Cardamom
Elaterid cardamomum |
|
 |
A
teaspoon of crushed seeds adds a superb flavor to pastry mixes,
ice cream, custards, and fruity sweet dishes (remove before serving). Also
great in tea, coffee, and mulled wine.
Medicinal Uses: Cooling to the body, for bad breath, bronchitis,
asthma, incontinency, as an |
|
aphrodisiac,
and in digestive disorders, like indigestion, gas, cramps, helps
make other herbs palatable.
Tips For Cooking and Storing: Store in airtight containers, inferior
cardamom has a stronger taste. Buy whole pods and crush with
a rolling pin before cooking. |
| |
|
|
Aniseed
Pimpinella
anisum |
|
 |
Combines
well with: Relishes, tomato soups, stews, curries (especially if
roasted), and often used in toothpastes and mouthwashes.
Medicinal Uses: Useful for digestive complaints, such as gas, bloating,
colic, nausea, and indigestion. |
|
Also
for coughs and respiratory ailments. Increases mother’s
milk
Tips For Cooking and Storing: Aniseed has a strong licorice flavor. It
is better to buy the whole seeds that retain flavor longer. Store
in airtight containers |
| |
|
|
Cumin
Cuminum cyminum |
|
 |
In
place of pepper with rice, stuffed vegetables, relishes, cordials,
liqueurs, roasts and mixed with yogurt.
Medicinal Uses: Similar to caraway and anise, relieves flatulence
and bloating, and stimulates digestion, relaxes the gut, useful for
insomnia, colds and fevers. Also stimulates milk flow. |
|
Tips
For Cooking and Storing: To enhance the flavor, roast whole cumin
seeds and then grind them with a mortar and pestle. The pleasant
aroma will fill your kitchen. |
| |
|
|
Fenugreek
Trigonella foenum-graecum |
|
 |
Flavor
chutneys, curries, breads, sprout and added to salads, ground seeds
have a slight maple flavor.
Medicinal Uses: Stimulates milk flow in mothers, soothes sore throats
and bronchitis and clears mucus. |
|
Tips
For Cooking and Storing: Soaked and eaten like beans in Africa.
The seeds contain vitamins, iron, and minerals, and yield a yellow
dye. |
| |
|
|
Ginger
Zingiber
officinale |
|
 |
Combines
well with sweet dishes such as ice cream, ginger cookies and cakes,
and desserts. Also hot curries, stir fries, ginger
tea and beer, and Asian cooking.
Medicinal Uses: Warming effect that is Stimulating to circulation,
induces perspiration, and gastric secretions. |
|
Useful
in many conditions. For more information, read Ginger by Paul Schulick.
Tips For Cooking and Storing: Soak in brandy or sherry to lengthen
shelf life and add liquid to cooking. Try crystallized ginger
a tasty medicinal treat! |
| |
|
|
Mustard
Brassica
alba |
|
 |
Blends
easily with other flavors, cook with the flavored oil or add just
before serving
Medicinal Uses: A strong circulatory stimulant when applied topically,
add to bath for colds & |
|
influenzas,
use topical paste sparingly for muscular pains and bronchitis.
Tips For Cooking and Storing: Store in tight jars, and only grind
lightly for recipes. Fry seeds in a hot oil to make a flavored
oil. |
| |
|
|
Pepper
Piper
nigrum |
|
 |
Combines
well with peppered steak, Caeser salad, soups, casseroles, and
most non-sweet dishes. Also, vinaigrettes, and soft cheeses,
try adding to straw- berries with a sparkling balsamic vinaigrette.
Medicinal Uses: Stimulant to digestive and circulatory systems. It
is antiseptic and antibacterial, warms the body, |
|
and
reduces gas, bloating, tooth- ache, stomachache, and lack of appetite.
Tips For Cooking and Storing: Best ground in a pepper mill, since
it quickly loses its flavor. White pepper is hotter than black,
and not so aromatic. The only spice listed that can be used
to flavor food before, after and during cooking |
| |
|
|
Saffron
Crocus sativus |
|
  |
Color
rice dishes, sauces, and soups. Important ingredient in Spanish
paella. Also in cream cheese, fish sauce, scrambled eggs,
risotto, and added to mayonnaise.
Medicinal Uses: In Chinese herbal medicine it is still used to treat
painful obstructions of the chest, |
|
to
stimulate menstruation, and relieve abdominal pain.
Tips For Cooking and Storing: It is the world’s most expensive
spice. The threads are the purest saffron. They should
be crushed when needed and infused in hot liquid before using. |
| |
|
|
Turmeric
Curcuma longa |
|
 |
Essential
spice in Indian food, for curries, relishes, fish dishes, devilled
eggs, and rice dishes
Medicinal Uses: More and more research is coming out about this cousin
to ginger. It is used as a powerful anti-inflammatory, Curcumin
(a constituent) is a stronger antioxidant than |
|
Vitamin
E, lowers cholesterol, blood thinner, and could be a cancer preventative.
Tips For Cooking and Storing: Turmeric powder is a beautiful yellow
color that should be stored in airtight containers away from direct
light. Handle carefully as it will stain clothes and skin. Also,
use in moderation as it has a strong flavor. |
| |
|
|
Cinnamon
Dalchini |
|
 |
| Cinnamon
is the dried inner bark of various evergreen trees belonging to
the genus Cinnamomum. At harvest, the bark is stripped off and
put in the sun, where it curls into the familiar form called "quills. |
|
Cinnamon
in the ground form is used in baked dishes, with fruits, and in
confections. Cassia is predominant in the spice blends of the East
and Southeast Asia. Cinnamon is used in moles, garam masala, and
berbere. |
| |
|
|
Coriander
Coriandum sativum |
|
  |
| Coriander
is the dried, ripe fruit of the herb Coriandum sativum. The tannish
brown seeds have a sweetly aromatic flavor which is slightly lemony.
A zesty combination of sage and citrus, Coriander is actually thought
to increase the appetite. |
|
There
is mention of Coriander in the Bible where manna is described as
being "like a Coriander Seed, white" (Exodus 16:31).
As civilization spread, so did the popularity and uses of Coriander.
It has been used as a condiment and as an ingredient in medicines.
It is still widely used in tonic and cough medicine in India. The
leaves of the plant, cilantro, are also a popular flavoring in
many Latin American dishes. |
| |
|
|
Bay
Leaves
|
|
 |
| Bay
Leaves or Laurel, are the dried leaves of the evergreen tree, Laurus
nobilis. The elliptically shaped leaves are light green in color
and brittle when dried. They have a distinctively strong, aromatic,
spicy flavor. Bay Leaves is the approved term for this spice, but
the name "laurel" is still seen frequently |
|
Champions
of the Olympic games wore garlands of bay leaves. Our word "baccalaureate" means "laurel
berries" and signifies the successful completion of one's
studies. It alludes to the bay wreaths worn by poets and scholars
when they received academic honors in ancient Greece |
| |
|
|
Cloves
|
|
  |
Cloves
are the dried, unopened, nail-shaped flower buds of the evergreen
Syzygium aromaticum. They are reddish-brown in color and have a
strong, aromatic flavor and aroma.
The
name Cloves comes from the French "clou", meaning
nail. The first references to Cloves are found in Oriental
literature in the Han period in China under the name "chicken-tongue
spice". |
|
From
the 8th Century on, Cloves became one of the major spices in European
commerce. When the Clove forests were first discovered in Indonesia,
all were enchanted with the fragrance and beauty of this tropical
evergreen tree which "must always see the sea" in order
to thrive. Cloves were extremely costly and played an important
part in world history. Wars were fought to secure exclusive rights
to the profitable Clove business. In the Moluccas, where Cloves
were first found, parents planted a Clove tree when a child was
born. |
| |
|
|
Ajwain
Trachyspermum ammi [L.] Sprague |
|
 |
| Ajwain;
its usage is almost confined to Central Asia and Northern India,
particularly the North West (Punjab, Gujarat). Ajwain also enjoys
some popularity in the Arabic world and is found in berbere, a
spice mixture of Ethiopia which both shows Indian and Arabic heritage. |
|
Ajwain
is much used as a medical plant in Ayurvedic medicine (India).
Mainly, it helps against diseases of the digestive tract and fewer.
In the West, thymol is used in medicines against cough and throat
irritation. |
| |
|
|
Tamarind
Tamarindus indica |
|
 |
Tamarind
is from a curved brown bean-pod from the tamarind tree. The pod
contains a sticky pulp enclosing one to ten shiny black seeds.
It is the pulp that is used as a flavouring for its sweet, sour,
fruity aroma and taste. It is available as a pressed fibrous slab,
or as a jamlike bottled concentrate, and some Indian shops carry
the dried pods.
Bouquet: a slightly fruity aroma.
Flavour: a refreshing sour taste
Hotness Scale: 1 |
|
Tamarind
is considered a mild laxative and digestive. It is used to treat
bronchial disorders and gargling with tamarind water is recommended
for a sore throat. It is antiseptic, used in eye-baths and for
the treatment of ulcers. |
| |
|
|
Curry
Murraya koenigii Spreng |
|
 |
| Curry
leaves are extensively used in Southern India and Sri Lanka (and
are absolutely necessary for the authentic flavour), but are also
of some importance in Northern India. Together with South Indian
immigrants, curry leaves reached Malaysia, South Africa and Réunion
island. Outside the Indian sphere of influence, they are rarely
found. |
|
Indians
prepare their mixtures separately for each dish and usually do
not store them, thus guaranteeing the unique flavour of each recipe.
Curry powder, therefore, belongs more to British or international
cuisine than to India; anyone trying to cook authentic Indian recipes
should stick to traditional Indian spice mixtures or, even better,
single spices. Curry powder has been introduced to some Far Eastern
countries in the past, and today plays but a minor rôle as
a flavouring in China, Indonesia and, above all, Vietnam. |
