by Megan Minnick, Purchasing Director
For people who immigrate to this country, food can be one of the most tangible connections to home. This is true of both of our locally based Indian spice kit vendors: Masala Mojo and Flavor Temptations. The entrepreneurs who started these companies feel a strong connection to the food that they grew up cooking in India, and lucky for us, they both started successful local businesses dedicated to sharing the cuisine that they love with the rest of us in their new home.
Masala Mojo
Neeraj Kulkarni, owner of Masala Mojo, grew up in India, but has made Madison her home for the past 20 years. Here’s what she told me about her upbringing in India, and the genesis of her spice kit business.
“My upbringing in India merged traditional Indian values with modern sentiments. Growing up, when my mother saw I was whiling away my time watching TV or doing nothing, she would call me in the kitchen to help her out. It was just a part of my life to be in the kitchen with her: watching her cook, following the little tips when grinding wet or dry spices, adding the right amount of water to the curry at the right temperature, and most importantly listening to her words of wisdom about balancing being an independent woman yet not losing traditions.
“It is with these values that I completed my education in engineering in India and am now a passionate cook, mom, a small business owner, and an IT Professional.
“Having lived in Madison for two decades, while I feel welcome and assimilated in the American culture, there is some part of me that is still connected to my roots in India. This connection is mostly shown through the food on the table in my home. Following the true American spirit, I have shared my culture with friends and neighbors, and food has always been a part of that sharing. This sharing has made me aware that there is a large part of our community that likes to experience Indian cuisine, not just by getting ready-made Indian food, but also by wanting to cook fresh and authentic Indian food at home.”
Neeraj hand toasts the spices used in her spice kits, and uses the exact same recipes that her mom taught her in India when she was a child. You can find four Masala Mojo kits on the shelves at all three of our stores: Vegetable Curry & Cumin Rice; Vegetable Sauté & Cumin Rice; Spinach Daal & Cumin Rice; and Chicken Curry & Cumin Rice.
Flavor Temptations
In 1993, co-owners Sara and Partha Parthasarathy immigrated from India with their 9-year-old son and just six suitcases containing their worldly belongings. They arrived on Christmas Day—leaping from 80 degree warmth to a -5 Wisconsin day. According to Sara:
“Like most parents we wanted to send our son, Gautam, off to school with what he needed for success, along with something from home. Sara created a spice box—common in Indian culture—that contained the spices used most often at home. When Gautam tried cooking, he had difficulty getting the delicate balance of spices and sequence of steps to prepare a meal. Gautam did not understand what good cooks know from experience—that measuring, smelling, and tasting are all part of creating a meal. This experience sparked the idea to create pre-measured organic Indian flavor packs that contain Sara’s Mom’s recipe to help someone new to cooking, or the experienced cook, have success creating meals from India. Now, not only can Gautam learn from Grandma, so can others!”
Flavor Temptations’ mission is to help customers cook and eat healthy, home-cooked, flavorful meals. They use all organic spices, and even donate a portion of their proceeds to help fight hunger in America. Look for three spice kits at all Willy Street Co-op locations: Chana Masala, Curried Potatoes, and Chicken Tikka Masala.
So how do these spice kits work?
I wanted to find out, and so I tried out the Chicken Tikka Masala kit from Flavor Temptations as well as the Spinach Daal & Cumin Rice kit from Masla Mojo.
I’m happy to report that these dishes ended up being just as delicious as I imagined they would be. The authentic spices and cooking techniques brought a whole new dimension of flavors and aromas to my home cooking. One word of caution: these are not the kind of meal kits that save time, either in cooking or shopping. They contain only the necessary spices and instructions—all other ingredients must be purchased separately. Preparing the two kits took me a good 2 1/2 hours, but that’s okay in my book because sometimes good food just takes time.
I was especially happy that unlike at a restaurant, I was able to choose my own organic and whole grain ingredients—including brown rice.
The finished daal was amazing. It used ingredients previously unknown to me like dried mango powder, and jaggery, and the combination was the most aromatic, warming, and satisfying thing imaginable.
This is one of my go-to dishes at Indian restaurants and I was somewhat dubious that I would be able to duplicate it at home. I’m happy to say that not only was it as good as any restaurant, it was better! I’ll be making this again!