Fennely, a Thorough Guide to All Spices
Well, From A to F Anyway

The spice amchur comes from unripe or green mango fruits which have been sliced and sun-dried.

By Mark Goldberg

We’re getting a little spicy this issue. Actually quite spicy, as we review what makes all those spices we mix, toss and blend into our dishes empower our favorite meals. Considering the many different spices out there, this will be part one of a longer article, as we follow alphabetically some of the world’s spices from their homes to our kitchens. So those of you who are interested in nigella and zedoary will have to wait for next time.

The world isn’t made of just simple pumpkin pie spices. There’s Chinese 5-spice, harissa, sambar and herbes de Provence. And, like herbs, not all spices are just for food enhancement. Some have medicinal properties and others are used for coloring in the fabric industries.

You would think that beginning with Allspice would cover everything. But Allspice really isn’t every spice all rolled into one. In reality it’s named for its aroma, a combination of spices, especially cinnamon, cloves, ginger and nutmeg. Allspice was used by the Mayans as an embalming agent and by other South American Indians to flavor chocolate.

Today jerked meats like pork and chicken reflect the Spanish/Jamaican background of Allspice. It is a particularly popular spice in European cooking, an important ingredient in many marinades, pickling and mulling spices. Traditionally, allspice has been used in cakes, fruit pies, puddings, ice cream and pumpkin pie. Some Indian curries contain allspice and in the Middle East it is used in meat and rice dishes. Allspice can be used as a substitute, measure for measure, for cinnamon, cloves or nutmeg. Conversely to make a substitution for allspice, combine one part nutmeg with two parts each of cinnamon and cloves.

We don’t get licorice from the herb of the same name. We get it (or at least its flavor) from the herb anise. Anise looks like its family members; dill, fennel, coriander and cumin. But while they may have a hint of licorice flavor, it’s anise oils that are distilled into the flavoring for licorice. Anise was used in Egypt as far back as 1500 BC for both culinary and medicinal purposes.

Anise is primarily associated with cakes, biscuits and confectionery, as well as rye breads. It is used in much the same way as fennel to flavor fish, poultry, soups and root vegetable dishes.

The spice amchur comes from unripe or green mango fruits which have been sliced and sun-dried. The name is Hindi am mango. The spice can be either whole or ground and sometimes seasoned with turmeric. The mango tree is native to the India-Burma-Malaysia region and is one of the oldest cultivated fruits. In India it has grown for over 4,000 years; the various uses of the fruit are probably ancient. After the European explorations during the 16th and 17th centuries, it spread to all parts of the tropical and subtropical world. The mango, apart from its place as a fresh fruit is most famous as a chutney or pickle ingredient. The mango tree is a member of the family that includes the cashew and pistachio nut.

The use of amchur is confined chiefly to Indian cookery, where it is used as an acid flavoring in curries, soups, chutneys, marinades and as a condiment. The dried slices add piquancy to curries and the powder acts as a souring agent similar to tamarind. It is particularly useful as an ingredient in marinades, having the same tenderizing qualities as lemon or lime juice. However, where, for instance, three tablespoons of lemon or lime juice are required, one teaspoon of amchur will do.

The bay tree — from which we get bay leaves — is indigenous to Asia Minor, from where it spread to the Mediterranean and then to other countries with similar climates. According to legend the Delphi oracle chewed bay leaves, or sniffed the smoke of burning leaves to promote her visionary trances. Today the warm and quite pungent leaves and their aromatic oils are used in soups, sauces, stews and bouillons, as well as an appropriate seasoning for fish, meat and poultry. Bay leaf is often included as a pickling spice.

Cardamom has an “m” on the end and deserves our respect as one of the world’s oldest spices. You can find it growing wild in Sri Lanka, Guatemala, Indo China and Tanzania. Ancient Egyptians chewed cardamom seeds as a tooth cleaner; the Greeks and Romans used it as a perfume. Vikings came upon cardamom about one thousand years ago, in Constantinople, and introduced it into Scandinavia, where it remains popular to this day.

Cardamom is an expensive spice, second only to saffron. There are many inferior substitutes from cardamom-related plants, however, it is only Elettaria cardamomum which is the true cardamom. Indian cardamom is known in two main varieties: Malabar cardamom and Mysore cardamom. The Mysore variety is more aromatic.

The pods can be used whole or split when cooked in Indian meals. Otherwise, the cardamom seeds can be bruised and fried before adding main ingredients to the pan, or pounded with other spices as required. Keep the pods whole until use. But when cooking, discard those pods as they can be quite bitter. Cardamom is most often used stateside in windmill cookies.

The most common use of coriander seed is in curry powders, where it is often rough ground to give it a crunchy texture. The seeds can be likewise used in stews and soups. They blend well with smoked meats and game. Coriander is an ingredient of garam masala, pickling spices and pudding spices and is used in cakes, breads and other baked foods. Coriander with cumin is a common combination and is featured in falafel. Coriander goes well with ham and pork, especially when orange is included. It enhances fish dishes and, with other spices, may form a delicious coating for spiced fish or chicken. Coriander complements chili and is included in many chili recipes. It may be added to cream or cottage cheese.

The coriander seed is now produced in Russia, India, South America, North Africa and Holland. It was introduced to Britain by the Romans, who used it in cookery and medicine, and was widely used in English cookery until the Renaissance, when the new exotic spices appeared.

The word dill comes from the Norse “dilla,” meaning to lull. That’s why drinking dill tea is recommended to overcome insomnia. A native to Europe, dill is a Russian favorite and can be cultivated near the Arctic Circle. Both seeds and leaves are edible. It was known as a medicinal herb to the ancient Greeks and Romans, where soldiers placed burned dill seeds on their wounds to promote healing. Medieval Europe could not grow it fast enough for love potions, casting spells and for protection against witchcraft.

Dill is mainly used in pickling, where most of the plant is used. Dill pickles have become a classic and Sauerkraut and dill vinegars have been popular for centuries. It is especially popular in Russia and Scandinavia, where it is used in bouillons and sauces for fish, pickled salmon, casseroles and soups. It is also used on cakes and breads, particularly in rye breads, the way caraway is used. Dill should be used sparingly as the flavor grows. The chopped fresh leaves are frequently used with trout and salmon, shrimp, deviled eggs, green beans, cauliflower, beets, soups, cottage and cream cheese.

Fennel offers us both herb and spice. All plant parts are edible: roots, stalks and leaves, with the spice coming from the dried seeds. A native to the Mediterranean, Fennel is an ancient and common plant known to the ancient Greeks and spread throughout Europe by Imperial Rome. It is also grown in India, the Orient, Australia, South America and has become naturalized in the United States.

The English use fennel seeds in almost all fish dishes, especially as a court bouillon for poaching fish and seafood. It is used to flavor breads, cakes and candy. It is an ingredient of Chinese 5-Spice and of some curry powders.

And speaking of Chinese 5-Spice, it’s a combination of fennel seeds, star anise, cinnamon, Szechwan pepper and cloves. It’s used primarily in Chinese cooking where meats are to be cooked for a long time, creating a rich sauce.

Well, we’ve gotten through most of F but actually barely touched on the number of spices from A through F (like Fenugreek, which isn’t from Greece). If you want to know about one of your spices, drop us an e-mail and we’ll include it next time.

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