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Anise | Asafetida | Bay Leaves |
| Chili | Cinnamon | Cloves | |
| Cumin | Fennel | Fenugreek | |
| Ginger | Nutmeg & Mace | Pepper | |
| Turmeric | Cardamon | Coriander | |
| Garlic | Star Anise | MORE>>> |
One of the oldest spices, native to Middle East and Eastern Mediterranean, Anise is botanically related to dill, fennel, caraway and cumin. It is now grown in Southern Russia, Turkey, India and many parts of Europe. An annual with a hairy, striate stem, up to 12-15 inches tall, it has divided basal leaves with oval, toothed leaflets. The plants are pulled up just before the fruit ripens and piled up to dry. Then they are threshed and the seeds are dried on trays in shade outdoors or moderate heat indoors. Aniseed contains an essential oil, composed of anethole, isoanethole and anisic aldehyde.
Anise is widely used in cake and cookie in Europe and in Middle East and India. It is added to soups, stews and breads. It is also used for flavouring alcoholic drinks. Anise water is used as cologne in India. The oil from the seeds is used for manufacture of anise-flavoured aperitifs and liquors.
Medicinal value:
Anise is considered a mild expectorant and added to cough medicines. It is used to reduce the bitter taste of drugs.
Asafetida is a dried resin like substance obtained from the rhizomes of several species of ferule, or giant fennel. A native to south Western Asia, it grows in the dry regions of Iran, Afghanistan, India and Pakistan. The name derives from Persian aza, resin, and the Latin fetida, which means stinking, and describes its most obvious attributes.
Ferula is smelly plants that grow to some 2-4 mtrs. They have soft centered stems, finely toothed leaves and produce clusters of yellow flowers. At the beginning of summer, the stems and roots are cut and a milky liquid exudes, which dries to form asafetida, a solid gum like mass. The gum is scrapped off and further cuts are made until the root dries up. The material is used either as it is, or after being ground to powder.
In Western and Southern India, Asafetida flavours pulses and vegetable dishes, pickles and sauces. A piece of asafetida may be rubbed on a grill before cooking meat. It should always be used sparingly. In Iran the center of the stalks and the leaves are eaten as vegetables.
It has antispasmodic properties. It has been used to treat hysteria and taken as a sedative. In India it is prescribed to treat flatulence and bronchitis.
The Bay tree is known to have nativity in Asia Minor, but for a long time it was thought of having origin in the Mediterranean where it grows widely in mild climates; low temperature. A small tree with glossy dark leaves, it can grow to a height of 15-25 ft. However, often it is found in the form of shrub or in tubs and pruned into attractive shapes.
In ancient Greece and Rome, Bay leaves were used to make crowns of laurel worn by victors in battle or sports contests.
In the kitchen, bay leaf is indispensable. It goes with everything from savoury meet and fish dishes to pasta sauces and sweet dishes. The leaves, both fresh and dried are strongly fragrant. The leaves are often cooked with meat and make it more easily digestible by stimulating the gastric and liver functions. It has carminative, sudorific, antiseptic, sedative and stimulant properties. The distilled oil is utilized in the perfume and liquor industries.
One of the most ancient spices, highly valued (it is the third expensive spice after saffron and vanilla), cardamom is widely cultivated on the Malabar Coast of India, Guatemala, Tanzania, Vietnam and widely grow in the rain forests of Southern India and Sri Lanka at altitudes between 750 to 1500 mtrs.
A member of ginger family, it is a tall perennial shrub with lance shaped leaves and short flowering stems. The first small harvest occurs three years after planting and thereafter the plants bear for 10-15 years. After flowering, the stems carry small green seed capsules. These seed capsules can contain up to 20 aromatic seeds. The fruits ripen at intervals from September to December and are harvested every few weeks just before they ripen. The seeds are harvested by hand. There are three varieties. Green Cardamom pods are the best in quality, white are bleached green ones and brown prods are not the true cardamom, but a related variety.
Cardamom can enhance both sweet and savoury tastes. It is a constant ingredient in Indian cooking. In Middle East it is used to flavour sweet meats and sweet pastries. In African countries, it is used to mellow the flavour of tea/coffee. In European countries it is added to warm winter punches and mulled wines.
Medicinal Value:
Tincture of cardamom is a useful medicine for flatulence and stomach disorders. Chewing a few seeds cleanses the breath. Together with betel leave and areca nuts, it forms part of betel quid that is chewed by Indians as a mouth freshener and digestive aid.
Members of the capsicum family, chilies and sweet peppers come in all shapes, sizes and colours. Indigenous to central and South America and West Indies it has now been cultivated in India, Mexico, China, Japan, Indonesia and Thailand. India is the largest producer. The main importers are Sri Lanka, Malaysia and U S A.
There are 200 different types of chilies grown in all parts of the tropic. They are grown from sea level to altitudes 2000 mtrs. Sweet peppers and chilies will grow in warm temperature zone also., but it is susceptible to frost. Green Chilies are picked three months after planting other varieties are left longer to ripen. After picking, the chilies are either dried in the sun or artificially. They have little aroma, but vary in taste from mild to fiery hot. Used in cuisine around the world, chilies spice up many savoury dishes. It enhances the bland flavour of the staple foods, rice in India and South East Asia, beans and corn in Mexico, Cassava in South America.
Caution:
When handling chilies, wash the hands well and avoid touching eyes and any sensitive area or cuts.Fresh capsicums are rich in Vitamin C.
Cinnamon is indigenous to Sri Lanka, grown now in India, Brazil, Indonesia, West Indies, Southern China and other Indian Ocean Islands. It is the dried bark of a Lauraceae family tree, grows to 33 ft. The plants are cultivated on Sandy soil in the form of shrub to facilitate harvesting. The branches are cut in rainy season, the bark is detached from stem, left to dry for 24 hours, and then outer part is peeled away. Then the strips of bark are rolled tightly in layers and left to dry.
It is delicately fragrant, slight sweet, lose the fragrance once ground. It is used for both sweet and savoury dishes, rice dishes, chocolate desserts, cakes, drinks, to flavour ale and wine. It is widely used for making incense pomanders and potpourris.
Medicinal Value:
Ancient Chinese references mention about use of Cinnamon as early as 2700 BC as a medicine for relieving nausea, fever, diarrhoea and menstrual problems. The ethereal oil present in the spice contains Cinnamic Aldehyde and Bugenol. Cinnamon is used for stimulating gastric and digestive juices and carminative. It has antiseptic and antimycotic value. It fights tooth decay, that is why most of the tooth pastes are cinnamon flavoured. It is an antiseptic that helps kill bacteria which causes tooth decay and gum disease. It kills many fungi and viruses that cause diseases. It helps calm the stomach, clears up urinary tract infections. In diabetic patients, it helps metabolize sugar in a better way using less insulin.
Cloves are the unopened flower buds of a small evergreen tree, native to 'Moluccas' or 'spice lands'. Now part of Indonesia. The trees are cultivated from one-year-old seediness and harvested for the first time after 5 years. The tree normally grows over to 50 ft. The trees flourish only in tropical maritime climate and are now grown in India, Indonesia, Madagascar, Tanzania, Sri Lanka, Malaysia and Grenada.
Cloves are picked when the buds reach full size, but before the petals open. The buds are then dried over several days in the sun; they lose two-thirds of their weight and turn dark brown.
It has an assertive, dark aromatic odour, pungent and burning taste; leaves a lasting numb sensation in the mouth when bitten alone. It is that quality that makes it an immediate remedy for toothache.
Cloves go well with sweet or savoury foods and are used to stud a baked ham by Americans, by Germans in spiced bread. Indians use them to flavour curries and other dishes. They are used for flavouring deserts, fruit salad, mulled wine and liquors. The essential oil is obtained by steam distillation of discarded parts of the plant. It has antiseptic, stimulant, stomach-ache and digestive properties. It is used in dentistry for it antiseptic and analgesic properties.
As a powerful food preservative, cloves are used to preserve ham and other meat items. As an anti-infectant, clove is effective against colibacilli, streptococci, staphylococci, pneumococci and as an antimyeotic. It is believed to prevent stomach upset, traveller's diarrhoea and wound infections. The oil, whole and powdered cloves use for local pain relieving purpose.
A species (also called Chinese Parsley) originally from North Africa, now cultivated in Southern Europe as well as Middle and Far East, India, United States of America, Central & South America, is one of the most popular herbs in cuisine's worldwide. It is an annual or BI-annual herbaceous plant. It grows from 30-80 cm tall and bears small clusters of tiny white or pink flowers. There are two varieties, one with large fruit growing in warm countries and other with small fruit, cultivated in temperate zones. The fruits have ten ridges and the two parts of schizocarp are not separated, producing a single spherical fruit.
All parts of the plants are used for cuisine's in different areas. The root is used in Thai curries and other South East Asian dishes; the leaves are used in cuisine's in Middle East. Spain. Portugal and Mexico, the seeds are used for flavouring gin or as ingredient in pickling spices in Northern Europe. It is the Indian sub-continent, who exploited both seeds and leaves, to be essential ingredients in curries.
Coriander is given a mention in Bible "manna was like coriander seed, white" (Exodus 16:31). It is named in Ebers Papyrus of 1550 BC, in Sanskrit literature. Hippocrates, the Greek 'Father of Medicine' used coriander as a drug; Romans spread the use of this spice.
It is said to contain an antioxidant that prevents animal fats from turning rancid. Its ability to kill meat spoiling bacteria and fungi might have made Romans to use it to preserve meat.
The spice and essential oils are used in pharmaceutical preparations for migraine and indigestion, and for cosmetics preparations. It is claimed to have the following properties. Promote Digestion, Prevent Infection (wounds) and Relieve Arthritis.
Originally from Nile Valley, Cumin has been grown in India, Egypt, Arabia and Mediterranean countries. It needs a warm and equable climate. The plant grows to a height of about 30 cm. The spice comes from the seed of the plant. The seeds are sown under glass and the seedlings transplanted out early, preferably in sandy-calcareous soil. Fruits appear after two months. The inflorescence are removed with the plants begin to wither. The stalks are cut when the seeds begin to turn yellow and they are thrashed and dried in the sun.
The smell of cumin is quite pronounced, strong and heavy, with acrid or warm depths. It tastes slightly bitter, sharp and warm and their pungent favor persists for some time.
It is used for flavouring drinks, employed for seasoning kid, chicken and sweetbread, in Arab Countries, used in pickles, relishes and salads in North Africa. In India, it is mixed as an essential ingredient of garam masala.
It is taken as a remedy for diarrhoea, flatulence and indigestion.
It is native to Southern Europe, now cultivated for export in Germany, Italy, France, Russia, Middle East, India, etc. The Historian Pliny believed about fennel's medicinal effects to strengthening eyesight. Herbalists later endorse the belief. In India and China fennel has long been taken as remedy for scorpion and snakebites.
A perennial umbellifer, growing up to 4 ft., it has an erect bright green stem. The yellow flowers are borne in dense, compact umbels. The fruits are oval ridged mericarps 1/2 inch long and slightly curved. The seed heads are harvested just before the seeds ripen. To dry the seed heads, it is covered with paper bag and hangs by stem indoors.
The Italians cook fennel with roast pork. In Iraq, it is ground with nigella for flowering bread. The Indians use fennel seeds in vegetarian cooking, breath freshening paans and candied to chew as a digestive aid (alleviates gas) at the end of meal. In Europe it is a traditional seasoning for fish, flavours pickles, cucumbers, etc. It has been traditionally used to boost mothers' milk production and promote menstruation.
Medicinal value:
It is noted that the seeds were used in medicines for shortness of breath and for wheezing. It is also believed to help cure stomach complaints.
It is native to eastern Mediterranean and is cultivated around Mediterranean, India, Pakistan, Morocco, France and Argentina. It is an annual, multi-branched stems, grow up to 2' tall with leaves like those of medicinal herb. The flowers in the leaf axils are 1-2 cm sessile with papilionate yellow-violet corolla. The fruit is a berry of about 10-cm, which contains ten large, light brown seeds. When the seeds are ripe, the plants are pulled up and dried. The seeds are then threshed and fried further. It has a strong aromatic smell similar to celery or lovage. Its aromatic smell dominates curry powder.
Fenugreek restores nitrogen to the soil and used as cattle fodder. It provides a good source of protein, vitamins and minerals.
Medicinal Value:
Ancient Egyptians used a paste from ground fenugreek, plastered over the body to reduce fever and used in fumigation and embalming. It is now used for manufacture of oral contraceptives. In Asia it is soaked in water and taken as a tea to aid digestion. It is also used to treat a number of disorders from diabetes and bronchitis to skin irritations and reproductive problems.
The origin of this plant is uncertain, but it is cultivated in antiquity. This plant is cultivated on a large scale in India, China, Korea, Spain, etc
It is a perennial bulbous plant, related to onion family, grows to 20'. The head of the garlic is a compound bulb in which the single bulbil are separated into compact segments covered by stiff white skin. Garlic is grown by separating the bulbil and planting them out in autumn in rows at a distance of 6 inches.
The plant possesses hypotensive, hypogymeic and anthelminthic properties. Because of its bacteriostatic and vactericidal action, it is a powerful disinfectant.
It is used for seasoning and flavouring meat sausages, sauces, salads, soups and vegetables.
Garlic is considered as one of the world's oldest medicines. It fights infection, protects against heart disease and stroke, reduces cholesterol, prevents blood cots, controls diabetes, prevents cancer and offers hope to AIDS patients. It is observed that chewing 6 to 12 cloves of fresh garlic is good for fighting illness and infection. Munching of 3 to 10 cloves is good to help reduce blood pressure, cholesterol and internal blood clots. Garlic kills the bacteria that cause tuberculosis, food poisoning and female bladder infections, reduce blood sugar levels. The studies shows that garlic helps improve the immune functions, chronic diarrhoea, chronic herpes sores, in AIDS patients.
It is the underground rhizome of a plant with lanceolate leaves and spikes of yellow flowers, born on stems covered by bracts. Gingerroot is extensively used in cuisine's of Asia, where its importance is second only to salt. Ginger has been cultivated in tropical Asia, now widely grown in Hawaii, West Indies and Northern Australia. China and India are the largest producers.
Gingerroot is appreciated in many dishes, both sweet and savoury, even though in the Orient, it is used to its full potential. It is used in different forms, fresh, dried, pickled, preserved in syrup, crystallized, powdered. It adds a clean, fresh bite to seafood, picks up the flavour of dull foods, cut the fattiness of rich meats. In marinades, it has affinity for citrus fruit, garlic, onions, and soy sauce.
It has numerous applications in sweet and savoury cooking. For curry powder and other spice blends, it is an essential ingredient. It is also used in cakes, puddings, pickles, cookies, etc.
Medicinal value:
It is recommended for stomach and as an antidote to poison by Greek physician Dioscorides. It is widely used as a digestive aid in Asian medicine. Studies show that ginger help relieving headaches, lowering cholesterol, reducing arthritis pain and preventing stomach ulcers. It is used in Chinese medicine to relieve indigestion and gas. It prevents seasickness, fights nausea and diarrhoea from stomach flu, ease morning sickness. Ginger tea is a pleasant drink; improving circulation, eases travel sickness.
History reveals the use of nutmeg in the first century AD. Nutmeg is the hard kernel of the seed of an evergreen tree, native to Moluccas. Mace is the lacy growth known as the aril, surrounds the seed. Nutmeg had long been used in India, unknown to ancient civilization of the west.
The spice became popular in the kitchen when the Portuguese developed trade in Spice Island, in 16th century. Nutmeg became important as medicine and spice and by the 18th century, people carried nutmeg as a personal belonging.
Cultivation of this species is only possible in warm humid climates with temperatures not less than 55oF. Today this spice is cultivated in Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India, West Indies and Brazil.
These spices are similar in aroma and taste, but mace is more refined. These are used in both savoury and sweet dishes. Nutmeg has a warm flavour and affinity for rich foods. In Italy, it is used for filling pastas. In India these are used mainly in Moghul dishes. Arabs add it to Mutton and Lamb. Europeans use it extensively in sweet and savoury dishes. Dutch recipes include nutmeg as a seasoning agent. In Indonesia, flesh of the fruit is used to make sweet meat.
Medicinal Value:
It is used to relieve bronchial disorders, rheumatism and flatulence as treatment for digestive, liver and skin complaints. It is also used in perfumery, soaps and shampoos.
Pepper is native to the monsoon forests of Malabar Coast in Southwest India. India is the major producer of pepper; it is cultivated in Indonesia, Malaysia and Brazil. One fourth of the total global spice trade is accounted by pepper, with U.S.A. being the single largest importer.
Pepper plant is a climber with dark green leaves and spikes of white flowers. The peppercorn is a berry like drupe, about 1/2 cm in diameter, green when unripe, then red. Black pepper comes from whole fruit, picked just before they are completely ripe, white pepper from ripe fruits with the endocarp of the pulp separate for fermentation.
Pepper has a warm, woody smell that is fresh, pungent and aromatic, Ground pepper quickly loses its aroma. Pepper is neither sweet nor savoury, thus, can be used in both types of dishes.
Medicinal value:
It has stimulant, digestive, diuretic and enpeplic properties. It is said to help relieve flatulence.
This is a star shaped fruit of a small evergreen tree, native to China, one of the few spices used in Chinese cookery. The tree grows up to 8 meters, but bear fruit only it is about 6 years old; continue to bear fruit for almost 100 years thereafter. The yellow flowers followed by brown fruits that opens into star shape when ripe, each point contains a shiny brown seed.
Star Anise has a similar smell and taste that of fennel. Chinese add this spice to poultry and pork dishes, key ingredient in 'Five Spice powder'. The Vietnamese use it in beef soup, flavouring for roast chicken.
The essential oil contains anethole. It flavours liqueurs such as pasties and anisettes. It is also used in chewing gum and confectionery, soap making and perfumery.
Medicinal value:
In the east, it is used to relieve colic and rheumatism and to flavour cough medicines. It is a stimulant and diuretic, it help relieves sore throat. The spice is chewed whole to sweeten breath.
A member of the ginger family, cultivated widely in India, China, Taiwan, Indonesia, Vietnam and the Philippines, Turmeric is used throughout Southern Asia. It is the underground rhizome of a robust perennial plant that grows to a height of 1 mtr. It is usually propagated from fingers or small sections of rhizomes of previous year's growth.
The whole dump of the rhizome is lifted carefully to prevent any damage and the fingers are broken off from larger rhizomes. The turmeric is boiled or steamed, then dried. The outer stem is removed and the rough brown fingers become orange yellow. Although available fresh sometimes, it is most often sold dried and ground. It adds a warm, mild aroma and distinctive yellow colour to foods.
In Indian vegetarian dishes, it is an essential ingredient. In the west it is used commercially in sauces and processed foods. In both China and India, it is used as due for cloth.
It is used as a mild digestive and remedy for liver ailments. Added to ointments, it is applied to treat skin diseases. Studies revealed that even a teaspoon of turmeric has medicinal value. Hence using it as a seasoning agent in food makes good sense. One teaspoon of turmeric powder per cup of warm milk, three times a day makes it a medicine. It strengthens liver if habituated to drinks or take high dosage of medicines. It eases arthritis pain and treat dysentery. It prevents ulcer and keeps heart healthy by lowering cholesterol and preventing the formation of blood cots. It being a powerful antioxidant, it has anti-cancer value. It reduces mutagens contained in smokers' urine.