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HarvestTurmeric Rallies As Karnataka Drought Hits Crop And Raises Fresh Supply Concerns By Kedia AdvisoryTradePatel Retail launches 23-product whole spices range under Indian ChaskaChilliChili Prices Hit Rp100,000 per Kg: What's Happening?ChilliChicago-Area Brand The Spice Drops Launches a Concentrated Chili Oil That Makes Food Spicy Without Changing the FlavorHarvestSaffron In The Cold Desert? Ladakh Is Putting 90,000 Iranian Corms To The TestMarketsUttar Pradesh Gears Up To Become Global Hub For Spice Processing & ExportsHarvestWhy 100 UP Farmers Are Growing Turmeric to Reduce Elephant Crop RaidsHarvestKashmir Squanders SaffronChilliChesapeake Chili Crisp? A DC-Area Chef Is Putting Unexpected Spins on the Condiment.HarvestRed Gold In Cold Desert: Iranian Corms Take Root As Ladakh Begins Saffron Farming Under 'Him Sarovar'HarvestTurmeric Rallies As Karnataka Drought Hits Crop And Raises Fresh Supply Concerns By Kedia AdvisoryTradePatel Retail launches 23-product whole spices range under Indian ChaskaChilliChili Prices Hit Rp100,000 per Kg: What's Happening?ChilliChicago-Area Brand The Spice Drops Launches a Concentrated Chili Oil That Makes Food Spicy Without Changing the FlavorHarvestSaffron In The Cold Desert? Ladakh Is Putting 90,000 Iranian Corms To The TestMarketsUttar Pradesh Gears Up To Become Global Hub For Spice Processing & ExportsHarvestWhy 100 UP Farmers Are Growing Turmeric to Reduce Elephant Crop RaidsHarvestKashmir Squanders SaffronChilliChesapeake Chili Crisp? A DC-Area Chef Is Putting Unexpected Spins on the Condiment.HarvestRed Gold In Cold Desert: Iranian Corms Take Root As Ladakh Begins Saffron Farming Under 'Him Sarovar'
EveryMasala

Spices for dinner

The main meal of the evening: curries, roasts, braises and grills.

Dinner is the main gathering meal in much of the world, and often where the full range of a cuisine's spices is shown, from slow-cooked stews to roasts and curries.

Slow-cooked dishes

Stews and braises use whole and ground spices cooked for hours. Moroccan tagines, Indian curries, Mexican moles, Persian khoresh and Hungarian goulash each use a different spice set, giving each its character.

Roasts and grills

Spice rubs and marinades, such as jerk, tandoori, suya, shawarma and barbecue rubs, flavour meat before cooking over fire. Pepper, paprika, cumin, coriander and garlic are common across them.

Table spices

Beyond the cooking, many tables carry their own seasonings, such as pepper mills in Europe, pepper sauce in the Caribbean, chilli oil in China and shichimi in Japan.

Dinner on EveryMasala

The spices written up so far, best known first.

PartSeedBarkRootFlowerFruitChilliLeafResinBulbStigmaBlendPasteSeasoning
FlavourHot and fieryWarm and sweet-spicedSweet and mellowEarthy and deepCitrus and brightSharp and pungentSmokyFloral and perfumedBitterAnise and liquoriceSour and tartSavoury and umamiNumbing and tinglingHerbal and green
🇵🇪 Peru and 5 moreChili pepperchīlli The pungent berry of the Capsicum plant, used to add heat to dishes worldwide.Fruit · Hot and fiery · Earthy and deep 🇮🇳 India and 4 moreFennel The anise-scented seeds and crisp bulb of a Mediterranean perennial herbSeed · Anise and liquorice · Sweet and mellow 🇮🇳 India and 3 moreIndian prickly ash A pungent fruit from a thorny shrub, used for its tingling spice in coastal India and Vietnam.Fruit · Sharp and pungent · Numbing and tingling 🇴🇲 Oman and 3 moreDried lime Sun-dried limes from the Persian Gulf, used whole or ground to add sour depth to Middle Eastern dishes.Fruit · Sour and tart · Earthy and deep 🇮🇳 IndiaKairकैर The spicy pink berry and flower bud of a drought-hardy desert bushFruit · Sharp and pungent 🇺🇸 United StatesSpicebush The dried fruit of a North American shrub, used as an allspice substitute.Fruit · Citrus and bright · Sharp and pungent 🇨🇳 China and 5 moreSichuan pepper花椒 (huājiāo) The dried husk of Zanthoxylum fruit, prized for its citrus scent and electric numbness.Fruit · Citrus and bright · Sharp and pungent 🇲🇽 Mexico and 5 moreHabanero A very hot chili cultivar with a floral aroma, native to the Amazon and grown in Mexico.Fruit · Hot and fiery · Floral and perfumed 🇮🇩 Indonesia and 2 moreLong pepper The dried fruit spike of a climbing vine native to Java, once the world's standard heat.Fruit · Hot and fiery · Sharp and pungent 🇵🇪 Peru and 3 morePink peppercornbaie rose The dried fruit of Schinus trees, offering a sweet, piney heat distinct from black pepper.Fruit · Sharp and pungent · Citrus and bright 🇯🇲 Jamaica and 2 moreAllspice The dried green berry of a tropical tree, named for its blend of cinnamon, nutmeg, and clove notes.Fruit · Warm and sweet-spiced · Sweet and mellow 🇳🇬 Nigeria and 1 moreAlligator pepper The seed pods of West African ginger plants, named for the bumpy texture of their inner kernels.Fruit · Sharp and pungent · Hot and fiery 🇨🇳 China and 5 moreRoselle The deep red calyx of a hibiscus plant, steeped into a tart drink or cooked as a leafy green.Fruit · Sour and tart · Citrus and bright 🇳🇬 Nigeria and 3 moreAshanti pepper The dried fruit of a climbing vine, used for its fresh, herbaceous heat in West African stews.Fruit · Sharp and pungent · Bitter 🇧🇩 Bangladesh and 2 morePiper chaba A creeping vine from South and Southeast Asia whose stems and roots are used as a pungent spice.Root · Sharp and pungent · Hot and fiery 🇮🇳 India and 3 moreLong pepperpippali The dried fruit spike of a climbing vine, once the world's most prized spice.Fruit · Hot and fiery · Sweet and mellow 🇳🇵 Nepal and 4 moreBlack cardamom The dried pod of a Zingiberaceae herb, prized for its smoky, camphor-like flavour in savoury cooking.Fruit · Smoky · Sharp and pungent 🇨🇳 China and 3 moreStar anise八角 (bājiǎo) The reddish-brown star-shaped fruit of a Chinese evergreen tree, used for its licorice-like flavor.Fruit · Sweet and mellow · Anise and liquorice 🇵🇪 Peru and 4 moreRocoto A hairy-leaved Andean pepper with black seeds and a distinct cucumber aroma.Fruit · Hot and fiery · Earthy and deep 🇲🇽 Mexico and 5 moreCapsicum annuum A flowering plant producing berries of many colors and heat levels, from sweet bell peppers to fiery chilies.Fruit · Hot and fiery · Sweet and mellow 🇬🇷 GreeceFlorina pepperπιπεριά Φλωρίνης A sweet, horn-shaped red pepper from northern Greece with Protected Designation of Origin status.Fruit · Sweet and mellow 🇹🇭 Thailand and 5 moreKaffir limeมะกรูด The bumpy-skinned citrus fruit and double-leafed shrub of Southeast AsiaFruit · Citrus and bright · Sharp and pungent 🇮🇩 Indonesia and 3 moreCubeb The dried fruit of a climbing vine, known for its long tail and sharp taste.Fruit · Sharp and pungent · Warm and sweet-spiced 🇮🇳 India and 5 moreBlack pepper The dried fruit of a climbing vine, the world's most traded spice.Fruit · Sharp and pungent · Hot and fiery 🇨🇳 China and 1 moreChenpi陳皮 Sun-dried mandarin orange peel aged for use in Chinese cooking and medicineFruit · Sweet and mellow · Sharp and pungent 🇬🇭 Ghana and 5 morePrekeseprɛkɛsɛ The scented pod of a West African tree, used to perfume soups.Fruit · Sweet and mellow 🇦🇺 Australia and 1 moreMountain pepper The dried berry of an Australian shrub, used as a peppery condiment and wasabi substitute.Fruit · Hot and fiery · Sweet and mellow

Photo credits on this page

The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.

The weekly digest

Every Monday: seven spices you may not know, what is cooking this week, and one blend explained step by step.