Recently I’ve been hearing a lot about the magical anti-inflammatory benefits of Tumeric.  I feel like a childhood friend has suddenly found celebrity. A spice used so regularly in the South Asian kitchen that it is sadly like salt, easily overlooked.  I caught myself searching for recipes online for Tumeric uses that included golden milk and turmeric tea…as I silently muttered “ewwwww,” I asked myself,  “why am I looking for recipes online anyway when almost any curry I cook involves Tumeric!” Maybe I just needed a new way to look at and use it. Most online recipes seem to suggest that black pepper is needed for better absorption of Tumeric, while ginger and coconut oil is also included in some recipes. So I devised a light lunch recipe for myself using these ingredients. I call it my Golden ‘om’elette.

Here is what I did:

• 1 egg white

• 1/4 teaspoon Tumeric powder

• 1/4 teaspoon ginger paste

• Black pepper to taste

• Salt to taste taste

• Beat together. Fry the mixture in a teaspoon of coconut oil. Add a tablespoon of white rice (or brown rice, vegetables, quinoa, anything…or nothing) as a filling and roll the omelette.

The omelette has a curry-like flavor, bite of ginger and black pepper. You could dip a piece of bread in the mixture and make a savory french toast. You can always tweak the amounts, add and omit to your taste. The point is that there is no single way to use a spice. I want to enjoy turmeric, not gulp it down like medicine. Find the way that works for you. This might be a tasty option for me when I feel the need for turmeric’s cleansing and calming magic. Next time, I’d like to add red chili and cilantro too. I love those Iron Chef episodes dedicated to a single ingredient or spice. It forces cooks to think of creative ways to use the familiar and accepted. If you enjoy golden milk, go for it, but don’t feel that is the only way to add spice to your diet. I need to follow my own advice and use familiar and unfamiliar spices in new ways, like Chinese five spice, Berbere, Ras-el-Hanout, Sumac and Tumeric. Sounds like a fun cooking and thought experiment!

For now, I’m waiting for the magic to work and be cured of all that ails me. I may have to wait for a while. Stand-by.