Spice mixes are blended spices or herbs. When a certain combination of herbs or spices is called for in a recipe, it is convenient to blend these ingredients beforehand. Blends such as chili powder, curry powder, herbes de Provence, garlic salt, and other seasoned salts are traditionally sold pre-made by grocers, and sometimes baking blends such as pumpkin pie spice are also available. These spice mixes are also easily made by the home cook for later use.
Masala (from Hindi/Urdu masalah, based on Arabic masalih) [1] [2] is a term from the Indian subcontinent for a spice mix. A masala can be either a combination of dried (and usually dry-roasted) spices, or a paste (such as vindaloo masala) made from a mixture of spices and other ingredients—often garlic, ginger, onions, chilli paste and tomato. Masalas are used extensively in Indian cuisine to add spice and flavour, [3] most familiarly to Western cuisine in chicken tikka masala and chicken curry, or in masala chai. [4] Other South Asian cuisines including Bangladeshi, Nepali, Pakistani and Sri Lankan, Southeast Asian cuisine such as Burmese and the Caribbean regularly use spice mixes.[ citation needed ]
The Arabic etymology was originally used for perfumery Ingredients only, the word Masalaha مصالحة means reconciliation. In the context of perfumery it's used to refer to fixatives. The Arabic words commonly used for spices are tawābil or bihārāt.
Five-spice powder is a spice mixture of five or more spices used predominantly in almost all branches of Chinese cuisine. The five flavors of the spices refers to the five traditional Chinese elements. The addition of eight other spices creates thirteen-spice powder (十三香), which is used less commonly.
In the culinary arts, a spice is any seed, fruit, root, bark, or other plant substance in a form primarily used for flavoring or coloring food. Spices are distinguished from herbs, which are the leaves, flowers, or stems of plants used for flavoring or as a garnish. Spices are sometimes used in medicine, religious rituals, cosmetics, or perfume production. They are usually classified into spices, spice seeds, and herbal categories.For example, vanilla is commonly used as an ingredient in fragrance manufacturing. Plant-based sweeteners such as sugar are not considered spices.
Allspice, also known as Jamaica pepper, myrtle pepper, pimenta, or pimento, is the dried unripe berry of Pimenta dioica, a midcanopy tree native to the Greater Antilles, southern Mexico, and Central America, now cultivated in many warm parts of the world. The name allspice was coined as early as 1621 by the English, who valued it as a spice that combined the flavours of cinnamon, nutmeg, and clove.
Garam masala is a blend of ground spices originating from the Indian subcontinent. It is common in Indian, Pakistani, Nepalese, Bangladeshi, Sri Lankan and Caribbean cuisines. It is used alone or with other seasonings. The specific fixings differ by district, but it regularly incorporates a blend of flavors like cardamom, cinnamon, cumin, cloves and peppercorns. Garam masala can be found in a wide range of dishes, including marinades, pickles, stews, and curries.
Lawry's and Adolph's are food, seasoning, and beverage brands owned by McCormick & Company, and formerly owned by Unilever and Lawry's. Products include marinades, spice blends, breadings, Spatini sauce, and other seasoning mixes.
Ras el hanout or rass el hanout is a spice mix found in varying forms in Tunisia, Algeria, and Morocco. The name means "head of the shop" in Arabic and implies a mixture of the best spices the seller has to offer. Ras el hanout is used in many savoury dishes, sometimes rubbed on meat or fish, or stirred into couscous, pasta or rice.
Madras curry or Madras sauce is a curry sauce. Madras is orange in colour and is made with heavy use of chili powder. Raita is often used as an accompaniment to the dish.
Mitmita is a powdered seasoning mix used in Ethiopia. It is orange-red in color and contains ground African bird's eye chili peppers, Ethiopian cardamom (korerima), cloves, and salt. It occasionally has other spices including cinnamon, cumin, and ginger.
Pumpkin pie spice, also known as pumpkin spice, is an American spice mix, named because it is commonly used as a flavoring for pumpkin pie. It does not include pumpkin as an ingredient.
Bahārāt is a spice mixture or blend used in Middle Eastern cuisines. The mixture of finely ground spices is often used to season lamb and mutton, fish, chicken, beef, and soups, and may also be used as a condiment.
Sindhi Biryani is a special meat and rice biryani dish originating from the Sindh province of Pakistan. Owing to its popularity, it forms one of the most consumed dishes of Pakistani cuisine and Sindhi cuisine.
Mizrahi Jewish cuisine is an assortment of cooking traditions that developed among the Jews of the Middle East, North Africa, Asia, and Arab countries. Mizrahi Jews have also been known as Oriental Jews.
Curry paste is a mixture of ingredients in the consistency of a paste used in the preparation of a curry. There are different varieties of curry paste depending from the region and also within the same cuisine.
Hawaij, also spelled hawayej or hawayij, is a variety of Yemeni ground spice mixtures used primarily for soups and Yemeni coffee.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to herbs and spices:
Bumbu is the Indonesian word for a blend of spices and for pastes and it commonly appears in the names of spice mixtures, sauces and seasoning pastes. The official Indonesian language dictionary describes bumbu as "various types of herbs and plants that have a pleasant aroma and flavour — such as ginger, turmeric, galangal, nutmeg and pepper — used to enhance the flavour of the food."
Mala is a spicy and numbing seasoning made from Sichuan peppercorn and chilli. Most commonly, mala is made into a sauce by simmering it in oil and other spices. Characteristic of Sichuan cuisine, particularly Chongqing cuisine, it has become one of the most popular ingredients in Chinese cuisine, spawning many regional variants.
Kaeng hang le is a rich Northern Thai pork curry. Kaeng hang le is very popular in Northern Thailand, well-known as a specialty of the region. The curry differs from traditional northern Thai curries in several respects: it is typically eaten with long-grained rice, not sticky rice, and uses dried spices, which are commonly used in Burmese, but not northern Thai curries. The dish is commonly served as a festive dish in northern Thailand.
Afrinj አፍርንጅ. A very mildly spiced condiment for kids or anyone who can't handle berbere or mitmita.