In the Kitchen with Spice Kitchen #Blog

Briony Wilson
8th October 2018

Last week, I stopped by Spice Kitchen HQ and met with Sanjay to get to know a little bit more about what they do. Sanjay and his mum, Shashi, started the company over the kitchen table on Christmas Day 2012, Shashi was looking for a hobby during her retirement and from there, the business has surpassed all expectations.

Shashi was born in Kenya, grew up in India and has lived in the UK for over 30 years. She has 50+ years of cookery experience and is an oracle when it comes to using spices, much to her families benefit.

For those of you who don’t know Sanjay and Shashi create Spice Tins, with a variety of different spices included. In the Indian culture Spice Tins are regularly given as gifts, and almost all households in India have one, therefore the tins are steeped in tradition. The ‘Masala Dabba’ spice tins are shiny stainless steel tins imported from India, containing 7 separate containers for easy access to the myriad of spices that you will need to create perfectly blended dishes. As the business has grown so has the Range, there is now 9 varieties of spice tins available including an; Indian set, Moroccan set, African & Middle Eastern set and a Loose Tea set.

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Spice Kitchen specialise in producing small batch, freshly ground spice blends and tea blends; sourcing the freshest raw spices from around the world, hand-blend, hand-roast and hand-grind them to authentic recipes. Whilst the tins make the perfect gift, you can also purchase refills of the quality spices and blends from the team and get them shipped directly to your door.

I must admit, I don’t cook with a lot of spices, purely down to lack of knowledge of  how to blend these fabulous flavours, but after spending a morning with Sanjay, I cannot wait to give it try, the smell of their kitchen would convince anyone.

Whilst Sanjay has moved the business up to Cheshire, His Mum and Dad, still huge parts of the business, remain down in Birmingham. Shashi is a fabulous sewer and as well as cooking this a favourite past time of hers. From home she handmakes every single silk Sari tin Wrap; another reason that make them a fabulous gift. Again, Sari’s are steeped in tradition and culture and the sari wrap on the tins is a great way that Spice Kitchen upcycle old or unused Sari’s. For many they just look pretty and add to the gift but for others it adds so much more. However, sari fabric is not easy to get hold of and so Spice Kitchen are part of a Donation scheme, for each Sari donated, £5 is donated to the chosen charity.

A lot of hard work has gone in the business the whole family are very fortunate to be in the position they are in and they do not take that for granted in the slightest, they work with several Charites to do their bit. The main being FRANK Water, who build sustainable water projects in India and Nepal.

I was surprised when meeting Sanjay to find out that wedding favours and corporate gifting is also a growing area of the business. My favourite gift being the Mulled wine and Cider Spice packs, this are far as I am concerned; is Christmas in a bag! One day this will be there best-selling product I am sure and has already won a Great Taste Award 2017. Made from a mixture of Peel, Cardamom, Cinnamon, Black peppercorns, Nutmeg, Cloves Ginger and Other spices, the smell is captivating and in 2016 was voted Best mulling product by the Independent.

What truly makes Spice kitchen successful is there emphasis on Quality and Authenticity, they have stuck to traditional methods of preparation and the families influence and passion comes through in every product. You can purchase Spice Kitchen’s wonderful array of products online; or at various events around the country.