Spice news

Spices for snacks and tea time

Spiced nuts, crisps, fritters, chaat and everything eaten between meals.

Snacks are where spice is often most playful, with crisp, salty, sour and hot flavours coated in seasoning mixes made to eat between meals.

Savoury snacks

Indian chaat uses chaat masala, with black salt, amchur and cumin. Mexican snacks use chilli and lime, as with tajin on fruit. Japanese rice crackers use shichimi and nori, and North American popcorn and chips use paprika, onion, garlic and cheese powder.

Nuts and seeds

Roasted nuts and seeds are coated in spice mixes from many places, such as dukkah in Egypt, masala peanuts in India and chilli-lime peanuts in Mexico.

Tea time

Tea-time snacks, such as samosas, pakoras, scones and biscuits, bring spice to the afternoon. Cardamom biscuits, ginger cake and spiced fritters are typical.

Snacks and tea time on EveryMasala

The spices written up so far, best known first.

🇮🇩 Indonesia and 5 moreGinger The pungent rhizome of a flowering perennial, one of the world's most traded spices.Root · Hot and fiery · Sharp and pungent 🇺🇸 United States and 2 morePeter pepper A rare heirloom chili with a distinctive wrinkled shape and moderate heat.Hot and fiery · Sharp and pungent 🇮🇳 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 🇮🇩 Indonesia and 5 moreIndonesian cinnamon A strong, affordable bark from Sumatra used as a common spice and oil source.Bark · Warm and sweet-spiced · Sharp and pungent 🇹🇷 Turkey and 5 moreBay Laurelδάφνη The dried leaf of a Mediterranean evergreen, used to infuse slow-cooked dishes with herbal depth.Sharp and pungent · Bitter 🇮🇩 Indonesia and 4 moreClove The dried flower bud of a tropical tree, prized for its intense warmth and numbing bite.Flower · Sharp and pungent · Warm and sweet-spiced 🇵🇭 PhilippinesSiling labuyo The tiny, erect-fruited wild chili of the Philippines, known for intense heat.Chilli · Hot and fiery · Sharp and pungent 🇲🇽 MexicoSerrano pepper A hot Mexican chili from mountain regions, used fresh in salsas and sauces.Chilli · Hot and fiery · Sharp and pungent 🇵🇪 Peru and 3 morePink peppercornmulli The dried pink drupes of the Schinus molle tree, sold as a peppery alternative to black pepper.Fruit · Sharp and pungent · Citrus and bright 🇨🇳 China and 5 moreShiso紫蘇 A mint-family herb with serrated leaves, used fresh or pickled across East Asia.Leaf · Herbal and green · Sharp and pungent 🇮🇳 India and 5 moreTurmericहल्दी The dried rhizome of a tropical ginger relative, prized for its golden color and earthy bite.Root · Warm and sweet-spiced · Bitter 🇲🇽 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 🇬🇳 Guinea and 5 moreGrains of paradise The pungent, citrus-tinged seeds of a West African ginger relative.Seed · Sharp and pungent · Hot and fiery 🇹🇭 Thailand and 5 moreKaffir limeมะกรูด The bumpy-skinned citrus fruit and double-leafed shrub of Southeast AsiaFruit · Citrus and bright · Sharp and pungent 🇮🇱 Israel and 5 moreCoriander The leaves and dried seeds of an annual Mediterranean herb used in cuisines worldwide.Leaf · Citrus and bright · Warm and sweet-spiced 🇲🇾 Malaysia and 3 moreKesum An aromatic herb from Southeast Asia, used fresh in salads and soups.Leaf · Sharp and pungent · Herbal and green 🇹🇷 Turkey and 5 moreBlack cumin The tiny black seed of a wild annual flower, used across the Middle East and South Asia.Seed · Sharp and pungent · Herbal and green 🇵🇪 Peru and 3 moreBlack mintHuacatay A South American marigold herb used as a paste or dried seasoning in Andean cookingLeaf · Herbal and green · Sharp and pungent 🇭🇺 Hungary and 5 moreHorseradish A pungent root vegetable from Southeastern Europe used as a spicy condiment.Root · Hot and fiery · Sharp and pungent 🇯🇵 Japan and 1 moreSansho山椒 The dried berries and young leaves of a spiny Japanese shrub, prized for their numbing citrus heat.Seed · Citrus and bright · Numbing and tingling 🇬🇼 Guinea-Bissau and 5 moreCalabash nutmeg The dried seed of a West African tree, used as a local substitute for nutmeg.Warm and sweet-spiced · Sweet and mellow 🇮🇳 India and 1 moreGarden cress A fast-growing edible herb with peppery leaves and seeds used in salads and traditional medicine.Leaf · Sharp and pungent · Sour and tart 🇻🇳 VietnamHúng lìu A Vietnamese spice blend of cinnamon, star anise, and clove for roasted meatsWarm and sweet-spiced · Sweet and mellow 🇩🇿 Algeria and 5 moreBlack mustard The dark seeds of an annual plant, used whole in oil or ground into a sharp paste.Sharp and pungent · Hot and fiery 🇮🇩 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 🇻🇳 Vietnam and 4 moreHouttuynia折耳根 A heart-shaped herb with a sharp fishy taste used in salads and teas across Asia.Leaf · Sharp and pungent · Citrus and bright 🇮🇳 India and 5 moreMustard The seed of a Brassicaceae plant used to make pungent condiments and oilHot and fiery · Sharp and pungent 🇯🇵 Japan and 1 moreMyoga茗荷 The edible flower buds and shoots of a woodland ginger native to East Asia.Flower · Sharp and pungent · Citrus and bright 🇮🇳 India and 5 moreBlack pepper The dried fruit of a climbing vine, the world's most traded spice.Sharp and pungent · Hot and fiery 🇮🇳 India and 5 moreGinger The pungent rhizome of a flowering plant, widely used as a spice and folk medicine.Root · Hot and fiery · Sharp and pungent 🇦🇹 Austria and 5 moreCaraway The crescent-shaped fruit of a carrot-family plant, used to flavour rye bread and spirits.Seed · Sharp and pungent · Anise and liquorice 🇮🇳 India and 5 moreMustard seed Tiny seeds from three Brassica plants that create pungent condiments and cooking oil.Seed · Hot and fiery · Sharp and pungent

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.