Uncommon spices

>>9086766
cardamom in my coffee and nutmeg in all things creamy. cardamom tends to be polarising but if you're not using nutmeg in stuff like potato puree or any kind of creamy sauce you're really missing out

i'm looking forward to where this thread is gonna go though, i'd like to know more about spices

>>9086766
toasted whole cumin seeds and green cardamom pods in my rice

>>9086776
Nutmeg in a sauce sounds good. Is that hollandaise?

>>9086781
never made hollandaise myself but i've added nutmeg to various quiches and cream-based pasta sauces and omelettes. it's also a must in bechamel imo

>>9086766
im big with fennel ever since i had it served to me in japan. they brought out a pestle with it inside. you were to grind it and add a sauce with it for the pork cutlets. try it sometime in something simple

>>9086807
Only time I've had fennel it was part of a swettened three-seed blend served as a post meal refresher in an Indian resraurant. Tastes like licorice. Somebody on this board said they use it in their chili...

>>9086828
It's what gives pork sausage that sausagey taste.

>>9086866
I'll be damned.

>>9086781
Nutmeg was used by Europeans and Americans in all kinds of savory dishes 200 years ago iirc.

>>9086828
>doesnt know what fennel is
Is this even a cooking board?

>>9086866
>>9086883
>>9086988
that's fennel seed. not fennel.

>>9086779
thats fuckin awesome if you ask me.
there haven't been better rice than basmati with whole, roasted cardamon capsulas cumin and curcuma in my curry before.

mustard seed
whole cardamon capsulas
whole fenugreek
whole curcuma roots
parsley roots
whole pimento seeds
cilantro leafs
probably even bay leafs

>>9086766
orange peel with any meats
celery seed in almost everything
lots of poppy seed
bits of toasted seaweed
nutmeg in anything cream based

>>9087211
I recently asked a chef about his secret bbq sauce (which was a light orange color btw). Asked if he used celery seed. He said no. But I agree with you that it goes with lots of foods.

I put saffron on my Chef Boyardee.

Dried tarragon is my secret ingredient for potatoes.

A small dash really makes hash browns extra savory.

>>9087266
I hope you use real persian saffron

>>9087283
What a funny coincidence. Savory is my secret ingredient to make my potatoes extra tarragon

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Spices are one of my favorite parts of cooking. So much flavor and color can be imparted just by adding that little 'extra'.

>Cayenne in Hollandaise
>Nutmeg on quiche and cream sauce
>Fennel seed in sausage
>Crushed pepper flakes in tomato sauce
>Cloves in ham
>Cardamom pods in rice
>Dried oregano on sandwiches
>Cilantro in fresh salsa
>Celery seed in mayo-based salads
>Sage rubbed into chicken or with stuffing
>Fresh mint with ice cream or yogurt sauces, really nice with lamb
>Mustard seeds, mixed with dijon make a great pork/lamb rub

If you guys really want to learn the importance of spices in cooking, look up any traditional Indian or Southeast asian curry recipes, incredibly facinating how their process for pastes and using just the right secret blend of spices makes or breaks the dish.

I actually went through my spice cabinet the other day to toss out old stuff. I'm down to 63 spices (and spice blends).
I cook a lot and my bf is also big on spices. If he sees a spice/spice blend on sale he always buys it.
I'm seeing a lot of celery seed and fennel seed but those I do not have. I really just don't like the flavor.

>>9086776
>uncommon spices
>nutmeg in things creamy
>uncommon
Nigga what?
Do you also put salt in your steaks?

>>9087958
Spice blends are for people who don't own a lot of spices. If you're spice cabinet is so big, you should make your own blends.

>>9087211

>celery seed
How can something so delicious grow into something that tastes so bad.

I on the other hand have no idea how to use spices?

Just hope I encounter them in basic recipes and grok their taste and uses?

>>9087938
cloves in ham, yes sir. i forgot that one. honey-glazed ham with pineapple and cloves. thats a winner.

>>9088262
thats one way to learn how to use them, yes. another way is to choose a recipe and buy the applicable spice(s) in the store and cook it.

With everyone in love with South Asia and Southeast Asia when it comes to spiced food, I'm sad to see dill seed and caraway becoming so under utilised these days. Caraway is bae.

As for completely uncommon spices, do fermented lime powder, fermented lemon powder and green chilli powder count? I can't even find them in stores where I live so I make them myself.
Used in Persian/Central Asian cuisine. Along with dill seed and caraway.

Sumac is incredibly underrated. It's really good on stuff like chicken, fish, prawns, most middle-eastern food. It also looks really striking because of its reddish purple colour. Nigella seeds are really nice, they're wonderful for garnishing things with because of how distinctive they look. Saffron is expensive as fuck, but you don't need much and it's really good.

Basic things like tumeric, paprika, cinnamon, fennel etc go in tons of things, I don't know what I'd do without them.

Dill and barbecue sauce on chicken. Try it.

I like szechuan peppercorn on medium rare steaks. Makes it nice and spicy.

>>9088483
if u want the best most flavourful chicken, mix sumac + szechuan pepper. it really penetrates into the chicken and is a real nice unique taste, especially if u get the good fresh szechuan and it has that almost mouth numbing feeling (just try a single pepper by itself and see)

>>9087958
>>9087980

also for morons, lot of the time they add random shit to those spice mixes to make them shelf stable for years

buy ur own fresh spices and save cupboard space, get a peste la morta or however the fuck theyre spelled i dont care enough to look it up

also, amchur powder can be great in some pork rubs if ur going for a fruity flavour.

galangal is nice in curries, also great on bbq'd meats

lemongrass powder good too actually

actually now i think about it i use most of my "obscure" spices/herbs on the bbq... maybe i should learn to use them the way they were meant to be used...

>>9086766
Herbs de provonce
E
R
B
S

Motherfucking Lavender bitches.

>>9086779
>>9087166
try star anise my dudes

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>>9087296

>>9088750
I freakin hate star anise

>>9087193
I put bay leaves in almost everything that is soupy or gravy, even chili. It adds a subtle but interesting savory flavor and it's a must for most chicken dishes.

I also vouch for mustard, cilantro, parsley, fennel seed, nutmeg, and of course paprika. I buy paprika online, one sweet Hungarian paprika and this bourbon-barrel smoked paprika that is local. I use the bourbon paprika in breakfast hashbrowns, chili, on steaks, etc; it has amazing depth of flavor.

aleppo pepper is GOAT
tellicherry peppercorns, pink peppercorns
the combination of fennel and coriander seed is amazing
dill seed
fenugreek, fresh turmeric

white pepper
ceylon cinnamon
cumin
coriander
fenugreek seeds
tarragon
rosemary
thyme
dill

>>9088451
Fermented powder sounds fucked up, bro

>>9088698
>peste la morta
Pestle and mortar. English, not some weird language mate.

>>9089033
Pesto of death, actually. Nice try though.

>>9088703
There is no fucking lavender in herbes de provence.
Jesus, are Americans really eating pot-pourri?

OK I checked wikipedia, you idiots do add lavender. I don't even.

>>9088988
The lemon (or lime) is fermented then dried out. From that point, it's crushed to use in cooking.

See en.wikipedia.org/wiki/loomi

>>9089046
>Pesto of death
Actuallly ... Botulism you know.

>>9089093
There is cooking lavender, isn't there.

But I guess Today I learned something about Herbes de Provence.

>>9089046
peste la morta = plague the (female) dead
pesto of death = pesto della morte

what the fuck am I doing?

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>>9089093
>herbs de provence

>>basil, oregano, thyme, tarragon, parsley, lavender, fennel seed, rosemary, marjoram, sage

BTFO
T
F
O

I'll have to consult my lawyer but I believe the now means you are my bitch.

Dehydrated vinegar is fucking amazing.
I have a shaker of it right next to the salt.

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sichuan peppercorns, aka numbing spice, are fucking amazing. if you've never had it, then it might seem weird at first, but it really enhances any spicy dish. It's pretty much the "secret" of ma po tofu and sichuan hot pots.

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>>9086776
Hey, seriously, thanks for the cardamom in coffee suggestion. Going to have my first cup of the day like this from now on.

>>9089491
These mixtures typically contain savory, marjoram, rosemary, thyme, oregano, and other herbs. In the North American market, lavender leaves are also typically included (perhaps due to American association of Provence with its fields of lavender),[2][3] though lavender does not appear in the recipes in Jean-Baptiste Reboul's 1910 compendium of Provençal cooking.[4]

>>9089605
Thanks wikipedia

I have like 40 different spices in my cupboard and I am not going to list them all.

My least used one is probably amchoor.

Pepper is probably the best starting spice. Provided you can grind it freshly.

>>9089605
Thanks Anon.

>>9089491
Congratulation on reading the ingredient list on your American "herbs de provence". You prove my point.
I do not, however, congratulate you on your logic.

>>9088451
Caraway seeds are a requirement for Biryani so I don't see how the popularity of South Asian is pushing it out.

>>9086766
Dried Kaffir lime leaf. Pretty much any "lesser used" spice I keep is used often in some cuisine, like anons mentioning cardamom pods which are very commonly used in India/middle east

Love a bit of ground coriander in my bolognaise.

>>9086807
Fennel seed is one of my go-to's for lamb, out of this world

>>9087938
>cloves in ham
Sounds delicious, sign me up

>>9086776
yeah, i find nobody likes or knows how to use cardamom. love it with chocolate, vanilla ice cream or coconut with cardamom is amazing, on roasted carrots/butternut or delicata squash/yams, insanely underappreciated spice

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>>9090011
>on your logic

Thanks Aristotle pupil. The 4th century BC called and they want you back for reschooling on the definition of logic.

>>9089605

>Lavender leaves

The flower is used...

>>9090106
Cardamom in hot drinks like tea is a staple in India. Cardamom milk for kids too. And it's also very common in kulfi. A good rule for cardamom is that it goes in everything that cinnamon goes in.

>>9090133
The source used is probably shit.

>>9090037
>google 'biryani recipe +caraway'
>23 results
>google 'biryani recip -caraway'
>630,000 results
I call shenanigans.

>>9091934
>inb4 fagmaster has a 'tism tantrum over a typo

>>9091934
*recipe

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I put sumac on salads sometimes. It's got a nice lemony flavor.

garam masala

<3 non-white grocery store

>>9086779
>>9087166
>>9087938
I've always pulled the cardamom (seeds?) out of the pod and ground them up prior to cooking with it. Have I been doing to wrong? When using the whole pod, do you pick it out prior to serving like you would with a bay leaf?

>>9088451
on the topic of caraway I use it as a constant in a hot pepper spread I make called harissa.

actually the 3 seeds used in harissa make great rub for red meats. Take cumin, coriander seed and caraway in equal amounts, toast them till fragrant then grind them up.

>fermented
I've been doing different fermented veg for a little under a year now. how are you fermenting the lime or lemon?

>>9092040
>Have I been doing to wrong?
There's no right or wrong, just different preferences. Do what you and your guests like.

>>When using the whole pod, do you pick it out prior to serving like you would with a bay leaf?
The whole pod would be inedible just like a bay leaf would. But you can choose to take them out or leave them in, it's a matter of preferance. Personally I like to leave them in (same with bay leaves, star anise, cinnamon sticks) because I like the presentation that way. But other people sperg hard at the idea of there being inedible bits in a dish so....yeah...different preferences for different people.

>>9088911
>aleppo pepper is GOAT
i have a few recipes that use this but i can never find it in any stores here (australia) and cbf ordering it online

hoping to just run into it somewhere some day

>>9092112
just googled it and apparently this is because of the conflict in syria

>>9092132
>>9092112

I bought some two weeks ago from here:
https://www.thespicehouse.com/aleppo-pepper

>>9089517
happy to help.

guys, how do I into pepper? there is a huge variety of pepper-like seeds out there - red pepper, seeds of paradise and god knows what else. any suggestions where to start exploring? i don't want to do blind trial and error

>>9092277

green and white pepper too.

white pepper very stronk, green peppercorns good for steak sauces

>>9091934
Click next a few times before reading these numbers, they are an approximation, sometime very inaccurate. (It is indicated "about X results" then "X results")
I think there is a website that give real number of results from google by clicking next for you until they get the real number.

>>9092040
I leave them in, but I guess I'd remove everything if I cooked for someone from a country where kinder eggs are banned.
>Do Americans really eat chicken bones if they are served a whole chicken?

>>9092081
>harissa
I put caraway and cumin in a similar spread I make. Also pennyroyal and perilla. Do you use dry or fresh chillies and, if fresh, do you ferment the spread before use? I use dry, boil them in lemon juice brine to rehydrate, drain, grind, mix with toasted ground spices and freshly chopped herbs. Then I pot the paste the same way Brits do potted shrimp.
Caraway and cumin go so well together that in Tajik, the same word (z/jira) is used for both. One is green (zira sabz) and the other is black (- siyoh, with a hard H, like in Russian). I forget which is which since neither is really green nor black but as caraway is darker, I think that's probably the "black" one.

>how to ferment lemons/limes
The citrus is boiled in salted water then they're removed and packed tightly in a glass jar and placed in the sun. A mix of lemon/lime juice and leftover salt water is poured over and it's lidded and left until it starts to ferment. Drain and let them dry out. As they dry, they turn black. The water-fermenting is supposed to remove the bitterness of the pith and prevent loss, but I just let them go on the table on their own. The ones that turn soft, I throw out and the ones that harden, I keep for use as a spice. I taste no bitterness in mine.

>>9092352
I have google set to give me 100 results per page. I only get one page of results +caraway and dozens -caraway.

This leads me to believe caraway isn't as commonly included in the recipe as you think. Maybe I should look it up in Urdu?

>>9092389
Try looking for it using the word "shahi jeera" (the Hindi word for caraway).

Annatto/turmeric/safflower for saffron color substitutions.

Chinese five spice blend for meat dishes.

>>9092381
I typically use a combination of pequin, morita and ancho dried peppers that i reconstitute in hot water then blend the peppers together with the spices, galic, lemon juice and vinegar as well as some olive oil to help consistency. It makes a great hot spread for sandwiches.

Since I've started fermenting stuff though I do want to try a fermented version. I want to ferment all the ingredients together (minus oil and vinegar of course) and probably will use red bell and red jalapenos

onto the citrus boiled in salt water, what fermentation can occur after that? Wouldn't boiling the fruit destroy the bacteria needed to start fermentation or is this a different kind process I'm unaware of?

>>9092352
Someone is being a cheeky cunt.

>>9086766
don't know about elsewhere but here in burgerland, ground mustard is severely underutilized

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I have a spice jar full of sumac that I got in Israel a few months ago. I haven't used any of it. What the hell do I use it on?

>>9092381
>pennyroyal
Trying to induce some abortions, are we? Or do you just really hate your organs.

>>9088483
>>9088689
>>9091970

Welp maybe I should have fucking read the thread before asking about sumac

>>9092677
I have added it to meatballs today. It's handy when you want to add sour taste without adding liquid.

>>9086776
>>9089517
>>9090106
Well shit, you guys are making it sound so good, I really want to try it out now. I see a trip to the bulk store in my future.

I even have a perfect kabocha squash to try it out on.

>>9086766
msg. Gets a bad rap because of health scares in the early 2000s, but it's never been shown to be dangerous to humans (although some people can have an msg allergy/intolerance, but that's true of everything). Tastes great, but it's annoying that you can't really find it in grocery stores.

>>9093904
It's in every mexican spice blend.
Which I use alot of.

I find it hard to tell how much salt you've used.

>>9086766
File powder

>>9091934
Try shahjeera or shahi jeera + Biryani.

>>9088926
Now you're talking my language. No one ever uses white pepper. And coriander is my jam.

Best grilled (on an actual grill) sandwiches of all time:
White bread
Onions
Tomatoes
Salt
Cheese optional
White pepper!

South Africans call these braaibroodjies

Has anyone here tried grains of paradise?

As far as things nobody has mentioned, Majoram is a pretty underrated spice. Adds a sweet, delicate flavor to things.

>>9087211
>celery seed in almost everything
What the fuck
Has ANYONE who isn't insane ever found a use for celery seed? It's disgusting and overpowers every other flavor.

>>9086776
>>9088483
>>9088703
>sumac
>Nigella
>lavender
Mah niggas. Sumac's great in water too. Also, cardamom + cloves in coffee (and cinnamon or nutmeg if you want) is the best way to do it.

>>9092677

mix thyme, salt, sumac and toasted sesame seeds.

use it on chicken or fish

>>9094224
>>9092425
Appending '+shahjeera' to a biryani search yields exactly 1 result.
Appending '+"shahi jeera"' yields 17300.
Appending '-"shahi jeera"' yields 10900000.
Appending -shahjeera yields 7950000.
Also, "Shahi" literally means "Persian royal." Regula 'royal' in Hindi is 'rajasee.' I'm only saying this to give evidence that even the language itself points to caraway being considered a foreign thing and not something common to Indic cuisines.

Should I look for it in Urdu/Hindi? I can understand about half of written Urdu andI can just google translate Hindi.

>>9092680
I use 20g or so of pennyroyal to make about 500g of chilli paste. It's not like I'm eating 20g all at once. In small amounts, it's reasonably safe. Dose makes the poison.

>>9092461
Dunno what to tell ya other than "it works." I don't know the science behind it. Also, beer is boiled and that seems to ferment just fine, right?

>>9086781
Hollandaise doesn't use nutmeg. Nutmeg is more often seen in cream sauces like bechamel.

>>9089636
What is amchoor?

>>9092677
Salads, chicken, drinks, or anything really. It's got this amazing sour taste that's just very satisfying.

>>9086766
Juniper. Fuck, I live in commiefornia and I still had to order it online. Good in marinates or take a single berry and crush it up well, then add to a seared duck breast. I tend to add a bit to most things in general, just really like it

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>>9088890
Too bad, I was just about to invite you over for a drink.

>>9089491
THAIRAD

>>9095835
What does it add to the flavor? I've only had juniper berry drinks. Seems like it'd be fun to forage for them.

>>9096674
Gin has a strong juniper taste. Kind of like how pine needles smell, but not totally.

Not that poster btw

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>>9094771
This motherfucker knows what's up.

>>9096674
piney, fairly strong. maybe even slightly bitter. gin and jenever are flavored with it

>>9095813
>beer is boiled
true but then you introduce yeast which does the fermenting. And thats still different from lacto fermentation which was what I talking about. But fermentation can be alot of different things. This must just be one I'm unaware of

>>9087938
I first time I ever ordered lamb chops and got mint jelly with it I was confused
I still am, I don't really think the flavors go together

>>9086766
>I am a spice moderate, meaning I know how to use cumin, basil, oregano, thyme, curry blend, chili, black pepper, corriander. So not a whole lot.
You should see my mom. All she uses is salt, pepper and garlic. It's so frustrating.

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I don't think of them as uncommon, but I don't see them called for all that often but I find myself using them with some frequency.

Mace is the covering of the nutmeg seed between it and the fleshy part of the fruit, like a milder version of nutmeg. It goes great with most vegetables (notably cabbage and root vegetables), pork, chicken, and light fish and a lot of fruits. I use it often in braises and sauces, sometimes in things like chutney.

File is basically dried and ground okra. It was used more often in creole/cajun food in the past, but it's been overshadowed by roux as a thickener and flavor. I like the flavor and think certain dishes are much better with it than roux.

Celery seed tastes like celery, which is awesome. I don't know why it doesn't see more action.

I put the saffron in there because Spanish saffron says >>9087293 saffronfu a shit. Really it's just more expensive and jealous of the original, but hey.

>>9098819
Mace sounds like a winner

>>9098819
Do you cook for a living?

>>9098897
Not much anymore, but still some in my spare time. I would love to get back into it full stop, just looking for the right opportunity.

>>9086766
Basil oregano and thyme aren't spices

>>9086766
Ceylon Cinnamon/Cassia , Sweet Birch, Licorice, Juniper berry, Sarsaparilla, Burdock, Elder flower, Jasmine, etc

Not for normal cooking, but for brewing mead/beer. Most of these are VERY uncommon, hardly available anywhere. I wish there was a place nearby which sold Licorice root, its nearly impossible to find, I just want to brew some erk sous.

i have so much fennel growing, its annoying as fuck. it grows all around my neighbourhood too.

>>9099205
Go to a dedicated herbal shop. Or get your rare herbs online at a bulk place; it's a hell of a lot cheaper.

Chervil is great on eggs. Surprised to see no-one else mentioned it.

>>9101110
never heard of it. learn something everyday

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>>9098819

File in its original form is ground sassafras leaves.
While it's use has seriously fallen out of fashion outside of creole and cajun cooking it was once a huge part of native american cuisine. This is actually really important in Louisiana because it's used in gumbo as one of three thickening agents symbolic of the cultural blend of the region (Okra from African cooking, Rue from French cooking, and Sassafras from Native American cooking).

>>9101593
Holy cow it still is. I thought the whole safrole thing made them change most, if not all, to okra/okra blend. I was badly, badly mistaken. I even checked with the people I got it from, and they confirmed that it is 100% sassafras. Okra is still used as a thickener, but not so much as a substitute for file as they had when the safrole concerns were at their peak.

>>9086794
Good idea to put nutmeg in boxed mac n cheese?

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>>9087938
These are all fairly common uses for those spices. OP was asking for uncommon spices.
>Adding mustard seed to fucking mustard
Wew lad.

>>9101788
Good question. If I had to guess I would say it's used in lobster Mac n cheese to fancy it up

>>9099205
Indian places have licorice root cheap and easily available, it may be labeled as jethimadh.
Burdock is quite available and cheap in Chinese and Japanese markets, sometimes labeled as gobo.

Real sarsaparilla you're going to have trouble with, as the natural extract is carcinogenic and only the artificial flavor is safe.

Jasmine maybe a Chinese market. Don't get the tea, while many varieties leave the flowers in they're still already extracted (though one with a delicate enough tea base could be usable.)

Za'atar.

In Australia we have a native plant called lemon myrtle, the seeds from the plant are toasted and ground up. They have a unique lemony, earthy taste that goes well with chicken, fish and sprinkled on roast veggies.

I pick a bunch of buckrams during growing season to dry. Shit's pretty much free garlic/onion just growing outside and I'm cheap as hell - it's a match made in heaven.

>>9104109
nice

>>9095813
>I'm only saying this to give evidence that even the language itself points to caraway being considered a foreign thing and not something common to Indic cuisines.
Of course caraway is foreign to Indian cuisine. Biryani's part of nawabi cuisine which was basically Indian + Persian. As far as recipes go I think you'll find more with cumin than caraway simply because cumin is more common in Indian households and cheaper. But most good biryani places will have biryani with caraway. Also Indian cooking on the internet is still mostly geared towards convenience rather than 100% authenticity which is why whenever I'm looking at Indian dishes I arrive at the recipe from multiple sources including videos of actual preparation without instructions.

Coming back to the original point, I don't think it's Indian cuisine that's pushing out caraway since it at least has one highly popular dish which calls for it even if it's not a hard requirement. You'll even find caraway in a good number of Indian stores.

Idk what its called in english but where i live theres planty of this weird type of wild garlic and i use that alot.

why is store bought garam masala so shit?

>>9104468
The same reason that most storebought spices are shit: they're pre-ground so the flavor drops off very rapidly after manufacture.

>>9086781
Hollandaise is just egg yolks, butter and lemon juice. Super easy to make.