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Posted on 11:57 AM by Wanto and filed under
By Paul Heather
Cumin resembles caraway, with which it is closely related, in aroma and flavour, but it is much more pungent and quite bitter. In olden times it was more highly prized than caraway, as testified to by the fact that, according to the Bible, the Pharisees paid their tithes with it and even in medieval England vassals used it to pay the feudal lords in lieu of their services. It was also well known to the ancient Greeks, Romans and Egyptians, who used it in place of pepper.
Unlike saffron the pigment in turmeric is soluble in fats. It is quite harmless and is used to colour butter, margarine, cheeses and mustard. By reason of its colour as well as its strong, pronounced flavour, turmeric is one of the principal ingredients of curry-powder, Worcestershire sauce and numerous other seasonings.
It is also popular, however, in Scandinavia, where it is used to flavour sausages and salamis and meat dishes. In addition to that it may be used in pickling vegetables and marinating fish, a.5 well as in pastries and liqueurs. The plant's leafy stems are up to 3 in (10 ft) high, the clusters of flowers (racemes) grow from the axils of bracts on stems that are much shorter.
Propagation is by seeds, or, as in ginger, by root cuttings. The fruits are triloculatc capsules that ripen in succession throughout most of the year. They are harvested before they are ripe and dried carefully in the sun or by artificial heat so they do not burst and the seeds retain their delicate aroma.
Unlike caraway, cumin is an annual herb with white or reddish flowers, borne in umbels. The fruits are used for seasoning; these arc double achenes up to 6 mm (I in) long, which often remain joined.
Cumin grows wild in Turkestan and is raised commercially chiefly on the coast of north Africa, in Malta, Sicily, the Middle East and' India. Even though it is also available already ground, it is best to stock it whole and grind it just before use so it does not lose its aroma.
Unlike saffron the pigment in turmeric is soluble in fats. It is quite harmless and is used to colour butter, margarine, cheeses and mustard. By reason of its colour as well as its strong, pronounced flavour, turmeric is one of the principal ingredients of curry-powder, Worcestershire sauce and numerous other seasonings.
It is also popular, however, in Scandinavia, where it is used to flavour sausages and salamis and meat dishes. In addition to that it may be used in pickling vegetables and marinating fish, a.5 well as in pastries and liqueurs. The plant's leafy stems are up to 3 in (10 ft) high, the clusters of flowers (racemes) grow from the axils of bracts on stems that are much shorter.
Propagation is by seeds, or, as in ginger, by root cuttings. The fruits are triloculatc capsules that ripen in succession throughout most of the year. They are harvested before they are ripe and dried carefully in the sun or by artificial heat so they do not burst and the seeds retain their delicate aroma.
Unlike caraway, cumin is an annual herb with white or reddish flowers, borne in umbels. The fruits are used for seasoning; these arc double achenes up to 6 mm (I in) long, which often remain joined.
Cumin grows wild in Turkestan and is raised commercially chiefly on the coast of north Africa, in Malta, Sicily, the Middle East and' India. Even though it is also available already ground, it is best to stock it whole and grind it just before use so it does not lose its aroma.
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