Shanti's Spice Box

this is great for someone who is just getting started with indian cooking. i tried to add numerous spices to my cart in order to stock my kitchen for various meals, but the total price was overwhelming. i decided that since i don't cook indian meals daily (or even weekly), i would do better to have smaller amounts of each until i can figure out exactly which ones i need the most of before spending $$$ on spices that may or may not get used before they go bad.arrived quickly and just as described. everything is organized and labeled.i did receive 2 chile powders instead of 1 chile powder and 1 paprika, but this was an oversight i'm sure. i also have plenty of various paprikas in my kitchen, so no worries.

The kit came as described, a nicely organized box with thoughtfully portioned sizes of a really smart mix of spices. The only problem was that it was missing the asafoetida.I'd always been too snobby to pick up a kit like this - I order all my spices from a specific place that is closed right now due to the pandemic, all the indian restaurants that normally deliver have closed and we've been cooking up a storm, since Indian is a favorite cuisine I wanted to spend more time exploring it. I had almost none of these spices right now (I had ground cumin, cardamom, white pepper, chile powder - but not in large amounts so I don't mind getting more) so this was a good deal, they aren't large amounts but absolutely enough to make a good number of dishes. Yesterday we made two recipes and this had everything we needed.I had planned to take these out of the box and put them into my regular spice jars on my wall but it is nicely organized so I may leave it as is, at least while we're cooking a lot. With the exception of turmeric which will escape through the plastic bag pretty soon - that is how you know this is fresh - the turmeric isn't seeping out.Regarding the missing asafoetida, unfortunately its an important one so I will have to buy that separately - so I've dropped this down from 5 stars it would be, but the combined cost of these spices from my normal retailer would have been hundreds of $.

I just received the spice box as a gift, so I have not yet used any of the spices, but I wanted to share a bit of info and some photos to help you make your decision. The box weighs 1 lb and 10 ounces including the box and the spices. The box alone weighs 6.3 ounces, and the actual combined produce weighs 1 lb and 5.5 ounces.The bags of spices are organized. Each bag has a sticker on it with the name of the spice (no weight). A couple of the stickers came off my bags, but there is a chart on the inside of the box lid showing where each spice is, and the name, so it's easy to figure out what each spice is as long as you keep them in order.As soon as I opened the box I could smell the spices (there was a little loose spice sediment in the box). They smell lovely and the quantities are good for beginners (enough to really try the spice in various dishes, but not so much that the spice will go bad before I have a chance to use it). When I run out, I will know exactly what to buy to replace it. I have little experience using indian spices, so for me, the box is a great introduction to a wide variety (30 items) without having to go out and buy spices at random or wait until I have a recipe, for which I would then have to go shopping for individual spices. I am very excited to try the spices.They appear to be fresh and lovely. I have provided photos to give you a better idea of the quantities. I hope it helps.

This is a fantastic way to introduce yourself to Indian cooking! This kit offers small amounts of many different spices used in Indian cooking at a reasonable price. The spider were fresh, and of good quality. The small amounts are great to get you going, and allows you to figure out which spices you use most, and once empty, you can just order those in larger quantities.The first dish I made was a Chicken Tikka Masala. It came out amazing! After running out of the Garam Masala from this box, I picked up some more at the local grocery store. (Private Selection from Kroger). The next time I made Chicken Tikka Masala with the Private Selection Garam Masala, the dish fell completely flat! So, when you do decide to get more of a particular spice, make sure you get good stuff. Read the review here on Amazon or elsewhere. This may be more of an issue with the spice mixtures than with individual spices, but I make it a point with both now.

This is an excellent array of very difficult to access (for many of us, anyway) spices used in traditional Indian cuisine. 5 stars for that selection and the high quality of the spices. Honestly, though, I have found that I simply did not need all of them for the Indian recipes I generally make. If you are going "all-in" on learning to cook Indian cuisine in all its wonderful variety, perhaps this will be the perfect selection for you. If, on the other hand, you tend to make only those recipes you enjoy best, this may not be the most cost-efficient way to buy your spices. For cost and general utitlity, I think 3 stars is about right. Again, the quality of the spices is excellent, but there are more exotic varieties than I could ever fully use in my kitchen and I, unfortunately, have had to discard some for becoming out of date.