Spices play a very important role in Indian Cooking. Spices were originally used in Indian cooking to not only season, but to preserve the food as refrigeration was not around
The fragrant spices commonly used in Indian cuisine give dishes amazing flavor and an unmatched richness that makes for food that’s as beautiful as it is delicious.
Here are the basic spices that will help you get started.
CORIANDER SEEDS – DHANIA
These seeds are the dry seeds of the regularly used fresh cilantro/coriander. Light brown or golden in color, the seeds are kind of hollow and crunchy and has a nice earthy, nutty flavor. The seeds are used whole for tempering, but more often they are ground into a powder to flavor food. Do yourselves a favor and stop yourself from buying store bought coriander powder. They lose the flavor fairly quick when stored, so you will end up with a sawdust kind of powder with no flavor in it. The best way go about it, is to grind the seeds when you use them or store them in an airtight container only for a few days. I use the coffee grinder or the spice grinder to powder the seeds.
Coriander Seeds or Dhania Coriander seeds are not inter-changeable with cilantro, although they are from the same plant. These seeds are very light weight and mildly flavored. Used in many spice mixtures, curries, vegetable dishes and pickles.
Coriander Seed Powder or Dhania powder Roasted coriander powder is an indispensable item in the Indian spice box. The aromatic fragrance enhances the taste of the dish. Coriander powder is used a lot in South Indian cooking. Make your own coriander powder in a mortar or food processor after dry roasting them.
CUMIM SEEDS – JEERO
The seeds are powdered either by roasting them first in a dry skillet or without roasting them. The roasted seeds powdered have a darker shade and a different flavor than the other. Both are used in Indian cuisine.
The seeds are usually used in the ground form to be a part of various spice mixes,
Cumin or Jeera is a very commonly used spice all over India. Known for its warm earthy aroma, it is used in the raw form, or cooked in hot oil or ghee to release its aroma. Sometimes the raw seeds are ground and sometimes the seeds are briefly roasted in the skillet and ground into a powder. The roasted and fried cumin seeds imparts a very unique, smoky flavor to food
Cumin Seeds or Jeera Cumin has a distinctive, slightly bitter flavor yet flavors any dish with a sweet aroma. These brown aromatic small seeds give out more aroma when roasted or added to hot oil. Cumin seeds do look a lot like caraway seeds, but but the flavors are completely different.
Cumin Seed Powder or Jeera powder
Cumin seeds powder is very commonly used in Indian cooking. It lends a sweet and mild flavor to a dish. It is one of the main ingredients in preparing "garam masala" This spice is used more extensively in the cuisine of North India.
RED CHIILIE
This is ground up dried red chili peppers. There are different varieties of Chili Powder available in the Indian groceries. They are made from different kind of peppers with different colors, aroma and also the spice/heat level.
The Kashmiri Chili Red Chili Powder is a mild chili powder but with very vibrant colors and this is what I usually use in my kitchen. Another one which I like to use is the Reshmapati Red Chilli Powder; this one has a beautiful color too.
Red Chilies or Lal Mirch Red chilies come in different varieties. Red Pepper is commonly known as "chilies" or "chili peppers," are fiery red or orange pods which rarely grow to more than 4 inches in length. Dried red chilies can be found in many Indian grocery stores
If you cannot get your hands on the Indian variety, feel free to use cayenne or paprika or even crushed red pepper. The color and the flavors will differ a bit, but they really can be substituted
RED DRY CHILLIE
This is the hot peppers dried up, esp. the cayenne pepper type. They have different flavor then the green hot peppers are are usually sizzled in oil and cooked up with the vegetables or meat.
These dried peppers may be ground up to make Red Chili Powder.
Turmeric Powder or Haldi This smooth bright yellow powder is mildly aromatic and has scents of ginger. It has a pungent, bitter flavor. Ground Turmeric comes from the dried, ground fingers which extend from the root, as shown above. Though often called Indian saffron, it should never be confused with true saffron and the two may not be used interchangeably. Be careful while handling Turmeric powder as it can stain plastic and wooden utensils. Therefore, it is wise to keep special wooden spoons for making Indian food.
Dhania Jeera Powder is the mixture of "equal parts of Cumin and Coriander powder". this mixture is commonly used in Indian curries and masalas. You can make a mixture of this in your own kitchen using the freshly ground spices.
Green Cardamom or "Choti Elaichi" Cardamom is sold whole or ground by Indian grocers. Ground cardamom is often used in Indian sweets. It is best to grind small quantities at home using a coffee mill. Ready-ground cardamom is not only expensive but because cardamom loses its natural oils quickly, it also loses its flavor. When a recipe calls for whole cardamom, the pods should always be opened up slightly to extract the full flavor of the cardamom, for it is the seeds that have the maximum flavor.
Black Cardamom or "Badi Elaichi" This larger dark brown variety is used flavoring meat, poultry and rice dishes. The inner seeds are often used for making Garam masala. This spice is coarser in flavor and larger in size than the green cardamom.
Cinnamon-sticks The bark of the Cassia tree is used mostly in India. The real cinnamon stick which is found in the form of a scroll, are available in most supermarkets and have a more delicate flavor than the Cassia bark. Cinnamon sticks lend a sweet and mellow flavor to a dish. Although it is generally used in many desserts in many of the World cuisines it is mostly used in many curries and Puloas in Indian cooking. It gives a dish a very rich flavor.
Cloves-whole : Cloves are the dried flower buds of the clove tree. Cloves are strong, pungent, and sweet. Cloves are used in many meat dishes, marinades, pickles and in many "garam masalas". It is used whole or in powder form.
When making your own clove powder take caution, clove oil can cloud some plastics. Clove oil can be has a lot of medicinal value. Many Indians chew on cloves to relieve toothaches and it is used also as a mouth freshener after a meal. Oil of cloves contains phenol, a powerful antiseptic that discourages putrefaction, and the clove is hence one of the spices that helps preserve food.
Saffron : Saffron is the most expensive spice. Saffron threads as they are also called are orange-red dried stigmas of a small purple flower called the Crocus Sativus. It imparts a very pleasing flavor as well as a golden yellow color. Saffron's aroma is unique and there is no substitute for it. It is used for coloring and flavoring Indian curries, Pulaos and Indian sweets.
In Indian cooking it is highly prized and added to many Indian sweets and "special occasion" savory dishes like Biryani, Pulaos and even some curries. Saffron is available in powdered form also. Saffron should alwaysbe bought as a whole and not in the powdered from. The threads should be crushed just before using. Store saffron airtight in a cool, dark place for up to 6 months or in the refrigerator.
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