Turmeric

During winter we harvest and sell our turmeric fresh at markets.

For reasons of biodiversity we grow four varieties of turmeric – madras (yellow), allepy (orange/red), Cape York (this is a light yellow colour and dries to a fluorescent yellow) and curcuma caesia (a black/purple
colour).

We take only two varieties to market – the allepy and madras as these are the most widely used in cooking.

The Cape York turmeric is dried to a powder and sold as a cooking ingredient (although its flavour is a little different to the traditional turmeric we source from the Continent).

The black turmeric has high curcumin content and we therefore process it into capsules. 

We process our allepy, madras and Cape York turmeric to a spice. These are available in small 25g jars.

Allepy and madras are the most plentiful varieties in our crop.

We dedicate a very small area to growing the Cape York variety (which also grows in Papua New Guinea). Because it is not commonly used in cooking (although it is edible), we package it as part of a beautiful gift box (so you get a little taste of everything).

Our allepy and madras are pickled in a half honey, half apple cider vinegar. Pickled turmeric can be eaten straight from the jar, served on a cheese platter (right next to the olives), or chopped finely like ginger and garlic used with Asian or Indian cooking.

When all the turmeric is gone, don’t throw away that precious pickling solution. It makes a fantastic base in a salad dressing or viniagrette. Just add some lemon juice and olive oil and any other herbs you fancy.

Made from our allepy and madras turmeric, golden paste can be used as either a hot drink (add milk and heat in the microwave), or for a yellow curry.

To make a hot drink (a golden latte), just add a teaspoon of golden paste to a cup of milk (I find the full fat milks are best – for example, full cream cows milk or oat milk). Heat in a microwave until the golden paste is dissolved. Strain it and drink. Add some honey if you like.

To make a yellow curry, sauté onion, garlic and any aromats you like. Add a tablespoon of golden paste (for a serving of four). Add pre-cooked potatoes and spinach (salt and pepper to taste). Add a small can of coconut cream. Top with fresh herbs, chopped, seeded tomoto flesh and chilli (all of which are optional).

Because our golden paste doubles as a hot drink, there is no salt in the product. If you are using it for cooking you may find you need to add salt.

Our golden paste also does not have any commercial preservatives. After you open the jar, portion control it (1 tablespoon portions) into a flat Tupperware container and pop it in the freezer. Place a piece of baking paper in the bottom of the container before you do your portion control.

Before talking about our turmeric capsules we need to be clear that we make no medicinal claims about them. You will need to decide for yourself if they are of any benefit to you.

We produce capsules for convenience only – in particular for people who have a diet where turmeric is largely non-existent (for example, someone who has a “meat and three veg” diet.)

Because we do not sell the turmeric capsules as medicine, we do not advertise milligrams per capsule. We do not include black pepper in our turmeric. This is because we want to know that the ONLY item in our capsules is our turmeric. Feel free to take the capsule with a meal where you have used black pepper or chillies.

Our capsules are vegan (they are not made from gelatin).