Cooking with spice mixes, pastes and sauces

It is often used as supplement for soups and salads. In terms of its gustatory quality and nutrient level it is the most valuable vegetable crop. Its leaves contain ascorbic acid, carotene, vitamins and even antiulcer substances. As a spice, dried leaves and seeds are used. A stalk of celery is used while fresh. Dried celery retains its flavour and has a specific pleasant herbaceous aroma, reminding of parsley, and has a piquant warm, slightly bitter flavor. Celery seeds are often used in spicy combinations for barbecue and roasted meat.

Celery pairing:

Fruits and vegetables: green onions, cabbage, potatoes, carrots, cucumbers, tomato, turnips, beets, chives.

Protein product: beef, legumes (beans, rice, hummus/chickpeas), seafood (including oysters), nuts (especially peanuts), poultry (especially chicken, turkey), fish, pork, cheeses (especially blue, parmesan, feta, goat cheese, cream cheese), eggs.

Other foods: broths (especially chicken, vegetable), mushrooms (especially wild, black truffles), various kinds of minced meat, vegetable oil (olive, peanut), butter, soy sauce, juice (lemon, tomato), vinegar.

Seasonings and spices: basil, cloves, mustard, cumin, ginger, cilantro, turmeric, bay leaf, onion, paprika, black and white pepper, parsley, thyme, dill, garlic, tarragon.

Cuisines and dishes: curry dishes, stir-fry dishes, mirepoix (European vegetable mix for soups and broths).

CILANTRO (CORIANDER GREENS)

In appearance, cilantro is similar to parsley leaves, and sometimes it is even called "Chinese parsley", but the flavour and aroma of these two herbs are completely different. Interesting fact regarding its flavor – there are two types of people: those who adore this useful and aromatic herb, and those who dislike it comparing the taste of cilantro with soap. Nevertheless, this spice has quite delicate and at the same time a complex taste resembling of a mixture of mint, lemon and pepper. Fresh cilantro leaves are popular throughout Asia and Latin America where they are added to all kinds of curry dishes, curry pastes, sauces, including chutney and salsa. Dried cilantro is great for adding to a dish in a very last minutes of cooking process.

Cilantro Pairing:

Fruits and vegetables: avocado, eggplant, green onions, potatoes, corn, lemongrass, lettuce, carrots, cucumbers, bell pepper, tomato, citrus, chives.

Protein product: lamb, beef, game, legumes (beans, lentils, rice, tamarind), yoghurt, seafood, nuts (including coconut), poultry (chicken, duck, turkey), fish (especially white: cod, halibut), pork, cheese, eggs.

Other foods: coconut milk, butter, fish and soy sauces, juice (lemon, orange), stews, vinegar, chutney.

Seasonings and spices: basil, cumin, ginger, cardamom, coriander, turmeric, onion (including purple/red), marjoram, mint, oregano (in very rare cases), paprika, chili, parsley, caraway, dill, fennel, garlic.

Cuisines and dishes: Middle Eastern cuisine, curry dishes, Indian cuisine, Caribbean cuisine, Latin American cuisine, Pan-Asian cuisine, Portuguese cuisine, North African cuisine, salsa sauce, Mediterranean cuisine.

CINNAMON

Everyone is familiar with this warm, sweet, woody and tart aroma of cinnamon. A warm taste shades of cloves and citrus notes. Many people mistakenly believe that cinnamon has found its use only in sweet dishes and desserts. And only experienced cooks use it for meat and vegetable dishes, beverages, stew and even soups. One-piece cinnamon sticks should be added at the very beginning of cooking process, so that it could give all her rich flavor and aroma to the dish. Cinnamon is an integral component of such mixes as ras-el-hanout, Chinese five-spice powder, garammasala, besar, baharat, curry, berbere, harissa and many others. In photo on the left is cassia, on the right is real Ceylon cinnamon. Cassia and Ceylon cinnamon are replaceable and used throughout the world, though Ceylon cinnamon is valued much more because of its more intense flavor and aroma.

Cinnamon pairing:

Fruits and vegetables: apricot, banana, grapes/raisins, cherry, pear, zucchini, cabbage, potatoes, carrots, cucumbers, bell pepper, peach, tomato, radish, beetroot, plum, pumpkin, citrus, blueberry, apple.

Protein product: lamb, beef, game (especially game birds: quail, partridge), legumes (peas, rice, buckwheat, beans, lentils, tamarind), yoghurt, milk, nuts (especially walnuts), poultry (chicken, duck), pork, cream, eggs.

Other foods: pancakes/battercakes, broths, wafers, pastries and confectionery, custard creams, maple syrup, candies, butter, honey, ice cream, drinks (especially hot: tea, cocoa, coffee, mulled wine), biscuits, cakes, sugar, juice and peel (lemon, orange), dough, chocolate.

Seasonings and spices: anise, star anise, vanilla, cloves, mustard, cumin, ginger, cardamom, coriander, sesame, turmeric, bay leaf, onion, nutmeg, paprika, allspice, Szechuan pepper, black pepper, chili, celery, caraway, dill, fennel, garlic, saffron.

Cuisines and dishes: Middle Eastern cuisine, curry dishes, Indian cuisine, Indonesian cuisine, Spanish cuisine, Chinese cuisine, couscous, Moroccan cuisine, Mexican cuisine, mole sauces, Mediterranean cuisine, tajines, chutneys.

CHILI PEPPER

Chili is an essential part of most spice mixes. There is no other spice that has such an abundance of species and varieties. Whether it's a bird's eye or cayenne pepper, any species of this spice family will find a worthy use in any cuisine. Chili is added at the very end of cooking process except, perhaps, for marinades and sauces. Later in this book, you will learn about some varieties of chili peppers.

Chili pepper pairing:

Fruits and vegetables: avocado, pineapple, banana, green peas, potatoes, corn, lemongrass, shallots, mangoes, carrots, cucumbers, olives, tomato, radish, beetroot, pumpkin, citrus, apple.

Protein product: lamb, beef, legumes (peas, buckwheat, beans, semolina, oats, wheat, rice, lentils), yogurt, coconut milk, seafood, nuts (including peanuts), poultry (chicken), fish, pork, cheeses (goat cheese, parmesan, mozzarella, fontina), eggs.

Other foods: mushrooms, pasta, vegetable oil (olive, sesame), fish sauce, soy sauce, juice (lemon, lime), tomato sauces, vinegar, chocolate.

Seasonings and spices: basil, mustard, cumin, ginger, cilantro, coriander, cinnamon, sesame, bay leaf, onion, marjoram, mint, oregano, paprika, black pepper, parsley, rosemary, thyme, caraway, fennel, garlic, saffron.

Cuisines and dishes: curry dishes, Cajun cuisine, Caribbean cuisine, Chinese cuisine, Latin American cuisine, Pakistani cuisine, mole sauces, salsa sauces, Thai cuisine, Tex-Mex cuisine.

CLOVES

Cloves is not just a strong but a very powerful spice. Its flavour is warm, fruity and at the same time sharp and bitter. Only a few cloves are enough to raise a dish sky high and overdoing it will make the whole dish bitter. The whole cloves complement masterpieces of stews and sauces; ground cloves are good for baking. It emphasizes greatly other spices and pairs perfectly with cinnamon and cardamom and creates a balance in such mixtures as garam masala, baharat, berbere, Chinese five-spice powder and many others. Clove is added in the early stages of cooking process.

Cloves pairing:

Fruits and vegetables: pineapple, green peas, pears, zucchini, cabbage, potatoes, carrots, cucumbers, bell pepper, peach, tomato, radish, beetroot, pumpkin, citrus, apple.

Protein product: lamb, beef and veal, game, legumes (especially buckwheat, oats, pearl barley, millet, rice, beans, tamarind), sausages, milk, nuts (especially almonds, walnuts), poultry (especially chicken, duck), fish (stewed/boiled), pork, cheese, minced meat and meatballs, eggs.

Other foods: broths (especially beef), Worcester sauce, pastries, lemon juice, honey, beverages (especially tea, wine), biscuits, chocolate.

Seasonings and spices: star anise, basil, vanilla, mustard, cumin, ginger, cardamom, coriander, cinnamon, turmeric, bay leaf, onion, nutmeg, allspice, Szechuan pepper, black pepper, chili, caraway, dill, fennel, garlic.

Cuisines and dishes: English cuisine, curries, Indian cuisine, Chinese cuisine, Mexican cuisine, German cuisine.

CORIANDER

It is better to use coriander whole seeds rather than have them ground. Ripe coriander grains have a warm, nutty, slightly woody aroma and a sweet, slightly tart flavor, with a hint of citrus. The whole coriander seeds are usually slightly roasted in a dry frying pan before it is added to the dish. The only exception is when baking and making desserts. In this case they do not need a warm-up. Coriander is an excellent single spice that pairs with many spices and therefore it is one of the most popular ingredients for spicy blends. This spice is the main component of all kinds of curry powder. Virtuallym all the Middle Eastern and African blends are also based on this spice (dukkah, harissa, ras-el-hanout and others). The top picture displays European coriander, the one on the bottom is Indian one.

Coriander pairing:

Fruits and vegetables: artichoke, pear, potato, corn, carrot, parsnip, bell pepper, tomato, beet, plum, asparagus, pumpkin, citrus, spinach, apple.

Protein product: lamb, beef, game, legumes (peas, manga, lentils, beans, chickpeas), yogurt, kefir, coconut milk, sausages, seafood (especially crab, oysters), nuts, poultry (chicken, duck, turkey), fish (salmon), pork, sour cream, eggs.

Other foods: broths (especially fish and seafood), mushrooms, gingerbread, confectionery, various kinds of minced meat, vegetable oil (including olive oil), sugar, juice and zest (lemon, orange), dough.

Seasonings and spices: anise, basil, clove, mustard, cumin, ginger, cardamom, cilantro, cinnamon, sesame, turmeric, bay leaf, onion, nutmeg, mint, oregano, fenugreek, paprika, allspice, black pepper, chili, parsley, celery, caraway, dill, fennel, garlic, saffron.

Cuisines and dishes: Middle Eastern cuisine, Indian cuisine, Latin American cuisine, Moroccan cuisine, Pan-Asian cuisine, North American cuisine, Mediterranean cuisine, chutney.

CUMIN

Cumin is popular in India, Middle East, Southeast Asia, North Africa and Mexico. It has a strong spicy-sweet aroma. Its flavour is slightly bitter, soft and earthy. Cumin is a significant ingredient in such spice blends as panch phoron, garammasala, baharat, berbere, cajun, curry and dukkah. It pairs well with coriander resulting in an amazing flavour and aroma of those spices combined. Cumin is added in the early stages of cooking process.

Cumin Pairing: