List of Essential Spices

Posted April 21, 2012, under Heath Benifits
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No kitchen is complete without a rack of essential spices below you will find a list of essential spices that are important for any kitchen.
One of the most basic of essential spices that are important in any kitchen is salt and pepper. Pepper can be black or white. Black pepper can be used as whole peppercorns or as a ground spice to flavor any kind of food. White pepper is mostly used in its ground form also used for flavoring many kinds of dishes.

Cloves are an essential spice in any kitchen. Cloves can be used whole or in its ground form, but it is only used sparely in cooking because of its strong flavor. They are used in rich and spicy dishes and are a key component of garam masala along with a mixture of other spices to flavor Indian dishes. Cloves are also used in Indian teas. In the Netherlands they are used to flavor cheese and to make stews .Apart from culinary uses cloves also have a few medicinal uses. Cloves are used in oil form to help with toothache and to help with gum infection for dental emergencies.

Cinnamon has to be included on the essential spice list. Cinnamon is used mainly in desert dishes like apple pie and doughnuts, but also in Mexico it is used to flavor chocolate too. Cinnamon is often mixed with fine sugar to create flavoring for bread and pastries and to flavor cereals. It is also often used as a spice in curry dishes and stews.

Nutmeg is a fantastic spice for both savory and sweet dishes. It is used in Middle Eastern cookery quite a lot for savory dishes. In European cooking it is used to flavor potatoes and soups. For sweet dishes it is used to compliment products using eggs like an egg custard and for some drinks such as egg nog.

Cardamom has a unique strong intense flavor, it is best stored in its pod, and it is used to release flavors when cooking rice. It is a very common ingredient in Indian cuisine. It is also used to flavour sweets in Indian cuisine too. Cardamom also has many medicinal qualities as well as culinary uses. It is used for teeth and gums infection as well as for the treatment of kidney and gallstones. As with most spices there are many uses both in the kitchen and in the medicine cabinet.

Chilli is one of the better known spices that are an absolute essential in the kitchen spice rack. This spice is used to flavor savory dishes, it adds strong flavour and heat to dishes. The chilli can be in a powder form, but also used as chilli seed flakes. Chilli is used to flavor a popular dish called chilli con carne. There are varying degrees of heat available in chilli powders depending on your need for strong flavors.

Mustard seeds can be colored black or yellow. The most popular type of mustard used in kitchens today is of the yellow variety. Mustard seeds that are ground into a yellow powder are used in many savory dishes. The seeds and powder have a very pungent smell and hot taste. They are used to flavor soups and stews and used in marinades for meat.

Saffron is a little indulgent spice that is essential for the kitchen. It is a spice that is derived from the crocus flower. One of the most expensive spices available to buy it is used to colour food a yellow or bright orange color depending on how much is used and for what purpose. It is also used in confectionery and liquors.

Paprika is used in a variety of savory dishes as well as to color certain foods like soups and stews and rice. It is available in various intensities; a Spanish paprika is slightly smoky. Paprika that is formulated using capsicum peppers has more vitamin C by weight than lemons contain, so is a valuable source of vitamin C too.
Vanilla is an essential spice for sweet dishes. Vanilla is derived from the orchid plant, Madagascar vanilla is a common type of vanilla grown in Indonesia. It is primarily used to flavor chocolate and sweet custards or puddings. It is available in pod form or an essence form, the best flavor comes from vanilla in a pod.

Coriander Seeds have a lemony taste to them and are used in lots of Indian cooking to flavor meat dishes and to marinade meats in, these are essential for any home cooks’ kitchen. Coriander can also be found in its ground form to flavor many savory dishes too. Often in India roasted coriander seeds are eaten as a snack. Many people use coriander seeds to pickle vegetables such as onions. Some Belgian beers also use coriander seeds in the brewing of certain beers.

Ginger is another spice that is used on a very regular basis in the home kitchen. Ginger is available in dried ground form that can be used to add to both savoury and sweet dishes. They are mainly used in Europe for sweet dishes like biscuits and cakes. South Asian cuisine uses ginger in dishes of all kinds including vegetarian savoury dishes.

Turmeric is essential in you spice rack if you enjoy cooking and eating curries. It is one of the main ingredients in curry. It is sold in the form of root powder which is bright yellow in appearance. In Nepal turmeric is used in most dishes to give the dish a lovely yellow color but also for its medicinal properties. In South Africa turmeric is used to give white rice a lovely golden yellow color. It will also stain anything it comes into contact with and was once used as a dye for materials.

As you can see all of the above spices are essential in any kitchen and can be used for many things, savory dishes, sweet dishes, and many also have the added advantage of medical properties.

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List of Asian Spices

Posted April 18, 2012, under Asian Spices
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Asian cookery and Asian spices have inspired many a top chef to come up with new and innovative ideas in the kitchen. With a long list of Asian spices available to buy in the shops these days you too can also rustle up these dishes in your very own kitchen.

With so many spices to choose from just how do you compile a list of Asian spices for your own particular spice rack? Here is a list of Asian spices, 10 to be exact, each with a brief description that any well stocked kitchen at home should have. There are of course many more, but this particular list will offer you a wide variety and choice, enabling you to cook many tasty dishes for you and your family to enjoy.

Cinnamon is a very versatile spice in Asian cookery and it originates from the inner bark of the Cinnamon Verum tree. It was originally grown in Sri Lanka or Ceylon as it was called then in the 18th century, and is still produced there in great quantities today. It has a very warming feel to it and is added to many types of different curries. In Europe for example it is also used in puddings and desserts, and can be found in dishes like baked rice pudding or apple pie. Cinnamon can be bought in stick form, or a quill to give it its posh name, or as a finely ground powder.

Coriander is native to many Mediterranean regions, though the fresh coriander and dried coriander seeds that are found in our shops today are both very popular when it comes to Asian cookery. In its fresh form the leaves and stalks are often used to add flavor to curries, salads and soups, and it is also widely used with fish. The dried coriander seeds have a lovely earthy, woody smell to them and once ground into a powder they are ideal for rubbing into a piece of fresh meat as a marinade.

Central Asia and the Eastern regions of the Mediterranean are where you will find the spice cumin. Any list of Asian spices would not be complete without this spice. Cumin seeds can be very spicy and sweet at the same time, and if you toast them under the grill their flavor changes again, this time to a nuttier taste. You can buy cumin seeds whole or already ground into a powder with its primary use being to flavor meat and vegetables.

Nutmeg is another very versatile spice that should be included in your list of Asian spices. It can be bought whole or already ground, but for a better flavor it is best to buy them whole and grate them yourself as and when you need them. A little nutmeg grated on to some vegetables during cooking for example will not only enhance the taste, it will also leaving you feeling warm and content.

In India you will find a lot of fennel being grown, but it was originally found in the Mediterranean. Fennel seeds look a little like cumin seeds, but their aniseed flavor is totally different. Once ground they are often used with pork and various types of fish, but they are now being used in baking too and can often be found in breads and biscuits.

Another spice that is grown in India is a plant called Piper Nigrum. This plant produces fruits that we use in nearly all of our cooking, black peppercorns. These are found in most kitchens in pepper mills as they are used to flavor food. They are also used whole and can be added to a variety of different rice or meat dishes to add a much stronger flavor.

Chillies are probably the most common of Asian spices and they should be at the top of any list of Asian spices. They can be bought fresh or dried, but they also come in the form of a powder or chilli flakes. Chilli powder and chilli flakes are added to all types of savory dishes, and they can be added according to your own particular tastes. If you like your food hot you would of course add more, but be warned chilli powder can be very strong and you do not need to add as much as you think. Chilli is also being introduced to chocolate as well, which makes for a very interesting taste combination.

No list of Asian spices would be complete without the addition of turmeric. Most commonly found already ground turmeric is bright in color, though some specialist shops will have the dried rhizomes of the turmeric plant Curcuma Longa available. Turmeric is a staple spice in Asian cooking and is added to color meat, rice and dal dishes.

Ginger is another very popular and versatile spice as it can be used with meat and fish, but it is also used in sweet dishes and desserts as well. It can be bought fresh, and any reputable shop or supermarket will have fresh ginger for sale. As with all ground and dried spices ginger should be kept in an airtight jar or container as this will preserve its flavor.

The final spice in your list of Asian spices is cardamom, because like ginger cardamom is very popular in both sweet and savory dishes. Cardamom can be bought whole in their pods or in seed form. The pods cannot be eaten, but they are added to many different dishes because they add great flavor. In some areas of South Asia the seeds are even used to make a cardamom tea!

This list of Asian spices has been put together as a guide to help you build up your own stock of essential spices for use at home in your own kitchen. If you are lucky enough to live near an Asian grocer for instance you will be able to pop in and see many more different types of spices, many more than your local supermarket will have for example.

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Popular Asian Spices – Nutmeg And Mace

Posted March 20, 2012, under Asian Spices
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One of the most unique Asian spices is the myristica fragrans for it produces two of the most popular spices in the world: mace and nutmeg. From one fruit of this evergreen tree comes two distinct spices which warm and sweet aroma is added onto vegetables as flavoring.
Two Asian Spices From One
A native of the islands of Banda of the Moluccas (Spice Islands), the evergreen tree produces a fruit once it matures on the eight year. This tree can continue producing the spices for up to forty years and so is considered one of the most prolific products of the islands.
The fruit is gathered once they start falling to the ground. Around the hard kernel of the fruit, is a yellow to golden covered lacy covering called the aril. This aril is the mace. Inside the hard shell is the nutmeg. The fruit is oval and is grey brown in color. Inside, the nutmeg is lighter color.
The mace or aril starts from red-orange in color to orange yellow, depending on the length of time it reaches the market. The color of the Lacey mace blades is indicative of its source: orange red if it comes from Indonesia and orange yellow if it comes from Grenada.
The taste and aroma of the spices are similar but many experts consider the mace to be the more refined between the two. The rich, fresh and warm aroma is highly aromatic with a sweetish taste to the nutmeg and a more bitter taste to the mace.
In Asia, cooking with the spices dictates to use it sparingly. In India, these are used more with the Moghul dishes while it is used more with mutton or lamb when it comes to Arab dishes. The Europeans were introduced to the spices sometime during the Crusades and were primarily used to fumigate rooms. These became popularly used in the European kitchen only after the Portuguese started trading with the Spice Islands sometime in the 16th century.
Today, the Dutch consider the nutmeg as a standard spice. The Dutch add them on to mashed potatoes and other vegetables. It is also added into macaroni and meat stews. Italians also enjoy adding the spice on to their vegetables, as added spice to sauces for Spaghetti and on veal. For those who love to bake, nutmeg is considered as another standard. It can be added on to holiday fruit cakes, apple pies, honey cakes, fruit punch and other fruit based desserts. Mace is a valuable spice that can give béchamel sauce and onion sauce a lift. It is also a spice that can do wonders to clear soups, shellfish and cheese based soufflés and desserts.
Soon after its introduction into European kitchens, the use of nutmeg in pharmaceutical preparations began for many found that it was medicinally useful to relieve such mundane disorders like rheumatism, flatulence, and bronchial disorders. It can cause drowsiness when taken in large doses and is helpful in insomnia. However, it is cautioned that it can also cause hallucinations and euphoria. It can be fatal if used in excessive doses. For beauty products, Asian spices like nutmeg is a valued addition for perfumes, shampoos and soaps.

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