Cooking with spice mixes, pastes and sauces. Alex Cramer
lettuce (especially spinach), carrots, bell pepper, tomato, citrus, apple.
Protein product: lamb, beef, game, legumes (beans, peas, rice, chickpeas), seafood (especially scallops, shrimps, oysters), nuts, poultry (chicken, duck), fish, cheeses, eggs.
Other foods: mushrooms, pasta, vegetable oil (olive, sesame), butter, honey, rice wine, sugar, soy sauce, juice (lemon), vinegar, bread and bakery products.
Seasonings and spices: vanilla, cloves, mustard, ginger, cardamom, cilantro, coriander, cinnamon, onion, nutmeg, oregano, paprika, allspice, black pepper, chili, rosemary, sumac, thyme, garlic.
Cuisines and dishes: Middle Eastern cuisine, stir-fry dishes, Indian cuisine, Chinese cuisine, Lebanese cuisine, tahini sauce, Turkish cuisine, hummus, Japanese cuisine.
STAR ANISE
Star anise has a warm, tart, sweet, spicy aroma, similar to licorice and fennel, and its taste is similar to anise, but brighter and with a pronounced sweet note. It is characterized by floral scales, sweetish taste and distant shades of cloves and mustard. It is an excellent part of Chinese and Vietnamese cuisine. Indian and Indonesian cuisine also uses these amazing aromatic stars. Strar anise is good for all kinds of poultry and wild game, for soups (main part of in Vietnamese soup pho bo), various sauces, stews and gravies. Star anise superbly shades any fatty meat and flavours fish and seafood. Unfortunately, star anise is not popular in the West, but in the oriental cuisine it a very important ingredient. Talk about the famous Chinese five-spice powder, where star anise plays a dominant role! Star anise is used in the beginning of cooking process.
Star anise pairing:
Fruits and vegetables: pineapple, cherry, pear, green onion, cabbage, potato, lemongrass, leek, raspberry, mango, carrot, tomato, beet, plum, pumpkin, citrus.
Protein product: legumes (especially rice, tamarind), pork, beef, poultry (especially chicken, duck), wild game, eggs, fish (especially salmon, tuna), seafood (especially scallops, shrimps), nuts.
Other foods: broths (especially beef and chicken), maple syrup, honey, drinks (including liqueurs, wine, tea), fish sauce, soy sauce, juice and zest (lemon, orange and lime), dough, bread and pastries, chocolate (including milk chocolate).
Seasonings and spices: basil, vanilla, cloves, cumin, ginger, cardamom, cilantro, coriander, cinnamon, sesame, turmeric, bay leaf, onion, nutmeg, mint, allspice, Szechuan pepper, black pepper, chili, fennel, garlic.
Cuisines and dishes: Vietnamese cuisine, Indian cuisine, Chinese cuisine, Malaysian cuisine.
SUMAC
Sumac has a pure fruity aroma with a mawkish citrus smell and a tart fruity astringent taste with a slight sourness. Sumac is very good for replacing lemon juice or other acidic medium for many dishes, marinades and sauces. It is especially popular in the Middle East: in Turkey, Lebanon, Iran and Iraq. You can try sprinkling onions and serve it to barbeque. It is very popular for grilling, whether it is meat, chicken or fish. Sumac is an integral part of za’atar mix.
Sumac pairing:
Fruits and vegetables: avocado, eggplant, pomegranate, zucchini, potatoes, lettuce, carrots, cucumbers, bell pepper, tomato, beet, citrus.
Protein product: lamb, beef, legumes (beans, peas, lentils, chickpeas), yoghurt, chicken (especially fried and baked), seafood (especially oysters), nuts (especially cedar, walnuts), fish (especially fried), cheeses (feta), eggs.
Other foods: olive oil, salad dressing, juice (lemon, lime, orange).
Seasonings and spices: cumin, ginger, coriander, sesame, onion, mint, oregano, paprika, allspice, black pepper, chili, parsley, rosemary, thyme, fennel, garlic.
Cuisines and dishes: Middle Eastern cuisine, kebab/doner, Lebanese cuisine, Moroccan cuisine, grilled meat and stews, vegetable dishes, Turkish cuisine.
SZECHUAN PEPPER
This pepper is very aromatic, saturated, with woody tart citrus notes. When overdosed, it may cause mouth numbness. If you believe that the only purpose of this pepper is to be a component of the chinese five-spice powder, then you are under a delusion. In his homeland, in China, this spice is respected as no other. It is a part of many dishes, ranging from sauces and gravies, ending with desserts and beverages. This pepper is popular for cooking fatty meat dishes (pork, duck) and fish. In most cases, it is necessary to warmup Szechuan pepper it in a dry frying pan before adding it into a dish. Besides China this spice is also used in Japan (spice mix shichimi togarashi). Szechuan pepper is added during the last stages of cooking process.
Szechuan pepper pairing:
Fruits and vegetables: eggplant, green beans, green onions, citrus.
Protein product: lamb, beef, wild game (including feathered wild game: quail), legumes (beans, peas), nuts, poultry (chicken, duck), pork, eggs.
Other foods: mushrooms, sesame oil, honey, rice wine, soy sauce, juice (lemon, lime, orange).
Seasonings and spices: anise, star anise, cloves, ginger, coriander, sesame, bay leaf, onion, paprika, pepper (black, white, green), allspice, chili, parsley, rosemary, thyme, dill, garlic, sage.
Cuisines and dishes: stir-fry dishes, roasted dishes, grilled dishes, Chinese cuisine, Tibetan cuisine.
THYME
Thyme is one of the oldest spices and one of the most popular herbs in European, North American and Middle Eastern cuisine. Its aroma contains warm spicy notes with shades of pine, citrus and mint. The flavour is spicy, with notes of cloves and mint. It is a part of many blends: bouquet garni, herbes de Provence, cajun, za’atar. Thyme is added to the dishes during the initial stages of cooking process.
Thyme pairing:
Fruits and vegetables: eggplant, banana, broccoli, pear, green beans, zucchini, cabbage (including Brussels), potatoes, cranberries, corn, leeks, carrots, cucumbers, parsnips, bell pepper, tomato, citrus fruits, onion, spinach, apple.
Protein products: lamb (especially fried), beef, wild game (rabbit, venison), legumes (peas, beans, rice, lentils), sausages, chicken (especially fried), seafood (including oysters), nuts, poultry (turkey), fish (especially cod), pork (including bacon), cream and milk, cheese, veal, eggs.
Other foods: broths, mushrooms, casseroles, honey, beverages (including beer, wine), various types of marinades and sauces, various kinds of minced meat, vegetable oil (olive), juice (lemon, orange), soups (especially vegetables), stews, bread and other bakery products.
Seasonings and spices: basil, cloves, mustard, coriander, bay leaf, onion, marjoram, nutmeg, mint, oregano, paprika, allspice, chili, parsley, rosemary, celery, dill, fennel, savory, garlic, tarragon.
Cuisines and dishes: Middle Eastern cuisine, curry dishes, Greek cuisine, Spanish cuisine, Italian cuisine, mole sauces, French cuisine, Jamaican cuisine.
TURMERIC
Ground turmeric has a complex woody flavor with floral and citrus hints, and a warm, slightly bitter and tart flavor. It is valued for its flavour palette and for being a natural colorant. It is able to color absolutely any dish and it gives an unforgettable yellow color to many spice mixes. Turmeric is good in combination with other spices, rather than a single spice. It is a very important ingredient in Indian curry and many other types of curry powders, ras-el-hanout and some types of Indian masala, as well as many