Spice rack

[Archer]

Since there's a lot of under-experienced cooks out there and spices are confusing, let's talk about how to use spices and what the inexperienced cook should have in the spice rack.

What I do is get food on the table for my family. Only a comic could call what I do "cooking" but you can survive on it and someone that doesn't know any better will think its a decent meal.

What you need for basic spices

Salt - not to be underestimated for flavor but be aware most non-raw foods are already full of salt

Black Pepper - be aware that "blackened" dishes typically aren't blackened by rolling it in pepper before cooking.

Seasoned salt - this is typically a mixture of salt, sugar, paprika, tumeric, and very light amount of garlic. My wife uses it instead of salt for a lot of things which I don't think need any additional salt (like canned green beans). You can generally experiment using this instead of salt in non-baking recipes to get a slightly different flavor but without risking ruining what you are making.
http://www.lawrys.com/products/products_detail.cfm?lry_value=products&prodtype=spiceblends&id=678

Garlic salt - if you like a garlicly flavor but don't always have, or want to have, fresh garlic on hand. Or if you've never learned how to do anything with real garlic and don't care to learn. I recommend garlic salt rather than garlic powder because I find it insanely difficult to get the right amount of garlic flavor when using powder.
http://www.lawrys.com/products/products_detail.cfm?lry_value=products&prodtype=spiceblends&id=680

Mrs Dash - if you have no desire to learn how to use real spices and buying yourself a spice rack will result in unopened spice bottles five years later, this is your crutch.
http://www.mrsdash.com/

[Dreamweaver]

dont buy large quantities. spices should be replaced around every 6 months or so to keep their flavor.

oh and there are different types of salt out there.. they each have a different flavor. some are sweeter others are more bitter. to get them you generally have to go to a specialty store.. but they can be worth it.

[BattleNymph]

For herbs the two I need on hand most often are rosemary and oregano. Both go well with vegetables and eggs and even meat. :)

[silverwhisper]

i find cayenne, cilantro, cumin, oregano, rosemary and thyme indispensable. paprika and tarragon are useful, too.

[Cranky Dog]

I can't really tell you all of the spices we have from memory, but he have at least two dozen varieties in addition to salt, pepper and herb spices. Though I a fond of curry.

Ever since a popular book on cancer fighting foods from the microbiology department of my university, the one spice I have started to use in regular quantities is tumeric (curcuma over here) for health reasons. It is apparently one of the most powerful antioxydant available in the food market. But it has the downside that it is not naturally easily absorbed by the human body. Fortunately, the molecules in pepper make it much easier to absorb by about 1000 times. So the idea is to blend your tumeric with pepper in the shaker.


Cranky Dog
"I have a spiced opinion, international!"

[Magnus Bergqvist]

Well, the stuff I use are:

Salt
2 different mixes for vegetables.
Black pepper (relatively finely ground, but not the finest)
Cayenne pepper
Chili
Paprika
Curry
Cinnamon
Garlic powder (though I prefer fresh garlic)
Basil (prefer fresh basil, but I can never seem to get it to last.)
Some barbecue-mixes

Have a bunch of other spices as well. Sadly most are way too old.

/Magnus

[Zayda]

I think I may be the only person I know with no rosemary in her spice rack. I can't stand the smell or the taste of the stuff. And to me, food with rosemary in it is revolting.


What I can't do without in my spice rack:

cumin
cayenne powder
red pepper flakes (although I usually keep dried chili peppers on hand and simply grind them for flakes)
garlic powder (garlic paste in the fridge and plenty of fresh garlic on hand as well)
allspice
mustard seed and mustard powder
ground and whole black pepper
ground and whole white pepper
salt, sea salt, kosher salt
seasoned salt
hot salt (not the same as seasoned salt)
horseradish powder (along with plenty of fresh too)
ginger powder (and fresh ginger on hand as well)
lemon pepper
paprika and smoked paprika
thyme
dill
basil
bay leaves
sage


I generally try to buy fresh herbs if I can find good ones available.

[silverwhisper]

super z quoth
i may be the only person i know with no rosemary in her spice rack...[snip]...to me, food with rosemary in it is revolting.
you're so weird, super z. :p

oo, oo! i forgot to mention the joys of smoked salt and smoked paprika--god but i love them!

ed

[Zayda]

you're so weird, super z. :p



ed


This is not news. :p

[silverwhisper]

true, that.

:troutslap:

just for the halibut. :D

[marmalade]

(*) used fresh from the garden or grocery, or dried from my garden

Italian dishes: Garlic*, Bay leaves*, Basil*, Rosemary*, Oregano, Thyme, flat-leaf Parsley*, Sage*, Fennel, Black Pepper.

Far Eastern dishes: Garlic, Ginger*, Cumin, Coriander, Turmeric, Cardamom, Fenugreek, Cayenne, Black Mustard seeds, Cinnamon, Mint*, Curry powder, Garam Masala

Austrian dishes: Garlic, Paprika, Caraway, Nutmeg, Cumin, Allspice

Southwestern: Garlic, Cumin, Coriander*, Oregano, Cilantro, Ancho chili powder (mild), Cayenne,

Soups: Bay leaves, whole Allspice berries, just about anything else

Sweets: Anise, Cinnamon, Cloves, Nutmeg, Ginger (powder), Cardamom, Mint*, Vanilla extract, Almond extract, toasted Sesame seeds

Seldom Used: Tarragon (quiche), celery seed (potato salad), White Pepper (for creamy colored things), Dill* (Spanakopita)

[mugu the barbarian]

Black pepper should be fresh craked from the peppercorn. Cloves add a distinctive flaver to beef stew too.

[Haze]

I think I may be the only person I know with no rosemary in her spice rack. I can't stand the smell or the taste of the stuff. And to me, food with rosemary in it is revolting.Remember that discussion we had a while back about those wierd similarities we had? The aversion to rosemary is another one and while I have a large specimen in the garden it's never used for cooking.

I have all the spices listed below and probably others too. It's a whole shelf's worth in the cupboard.

[silverwhisper]

yer both weird.

[wrinkles nose]

:p

[BattleNymph]

Black pepper should be fresh craked from the peppercorn. Cloves add a distinctive flaver to beef stew too.

Which reminds me of a wonderful cooking disaster I've had...

Hmmm. now that could be a fun thread.

[silverwhisper]

post it! you know you want to!

[TinSoldier]

Black pepper should be fresh craked from the peppercorn. Cloves add a distinctive flaver to beef stew too.Huh. I've never tried cloves in beef stew. I'll have to try that, thanks!

Gah. I've got so many old spices that I need to throw out but I keep using them anyway. It's just that they're so gosh darn expensive!

[ldygmr1]

I'm glad this thread was started.

I have decided to branch out my spice experiences. But my problem is the relative cost and keeping FIVE palettes happy. I hate to buy things I cannot use, so just stick with food combinations for creation of flavor.

As an aside, I do not consider mrs dash or seasoned salt spices. They simply do not exist for me. Oh great. I'm a spice snob!


I want to know what the general flavor and use are for cardamom, tarragon, coriander and garam marsala.
Also cream of tartar.

I see the list according to ethnicity, but this does not give me the specific abilities of each individual spice.

[marmalade]

Gah. I've got so many old spices that I need to throw out but I keep using them anyway. It's just that they're so gosh darn expensive!
I never buy bottled spices. We have a store that sells spices in bulk, so I can get just a teaspoon if that's all I need. I keep those little plastic photo-film cans for this, and for camping. International food stores also tend to have less expensive spices.


I want to know what the general flavor and use are for cardamom, tarragon, coriander and garam marsala.
Also cream of tartar.

I see the list according to ethnicity, but this does not give me the specific abilities of each individual spice.
It’s tough to describe the flavor of some of these. Cardamom is both sweet and spicy. A little goes a long way. It’s wonderful in bread or rice pudding. Coriander is mildly spicy and goes very nicely with chicken, beans, and is great in a sauteed papper/onion mix. Garam masala is a variable mix of Indian spices. It tends to be sweet-spicy. Turmeric turns things yellow, is healthy, and has no flavor that I can detect. Tarragon is the easy one because it has a mild licorice flavor if I remember correctly. Cream of tartar also has no flavor, but stabilizes beaten egg whites.

The best way I can think of to describe the flavors of cardamom and coriander is to think of some exotically sweet-spicy perfume. There is one that I have in mind, but can’t remember the name of right now.

[Mouser]

Oregano
Basil
Rosemary
Garlic
Crushed Red Pepper

I have a blend that I make and my family uses on or with just about everything.

[Origen]

Garlic salt
Cayenne

I put these on just about everything.

[ldygmr1]

Blech. I use salt for just about nothing.
I would rather use a food's natural flavor enhanced by an accentuating spice. Garlic is wonderful. I love garlic, but it is too powerful for a lot of the more delicate dishes.

[silverwhisper]

bah, everyone knows that salt accentuates a food's flavor. :p

[Magnus Bergqvist]

Agrees with ed. Besides some things like popcorn and tequila absolutely requires salt in large quantities. =^_^=

/Magnus

[ldygmr1]

Agrees with ed. Besides some things like popcorn and tequila absolutely requires salt in large quantities. =^_^=

/Magnus

Ew.

Salt just ruins tequila.

[silverwhisper]

me no likey the tequila. :p

but a good long island iced tea...