Winter Flavor Changers

Add fresh flavor to favorite recipes with a dash of new seasoning.



By Wini Moranville

As always, during this final stretch of winter, I’m getting bored with my go-to cold-weather recipes. So I turned Rory Brown, owner of Allspice Culinarium, for a few new ideas. He came to the rescue with two new products as well as a new-to-me best-seller on his shelves:

• Seared Salmon Seasoning ($4.25/1.8 oz.): Brown says customers have been requesting a salmon seasoning blend, so he stirred up this beauty. No, it’s not lemon and dill! This unexpected blend stars coriander, cumin and orange zest with subtle anise-fennel notes. There’s brown sugar in the mix, too, and the warmth and depth of the spices are just so compelling. I used it in my recipe for Fish Meunière (just press the seasoning blend into the fish before you coat with the flour); Rory keeps it simple by simply sprinkling the seasoning over the fish before pan-searing.

• Gochujang White Balsamic Vinegar ($10/5 oz.): Brown suggests using this new vinegar, which is infused with a Korean red-chile condiment, for drizzling on tacos and making coleslaw dressings and quick pickled onions. He also mixes it with soy and wasabi when making sushi. I recently used it to add heat and acidity to the otherwise too-sweet poppy-seed dressing that came in a convenient chopped salad kit.

• Col. Pabst All Malt Amber-Lager Worcestershire Sauce ($11.25/8 oz.): This beer-anchored sauce offers many of the seasonings you’ll get in the usual supermarket Worcestershire (vinegar, anchovies, tamarind, molasses, garlic, spices, etc.) but in a different mix—what comes through most are the molasses and exotic-spice notes. Rory likes using it in the braising liquid for pot roasts and for sauteeing mushrooms. Or, add it to a bloody mary to steer the commonplace drink into craft-cocktail territory.

Allspice is at 400 E. Locust St.; 515-868-0808; allspiceonline.com.

Wini Moranville writes about food, wine and dining for dsm magazine and dsmWeekly. Follow her on Facebook at All Things Food–DSM.