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38 Comments
bodhi M.
March 22, 2014
little tip: my sicilian american grandmother always added 4-6 red pepper flakes (no seeds!) when cooking white rice (usually arborio but not exclusively), whether cooking with water and salt or with 1/2 swanson chicken broth and 1/2 water the red pepper gave life to the rice without really adding heat. just be careful not to over do it as i did for years! lol
Chris C.
April 29, 2012
Bellissimo! I had a very difficult time with all theses spices last time I crossed the Atlantic!
Stinky
April 27, 2012
I find coriander frustratingly hard to grind. Any hints?
AntoniaJames
May 29, 2012
I also use a coffee grinder. I have found that the slightly green coriander seeds, as opposed to the light brown ones, available at Indian grocers don't grind (even in an electric mill) as well as the brown ones. I usually sift it, either way. ;o)
Jeno W.
April 26, 2012
I'm attending culinary school and we just finished our spices chapter! The pictures are gorgeous. Thank you!
davidpdx
April 26, 2012
Nice list; certainly rings true in our kitchen. One way we use several of the 10 (cumin, cayenne, pimenton) is to make simple savory and not-too-rich dipping sauces for steamed artichokes. Thin some low-fat (not non-fat!) mayonnaise with a bit of water to desired consistency; stir in an amount of one of the ground spices to whatever intensity tastes good to you; and dip and scrape away!
Pegeen
April 25, 2012
p.s. Any reason articles like this can't be saved to our personal recipe collections?
Pegeen
April 25, 2012
Great list - thank you! Tip: hang out in the "C" section of the spice aisle. Note how 7 out of 10 handy spices begin with the letter C? (I confess I'm counting "chile" for red pepper flakes.) Sorry... I'm a list geek who thinks cleaning closets is fun. Anyway, this is very useful for some new cooks I know... thanks!
shila.soni
April 25, 2012
A very nice list! I love tossing cumin seeds with roasted cauliflower/broccoli (genius idea from melissa clark!) or any spiced dish really, and cardamom in baked goods, tea, and coffee. I love, love, love a pinch of cardamom in spiced mustard greens or collards too.
Ayurveda (traditional indian medicine) says that spices are medicine, and I believe it!
Ayurveda (traditional indian medicine) says that spices are medicine, and I believe it!
Katie
April 25, 2012
I would definitely agree with your list of 10 essential spices; those are the 10 I use and love most. I love to use coriander in my homemade green chile sauce but had no idea that it was the seed of the cilantro plant. That's amazing! Now I can finally trace the faint hint of cilantro in my enchiladas! Thank you!
AntoniaJames
May 29, 2012
Katie, when I was growing up, what everyone calls "cilantro" was always referred to as coriander! ;o)
nowara
April 25, 2012
I often add whole cardamom to the water when boiling chicken (I also add cinnamon sticks, bay leaves and cloves). It makes for a wonderfully fragrant and tasty stock that I use instead of plain water when making rice.
I love to drink Turkish coffee and I often add ground cardamom before preparing it.
Cumin is often used in middle eastern dishes that include chick peas, fava beans, lentils, etc because it is supposed to aid in digestion.
I love to drink Turkish coffee and I often add ground cardamom before preparing it.
Cumin is often used in middle eastern dishes that include chick peas, fava beans, lentils, etc because it is supposed to aid in digestion.
Antonine
April 25, 2012
My favorite cardamom recipe is potatoes mashed with butter, cream cheese and cardamom. My kids request it for every holiday dinner.
sir_ken_g
April 25, 2012
Good list. i have them all and probably 60 more.
Tips:
1) Buy whole if that makes sense.
2) Avoid grocery store spices - way over priced. You can often get much better prices in local ethic stores if you are lucky - or on-line in bulk.
Tips:
1) Buy whole if that makes sense.
2) Avoid grocery store spices - way over priced. You can often get much better prices in local ethic stores if you are lucky - or on-line in bulk.
Stefanie S.
April 25, 2012
Fennel seeds are essential to my cooking - from a hint of Italian sausage in a tomato sauce to layer flavors when cooking fresh fennel.
And I prefer mace to nutmeg in everything except eggnog!
And I prefer mace to nutmeg in everything except eggnog!
orlenda
April 25, 2012
my fave spice is garlic powder-no fussing with fresh garlic but plenty of great flavor!
believe it or not, i add cinnomon to foods i find too spicy and it calms teh falovr down for me...
Cinnomon is also great in a red sauce....(pizza, pasta)
believe it or not, i add cinnomon to foods i find too spicy and it calms teh falovr down for me...
Cinnomon is also great in a red sauce....(pizza, pasta)
Margaret M.
April 25, 2012
My "new" favorite spice is star anise. Sometimes I just open the jar on the counter and smell it. It is so beautiful and aromatic! Also love ginger and green cardamom -- have been making a lot of Chai lately. Thanks for this lovely list. We love fresh cilantro and "need" to experiment more with dried coriander. :D So many spices, such little time.
Katie S.
April 25, 2012
Great list. I'll be sharing it on my FB fan page. I'd also have to throw turmeric into this spicy mix. It adds amazing color and love the earthy aroma.
Meatballs&Milkshakes
April 25, 2012
I'm a big fan of aleppo pepper-- I think it has more flavor and less heat than cayenne. I like using it with paprika too.
LA2LAChef
April 25, 2012
Glad Cumin made your list, but how odd that you would not mention that it is used in Mexican cuisine, to which it is essential!
Rupal P.
April 25, 2012
At first I was also wondering where the herbs were until I saw the comment trails below. This is an interesting and certainly relevant list. Although I've never been a big fan of red pepper flakes (except for sprinkling on pizza), I can see why it's on the list and it is certainly in my cabinet. I also prefer fresh ginger over ground ginger for cooking savory items.
susan G.
April 24, 2012
Excellent list! It's always impossible to do these "top" lists, and you've surely covered my best kitchen favorites. I recently made pauljoseph's Egg Curry, with cinnamon stick, whole cloves and coriander seed freshly ground -- what a revelation! That and the spice blend in one of my recipes (Aztec Two Step Coffee Cake) come alive because of the grinding, which makes the flavors come jump up and sing.
Herbs and spices have always been used for healing, and in many cultures the line between food and medicine overlaps. How wonderful that this list of spices does so much good for us!
Herbs and spices have always been used for healing, and in many cultures the line between food and medicine overlaps. How wonderful that this list of spices does so much good for us!
The F.
April 24, 2012
Funny thing...I just received my Penzey Spice order today and within were some of these ten essential spices! I think the spices that are missing from this list would be English mustard and Madras curry. Haven't had an opportunity to look at Five Spices, Fifty Recipes, but it sounds amazing! Great post!
slidedtd
April 24, 2012
A lot of pepper derived spices here! No herbs! Rosemary? Thyme? Come on now!
Kristy M.
April 24, 2012
Herbs are different from spices, and this list is based on the Hotline conversation Brette linked to in the introduction.
slidedtd
April 24, 2012
I was referring to the hotline conversation! It sure seems like many in the community felt like herbs should have been included as thyme and rosemary were used over and over in those "spice" lists.
Kristy M.
April 24, 2012
The difference between herbs and spices was noted multiple times in the hotline thread. Herbs will get their fair share of attention someday, but today we're focusing on spices.
We also didn't include salt and pepper in this list (salt doesn't count because it isn't a spice, even though it was mentioned throughout the hotline thread), but both of those ingredients will be getting their own posts in the near future.
We also didn't include salt and pepper in this list (salt doesn't count because it isn't a spice, even though it was mentioned throughout the hotline thread), but both of those ingredients will be getting their own posts in the near future.
Devangi R.
April 24, 2012
Loved this..sometimes you just don't know which cuisine uses which spice more than the other..so I liked this article..and who doesn't love spices..I love most of these esp cardamom, cumin, cloves, compared to ground ginger I always liked the fresh gingerroot, and I just don't like nutmeg .
We usually have cardamom in our desserts or sweets and ofcourse you cannot miss out chai.
Cumin goes in most of curries and rice dishes, I simply use cumin a lot. We use ground cumin in raita, sometimes in lemonade also. One silly use of clove other than cooking that I remember was to use it as home-remedy for toothache. Okie it sounds little funny or not so appropriate. More than any medicine , it definitely relieved my sleepless nights from toothache..we also serve cloves and cardamom along with fennel seeds as a form of mouth refresher.
We usually have cardamom in our desserts or sweets and ofcourse you cannot miss out chai.
Cumin goes in most of curries and rice dishes, I simply use cumin a lot. We use ground cumin in raita, sometimes in lemonade also. One silly use of clove other than cooking that I remember was to use it as home-remedy for toothache. Okie it sounds little funny or not so appropriate. More than any medicine , it definitely relieved my sleepless nights from toothache..we also serve cloves and cardamom along with fennel seeds as a form of mouth refresher.
Brette W.
April 24, 2012
Cloves are actually known to have a numbing quality...so it makes sense that it is used as a toothache remedy!
Devangi R.
April 24, 2012
They real made my toothache vanish in minutes really? I didn't know that..but now I do have a scientific reason to tell people..
Victoria C.
April 24, 2012
This is a great article. I recently gave my friend a copy of the book Five Spices, Fifty Recipes along with little bags of the five spices, a bag of basmati rice, and some mango chutney, which I got at Foods of India, Lexington near 28th Street - a beautiful, spotless, fragrant store. This article with little tins of the ten spices would be another excellent gift.
Victoria C.
April 24, 2012
This is a great article. I recently gave my friend a copy of the book Five Spices, Fifty Recipes along with little bags of the five spices, a bag of basmati rice, and some mango chutney, which I got at Foods of India, Lexington near 28th Street - a beautiful, spotless, fragrant store. This article with little tins of the ten spices would be another excellent gift.
ChefJune
April 24, 2012
Cardamom is essential (and traditional) in Scandinavian baking.
My favorite spice for baking is Mace. Mace is the lacy covering of the nutmeg. Although similar to nutmeg, it's amazing how a small amount added to your spice mix lifts the flavor of cakes, quick breads and cookies. Not to mention my all-time favorite, Sweet Potato Pie!
My favorite spice for baking is Mace. Mace is the lacy covering of the nutmeg. Although similar to nutmeg, it's amazing how a small amount added to your spice mix lifts the flavor of cakes, quick breads and cookies. Not to mention my all-time favorite, Sweet Potato Pie!
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