Try This! Asofoetida

Aso…wha????

Yes a funny name for a spice with an even funnier smell.  Asofoetida is a spice indigenous to India that is a resin the exudes from an underground rhizome that’s then dried.  The smell when raw is rank to say the least! It’s so strong that you have to store it in it’s own airtight container so it doesn’t mess with your other spices. It has a pungency all it’s own. So why even mess with it? Well, when you cook it, the flavor mellows alot and becomes sort of garlic-ky. If you are into umami, this is one spice that should be in your arsenal.

Check out your Indian market (brick and mortar or online) to find this. If you can’t find it, of course onions and garlic will do, but we all know about those already! Expand a little and try something new! Oh, and when I run out of onions and garlic, or don’t have onion or garlic powder, I reach for this! You don’t need alot of it to make a statement!