Properties of Spices and Herbs Return to the Spices Main Menu for More Information Name Uses Allspice Braises, fish, pickles, desserts. Allspice is one of the principal ingredients in Jamaican jerk seasoning. It is one of the spiciest and most versatile flavor enhancers on the planet. Allspice is an aromatic spice that was created to be forever wed to the chili pepper. When the whole berry is toasted, ground, and added to a pot of chili, the marvelous fragrance and taste of this stew will forever linger in your memory of good food experiences. Angelica It has a licorice taste, evident in the entire plant, from roots to seed.  The root has a slightly bolder taste than the seeds, and combines well in yeast breads, cakes, muffins, and cookies (press it into the dough before baking).  Then glaze or finish in whatever manner you choose.  The stems can be candied for a unique, little known treat, and can be used to decorate cakes or puddings.  The leaves can be used fresh in salads, soups, stews, or as a garnish.  Both the roots and seeds are used commercially to flavor herb liqueurs, such as Benedictine and chartreuse, and the root is a flavoring agent in gin and vermouth.   Anise In cooking, the lofty licorice-like taste of Anise seed mingles well with eggs, cheese, stewed fruit, and carrots.  Many international cuisines use it in dishes, including Scandinavian, Greek, Arabic, and Hispanic.  It intensifies the sweetness in cakes, cookies, and pastries, and combined with Bay and Cinnamon, it compliments game, fish, pork, duck, and stews.  The leaves can also be used in salads and as a garnish, and they can be dried for use in Teas. One of the most notable uses of Anise is as a flavoring for various liqueurs.  If you combine equal parts of Anise, Coriander, and Fennel seed in sugared Vodka, you have made Anisette. Basil It is used in Mediterranean, Thai, and Italian dishes, and is also tasty when used with beef, poultry, lamb, veal, fish, pasta, rice, white beans, cheese, tomatoes, and eggs.  Basil also makes a tasty, aromatic garnish for many foods.   Bay Bay leaves are usually used whole, and then removed after the dish has been cooked.  They can generally be used in any dish containing a liquid.  They are regulars in soups, stews, and tomato sauces, and they add flavor to shellfish boils, pickling brines, stuffings, marinades, and game.  The leaves are sharp and can stick in the throat, so be sure to remove them before serving your dish.   Borage Borage flowers are used as a garnish in tall drinks, salads and dips.  The petals, leaves, and stems add flavor to soups and stews if added in the last few minutes of cooking, and also enhance cabbage dishes. Candied borage flowers make an attractive cake or pastry decoration. Caraway Caraway leaves can be used in salads and soups, and the seeds are used on baked fruits, cakes, and cookies, and can be mixed with dumplings, cream cheese, goulashes, stews, and casseroles. Rye bread, pork, cabbage, soups, stews, some cheeses, liqueur (kummel). Cardamom Curries, some baked goods, pickling Cayenne Cayenne can be used to spice up oils and vinegars and adds hot flavor to salsa, chili, dips, and tomato-based sauces.  It can be added to barbeque sauces and scrambled eggs for a spicy treat. Pregnant or lactating women should avoid Cayenne. Mature Cayenne peppers are nutritional powerhouses.  They are bursting with vitamins A and C, niacin, iron, and potassium.   Celery Seed Salads, salad dressings, soups, stews, tomatoes, some baked goods Chamomile Chamomile is an annual fragrant herb, the flowers of which make a wonderful, soothing tea. It is a member of the daisy family and it's flowers have a bitter taste.  Only use the first 3-4 inches of foliage or the flowers of this plant.  The rest is unusable.  Other than for teas, Chamomile is mainly used for medicinal purposes and has a fragrance is reminiscent of apples.  Chervil Chervil can be used in flavored vinegars, and chopped for use in sauces, soups, stews, salads and vegetables.  It can also be mixed with cheeses and butter, and can add flavor to chicken, fish, and egg dishes. Chervil can be used fresh or dried.  Chicory It can be used as a vegetable like lettuce, but is more often used for it's root, which can be ground and roasted for blending with coffee.  Young roots can also be boiled and eaten with butter, much like parsnips. Chili Powder Chili and other Mexican dishes, curries Chives They have a mild onion flavor, and are used in herbal vinegars, butters, and cheeses.  They can also be used to flavor salads, soups, and meats. Garlic Chives are a perennial member of the Chive family with leaves that have a hot, oniony, honey-like, garlic taste and a mild, delicate aroma.  They are used for their leaves, stalks, and flowers.  Garlic Chives can be used in soups, stir-fry, scrambled eggs, and soups.  They can be used as a substitute for garlic, and the flowers make a nice garnish. Coriander/ Cilantro Coriander is the tan colored seed, and Cilantro is the leaf.  The leaves can be used fresh, ground, or chopped and stored in ice cube trays. .Curries, chili, and Indian or Mexican dishes,  Coriander seed is one of the first spices to be used by man. The seeds have a strong, nutty aroma and a sweetish, pungent taste. The word "coriander" is derived from the Greek koris, meaning bed bug. This is because the ancient Greeks believed that the leaves and the seeds smelled like that insect. There are almost as many definitions of its flavor and odor as there are interpretations of chili con carne. Its aroma has been likened to orange peel, lemon peel, and a mixture of cumin and caraway. Also, the bed bug thing has never gone away. Like cumin, it is best to buy the whole seed and grind it as needed. As far as taste, Cilantro evokes strong opinions on both sides of the fence.  Either people love it or they hate it, saying that Cilantro has a soapy taste and that the Coriander seeds have an unpleasant odor.  It is used widely in Latin American, Indian, and Asian cuisines and can be used to spice up almost any meat or vegetable. Cinnamon Desserts, baked goods, sweet potatoes, beverages, curries, pickles, and preserves Cloves Stocks, sauces, braises, marinades, curries, pickling, desserts, some baked goods. Clove has a sharp pungent taste and a fragrant aroma. In ancient China etiquette demanded that anyone received by the emperor must have a clove in his or her mouth to sweeten the breath. I believe that a small amount of clove added to a pot of chili enhances the aromatic quality of the stew. Cumin The musky, nut-like flavor of white cumin seed is what gives chili its distinctive flavor. The flavor of cumin becomes more pronounced when the whole seed is roasted in a dry skillet or in the oven before it is ground. Chili connoisseurs use this simple roasting technique with many of their spices and herbs. Dill The seed is sharp, and has a more pungent flavor then the leaves, which are mildly tangy. It is used to flavor vinegars and mustard-based sauces and dressings.  It also works with tomatoes, fish (especially Salmon), eggs, pickles (obviously), salads, and vegetables. Pickling, sauerkraut Fennel The leaves can be used in fish, veal, and pork, and mixed with flavored butters, oils, vinegars, and salad dressings.  The seeds are used as a spice, mainly for breads.  Sausage, fish and shellfish, tomatoes, some baked goods, marinades Fenugreek Curries, meat, poultry, chutney Garlic It adds aroma and taste to pretty much every dish imaginable - except desserts - and is a favorite seasoning herb in cooking. Pickling, sauerkraut Ginger Some desserts and baked goods, Oriental recipes Horseradish Sauces for beef, chicken, fish, egg salad, potatoes, beets Horehound It has a menthol-like taste, and in the kitchen is used mainly as a flavoring for sweets and teas.  It has been used as a substitute for hops in beer, and legend has it that this herb has anti-magical properties. Hyssop The leaves and seeds can be used to flavor green salads, poultry stuffings (with sage), chicken soup, and can be dried for use in teas.  Lemon Balm It can enhance tea and other iced drinks, soups, stews, salads, sauces, and vegetables. Lemon Balm has a light, lemony scent with maybe a hint of mint.  Add fresh Lemon Balm leaves  to green salads, fruit salads, chicken salads, poultry stuffings, and fish marinades.  The leaves also make a tasty addition to asparagus, broccoli, corn, beans, olives, and shellfish.   Lemon Grass Use it in chicken and seafood dishes, curries, casseroles, soups, and stews.  Ground stalks can be added directly to dishes.  It can be frozen, dried, or used fresh.  Loveage The leaves, stems, and seeds all taste like celery, and it can be used in place of celery in just about any dish.  It has a well-rounded flavor and adds life to no-salt and low-salt dishes.  It's stems can be blanched and used as you would use asparagus or leeks.  It's leaves can be used in salad, soups, and stews.  It is wonderful with potatoes (especially potato salad) and goes well with steamed vegetables.   Marjoram It is an excellent culinary herb that blends well with other seasonings.  It is often used in turkey stuffings, and is a subtly perfumed, calming herb.  The leaves can be used dried or fresh.  It's taste is reminiscent of mild oregano and it can be used as an oregano substitute.  It retains much of it's flavor when dried, but should be kept away from bright sunlight to preserve the color and taste. It can be used in many dishes, including beef, veal, lamb, poultry, vegetables and potatoes.  It can also be used in herbed butters and flavored oils and vinegars. Mint Mint is important commercially as a source of flavor and menthol.  Peppermint is used widely in chewing gum, candy, and other sweets, but is too strong for most other home culinary uses, but it can be used to make tea and garnish fruit drinks, etc. Spearmints are milder and more versatile culinary mints.  They compliment all kinds of meat, fish and vegetable dishes.  They are excellent combined with just about any vegetable, soups, peas, sauces, candy and chocolate. Apple Mint has a slightly fruity flavor and is good for garnishing drinks and flavor to fruit salads, cream cheeses and cottage cheese. Onion   Oregano Oregano immediately brings to mind tomato sauces and Italian cooking. Although we think of it mostly as being an addition to pizza and spaghetti, Oregano actually mingles well with a large number of foods, including roasted and stewed beef, poultry, game, marinated vegetables, potatoes, cheese and egg combinations, onions, shellfish, and roasted bell peppers. Parsley It is most often associated with the throw-away garnish on chicken or steak entrees. Parsley has an easy, gentle flavor and works well in blending other flavors together in a given dish.  There are three main types, curly leaf, flat leaf, and parsnip rooted.  It is a biennial herb, and can be used in most foods except sweets.  It makes a good companion plant in the garden for more information). It is used widely in different cuisines around the world, including French and Middle Eastern dishes.  The flat leaf variety has the most flavor, and the parsnip variety is used like a parsnip.  Rosemary As a seasoning, Rosemary is both strong and subtle.  It is a pungent herb with a slightly piny, minty, ginger combination of flavors.  It goes well with just about any meat or fish, especially when roasted.  It enhances cheeses, eggs, many vegetables. Saffron   Sage It has a lemony, camphor-like, and slightly bitter taste and it is a very aromatic herb. Sage can be used to flavor almost all kinds of meat and poultry, and is probably best known as a delicious addition to poultry stuffings.  It adds spice to bland vegetables such as potatoes and eggplant, and also enhances tomatoes, asparagus, carrots, corn, squash, beans, leeks, onions, brussels sprouts, oranges, lemons, garlic, and cheese.  Savory Both Summer and Winter Savory are used often in cooking.  Summer Savory tastes like peppery Thyme.  It blends well with many flavors and is used in creamy soups, chicken soup, beef soup, liver, fish, flavored butters and vinegars, beans, peas, asparagus, parsnips, squash, brussels sprouts, and eggs, to name a few.  Winter Savory has a stronger, more piny flavor.  It is mainly used with strong game meats. Tansy Tansy can be used in small amounts in cooking.  It has a strong, peppery taste and can be used as a substitute for pepper.  It  compliments scrambled eggs and omelets, herb butters, marinades, and stuffings, and can be used in baking cookies, pancakes, waffles, etc.  Tarragon Tarragon has an Anise-like flavor that is suited to vinegars and fish. It enhances the flavors of many foods, but can become overpowering if excessively used.  It enhances fish, pork, beef, poultry, game, potatoes, tomatoes, carrots, and most mainstream vegetables.  It also goes well with lemons and oranges.  It can be used in cream sauces, herbed butters and vinegars, soups, sour creams, and yogurt. Thyme Thyme blends well with dozens of foods, and there are varieties that mimic other herbs almost exactly when used in cooking. Thyme is very nearly the perfect useful herb. It has a green taste with something of a clove aftertaste.  It blends well with lemon, garlic, and basil, and is used as a garnish in salads and chowders.  It can be used with just about any meat, casserole, stew, soup, or vegetable dish.