Herbs & Spices Recipes & Cookbooks

Herbs and Spices Cookbooks and Recipes

• Allspice (also known as "Jamaican pepper", "newspice", or "pimento") - This is a spice that comes from the dried unripe fruit of the Pimenta dioica plant. The name "allspice" comes from the fact that when the English first encountered the spice, they thought that it combined the flavors of cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg. Allspice is widely used in Caribbean cuisine, especially Jamaican cuisine, and also in Middle Eastern cuisine.
  
  
• Aniseed (also known as "Anise") - Aniseed is a flowering plant, the seeds of which are sweet and very aromatic. It is used in confectionary and to flavor many different kinds of drinks including champurrado (Mexico), Ouzo (Greece), Raki (Turkey), Sambuca (Italy), and some forms of root beer.
  
  
• Basil - Basil is a herb. It is important in Italian cuisine (including as one of main ingredients of pesto), and is also used in Thai cuisine and Vietnamese cuisine. Usually fresh basil is used, and it is added at towards the end of the cooking process, since it tends to lose its flavor if cooked for more than brief period.
  
  
• Bay leaf - These are the fresh or dried leaves of certain plants in the Laurel family (there are several different varieties which are used). Bay leaf is particularly important in Indian cuisine, Indonesian cuisine, and Italian cuisine.
  
  
• Black pepper - This spice is made from the dried fruit of Piperaceae, a vine. The dried fruit is known as "black peppercorns", and it is often ground down to a powder.
  
  
  
• Caraway seed - This spice made from the fruit (the use of the word "seed" is actually a misnomer) of the Caraway plant. The spice is especially common in Central European and Scandinavian recipes.
  
  
  
• Cardamom - Cardamom are actually pods from particular plants. There are actually two varieties, both related to ginger, Elettaria from which comes green cardamom (also known as "true cardamom"), and Amomum from which comes black cardamom (also known by a variety of other names, including "Bengal cardamom", "brown cardamom", "Java cardamom", "red cardamom", "Siamese cardamom", and "white cardamom").
  
  
• Cayenne pepper - A hot spicy chili pepper. It gets its name from the Cayenne, which is the capital of French Guiana.
  
  
  
• Cinnamon - This spice comes from the bark of Cinnamomum verum, an evergreen tree, although the bark of several related species of tree, are also sometimes sold labelled as cinnamon. Cinnamon is used in a number of countries cuisine, particularly Persian cuisine, and is widely used to flavor many kinds of desserts.
  
  
• Cloves - This spices comes from the dried flower buds of Myrtaceae. The plant is native to Indonesia, but it has been introduced to a number of other countries as well. The spice is used in numerous countries' cuisine, and has been used in Europe since at least Roman times. Cloves have have an extremely strong flavor, so should be used sparingly in cooking.
  
  
• Coriander (also known as "ciltrano") - The leaves, fruit, and root of the Coriander plant are widely in cooking.
  • The leaves are used in many countries' food particularly in the Indian cuisine and Mexican cuisine. The leavesand are known in some countries (including the United States and Canada) as "ciltrano", which is the Spanish name of the plant.
  • The dry fruits, known as "coriander seeds", are used in Indian cuisine, in German cuisine and South African cuisine as a ingredient when pickling vegetables and making sausages, and sometimes in Russian cuisine as an ingredient in rye bread.
  • Coriander root is used in a number Asian cuisines, particularly Thai cuisine.
  
  
• Cumin - Cumin is spice that comes from dried seeds of the Cuminum cyminum plant. It is used in many countries' cuisines.
  
  
• Dill - Dill is a small plant, originally from Eastern Europe. Its fresh leaves ("dill"), dried leaves ("dill weed") and seeds ("dill seeds") are all used in cooking.
  
  
  
• Fennel - Fennel is an aromatic herb, widely used in many different countries' cuisines. The bulb, foliage, pollen and seeds all have various uses.
  
  
• Fenugreek - Fenugreek is a plant of the family Fabaceae. The leaves and seeds are both used, including in Indian cuisine and Middle Eastern cuisine. The seeds are also used to flavor injera , a type of bread found in Ethiopian cuisine.
  
  
• Garlic - Garlic comes the bulb of the Garlic plant, which is related to onions. It is used both fresh and dried, raw and cooked in many different recipes around the world. In some countries, the shoots or leaves are prepared and eaten as well as the bulb.
  
  
  
• Ginger - Ginger is a spice that comes from the root of the Zingiber officinale plant. It is believed to have originated in China but is now eaten all over the world.
  
  
• Mace - Mace is a spice that comes from the dried arillus (covering) of nutmeg seeds. It is said to have s similar flavor to nutmeg, but more delicate. It also imparts a yellow-orange color when used in cooking.
  
  
• Mustard - Mustards are small plants found widely across the world. The seed from the plant is used as a spice, particularly in Indian cuisine. The seeds can also be crushed to make mustard oil, or alternatively the seeds be ground into a paste and mixed with water and vinegar to make the mustard condiment.
  
  
  
• Nutmeg - This is a spice from the dried seeds of Myristica, which are evergreen trees. It is used in many countries cooking. Mace, another spice, comes from the same tree.
  
  
• Oregano - Oregano is a plant native to Europe, the Mediterranean region, and parts of Asia. It is used in Greek cuisine and Italian cuisine, including to add flavor to pizza.
  
  
  
• Paprika - This is spice made by grinding dried sweet red or green bell peppers (the word "paprika" is also frequently used to refer to the peppers themselves). It is used in many countries' cuisine, but is particularly important in Hungarian cuisine.
  
  
  
• Piri-piri - This is the name used in Portugal, and the former Portuguese colonies of Angola and Mozambique to describe the African birdseye chili, which is a variety of chili pepper.
  
  
• Rosemary - Rosemary is a perennial herb. Its leaves, which have a bitter taste, are often used in Mediterranean cuisine.
  
• Saffron - Saffron is a spice that is derived from the dried stamen of the Saffron Crocus flower. It is widely used in Indian cuisine, Arab cuisine, Moroccan cuisine, and Persian cuisine. It is also a key ingredient in French cuisine's bouillabaisse, Italian cuisine's risotto alla milanese, and Spanish cuisine's paella.
  
  
• Sage - This is a herb from the Common sage plant, Salvia officinalis. It has a slightly peppery flavor and is widely used in European cuisines. In Middle Eastern cuisine, it is used to flavor mutton.
  
  
• Star anise - This is a spice from the star-shaped fruit of Illicium verum tree. It is used in Chinese cuisine, Indian cuisine, Indonesian cuisine, Malaysian cuisine, and Vietnamese cuisine, and has a flavor similar to aniseed.
  
  
• Tarragon - Tarragon is a perennial herb. It used particularly in French cuisine (it is one of the main ingredients in Béarnaise sauce).
  
  
• Thyme - Thyme is a widely used herb. It is common in Arab cuisine, Caribbean cuisine, French cuisine, Greek cuisine, Italian cuisine, Lebanese cuisine, Persian cuisine, Spanish cuisine, and Turkish cuisine.
  
  
• Turmeric - Turmeric is perennial plant related to ginger. The rhizomes (part of the root) are boiled, dried, and then ground into a yellow powder. Turmeric has a yellow color, which it imparts to food, and is used as a spice in Indian cuisine, Indonesian cuisine, Malaysian cuisine and Middle Eastern cuisine.
  
  
• Zereshk - This spice is made from the dried fruit of the Berberis plant. It is used in many different dishes in Persian cuisine.

• How to Cook with Herbs and Spices
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