What is tumeric, and what are its health benefits as a spice?!

What is tumeric, and what are its health benefits as a spice?

It is spelled “turmeric.” In peninsular Asia, it is pronounced Haldi (rhymes like hell-thee with the ‘e’ of hell sounding more like an ‘ae’ or ‘u’ as in hull -- confusing? :-)

The part of the plant which is used as a spice is the rhizome, which is quite similar in shape to ginger. After processing (cooking and drying etc.) the rhizomes appear as a yellow-light orange form of ginger like sticks, only much more smoother. They are sold as such or finely ground and then sold as turmeric powder.

Turmeric adds a distinct aroma, flavour and colour to various preparations cooked in the south east, and is almost always used in it’s powder form. It stains cloth with a yellow colour which is extremely difficult to get rid of, particularly white clothing.

I have little information about it’s medicinal properties although traditionally it is used as an anti-inflammatory natural medicine to internal injuries. As a little boy, when I used to get injured while playing (particularly outdoor sports like football or cricket that can result in nasty bumps), my mother used to grind some fresh turmeric and add it to my bedtime glass of slightly warm milk. It used to impart a very odd and unappetizing flavour to my glass of milk; adding a spoonful of sugar did little to help. However, a few days of this dose ensured that I never had to see a doctor even with the meanest bruises and injuries.

It will be fair to add that a banana a day is good for the bones too. Years later, as a teenager returning home after an examination, I was rammed into by a couple of young boys on a smaller motorbike at nearly 25 miles an hour. By God’s grace, not only did I survive the collision but escaped without any broken bones, and now have only a small scar to remind me of that day. The impact however, had sent them and their bike head over heels for quite some distance, and at that moment I felt I wouldn’t survive though left standing! My inflamed (and swollen) limbs took a week to return back to normal, and it was then I realized that all the healthy food I had been fed throughout childhood (including the milk with occasional turmeric, bananas, apples and fishes, spinach etc :-), and for which I used to make faces and be quite unable to eat, had paid their price in full.

Hope this is helpful as well as interesting!

Andrew