Cooking requires a number of condiments and spices especially in Chinese cooking. Let us have a look at what are the most essential spices which are required in cooking.
1. Clove
Cloves are renowned for providing their uniquely warm, sweet and aromatic taste to the wide range of dishes that they are used in. Cloves can easily overpower a dish, particularly when ground, so only a few need be used.
2. Cardamom
Cardamom is often referred as the ‘Queen of Spices’ because of its very pleasant aroma and taste. It is one of the most expensive spices, but only a little is needed to impart the flavor.
3. Black Pepper
Black pepper, along with other spices from South and Southeast Asia, changed the course of world history. It was in some part the preciousness of these spices that led to the Portuguese efforts to find a sea route to India. Peppercorns were a much-prized trade good, often referred to as “black gold” and used as a form of commodity money.
4. Cinnamon
Strongly aromatic, sweet, pleasant and warm cinnamon has a fresh lively tone that makes it equally suited for the fiery meat curries as well as the subtle, fragrant biriyani of the Imperial North Indian cuisine. It is often used in savory dishes of chicken and lamb and in numerous curries, pulaos besides garam masala. It is also used in sambar powder and BisiBelebath which gives it a rich aroma and unique taste.
5. Coriander Seeds
The dry fruits are known as coriander seeds. The word “coriander” in food preparation may refer solely to these seeds (as a spice), rather than to the plant. The seeds have a lemony citrus flavor when crushed, due to terpenes linalool and pinene. It is described as warm, nutty, spicy, and orange-flavored.
6. Cumin
Cumin can be used ground or as whole seeds. It imparts an earthy, warming and aromatic character to food, making it a staple in certain stews and soups, as well as spiced gravies such as curry and chili. It is also used as an ingredient in some pickles and pastries.
7. Red Chili Powder
Red Chilies or hot pepper is taken as one of the most valuable crops in India available throughout the country and suitable to use with different food items. Red chilies are small in size and popular for their strong acidic flavor and dark color. Red Chilly is a wild crop easily available across different Indian regions and it is in existence since history.
8. Turmeric Powder
Turmeric is known as golden spice of India. The turmeric plants were cultivated by Harappan civilization earlier in 3000 B. C. It is basically a tropical plant of ginger family is the rhizome or underground stem, with a rough, segmented skin. Turmeric looks much like ginger and turns things into a lovely orange-yellow shade.
