8 Things to Do With Turmeric

Turmeric is a common enough spice used in lots of different dishes that brings a rich golden yellow colour to food.  It also brings a stack of health benefits!  There’s good reason why it is one of the hot ingredients at the moment (in terms of popularity, not taste) – not only is it good for your but there are lots of things to do with turmeric.

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What is turmeric?

Turmeric is in the same family of plants as ginger so there’s no surprise that the raw root looks a bit similar.  It comes from the Indian subcontinent and needs that kind of temperature to grow so it isn’t a plant we see growing here in the UK! 

The part that is used is properly called a rhizome which is boiled in water for around 30-45 minutes then baked in hot ovens.  After this, they are ground into turmeric powder and that’s where we most often see it.

Health benefits of turmeric

Cancer

One of the big headlines about the health benefits of turmeric focuses on its possible ability to help cure cancer.  This is down to a compound within the spice called curcumin.  Laboratory tests have shown that curcumin can have an impact on cancerous cells, most often on breast, bowel, stomach and skin cancer.

Anti-inflammatory properties

Turmeric has been shown to give a boost to the body’s immune system and to have anti-inflammatory properties. 

Inflammation over a short term is the body’s way of dealing with an invader, such as bacteria.  But when the condition lasts for a longer time, it can cause problems and has been connected to a wide range of common conditions including heart disease, Alzheimer’s and other degenerative conditions.  Curcumin is an anti-inflammatory and can fight the cause of the inflammation at a cellular level.

These properties may also mean that turmeric can help people suffering with conditions such as arthritis where inflammation is a major factor.  Some studies have shown it to have a great benefit for sufferers of rheumatoid arthritis than some anti-inflammatory drugs.

Boost antioxidant capacity

Oxidative damage is one of the processes that is believed to have a negative effect on our bodies over time and could even be the reason we age.  It is caused by free radicals and therefore antioxidants are useful to fight off these substances and lessen the damage.  Curcumin has been shown to help increase the body’s capacity for antioxidants, fighting off more of those pesky free radicals.

Helps reduce the risk of heart diseases

Heart disease is a very complicated condition caused by a whole range of factors.  But studies have shown that turmeric may help to reduce some of these factors and can reduce the risk of heart disease.  This is because it improves the function of the living of blood vessels, called the endothelium.  Dysfunction of this is a big part of heart disease but the spice can help improve it.

Benefits of turmeric on skin

It seems that turmeric can have benefits on the skin as well as to help with medical conditions.  In traditional medicines from Asia, it has long been used as an antibacterial agent, to help deal with cuts and stop them becoming infected.

Another tradition is to use turmeric with other ingredients in something called Haldi paste.  This is an exfoliator and was used by brides and grooms before their weddings in a special ceremony.  It has been shown to give skin a glow.

Turmeric can also help with itching scalp and dandruff, soothing the itchiness and getting rid of the dandruff.

Mixed with a little coconut oil, turmeric makes an excellent solution for cracked heels or dry skin on the feet.  It helps to cure the cracked skin as well as ridding it of any bacteria and can make the remaining skin softer.

Things to do with turmeric

Turmeric isn’t something you would just add to your toast or chew a piece as a snack. You can get Turmeric Supplements which are a great option but there are also lots of recipes and things to do with it that make it easy to get into your diet.  Let’s take a look at some examples.

1.      Make turmeric rice

Not only does turmeric rice help with the various health benefits of the spice, but it also looks amazing with its bright orange-yellow colour.  You can use the side dish with almost anything and add vegetables to your tastes.

Ingredients (serves 4)

• 500ml water
• 40g frozen peas
• 1 tbsp butter
• 1 onion
• 40g carrots (grated)
• 1 tbsp minced garlic
• 40g sunflower seeds
• 1 tbsp Organic Turmeric Powder
• Pinch of cayenne pepper
• Salt and black pepper as preferred

Add the rice with water and peas to a pan and boil then reduce heat and steam under the rice is tender, normally around 20 minutes.  In another pan melt the butter and cook the onion, carrot and garlic until softened then add the seeds, turmeric and pepper.  Mix the two and cook for about five minutes then serve.

2.     Add to vegetables

A simple way to get more turmeric in your diet is to add it to vegetables to give them flavour and colour.  Roasted vegetables are a great option for this, especially root vegetables and cauliflower where a little spice will work nicely.  You can also add ginger as well to the cauliflower.  Additionally, you can sauté greens such as spinach or kale with a pinch of turmeric.

3.      Use in dips

When you make your own dips, it is easy to add ingredients to enhance the flavour and the health benefits.  Hummus is one example for this idea where turmeric works well with the chickpeas, garlic, tahini and lemon alongside cumin.  You can also use it well in cheese spreads such as a nacho cheese sauce – and the colour makes the dip look even cooler!

4.     Use in soups or chilis when grated

Either ground turmeric or freshly grated can be added to soups or chilis as part of the cooking process without worrying about the spice overpowering other ingredients.  It isn’t any stronger than salt or pepper and if you taste as you add, a little at a time, you can check you like the flavour.  It works well with broth-based soups rather than creamy ones and in any type of chilli.

5.     Add to marinades

Adding turmeric to marinade is often included on the recipe list.  But even if it isn’t, you can add a little and develop a new flavour or slightly change one you have tried before.  Turmeric isn’t the strongest of spice and if there are others in the mix, you might not even notice it was in there.

6.     Put it in spice mixes

Making your own spice blends is much easier than it might sound and lets you alter the flavour to suit your tastes.  There are quite a few blends where turmeric is already features – various curry powders are an example where it is found alongside cumin, coriander and red pepper.

You can also add it with Italian style herbs such as oregano, parsley and basil with some onion and garlic powder.  For extra taste, add some cinnamon, black pepper even dried fennel to see what you like best.

7.      Turmeric tea

I’ve tried a few commercial tea blends that have turmeric in, but I was surprised to see how easy it was to make your own.  That way you can make it just how you like it.  The process is simple – take some boiling water and add grated or ground turmeric.  Let it simmer for around 10 minutes to flavour the water then remove from the heat and strain through a sieve.

You will likely want to add a bit of extra flavouring to the tea, so it isn’t too strong.  We use honey a lot for this purpose and you can easily use lemon as well.  Some people add milk and sugar, but I’ve not tried that with anything apart from black tea.

Other tips for turmeric tea include:

• Add a little cinnamon while simmering or afterwards
• Add peppercorns then sieve before drinking
• Add a little sea salt
• If you like milk, try varieties such as soy, coconut or almond milk

8.     Make smoothies with it

Lastly, there are always smoothies!  Because turmeric isn’t too strong, it is easy to add with other ingredients but here are a few ideas for smoothies designed to have turmeric in it:

• Pineapple, mango and turmeric – use frozen pineapple and mango where possible or add ice if you use fresh.  Also, add some water to get the right consistency and a little ginger
• Carrot, ginger and turmeric – you can use carrot juice if you like then add ginger, turmeric, lemon juice, a frozen banana and almond milk to get the right consistency
• Mango and turmeric – this sounds basic, but you can pad it out with all sorts of ingredients.  To start with use frozen mango, almond milk, turmeric, ginger, cinnamon, honey and a little coconut oil.  To thicken you might want to add a frozen banana or some yogurt and add a little maca, pineapple, avocado or chia seeds
• Turmeric green smoothie – mixing fruit and greens with a little turmeric makes for a powerful green smoothie.  Kale or spinach would work in this recipe with mango, turmeric, some berries, coconut milk and a little lemon juice.  Use ice if you use fresh fruit

Lots of things to do with turmeric

There are lots of things to do with turmeric and these just give you a few ideas to start with.  Because it isn’t a strong spice, you can add it to lots of dishes without dramatically altering the taste, the way pepper or chilli would.  And the fun colour makes things go that bright orange-yellow shade – which might appeal to the kids as well.

Have you found a favourite way to get turmeric into your diet?  Or a great thing to do with turmeric?  Pop it in the comments below!

Check out more turmeric recipes: