How to Cook With Spices; Cooking With Spices and the Health Benefits of Spices
I am asked quite a few questions about how to cook with spices. Many do not understand the difference between spices and herbs. They want to know how to use spices; which spices to use with which foods. According to some research, getting in the habit of cooking with spices everyday will offer health benefits of spices to your diet. Because today, spices are so readily available in our grocery stores we are unable to truly appreciate their value throughout history. Spices have had close connections to the gods; have been used for currency and for medicinal purposes (still today used for health). The Egyptians prized them as rare jewels and the search for them have actually changed the face of history.
You should know the difference between spices and herbs if you are going to learn how to cook with spices. Spices are parts of plants that usually grow in tropic regions. The parts are like the bark, leaves, seeds, shells, stamens or any other part suitable for seasoning or preserving. Herbs are always the leaves of temperate zone plants. So many of the familiar favorites like rosemary, basil, parsley and mint are herbs. For the most part we often generalize by classifying both herbs and spices as spices; for now that is what I am going to do in this writing. Learn How to Dry Herb Spices are an accessory to everyday cooking. They give that added flavor or “punch” to your recipes; whether it is mild or a little more tang. Knowing how to use spices is an art that every good cook has had to learn. If you are a new cook, you will also be able to learn this with experience to where it will just come automatically when cooking. Spices should be chosen with care so they accent and improve your flavor rather than overwhelm the flavor.
As a new cook, I started out with a few basic ground spices for two reasons. First, I was on a limited budget so I had to consider the expense of purchasing them, but it also gave me a chance to work with a few at a time. These were salt, pepper, garlic powder, chili powder, oregano (because I loved spaghetti & pizza), cinnamon, ginger and cloves (the last three I loved baking with). I stuck with ground spices because they had great shelf life, because of the condensed flavor it took very little for flavor and I couldn’t afford to vary my spices at this time. These spices below will help you learn more about how to cook with spices:
When learning how to cook with spices, remember to start out being over cautious; you can always add more but you cannot decrease the strength. If you are trying something new, taste it with the tip of your finger. If it is strong and pungent, that is a sign to use it sparingly. Some spices are light and mild in flavor so it is not as bad if you get too much, however a good dish is perfection. Most recipes will direct to exact amounts; I always put “optional” if I feel it is a personal taste, like hot pepper.
I cooked with my basic spices a couple of years and I gradually added more to my collection. I have powders, minced, flakes and whole spices. It is amazing how the same spice can have different flavors by the different processing. Now if I find a unique spice, I can’t wait to buy it and take it home to try. I am sure you will be the same. Here are a few combinations when learning how to cook with spices for you to try in your cooking.
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