One-Spice Magic
Graphic by Angelie Zaslavsky
Photograph by Liza Schoenfein
Spices have the incredible potential to transform a simple dish, and you don’t need a mélange of them to create tremendous flavor. Add cumin to hummus; paprika to fish; or cinnamon to brisket and these foods take on a life of their own as a single spice works its magic.
I am passionate about one-spice dishes because of an experience I had this summer, cooking in a makeshift kitchen with a very limited pantry. My husband worked as the drama director at a Jewish sleep-away camp, where we lived for eight weeks in a cabin. After eating two disappointing meals in the camp’s commissary, I went to Walmart and outfitted our small space with an electric burner and a few basic pots. I bought a slab of wood to function as a countertop and used our bathroom sink to wash the dishes.
In this rustic set-up, I made the most glorious, tasty, healthful meals. Best of all, my limited pantry led me to discover the power of letting one spice do its job.
Of the dishes I created this summer, one of our favorites was stewed chicken with paprika, summer squash and chickpeas, which we enjoyed at many outdoor Shabbat dinners amidst the beautiful backdrop of the Catskill Mountains. This one-pot main course lets the stove — and the paprika — do all the work.
Now that it’s fall, I can’t stop making it.
This is a moment of great uncertainty. Here’s what you can do about it.
We hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, we’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s independent Jewish news this Passover. All donations are being matched by the Forward Board - up to $100,000.
This is a moment of great uncertainty for the news media, for the Jewish people, and for our sacred democracy. It is a time of confusion and declining trust in public institutions. An era in which we need humans to report facts, conduct investigations that hold power to account, tell stories that matter and share honest discourse on all that divides us.
With no paywall or subscriptions, the Forward is entirely supported by readers like you. Every dollar you give this Passover is invested in the future of the Forward — and telling the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
The Forward doesn’t rely on funding from institutions like governments or your local Jewish federation. There are thousands of readers like you who give us $18 or $36 or $100 each month or year.
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
