, three to be exact, to express a Ha Ri philosophy at Hashida Singapore’s new location at Amoy Street.
Pairing Spice-Driven Cuisines With Wine
Pairing spice-driven cuisines with wine has long been a challenge but with a little imagination, it doesn’t have to be.
Let Land Grow Wild
Niew Tai-Ran has worn many hats: aeronautical engineering major, investment banker, avid surfer, and, for the last 14 years, winemaker. Discover how this Malaysia-born, Singapore-native is championing the “do-nothing farming” philosophy at his vineyard in Oregon.
The South Asian Misnomer
Incredibly diverse and varied than most know, Indian food is far more intriguing than butter chicken or thosai. Here is a crash course on the extensive cuisine from region to region, recognisable for the seemingly infinite ways of using spices.
Keepers Of The Spice Trade
From its glory days along trade routes to pantry staples all over the world, spices have become so commonplace that we’ve taken them for granted. For these three trailblazers, however, spice is their livelihood and motivation: Langit Collective working with indigenous rural farming communities in Malaysia; IDH’s Sustainable Spice Initiative; and chef Nak’s one-woman mission to share forgotten Khmer cuisine.
Sugar, Spice And Everything Nice
Like food, spices bring vibrancy and variety to alcoholic beverages. Surfacing in unexpected ways on the palate, find everything from cumin to tamarind, cloves to cardamom enriching these drinks.
Building Blocks From The Archipelago
For the smorgasbord of dishes found in Indonesian cuisine, it is a little known secret that the modest bumbu, in all its variants, is the bedrock of such flavourful fare.
