Herb and Spice Resource

I love my Flavor Bible and don't know how I got along without it! Really great investment! Now I will have to check out Sarah's recommendation on Culinary Artistry.

My two suggestions: The Flavour Bible or Culinary Artistry.

Both are excellent at discussing complementary flavours and blends. For example, you can look up "chicken" and it will have a list of herbs, spices, fruit, veg, etc that can start the process of creating a recipe. There are also sections on complementary side dishes, and traditional spices for different cuisines.

E.g. the entry in Culinary Artistry for Swiss Chard: chiles, garlic, lemon, tarragon, tomatoes, vinegar.

The entry for lavender: fruit, ice creams, lamb, rabbit, stew

The entry for German: caraway seeds, dill, juniper berries, mustard, pepper, poppy seeds, sorrel, thyme, vinegar.

In addition to that - the best tips on how to use spices in a recipe:
- use whole and grind as needed. Pre-ground spices tend to turn to saw dust (in flavour) quickly.
- lightly toast them before use, either as you're frying other ingredients or in a separate dry pan.
- less is more - you can always add into a dish but it's hard to take away.