I had never really tried Dukka before a couple of months ago and, well, I can now safely say that I am addicted. Everyone should try dukkah. TODAY! It is that good, I really promise, and the best part is that you can get all of the ingredients for this recipe from the spices to the almonds and hazelnuts from pretty much any local supermarket.
This week has been kind of mental and I have had to make myself quite a few super duper on the go meals to keep me fuelled. Two dishes that have cropped up quite frequently are avocado on toast with poached eggs and green salad (see my Quick & Easy Poached Egg & Asparagus Salad recipe for something similar) and any sort of grilled asparagus/tenderstem broccoli salad number. Both of these staples have been liberally doused with my new dukkah spice mix this week, and have made two of my favourite dishes one whole new ball game.
Dukkah is a traditional Egyptian mix of herbs, nuts and spices and if you visit any bustling market in Egypt you will find spice stalls selling pre-made batches of all different types – everyone seems to have their own blend. In Egypt a dukkah is often mixed with olive oil and makes the most incredible dip for freshly baked flatbreads and will spice up a hummus recipe no end if you sprinkle it over the top. I can’t therefore quite believe that this mighty little mix has passed me by for so long! But now that it is on my radar, I kind of just want to use it in everything – over dishes like my Fattoush Salad recipe, or even doused over the likes of my Sweet Potato, Ginger & Turmeric Soup too.
So without further ado here is my very own dukkah spice recipe using almonds, hazelnuts AND ground turmeric. Turmeric is a hugely beneficial spice and offers the body a potent dose of anti-inflammatories and antioxidants.
Once you have a go at making this I think you will make sure that there is forevermore a batch made up on your kitchen shelf. Packed with delicious spices it has a vast range of antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties.
Ingredients
- 100g (3.5oz/2/3 cup) hazelnuts (blanched if possible)
- 50g (8oz / 1/3 cup) whole almonds
- 2 teaspoons coriander seeds
- 1 teaspoon of fennel seeds
- 2 teaspoons cumin seeds
- 1 teaspoon black peppercorns
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 2 teaspoons ground turmeric
- 3 tablespoons sesame seeds
- ½ teaspoon Maldon sea salt
Instructions
- Pre-heat the oven to 180°C/355°F/gas mark 4
- Place the hazelnuts and almonds in a baking tray and roast in the oven for 5-7 minutes until they start to turn golden brown and release those amazing nutty smells.
- In a pan, toast the coriander and fennel seeds on a medium heat for around 3 minutes, add the cumin seeds, black peppercorns, turmeric and ground cumin and heat for literally 30 seconds before removing from the heat. The spices will burn very quickly so if they are looking like they are turning, get them out of the pan as soon as possible.
- Transfer the spices to a food processor and set aside while you toast the sesame seeds – simply do this in the same pan as you did the spices and allow the seeds to start to turn a nice golden brown.
- Add the sesame seeds to the spices and pulse in the food processor until most of the seeds have cracked in half - you want it to be quite fine but still with a bit of texture so that you get little bursts of chunky spice.
- Finally add the Maldon sea salt and toasted nuts and pulse again until the nuts have broken down, but again you want to keep some texture in there so don’t blitz so much that it becomes a powder.
- Sprinkle over poached eggs, Eastern inspired salads or your avocado on toast.
Notes
If you are using normal raw hazelnuts, you will need to roast these separately. Once they are nice and toasty – pour them onto a clean tea towel, wrap into a ball and rub together until the skins come off. Discard the skins and set aside with the almonds.
If you are a fan of Middle Eastern flavours then I would really recommend getting yourself a copy of the Persiana cookbook by Sabrina Ghayour. It is honestly one of my favourite cookbooks – you can pick it up from Amazon or visit Sabrina’s website here for lots more gorgeous Eastern inspired recipes.
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