How to check what is in your kitchen

The test2 min

Stir a heaped spoon of the powder into a glass of room temperature water and let it sit undisturbed for a couple of minutes. Genuine chilli powder disperses its colour into the water gradually and fairly evenly, and any solids that settle at the bottom will look like fine, natural chilli particles. If you notice streaks of bright colour sinking straight down like dye, or a distinctly gritty, sandy sediment collecting at the bottom, this can point to added synthetic colour of the water-soluble kind, or to cheap bulking agents like brick powder, both of which are unfortunately common shortcuts in the loose chilli powder market.

The test1 min

Stir a spoon of the powder into a glass of water and let it settle for a minute. Genuine turmeric colours the water a soft, muted yellow and settles gradually, leaving a light residue. If the water turns an intensely bright, almost fluorescent yellow orange within seconds of stirring, that rapid, saturated colour release is a well documented sign of synthetic dyes such as metanil yellow, since real turmeric pigment simply does not disperse that quickly or that vividly on its own.

The test2 min

Sprinkle a small amount onto the surface of a glass of water and watch how it behaves over a minute or two. Genuine coriander powder gradually wets and sinks to the bottom in an even layer. If a noticeable portion stays floating on the surface, looks fibrous or strawlike, or gives off an unpleasant, dungy odour once wet, this can be a sign that the batch has been bulked out with husk, sawdust, or even dried animal dung powder, all of which have been documented as cheap fillers in the loose spice trade.

The test1 min

Take a small handful of seeds and rub them firmly between your palms for a few seconds. Genuine cumin seed will not transfer any colour onto your skin. If your palms pick up a dusty tint, especially a greenish or brownish stain, this can indicate that the seeds have been dyed to disguise a mixture that includes grass seed or other cumin look alikes, which is a known adulteration method in loose whole spice markets.

The test1 min

Sprinkle a little of the powder onto the surface of a glass of water and leave it undisturbed for a minute, then look at the surface before you look at the bottom. Genuine ground pepper wets and sinks, settling into an even dark layer and leaving the surface clear. Pale flecks still floating, or anything with a fibrous, strawlike look to it, point to sawdust or powdered bran used to bulk the pack out, the filler FSSAI names for ground spices generally. If you ever buy pepper whole rather than ground, there is a second FSSAI test for it: drop a handful into a glass of water, and genuine peppercorns sink while the dried papaya seed sold in their place floats.

The test1 min

Mix a small amount of the powder with a little water and pay attention to the smell first. Genuine amchur has a distinctly sharp, fruity sourness. If you have a small amount of iodine tincture available, adding a drop to the mixture and watching for a blue black colour change can indicate added starch, a filler sometimes used to bulk up specialty powders like amchur that are priced higher than everyday spices. Even without iodine, a flat, chalky, or oddly bland smell is worth treating as a red flag.

The test1 min

If you ever have the chance to inspect whole cinnamon bark before it is ground, true cinnamon curls into several thin, layered rolls that look a little like a small scroll made of many delicate sheets, while the thicker, single roll bark often sold cheaply as cinnamon is usually cassia, a related but different bark. In powdered form, taste is your best guide. Real cinnamon tastes delicately sweet with a soft warmth, while cassia tends to taste sharper, more bitter, and leaves a slightly medicinal aftertaste that lingers longer than it should.

The test1 hr

Place a small amount of the oil in the refrigerator. Genuine mustard oil tends to turn slightly cloudy or begin to thicken at low temperatures. Pungency is another useful marker. Authentic mustard oil should make your eyes water slightly when you smell it directly, a sign of the naturally occurring compounds responsible for its sharpness. An oil that smells unusually flat, mild, or even faintly sweet may have been diluted with a cheaper, more neutral oil.

The test1 hr

The same refrigerator test used for black mustard oil applies here. Genuine yellow mustard oil will turn slightly cloudy or begin to thicken when chilled. Pay attention to smell as well. Yellow mustard oil carries a lighter but still clearly identifiable pungency, and an oil that smells completely neutral or unusually sweet is worth questioning.

The test24 hrs

Place a small drop of the oil onto a piece of plain white blotting or filter paper and leave it undisturbed for about twenty four hours. Clean edible oil evaporates over that time and leaves behind little to no visible mark. A persistent, greasy, translucent stain that has not faded after a full day can point to contamination with mineral oil, a cheap adulterant that has been found in cooking oils across the market.

The test3 hrs

Place a small amount of the oil in the refrigerator for a few hours. Genuine extra virgin olive oil often turns cloudy or partially solidifies at low temperatures because of natural waxes it contains, although this test alone is not fully conclusive. Taste is generally more reliable. A true extra virgin oil should finish with a peppery, slightly bitter sensation at the back of the throat, sometimes even producing a light cough, while a diluted or refined oil will taste flat, oily, and largely without character.

The test24 hrs

The same filter paper spot test described for sunflower oil applies here to check for mineral oil contamination. A quick chill test is also useful. Genuine groundnut oil turns slightly cloudy and begins to thicken when chilled, then returns to its normal clear state once it warms back up to room temperature.

The test24 hrs

The same filter paper spot test used for other oils applies here as well, to check for mineral oil contamination. Genuine rice bran oil also naturally contains a compound called oryzanol, largely specific to rice bran, and confirming its presence requires a proper laboratory test rather than a simple visual check. This is worth asking about specifically if you are ever buying loose or unbranded rice bran oil.

The test1 min

Put half a teaspoon of ghee into a clear glass bowl and add two or three drops of tincture of iodine, which any chemist sells. Watch the drops for a minute. If they hold their own reddish brown colour against the yellow fat, there is no starch in the jar. If they turn blue or blue-black, starch has been added, and FSSAI names mashed potato and sweet potato among the usual ones. This is the only at-home ghee test FSSAI publishes, and it is worth being straight about its limits: it finds starch, not vegetable fat, and the test for vegetable fat needs a laboratory rather than a kitchen. One thing of our own, offered as an observation and not as a test: ghee made by the bilona method tends to set grainy rather than smooth, because nothing was added to stop it crystallising.

The test1 min

Put half a teaspoon of ghee into a clear glass bowl and add two or three drops of tincture of iodine, which any chemist sells. Watch the drops for a minute. If they hold their own reddish brown colour against the yellow fat, there is no starch in the jar. If they turn blue or blue-black, starch has been added, and FSSAI names mashed potato and sweet potato among the usual ones. This is the only at-home ghee test FSSAI publishes, and it is worth being straight about its limits: it finds starch, not vegetable fat, and the test for vegetable fat needs a laboratory rather than a kitchen. One thing of our own, offered as an observation and not as a test: ghee made by the bilona method tends to set grainy rather than smooth, because nothing was added to stop it crystallising.