A list of Indian spices (what they are and how to use them)

Coriander (Dhania in Hindi) is one of the oldest used spices; seeds of this plant were found in Egypt in the tomb of Tutankhamen and it appears in Indian history as far back as the 4^th century BC, in the Ashtadhyayi (the first Sanskrit grammar, written by the scholar Panini).

Its aroma is warm, lemon-like, sweet, and mild; it is very pleasant and complements well with many other spices, so that it is often the base of many blends and masalas.

The majority of Indian coriander is produced in Rajasthan (the plant prefers dry weather) but the spice is used in every part of the country. There are in the world many cultivars but they can be categorized in three broad varieties: Moroccan, Indian and European.

• Indian coriander is the stronger of the three, richer in essential oil and slightly sweeter, with a color varying from brown to light yellow and green; the longer the drying time, the darker the seeds, and the lower the value (dark seeds are called Badami); the finest qualities are called green and green special. The shape is more oval.
• Moroccan has a more lemony note and it is more woody, light yellow, large and round.
• European (mostly cultivated in Romania, Bulgaria and Russia) is darker in color,   and milder in flavor.  

Roasted and ground coriander seeds make the base for many masalas or spice blends;  roasting gives the seeds a certain nuttiness, and reduces the herbaceous flavor. Whole or roughly crushed seeds are used in the beginning of a dish with other whole spices, and form the aromatic base; finely ground coriander, less pungent, is added later on and it is also used to reduce or mitigate the level of spiciness in a dish because it has the ability to "tone-down" and balance the other tastes.

NOTE: it is always better to use freshly ground coriander, as for every other spice, and even better to grind your own when needed.

Turmeric (haldi in Hindi) is native to South India, where the tropical wet and hot climate is ideal for its growth. In India it is a condiment but also a medicine and its antiseptic properties make it ubiquitous in Ayurveda. The active component that gives turmeric its properties is curcumin, and it also gives its color, so the darker the yellow, the higher the curcumin level.

The earthy, pungent, slightly bitter taste of turmeric defines Indian cooking in a way that no other spice does, and only in India the role of turmeric is so important.

Two major varieties are grown, and they take their names from the major producing regions: Alleppey, in Kerala, and Madras, in Tamil Nadu (the city of Madras now is called Chennai). Alleppey is higher in curcumin (up to 6,5%) and has a bolder yellow color and stronger taste, Madras is lighter, sweeter, and has a percentage of curcumin around 3%.

In some part of India (Goa, Gujarat and Maharashtra) even the leaves of the turmeric are used, to wrap fish fillets that are baked and to make a delicacy called patholi, a rice-flour-based sweet dough that is then steamed.

Pepper is the spice derived from the berries (or to be botanically correct: drupes) of the piper nigrum plant; according to the time of harvest and the post-harvest process we have the three most common types of pepper: green pepper, black pepper and white pepper.

India, from where piper nigrum is native - in the southern region of Malabar, now part of Kerala - produces mostly Black Pepper, that is obtained harvesting the green drupes just when they are mature and just starting to become red, and then drying them under the sun or in an oven till the moisture content is under a specific limit. During the drying phase a process of oxidation occurs, that gives the peppercorns their black color.

The grading of black pepper in India is made according to peppercorn quality and size, in the following table you can see the definitions and characteristics of all the best grades, and finally discover what really are Tellicherry pepper and MG1 pepper:

Green cardamom (Choti Elaici), native of Southern India and Sri Lanka, is the dried pod of an herbaceous plant that thrives in the wet hillsides of Kerala. Inside the pods there are small dark/black seeds that are very perfumed and aromatic, pungent but sweet with citrus notes and with menthol properties like eucalyptus. 

Black cardamom (Badi Elaici) instead is obtained from a plant of the genus Amomum, that grows in the northern region of Sikkim (near the Tibet, Nepal and Bhutan borders). It has a smoky flavor (thanks to the drying process it receives, over a fire smoke) and a pleasant camphor-like aroma.

Both cardamoms love shade and are cultivated in forests; green cardamom, typical of the tropical regions of the south of India, is often grown in combination with pepper (pepper is a vine that climbs on trees, so it is the perfect complement). India was for years the biggest producer of green cardamom but in the last years Guatemala has taken the lead in production (nearly all of it for the export).

The so called white cardamom is obtained blanching the green pods; the color fades and the flavor is milder; this practice originates in ancient times when cardamom was exported from India to Northern Europe and blanching helped the pods to sustain the long journey

The aromatic profile of green cardamom makes it well suited to flavor chai and sweets, but it is also an important ingredient in biryanis and is used in curries and other savory dishes (mostly in its native land Kerala).

It is also one of the main ingredients in garam masala and is eaten and chewed after meals as a breath freshener.

Black cardamom is used more sparingly in India: it is used whole in meat stews (and removed before serving), and the seeds are used in biryanis and pulaos (dishes of rice cooked like pilaf).

Cinnamon and Cassia are often mistaken one for the other but they are obtained from the bark of trees of two different species of the same genus (Cinnamomum).

The so-called true cinnamon (c. zeylanicum from Ceylon, the old name of Sri Lanka, from where it is native) is the milder, sweeter, and generally more valued variety, while Cassia (c. cassia) is stronger, more spicy, and harder to grind.

Both varieties are grown in India - even if in small quantities, in Kerala - but most Indians when talking about Dalchini (that means Chinese Bark in Hindi - because most of the cassia in ancient times came from China) refer to the thicker Chinese version (while in other countries, like Europe and Mexico, the Sri Lankan Cinnamon is more common).  

In Indian cooking only the pungent cassia, with its stronger flavor, is used, often in combination with other spices, in curries and savory dishes, rarely in sweets; it is also commonly included in garam masalas

This sweet spice is the dried unopened bud of a plant in the myrtle family, native to the Maluku islands (Moluccas). It was only in these remote islands of the Indonesia archipelago that it grew, as well as the nutmeg tree, and to these island merchants from everywhere came to buy the precious harvests: Chinese, Arabs, and then Portuguese and Dutch in the XVI century. Everybody tried to control the profitable trade of Cloves and Nutmeg to the rest of the world. 

Only at the end of XVIII century the cultivation of clove spread outside Moluccas (thanks to the smuggling of small clove and nutmeg plant from french adventurer Pierre Poivre) and the monopoly was broken. Now clove is still grown mainly in Indonesia, but also in Madagascar and Tanzania.

Cultivation in South of India started in 1800, but most of the clove consumed now is imported from Sri Lanka and Madagascar.

Very strong in aroma and flavor, clove (laung in Hindi) use in Indian cooking is limited to blends and masala; it is also used in biryani and other rice dishes but not much more.

Clove possesses one of the highest level of volatile oils compared to other spice (approx. 15%) and for this a small amount goes a long way; clove is also the spice with the highest antioxidant power.

Nutmeg (jaiphal in Hindi) and Mace (javitri) are two spices derived from the same tree: the nutmeg is not a nut, but the kernel of a fruit that resembles the apricot, and mace is the aril, a “coating” that covers the seed. Mace is a deep red when fresh and becomes orange/yellow when dried.

The two spices share a similar flavor profile, both are sweet, lightly floral and warm, but mace is more delicate, with citrus notes.

The tree is native of the Maluku Island like Clove, but it grew only on five tiny islands of the archipelago (that consists of hundreds of Islands) called Banda Islands

(read the story of the banda islands)

In Indian cooking nutmeg and mace are used in small quantities, often the two together (a balanced proportion is six part of nutmeg to one of mace) and in combination with cinnamon, cloves, and cardamom.

They are used in biryani, kormas, and often (nutmeg more than mace) included in Garam Masala.

Fenugreek (the scientific name means greek wheat but apparently the use of the spice has completely disappeared from Greece nowadays) is a plant of the Fabaceae family (legumes) and both leaves, fresh and dried, and seeds are consumed. Methi is the Hindi name.

Its taste is nutty and bitter (toasting the seeds reduces the bitterness) and its use is as frequent as a medical remedy as it is in the kitchen

The seeds as a spice are used mostly in India, Turkey and Egypt, but India is the biggest producer and consumer of it. 

In the kitchen it is an important part of curry powders and it is used in pickles (often in combination with fennel seeds and ajwain); it is used in Punjab to balance the sweetness of vegetables like pumpkin, and in the South it is added to dosa batter - dosa are delicious Indian pancakes made with rice and dal (split lentils). It is also part of the Bengali five spice mixture Panch Phoron.

According to traditional medicine it helps digestion, and reduces sugar level, it is also used to treat sinusitis and it is indicated for breastfeeding mothers, because it possesses a substance that increase milk production.

Fennel seeds are called Saunf in Hindi, the same name used to call Aniseed; both spices aren't used very much in India, they are often mistaken one for the other and are used interchangeably and mostly as a digestive aid, after meals. 

Two varieties of fennel are grown; the Lucknow, which is darker in color and more delicate in flavor (this one is used in muckwas), and the Rajasthan version, fatter, lighter in color that is vastly used in the cooking of Kashmir.

Fennel seeds are used as a mouth freshener in mixes called muckwas: the seeds are mixed with coconut flakes or rock sugar (in what is called muckwas), or are coated with sugar and eaten like a breath mint.

In cooking they are used only in the northern state of Kashmir and in the spice mix panch phoron (cumin, fennel, nigella, mustard, fenugreek in equal parts), typical of the West Bengal.

Mustard (Rai) is one of the few spices that are as famous in the west as in the most spice-consuming countries like India; in Europe and America mustard seeds are almost exclusively used to make the condiment of the same name, derived from the Roman concoction of must (mustum in latin) and ground mustard seeds, with their characteristic pungency (ardens means burning). In Indian cooking mustard seeds (of the brown/black variety) are used in masalas, are added to tadka and to curries, but most of the production is used to extract mustard oil, that is the preferred cooking fat in north-east India.

There are three varieties of mustard, the yellow (brassica hirta), the brown (b. juncea) and the black (b. nigra); of these the yellow one is the milder, while the other two are the most pungent. 

Mustard is also part of the spice blend panch phoran, typical of the north-east; in this region exists a Indian version of mustard sauce, called kasundi, made with a paste of mustard seeds that are fermented for a few days.

Mustard seeds develop their pungency only when ground or crushed and mixed with a liquid (water, vinegar, must…); using a hot liquid retards the pungency, and using an acidic liquid stabilizes it (if using only water, for example, the pungency will decline after 15 minutes).    

Ajowan (or Ajwain), also known as Carom, is another seed spice that comes from a plant of the family Umbelliferae (like cumin, fennel…); it has an herbaceous slight bitter taste, and an aroma that is similar to thyme’s (their volatile oils have the same major component: thymol) but more powerful. The cooking process (baking in particular) mellows the bitter compounds in Ajwain thus creating a very peculiar nutty flavor.

Rajasthan is the main producer of Ajowan in India, accounting for 90% of total crop.

It is used often in Indian cooking for savory snacks and breads (naan, puri, poppadams, parathas…), to add a savory tone to many vegetarian dishes; and in pickles.

Its medicinal properties range from helping digestion to treating colds (boiling some ajwain in water and then inhaling the steam is a classic home remedy), and to reduce bloating.

The black triangular seeds of this plant, often wrongly called black cumin, have a warm and slightly bitter flavor, with herbaceous notes and an onion-like pungency (hence probably the other wrong name used for nigella: onion seeds).

India is the biggest producer of Kalonji (grown mostly in Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh); other producing countries are Morocco and Egypt

The seeds are used in panch phorom masala (five spice: fennel, mustard, nigella, fenugreek and cumin seeds in equal proportions) a blend typical of eastern India, as a pickling spice in northern India, and sprinkled on naans before baking; this tradition of using nigella seeds on baked breads is found also in Turkey, Iran and other Muslim countries, probably because Prophet Muhammad once said that “Black granules are the cure for everything except death” thus creating the fortunes of nigella seeds.

Apart from the legends, nigella seeds are indeed a powerful antioxidant and are credited with many medical properties, against asthma, headache, influenza and other winter diseases.

Saffron (Kesar or Zaffron in Hindi) is by far the most expensive spice in the world. It is obtained from crocus sativus, a flower with purple/mauve petals and crimson stigmas (threads) there are dried and used as a coloring agent but mostly as a precious condiment in cooking. 

Probably native of Iran or Syria, saffron is cultivated now in many regions (Iran the major producer, then Spain, Morocco, Italy, Greece, and a little in France, and in India the state in which the production is concentrated is Kashmir. Saffron grown here is reputed for its aroma and taste, containing large amounts of picro-crocin and safranal (the compounds responsible for flavor and aroma, respectively) while the other compound crocin, is responsible for the coloring power.

In Indian cooking saffron is used extensively both in sweet and savory preparation, and milk is often used as a medium (saffron aromatic compounds are soluble in water, so soaking the thread in water, or milk, to extract its color and flavor) as well as rosewater for desserts

More used in the north and the west for obvious reasons (saffron is grown in the north, in Kashmir), it is a fundamental ingredient in biryani and is often used in kormas and kebabs but only when other spices aren’t used in great quantity, because saffron taste would be overpowered in presence of lot of chillis, cinnamon, clove or cardamom. In Kashmir a special tea called khava is made with green tea leaves, saffron, cardamom and rose petals, sweetened with sugar or honey and served after meal to improve digestion.

Saffron is also used for religious purposes, and for medicinal uses; Ayurveda considers it good for the skin, and it has aphrodisiac and brain-stimulating properties.

This gummy resin (called Hing in Hindi), normally sold already powdered, has a strong unappealing sulfurous smell that disappear when cooked; the taste in the final dish is reminiscent of garlic and onion, so asafetida is greatly used by those that do not/cannot use garlic (Brhamins).

It is grown in Kashmir and Punjab, but considering the vast amount consumed in India it is mostly imported from Afghanistan and Iran

It is used in curries, sauces and pickles; one technique consists in sticking a small ball of asafetida (in its gum form obviously) to the lid of the pot, so that it releases its flavor more subtly.

Curry leaves (kadipatta or karipatta in Hindi), that have nothing to do with curry, are the leaves of a small tree in the family Rutaceae (the same of citrus plants), that is native of India and Sri Lanka. These leaves are very aromatic and pleasant aroma 

The curry tree is grown now in every part of India, but is more typical in the south. It is easy to grow so many families have a plant in their garden.

Fresh curry leaves are generally part of Southern Indian tadkas to accompany vegetable curries or dal dishes. The leaves are used also in the north (for exemple mixed with stuffing for potato and peas samosa), and in Sri Lanka, where they are used in meat and chicken stews.

Ginger (adrak is the Hindi word for fresh ginger, while dried ginger is called saunth) is one of the most important crops in India, with more than one million tons produced every year; most of the ginger produced is used fresh, and dried ginger is only used in a few Indian states, like Goa, Kashmir and Tamil Nadu

There are two main varieties of ginger, named after the port from where they were shipped: “Cochin” in the south of Kerala, and “Calicut” in the north Kerala. Both are highly aromatic (Calicut having a more lemon-like taste) with an essential oil content around 2% and have a low fiber content.

Indian ginger (and Cochin over Calicut) is considered superior to ginger grown in other countries (China, Nigeria, Jamaica) due to its milder, more complex flavor

Dried ginger is not as ubiquitous in Indian cooking as fresh ginger, but nonetheless it appears in the regional cuisines of Goa, Kashmir and Tamil Nadu.

Indian Bay-Leaf, Tej Patta in Hindi, is very different from European Bay Leaf, even if both are part of the family Lauracee. Tej Patta are the leaves of a relative of the cinnamon tree, and are recognizable from their three light veins running along the leaf. They are light in color but have a strong spicy aroma (similar to cinnamon and clove)      

In grows in the north of India, on the slopes of the Himalayas, and in Nepal, Bhutan and northern Burma. The major producer in India is the small state of Sikkim, but Tej Patta are more often foraged from wild or semi wild trees.

In is a fundamental ingredient in Moghul cuisine, and in famous dishes developed in the imperial courts of Agra and Delhi, like Biryani and Korma. Indian bay leaves are used whole in stews (mostly meat-based but also vegetarian) and dried in the Northern Indian garam masalas.