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Where turmeric has been used as a spice in Indian recipes and as an Ayurvedic medicine for many thousands of years, it only became a known spice to me roughly three years ago. So, I am a little slow to the culinary boat.
Before that, the darn stuff scared me. I mean it scared me spice-less! Remember, my spice background (prior to raw) consisted of salt, pepper, and cinnamon. My holy trinity of spice. hehe
It’s difficult to describe the wonders of turmeric in just one recipe posting since it exhibits over 150 potentially therapeutic activities… shoot it is more than just a spice, it is a potent medicinal food if you ask me. I know you landed here to learn about to make Golden Turmeric Paste, but I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to share with you what I am learning about this fantastic food.
It is always my goal to make every bite count when I eat, so I tend to do a lot of research about what I put into my body. For an excellent read, I recommend that you visit this site to learn more about what turmeric can do for the body. Everyone talks about the fact that turmeric is amazing for inflammation (which it is), but I wanted to share something I learned that might also be new to you…
First of all, did you know that the liver roughly plays five-hundred functions in the body?! One that I wanted to point out is that it creates bile. Yea I know, we are talking about bile in a recipe post. I only share with you what I am passionate about and darn it! I am passionate about my liver.
“Bile is a fluid which is yellow-green in color and is produced by the hepatocytes – liver cells. It is stored in the gallbladder. The two main functions of bile are to remove waste products and break down fats from our food. It is the bile salts that actually perform the task of breaking down and absorbing fats. Bile is a digestive fluid produced by the liver. Several studies have been done to identify if turmeric can help in bile production regulation and thus digestion.
Curcumin is able to protect the bile duct by improving bile flow. This means the turmeric helps as a liver cleanser, rejuvenates liver cells, and helps the optimal functioning of the liver by preventing toxins and alcohol from being converted to harmful compounds that damage the liver and cause cirrhosis.” (1)
There is a scientific reason why black pepper is added to this recipe, and that is to make turmeric highly bio-available. It is best to use fresh ground peppercorns because the essential oils in the pepper are more available. Black pepper has been found to increase curcumin’s bioavailability by 2,000 percent.
Because turmeric is fat-soluble, using coconut oil increases turmeric’s health benefits. By taking it with fat, it can be directly absorbed into the bloodstream through the lymphatic system thereby partially bypassing the liver. (1)
It is shown that heat increases the solubility of curcumin (the primary active constituent in turmeric) by twelve times. It also calms down the bitterness of the turmeric making it much more palatable. (1,2,3)
Start by blending up the perfect cup of Golden Milk, from there it can be added to warm soups, smoothies, salad dressings, stir into rice dishes, add to yogurts or even mix with a spoon of honey and gobble up. Be creative.
Ingredients:If you find yourself in a position where you have a lot on hand or perhaps you are heading out on vacation and don’t want your paste to go bad… I have an idea for you that I have been doing… Freeze it in little “bullet” shapes. This is an ice cube tray, and each little bullet is a teaspoonful’s worth. Once frozen, pop them out of the tray and put them into a freezer-safe container.
This works absolutely perfectly. Now I can just reach into the freezer, pull out a little bullet, and pop it into the blender with my other drink makings.
Hi Amie Sue, Thank you for this great paste! As a middle eastern, we have turmeric, black pepper, cumin,…, saffron,… in almost every rice and gourmet dish…and it was always delicious and aromatic without knowing all the benefits! Now to have this beautiful paste for salade and smoothies open up new ways to reuse and enjoy all ancient food wisdom! Very Grateful to know you…Thank you and Blessings,
Good morning Afsaneh,
Always a great pleasure to hear from you. It sounds like your culture uses some wonderful ingredients on a daily basis… that is so wonderful. I am happy to hear that I am able to provide another great way to add this into your diet. Enjoy and thank you for sharing. Have a happy day. amie sue
Amie Sue, can I used Black Pepper Essential Oil in place of fresh ground pepper?
I do when I make my turmeric cashew sauce for raw noodles.
Good morning Salanda, yes that ought to be just fine. I would add it after you are done heating up the turmeric paste since essential oil are more fragile in heat. Great question. :) Blessings, amie sue
Thank you Amie Sue for the wonderful information on tumeric, and for all the wonderful recipes and beautiful photography. Have a wonderful day.
Yolanda
Oh thank you Yolanda. You are so sweet. I do hope you are able to give this recipe a try and benefit greatly from this wonderful root! Blessings, amie sue
Good morning amid-sue,
I use whole raw turmeric roots a lot. If I ground the raw roots would the ratio be the same ? Suggestions? Rolanda.
Good afternoon Rolanda,
Great question. I haven’t tested this recipe with fresh turmeric. In general when converting dried herbs or spices to fresh in a recipe is 1:3 ratio, so 1 teaspoon of dried spice is equal to 3 teaspoons (1 tablespoon) of fresh. Roughly 2 inches of fresh turmeric root will yield 1 tablespoon of the freshly grated spice.
The recipe calls for 1/2 cup of dried turmeric, so with fresh is should be about 1 1/2 cups of fresh. The main thing will be then blending it into a paste once cooked, so you will want to use a food processor with the small bowl attachment. Once you put the cooked root into the food processor add the pepper and melted coconut oil and blend to a paste. That ought to work.
Does that help? Blessings :) amie sue
Thanks for this recipe going to try it with fresh Turmeric too.
Awesome Lynn. Please keep me/us posted on how it goes. I am having a few people ask about using fresh, but I haven’t tried it yet. Have a wonderful weekend, amie sue
Blessings to you from our Lord Jesus Christ for posting a recipe in a scientific manner. This is the best looking and easiest website to navigate I have seen yet. I will be making this recipe today!
Amen Sherri :) Thank you for your kindness Please keep me posted on how it goes. Blessings and joy, amie sue
Hello Amie Sue!
Missing you here in Tucson.
How timely as always you are! I just started drinking warm turmeric tea each day. Now I will be adding a bit of black pepper & coconut oil/milk to the mix. Or maybe a bit of coco whip topping? Creative juices flowing now! Lol Please send Bob love from Karma and I.
Gabrielle new email too .. Ok
Oh my… so wonderful to hear from you Gabrielle!! I hope you are doing well. Shoot me an email sometime. :) I hope you enjoy the recipe. Give Karma a hug for me. Blessings my friend. amie sue
Hello again Amie Sue,
Just wanted to let you know that I made the turmeric paste and it’s ready for me to use for the next week or so. I also made myself a cup of almond milk this morning with the turmeric paste. It was so delicious! Thank you for the recipe. Yolanda 😊
I love your enthusiasm Yolanda :) I was surprised as to how yummy it was too. I crave it as my mid-afternoon delight. Thank you so much for sharing. It means a lot. Have a wonderful weekend. Blessings and joy are yours! amie sue
Hi I am new here. I came here specifically for this recipe, although I will be looking around because it looks like a wonderful place. :)
Anyway to my question, I have been looking for a good way to use turmeric as a supplement. I’ve tried adding it along with black pepper to food but it spoils the taste. I would love to just do the pastes straight, although without the honey as I am a vegan. So my question is, it was recommended I do a half teaspoon twice a day. So how much of the paste should I use? Thanks!!!
Thanks so much Vegan. I appreciate the kind words. And please… stay, relax, browse, and enjoy the recipes at hand. :)
You were recommended to do 1/2 teaspoon of straight powder? I can’t say for sure how they measure up across the board… but if it were me, I would start with 1/2 -1 teaspoon a day and see how it feels. If you have a doctor recommending your dosage, perhaps sharing this recipe with them so they can better advise you?.
Have a blessed evening, amie sue
majestic recipe
Thank you, thank you Angie :)
xoxoxox