The Tussle Over Turmeric!

For most of us in North India, winter is a paradox – a troublesome yet enticing season marked with bone-chilling weather and finger-licking good food. It’s the time to enjoy nature’s bounty and to preserve some of it for the rest of the year as delicious pickles.

Which reminds me of the pickle I was in, at a gathering at my friend’s place last week. I ventured into showing them how to have larger quantities of turmeric and enjoy it too. Admit it. We all suffer the very thought of eating a spoon of turmeric powder for medicinal or health purposes everyday!

In a Pickle

My big idea? Good ol’ Turmeric Pickle! It’s good for health and tastes delicious! I knew I had my task cut out when I saw everyone cringing at the thought of having whole fresh turmeric. After all, everyone and by that I mean anyone who’s curious about food, health or life itself, is now aware of the fact that Turmeric is the new superfood.

And so opinions flowed in. “I give my children a spoon full of organic turmeric everyday and I know all the benefits”, said one of the attendees. Another one added, “Why pickle, it’s preserved. I think organic powder is much better.” The smarter ones exclaimed knowingly, “It’s not turmeric but curcumin that really matters, isn’t it better to take curcumin pills everyday!”

I was the lone ranger in this debate to convert the non-believers. So I decided to say it as simply as I could, “Remember the times a glass of freshly squeezed juice was considered supremely healthy? Years later we discovered that eating the fruit or vegetable had more nutritional value and fiber than juice. Similarly, it is scientifically proven that curcuminoids and volatile oils in whole turmeric are jointly responsible for its high medicinal value. Need I even talk about why fresh turmeric is better than powder?“

Out of the Jar

As the naysayers took to corroborating the ‘facts’ online I added,  “Turmeric powder (organic and non-organic) may have curcumin but is scant in volatile oils or has none of it at all. Ditto with curcumin tablets. So it’s better to eat whole turmeric and not just powder or curcumin extracts. In the case of whole turmeric too, whole organic turmeric from North East India is the best option.” With that I rested my case.

Another barrage of questions followed and I will answer it now as I answered it then:

1. Yes, North East India has the best available ORIGINAL organic turmeric in India and possibly the world
2. Yes, Organic turmeric from Northeast like Lakadong and local varieties are the best naturally occurring high curcumin content varieties of turmeric
3. Yes, there are new high curcumin varieties that are grown in South India, but they are NOT organic and have been cloned to be disease resistant and high yielding. Therefore, I would recommend ONLY original naturally grown Organic turmeric from North East India because it’s the turmeric I consider best for myself. Give me Mother Nature’s goodness any day!
4. Yes, January & February are the best months to purchase fresh turmeric as it has just been harvested and is fresh from the farm. This is the ideal time to say goodbye to turmeric powder and grate fresh quantities of it in your daily Indian cooking according to your taste
5. Yes I have placed my order for fresh organic turmeric from North East India for all my friends and family. Have you?

Tickle Your Fancy

No, I did not get to make the turmeric pickle even though at some point in the debate I may have been tempted to don the apron and arm myself with a ladle and the requisite pots and pans to showcase my exceptional recipe. But that’s for another time. Until then, happy cooking too all of you.

Beauty Trivia from the argumentative women at IKAI Organic:

If you eat Indian food the way it’s meant to be eaten (without a spoon and with your bare hands), high Curcumin Organic Turmeric Powder from North East India will never leave stains on your hands or well-manicured nails. Try it out and share your experiences with us.