Garden Series - A Taste of India!! Spices and Herbs Used in Indian Cuisine
Lifelong Learning | Available (Membership Required)
This is the third in a series of Master Gardener lectures from Penn State Cooperative Extension.
Indian cuisine is as old as the civilization (~4,000 years) and as varied as its population. Typical of the cuisine is an integral role of aromatic spices and herbs. There is a penchant for spicy curries eaten daily with rice or wheat bread, depending on the region, as well as the widespread practice of vegetarianism among some religious groups. The cuisine reflects the remarkable regional diversity caused over the centuries by varied topography, climate, religions, and cultural customs, as well as the historical influences of India's occupation by Portuguese, Mogul (Muslim), and British regimes. This presentation will discuss the description, cultivation, propagation, and culinary use of common and unique spices and herbs used in Indian cooking and factors that contributed to the regional diversity will also be reviewed.
Silloo Kapadia
The Penn State Master Gardener Program was established to assist Cooperative Extension in providing horticultural knowledge and skills to local communities and the gardening public.
Silloo Kapadia is an Allegheny County Penn State Master Gardener (2012) and Past-Chair of Garden Hotline (April 2016 - October 2019). In 2018, she earned the Penn State Extension Master Gardener Advanced Certification in Woody Plant Identification.
Silloo obtained her first Master Gardener Certification in 2007 at Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens (where she remains a docent) and the Certificate of Sustainable Horticulture in 2013. She is a member and Past-Chair of the Western PA Unit of the Herb Society of America with an interest in Culinary Herbs. Her other Speaker’s Bureau talks include “Culinary Herbs in the Home Garden – For Use and Delight”, “Herbs and Spices in Indian Cuisine”, and “What’s Wrong with My Plant”.
Silloo is a retired physician and Professor of Pathology (UPMC and later at Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center). She acquired her medical degree at Chennai (Madras), India, and did her Pathology residency at UPMC.