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Seasoning and Spices - Spices
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ALLSPICE
As its name suggests, allspice's flavor is reminiscent of a combination of spices, including cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg, and pepper. It is used for baking, pickles and sausage making.
The allspice tree, a member of the myrtle family, is indigenous to the West Indies and Central and South America. Jamaica produces most of the world's allspice supply, and not surprisingly, allspice figures strongly into Jamaican cuisine. The complex, exotic flavor of Jamaican jerk chicken and jerk pork can be attributed primarily to allspice.
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ANISE SEED
Native to the eastern Mediterranean, anise has been successfully cultivated from southern Russia to India and South America. The mother plant, a member of the parsley and carrot family, grows about 2 feet high and produces the tiny, oval anise seeds from its flower heads.
Anise seeds have a delicate, sweet licorice flavor similar to fennel.
Anise Plant In Bloom
In addition to is common use in rye bread, anise is a component of many candies and popular liqueurs (Pernot, anisette, ouzo, etc.), both of which are popular after-dinner treats because of anise's breath-freshening qualities.
Often Indian cuisine will feature candied anise seeds after dinner to combat the strong breath patrons get from curries and other Indian specialties. It's also said to cure hiccups.
Anise is available both whole and ground. For best flavor, buy whole seeds in small batches and use quickly. Anise is a soft seed and is easily ground.
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BASIL
Basil, a tender, leafy member of the mint family, is most abundant in the summertime and available at many produce markets year-round. Because it's easy to grow both indoors and out, basil has found its way into many cuisines. You'll appreciate its warm, mild, licorice-tinged flavor and aroma in both hot and cold dishes. Fresh basil is often paired with tomatoes in both hot dishes and cool salads.
Common basil has large, bright green leaves, while globe basil, a bushier plant, has more, smaller, and spicier leaves. Other varieties include opal or purple basil, a purple or purple-and-green variety with a spicier flavor and slightly tougher leaves. Basil adds a very pleasant slightly sweet flavor. It is used on all tomato dishes, potato soups, spaghetti, venison, duck and sausage making.
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BELL PEPPERS
All peppers are known as capsicums. Sweet peppers are seed pods and can be red, green, yellow, orange, white or purple. Green and red peppers grow on the same plant, it%u2019s just that a red pepper is a ripe green one. Yellow, orange, white and purple are different varieties. Red and green peppers are by far the most commonly found peppers, although yellow peppers are also becoming widely available. White, orange and purple peppers have a more limited supply. Peppers are sweet and juicy with a mild spicy flavor. Being riper, red peppers are sweeter than green peppers.
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CARDAMOM
Cardamom has a lovely sweet, warm aroma and flavor with a lemony layer and a eucalyptus-like kick. Used extensively in both Scandinavian and Indian cuisine, cardamom plays a starring role in both sweet and savory dishes. Indian cooking features cardamom in curries, garam masala, kulfi (Indian ice cream) and milk puddings. In Scandinavian cuisine, you'll find cardamom in everything from pickles and herring to sweet cakes and Aquavit. The cardamom-infused coffee gahwa is a symbol of Arab hospitality.
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CAYENNE PEPPER
The chili used in this fiery powder were originally grown in the Cayenne region of French Guyana. The same peppers are now grown in India, Japan, and Africa, but the name Cayenne pepper stuck. Unlike its milder cousins, cayenne pepper uses the seeds and membranes (where you'll find the fire) of a high-capsicum chili, making it especially hot and pungent so use sparingly!
Cayenne pepper is widely used in savory dishes is especially well suited to cheese and egg dishes, as its heat is a great foil to rich ingredients. Similarly, it's often used in rich sauces and in Cajun sausage recipes. Cayenne preparations vary by producer, and flavor and color will vary accordingly.
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CELERY SEED
Typically the seeds of lovage, a wild type of celery, celery seed has a strong, somewhat bitter flavor and carries the familiar celery aroma. Celery seed is featured in many savory baked goods, including breads and cheese biscuits. It's also used in pickling, and soups and other savory dishes, particularly those which feature eggs or fish.
Use a light hand with celery seed, which can easily overpower a dish. The common celery salt and celery pepper are made by grinding celery seeds with either salt or pepper. Make your own in a blender or grinder, using a high salt or pepper to celery seed ratio. Uses: soups, baking, sausage making, slaw, potato salad, pickles, meat spreads.
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CHILI POWDER
Chili Powder is a blend of spices that usually includes ground chili peppers, oregano, cumin, and garlic powder.
Chili Powder is used in Southwestern and Mexican-type cooking. It's a prominent ingredient of chili con carne, and is also used to season eggs, shellfish, cheese dishes, and stews. Manufacturers use chili powder in processed Mexican foods, sausages, and pork and beans.
Chili Powder mixtures can vary from mild to extremely spicy. It is not necessarily hot, but may have a mild flavor if made with a chili pepper of a less pungent variety.
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CHILI POWDER ANCHO
A dried deep reddish brown chile pepper about 3 inches wide and 4 inches long with a sweet hot flavor. When fresh they are referred to as poblanos. Anchos are flat, wrinkled, and heart shaped. The ancho is the sweetest of the dried chiles; and is most commonly used in authentic Mexican cooking and is a staple in red chili and tamales.
The Ancho Chile together with the Mulato and Pasilla chiles form the "holy trinity" of chiles used to prepare mole sauces. Ancho is used to add flavor, heat, and color to sauces and moles. Anchos are mild to moderately hot and often soaked and ground for use in sauces.
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CINNAMON
Cinnamon, a bushy evergreen tree, now thrives in South America and the West Indies. The spice we know as cinnamon is the bark of those trees. Similar to cinnamon (and sold as cinnamon in many places, including the US), is cassia, which has a somewhat coarser flavor than true cinnamon. Cassia, a native of Burma, is now grown in China, Indochina, Indonesia, the Indies, and Central America.
In their whole bark form, cinnamon and cassia can be differentiated by their shape: cinnamon bark forms the tightly-rolled quills commonly called cinnamon sticks, while cassia forms into more loosely rolled, irregular sticks or strips. Culinary experts recommend using true cinnamon for sweets and delicate dishes, while cassia is fine for savory dishes and stewed fruits.
Cinnamon has an rich, warm, sweet fragrance that has made it a key ingredient in dishes from around the globe. From mulled wine to hot chocolate to cookies, cakes, moles, soups, and stewed or roasted meats; even in the making of certain types of sausage, cinnamon gives dishes a complex, exotic flavor.
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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. Cloves are believed to be native to the Molucca Islands of Indonesia. Although Indonesia is the largest producer of Cloves, Zanzibar and Madagascar are the major exporters, where Clove trees cover thousands of acres of the islands. Historically, Cloves originating from Madagascar have been considered superior.
Cloves are an important ingredient in the spice blends of Sri Lanka and North India. They are used in garam masala, biryanis, and pickles. In the U.S., cloves are used in meats, salad dressings, and desserts. Clove is a key flavor contributor to ketchup and Worchestershire sauce seasoning blends. Chinese and German seasonings also depend on Cloves to flavor meats and cookies.
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CORIANDER
A relative of the parsley family, coriander dates back to around 900 BC. Also, coriander is the most commonly used herb in the world. A surprising factoid, when you consider that for some, it's an acquired taste.
Coriander" usually refers to the spice, which is comprised of the plant's seeds. Coriander leaves are more frequently known as cilantro however, the leaves and seeds have very different taste.
The flavor of coriander seeds can best be compared to sage and lemon and are often used for pickling and mulling wine. These seed are also available as ground coriander and are used in many baked goods (particularly Scandinavian), curry blends, soups and is even used as a seasoning in certain types of sausage.
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CUMIN
Also called "cumino", this nutty-flavored spice is also related to the parsley family, and its earliest use dates back to Biblical times. Though native to the Eastern Mediterranean and upper Egypt, cumin is now also cultivated in Morocco, the Middle East, China, and the Americas.
Though the amber-colored variety is the most common, you can also find it in both white (same taste as the amber) and black (more complex flavor). The flavor and aroma are sweet and spicy, and just slightly bitter. Cumin is often used with coriander, which tempers the bitterness. Dry-frying seed before grinding mellows the flavor.
As with coriander, cumin is often used to flavor curries and garam masala. Cumin is widely used in dishes with strong flavors, including the cuisine of the Middle East, North African, India, and Mexico. It's also used in German classics like sauerkraut, pickles, and sausages, and in Dutch cheese.
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CURRY POWDER
Curry powder is a British invention to imitate the flavor of Indian cooking with minimal effort. Some curry powders, or so the books tell, indeed contain curry leaves, but probably only
for historic or linguistic reasons, since dried curry leaves lose their fragrance within days. A typical curry powder should derive its taste mainly from roasted cumin, roasted coriander, black pepper, chilis and roasted fenugeek. Additionally, ginger, lentil flour, salt and sweet spices (cinnamon, cloves and cardamom) are frequently added. The yellow colour stems from turmeric. Spices with no
tradition in India (e.g., galangale, caraway, allspice, celery or zedoary) are unreasonable and should
not appear in anything that claims an Indian origin, though they are sometimes listed as ingredients in curry powder. But since curry powder is not a traditional recipe, anyone is free to sell his own creation.
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