When I was 15 years old, a woman who I considered to be like my grandmother came to visit. She had retired to a life living in an ashram. She was self reliant, intelligent, and wise. During her summer visit she encouraged me (perhaps it felt like a challenge), that I learn to make an entire Indian meal by the time I turn 16.

By the end of the following summer I had accomplished this goal, through the close apprenticeship of my beloved mother.

You see my mother was a divine soul, who intuitively and somewhat magically understood how to work with spices. That summer when I first took an earnest interest in cooking, I recall asking my mom to prescribe the portions in terms of western measurements, e.g. 1 tablespoon. After all, that is how I was taught in my Junior High-school’s Home Economics class while we lived in Southern California.

However, by the following summer we had moved to India. To say I was in a culture shock would be an understatement. From having a buffalo arrive at the front gate of the home with fresh milk, daily walks to street vendors to pick out our fresh farm vegetables, to how the most basic of tasks were accomplished — all of daily life was new. For example, the task of infusing the meal of the night, with the appropriate spices was like alchemy. I was in awe of how my mom magically measured ingredients. She didn’t. She’d pinch her way through the masala dabba (spice box) to add a bit of this, and a little more of that.

In India, the art and tradition of cooking is handed down from generation to generation, from mother to daughter. And until the advent of cook books, most instructions were oral, with only a few items like dals (legumes), flour, and rice were left for measurement. However, flavoring ingredients (such as, spices or masalas) were added according to intuition.

The result was heavenly magic.

I dedicate this first post of Spicy Shaka. February 14th 2015, I performed her soul transition ceremony, after her sudden passing. She has left me with the passion to continue exploring spices to create a bit of heaven on earth.