Meet Boonville Boil - Our First Blend!

I, admittedly, am not a spice blend person. Many of the blends in our kitchen tend to languish in a drawer only to be used a handful of times. I have a hard time knowing when to use them and how much to use (especially when there is salt added). There’s only a few spice blends out there that I get excited to use, but I’ve got a new one to add to the list - our *NEW* Boonville Boil Spice Blend.

Why This Spice Blend?

We wanted to make something that would not only work for people who regularly reach for blends in the kitchen, but also people like me! We reached out to the master spice blenders at Curio Spice in Cambridge, MA to help make this possible. 
 
Sam Olivari, Curio’s Production Manager, is the blender behind Boonville Boil. There were two things that guided us in making our first spice blend:
  • No salt added! We prefer to salt to our own liking! 
  • A coarse textured blend so it didn’t just look like a big jar of Piment d’Ville!
Sam started the blending process by tasting a bit of Smoky Piment and then figuring out what the best background flavors would be in a blend that was mostly chile powder. “Then I kinda just ate a bunch of it,” Sam said. 
Sam was inspired by southern flavors, like low country boils and shrimp boils. He added lemon, bay leaf, and then CA grown dill pollen to add a fun pickley aroma. There's also thyme, garlic, and mustard that round of the blend. We tasted it and decided there should be a bit more of a punchy finish, so Sam added a hint of our Comapeño chile powder. The moment you open the jar of Boonville Boil, you can see flecks of other spices in there! We think it is pretty perfect.

How to Use Boonville Boil

I used up a big jar of Boonville Boil VERY FAST. So far, I think the flavor of the blend really shines with seafood, but don’t let that limit the way you think of this herby chile blend. I’ve enjoyed it on roasted vegetables, chicken thighs, in soup, and keep finding ways to use it. It's so easy to take a simple piece of fish, coat both sides in Boonville Boil, and pop it in the oven to cook for 10 minutes. There is no salt added to the blend, allowing for you to add salt as you want it and be able to add more spice without over salting. 
 
The Curio Team developed 3 recipes that use Boonville Boil and they are so delicious. 

What People Think of Boonville Boil

If you still aren't sold, here's what a few Boon Box subscribers think of it!

"Boonville Boil on Salmon. Insanely Good. Boonville boil dusted on roasted chicken wings is 🔥 ” - Heather M-T

"The Boonville Boil seasoning blend was amazing. So amazing it is gone and now I am sad. Popcorn with butter, salt, Boonville Boil, and a little parmigiano is incredible. I put it on roasted potatoes, roast broccoli, really most things!” - Joe M

What We're Cooking

Perfect Shrimp: One thing I am quite proud of is how perfectly I can cook shrimp. Peel some shrimp, leaving just the tail on. Toss with plenty of Boonville Boil, olive oil, and salt. Get a pan hot over medium high heat. Add all your shrimp to the pan, making sure not to crowd them. Let cook for about 2 minutes, until you can see the opaque cooked color of the shrimp start to curl up the sides. Quickly flip every shrimp. By the time you get to the last one, the first ones you flipped will be done.

Smoky Trout Chowder: I am a huge fan of Julia Turshen’s cookbook Simply Julia. It really hits the spot with simple recipes that are budget friendly, don’t have too many hard to find ingredients, and work great with our chiles. I followed her Smoked Trout chowder recipe (onion, celery, potatoes, clam juice, water, half and half, and smoked trout) and used Boonville Boil instead of Old Bay. SO GOOD! She also has a recipe for Mustard Cracker Fish I haven’t made in awhile that would be great too with Boonville Boil.

Gnocchi with Roasted Vegetables: I have recently embraced store bought gnocchi. It is our go-to when we really want to make whatever is left in our fridge more interesting. I tossed sliced delicata squash and cauliflower with Boonville Boil, salt, and oil and roasted it in the oven. I cooked some bacon, then pan seared the gnocchi in the same pan. When the veg was ready, I mixed it all together and topped it with ricotta cheese.

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