I recently purchased a home curry kit which comprised of various powdered spices (including chilli, cumin, coriander etc.) and a separate curry sauce. To use, the meat or veg is fried until browned, the spices added and fried for a few minutes. The curry sauce is then added and the dish simmered until cooked.
To my surprise, on the side of the jar it stated "Always ensure spices are thoroughly cooked before serving". Upon researching this further, I discovered that some herbs and spices suffer from e-coli and salmonella contamination.
This begs the question if I want to add chilli powder, dried oregano etc. directly to a yoghurt/mayonnaise dip for Shawarma, what is the best method to pre-cook them beforehand or are the amounts of spice used in such dishes so small the chance of illness is insignificant?
More importantly, what are the worst herb/spice culprits for contamination?
