Spice

In the culinary arts, a spice is a seed, fruit, root, bark, or other plant substance primarily used for flavouring or colouring food. Spices are different from herbs, which are the leaves, flowers, or stems of plants used for flavouring or as a garnish. Both spices and herbs are types of seasonings.

Spices can be used in many forms, such as fresh, whole, dried, grated, chopped, crushed, ground, or even turned into a liquid. Some spices are usually sold already ground, while others, like small seeds, can be used whole or as a powder. Dried spices last longer and can be stored for more time, making them cheaper in the long run. Fresh spices, like ginger, often taste better but cost more and don’t last as long.

India makes up about 75% of the world’s spice production, which is a big part of its cuisine. Long ago, the need for spices helped drive exploration and trade across the Indian subcontinent, East Asia, the Middle East, and even Europe during the early modern period. While many health claims about spices haven’t been proven, some parts of spices might offer benefits.

Definition

Spices are parts of plants like roots, flowers, fruits, seeds, and bark that are dried to add flavor or color to food. Unlike herbs, which are leaves or stems, spices come from many parts of the plant. Some people think spices only come from tropical places, but they can also be found in cooler climates. The idea of what counts as a spice has changed over time as people discovered new plants and uses.

History

See also: Spice use in antiquity

Early history

Archeological study of early spice use is difficult, as spices were used in small quantities, leaving few preserved remains.

The spice trade developed throughout the Indian subcontinent and Middle East by 2000 BCE with cinnamon and black pepper, and in East Asia with herbs and pepper. The Egyptians used herbs for cuisine and mummification. Their demand for exotic spices and herbs helped stimulate world trade.

Cloves were used in Mesopotamia by 1700 BCE. The earliest written records of spices come from ancient Egyptian, Chinese, and Indian cultures. The Ebers Papyrus from early Egypt dating from 1550 BCE describes some eight hundred different herbal medicinal remedies and numerous medicinal procedures.

By 1000 BCE, medical systems based on herbs could be found in China, Korea, and India. Early uses were associated with magic, medicine, religion, tradition, and preservation.

Indonesian merchants travelled around China, India, the Middle East, and the east coast of Africa. Arab merchants facilitated the routes through the Middle East and India. This resulted in the Egyptian port city of Alexandria being the main trading center for spices. The most important discovery prior to the European spice trade was the monsoon winds (40 CE). Sailing from Eastern spice cultivators to Western European consumers gradually replaced the land-locked spice routes once facilitated by the Middle East Arab caravans.

Spices were prominent enough in the ancient world that they are mentioned in the Old Testament. In Genesis, Joseph was sold into slavery by his brothers to spice merchants. In Exodus, manna is described as being similar to coriander in appearance. In the Song of Solomon, the male narrator compares his beloved to many saffron, cinnamon, and other spices.

Historians believe that nutmeg, which originates from the Banda Islands in Southeast Asia, was introduced to Europe in the 6th century BCE. The Romans had cloves in the 1st century CE, as Pliny the Elder wrote about them.

Middle Ages

Spices were among the most demanded and expensive products available in Europe in the Middle Ages, the most common being black pepper, cinnamon (and the cheaper alternative cassia), cumin, nutmeg, ginger, and cloves. Given medieval medicine's main theory of humorism, spices and herbs were indispensable to balance "humors" in food, on a daily basis for good health at a time of recurrent pandemics. In addition to being desired by those using medieval medicine, the European elite also craved spices in the Middle Ages, believing spices to be from and a connection to "paradise". An example of the European aristocracy's demand for spice comes from the King of Aragon, who invested substantial resources into importing spices to Spain in the 12th century. He was specifically looking for spices to put in wine and was not alone among European monarchs at the time to have such a desire for spice.

Spices were all imported from plantations in Asia and Africa, which made them expensive. From the 8th until the 15th century, the Republic of Venice held a monopoly on spice trade with the Middle East, using this position to dominate the neighbouring Italian maritime republics and city-states. The trade made the region rich. It has been estimated that around 1,000 tons of pepper and 1,000 tons of other common spices were imported into Western Europe each year during the Late Middle Ages. The value of these goods was the equivalent of a yearly supply of grain for 1.5 million people. The most exclusive was saffron, used as much for its vivid yellow-red color as for its flavor. Spices that have now fallen into obscurity in European cuisine include grains of paradise, a relative of cardamom which mostly replaced pepper in late medieval north French cooking, along with long pepper, mace, spikenard, galangal, and cubeb.

Early modern period

Voyagers from Spain and Portugal were interested in seeking new routes to trade in spices and other valuable products from Asia. The control of trade routes and the spice-producing regions were the main reasons that Portuguese navigator Vasco da Gama sailed to India in 1499. When da Gama discovered the pepper market in India, he was able to secure peppers for a much lower cost than demanded by Venice. At around the same time, Christopher Columbus returned from the New World. He described to investors the new spices available there.

Another source of competition in the spice trade during the 15th and 16th centuries was the Ragusans from the maritime republic of Dubrovnik in southern Croatia. The military prowess of Afonso de Albuquerque (1453–1515) allowed the Portuguese to take control of the sea routes to India. In 1506, he took the island of Socotra in the mouth of the Red Sea and, in 1507, Ormuz in the Persian Gulf. Since becoming the viceroy of the Indies, he took Goa in India in 1510, and Malacca on the Malay Peninsula in 1511. The Portuguese could now trade directly with Siam, China, and the Maluku Islands.^{[citation needed]}

With the discovery of the New World came new spices, including allspice, chili peppers, vanilla, and chocolate. This development kept the spice trade, with the Americas as a latecomer with their new seasonings, profitable well into the 19th century.

Function

Spices are mainly used to add flavor to food or to make meals more interesting. They can also be used to make perfumes and special smells for religious purposes. In the past, spices were sometimes used in herbal medicine. Because they were rare and expensive, spices were also a way for wealthy people to show off their status.

Some people think that spices were used in the Middle Ages to keep meat from going bad or to hide the taste of meat that had already spoiled. However, this is not true. Spices are not very good at keeping food fresh compared to methods like salting, smoking, or drying. Also, spices were very expensive, often costing as much as a whole pig. There is no evidence from old cookbooks that spices were used to preserve meat. In fact, adding spices late in the cooking process would not help preserve food at all.

Classification and types

See also: Outline of herbs and spices

Culinary herbs and spices

Main article: List of culinary herbs and spices

Botanical basis

Spices come from different parts of plants. Some come from seeds like fennel, mustard, nutmeg, and black pepper. Others come from fruits such as cayenne pepper and Chimayo pepper. We also get spices from arils like mace, which is part of the nutmeg plant. Barks such as true cinnamon and cassia are used too. Flower buds like cloves add flavor. Stigmas such as saffron are prized for their color. Roots and rhizomes like turmeric, ginger, and galangal are also common. Even resins such as asafoetida are used as spices.

Common spice mixtures

Many cultures mix spices to create special flavor blends. For example, Advieh comes from Iran. Baharat is popular in the Arab world and the Middle East. Berbere is used in Ethiopia and Eritrea. Yaji (spice blend) is a favorite in Nigeria. Bumbu is from Indonesia. In the United States, Cajun spices are well-known. Chaat masala is used across the Indian subcontinent. Chili powder and crushed red pepper come from many types of peppers like Cayenne, Chipotle, Jalapeño, New Mexico, Tabasco, and others. Curry powder is a common mix. Five-spice powder is from China. Garam masala is used in the Indian subcontinent. Harissa is a spice blend from North Africa. Hawaij comes from Yemen. Jerk spice is popular in Jamaica. Khmeli suneli is from Georgia. The word Masala is a general name for any spice mix used in the Indian subcontinent. Mixed spice is known in the United Kingdom. Panch phoron is another mix from the Indian subcontinent. Pumpkin pie spice is used in the United States. Quatre épices is a French blend from France. Ras el hanout is from North Africa. Sharena sol means "colorful salt" and is from Bulgaria. Shichimi tōgarashi is used in Japan. Speculaas comes from Belgium and the Netherlands. Thuna Paha is a spice from Sri Lanka. Vegeta is popular in Croatia and other parts of Central and Eastern Europe. Lastly, Za'atar is a well-loved mix from the Middle East.

Handling

A mortar and pestle is the classic tool for grinding whole spices. Today, easier tools like a microplane or a fine grater are often used for small amounts, while a coffee grinder works well for larger quantities. Popular spices like black pepper might have their own special grinder or mill.

The taste of a spice comes partly from special compounds that change when they meet air. Grinding a spice makes it lose flavor faster, so it's best to keep spices whole until you're ready to use them. Whole dry spices stay good for about two years, but ground spices only last around six months. Ground spices should be kept away from light to stay fresh longer.

Some flavors in spices mix well with water, while others need oil or fat. Generally, spices should be added early when cooking so their flavors can blend into the food. This is different from herbs, which are usually added later.

A study found that some spices arriving in the United States had tiny germs called Salmonella bacteria. Most spices are cooked before eating, which helps keep them safe. However, some spices like pepper are often used raw at the table. Spices from places like Mexico and India were found to have these germs more often. Special treatments can help reduce this risk.

Production

Standardization

The International Organization for Standardization looks at spices and condiments, as well as other food additives, in a special group called the International Classification for Standards 67.220 series.