SA Rocks

I have a confession to make. I’m a lazy cook.

If there’s a shortcut I can take or some way of cutting out the tedious bits of preparation, I’ll do it. Pre-sliced vegetables were made for me; ditto gravy thickening granules, green Thai curry paste, ready-to-roll puff pastry and Nando’s marinades. Bring ‘em on! That’s not to say that I like ready-meals – I don’t. There’s a distressing samey-ness to all of the flavours after a while and they never taste as good as The Real Thing. But if I can save myself a bit of hassle on the way to a home cooked meal, why not.

This is why I’ve always been tremendously fond of Nice ‘n Spicy one-off spice packs. If you love the taste of proper curry but the spices are a mystery to you; or if you understand the spices but don’t want to buy a big packet of spice that will then lie around your cupboard for months, then these little babies are the answer. You get a piece of paper, roughly A5 size, and stapled to one side of the paper you will find four to six little sealed plastic packets of pre-measured spice mixes. Written on the other side, you will find easy-to-follow, step-by-step instructions to make a particular dish. Things like “fry the onions and garlic in the a little oil together with the spices from the first packet. Add the chicken together with the spices from the second packet” and so forth. Couldn’t be easier, really! And the end result has turned out perfectly every time I’ve used one of these marvellous packs.

I was even more thrilled when I noticed that the business address printed on these packs is… in my hometown of Port Elizabeth! As it turns out, Nice ‘n Spicy is the brainchild of Vina and Gene Hayden. They opened the wonderful Valley Harvest shop at the top of Upper Valley road 20 years ago – I remember a visit there being a treat as you always discovered some new and exotic ingredient. Amongst other things, this is where the Haydens sold their spices, including the pre-measured packets for a single dish. Although they sold Valley Harvest in 1996, they are still in the spice trade with their retail outlet in Forest Hill where you can find things like Szechuan peppers, vanilla pods or juniper berries, should the occasion call for it. But they have mainly focused their business on their pre-measured spice packs which are available at the shop, at Valley Harvest and at many local supermarkets – but also around the world (Biltongmakers here in the UK stocks a full range).

So… what have I made using these wonderful packs? The recipe I’ve probably made the most is the Balti chicken curry and I have to say it is a total winner. Creamy, spicy and a real crowd pleaser – you can even make a vegetarian version, substituting butternut and chickpeas for the chicken. The bobotie turns out perfectly every time and has been made many a time for our friends here in London. The roasted vegetable curry is a hit, Nick swears by the masala and Vindaloo and I love the seafood curry. And most recently I made their chicken biryani which was spectacular. It seems that, whatever pack you choose, you can’t really go wrong.

So when I’m feeling homseick, I haul out one of these spice packs and cook up the taste of home, knowing I’m supporting a rocking South African business. Or I just take a sniff of my suitcase which permanently smells of curry because of the number of these packets I’ve brought over to England in my luggage over the years.

If those little customs spaniels at Heathrow ever get a good sniff at my suitcase, they’re in for a big surprise

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