Spices bring the wonders of the world

Many people use the term broadly to mean all seasonings. In fact, spices are really the seeds, fruit, roots, buds or bark of aromatic plants that usually grow in tropical countries.

In the past, spices were used to mask the taste of foods that had spoiled. Nowadays, we use spices to titillate our taste buds and try something new. Spices can transform an everyday dish into a signature dish that gets its flavour from the cook’s secret blend. In concocting such blends, cooks must of course take into account their guests tolerance for “hot” foods.

Spices are sold whole, ground, powdered, as flakes or in bags. For maximum fragrance and flavour, buy spices whole and crush them just before using them. The aroma of ground and powdered spices fades more quickly. Keep spices in airtight bottles or jars, away from heat and light. Close bottles tightly after use. Never store spices close to the stove. Smell spices periodically and discard any that have lost their aroma

Cardamom—Native to the subcontinent, the cardamom plant belongs to the ginger family. Its pungent seeds or pods are used in curries and more sparingly in Indian meat and fish cookery, cakes, gingerbread, mulled wine.

Chili pepper—Smaller and more elongated than sweet peppers, chili peppers are also hotter. As a rule, the smaller they are, the hotter they are. Chilies come in many varieties, sizes, shapes and colours. Handle hot peppers with gloves and wash hands thoroughly afterwards because their oils can burn your skin and irritate your eyes. Fresh or ground dried chili peppers provide the flavour and fire in Mexican chili, Spanish pimento, Moroccan harissa, African pili-pili and American Tabasco sauce.

Cinnamon—Sold in sticks of rolled bark or ground into powder. Whole sticks are used in mulled wine and punch and give an exotic taste to tea, coffee, hot chocolate and milk. Cinnamon gives fruit sauces and salads a flavour boost. If not kept in an airtight container, cinnamon quickly loses its aroma.

Cloves—A clove-studded orange is a sweet-smelling alternative to mothballs. A clove stuck in an onion enhances a boiled dinner. Whole and ground cloves as well as clove essence are used to enhance stews, sauces and marinades.

Cumin—These long thin seeds are used to flavour cakes, breads and strong cheeses. It is also used as a pickling spice. Ground cumin quickly loses its pungency. Caraway, a Northern spice, resembles it somewhat.

Ginger—Gingerroot, sold fresh in the produce department, loses flavour when ground. It's best to add finely grated or julienned fresh gingerroot during cooking. Freeze gingerroot in an airtight container and grate frozen as needed. Ginger is a key ingredient of Chinese cooking and Japanese sushi is usually served with shaved pickled ginger. This spice is used in a multitude of dishes, both sweet and savoury as well as lemonade and fruit salad.

Mustard—Canada is the world's leading producer of mustard. These leafy members of the cabbage family are grown for their pale yellow seeds, which are ground to make table mustard. Strong, old-fashioned, English or French, hot or sweet... there is a wide assortment of mustards that you can personalize with your favourite herbs and flavourings.

Nutmeg—This brown, oval seed is grated on a nutmeg grater. Nutmeg heightens the flavour of hot beverages and complements to desserts, ice cream, mashed potatoes, béchamel sauce and scrambled eggs. Mace is the net-like shell covering the seed. Two spices in one: nutmeg and mace.

Paprika—Bright red, with a subtle, sweet flavour, paprika is made from dried and ground red bell peppers. It gives grilled meats a deep golden colour.

Pappercorns—Come in a range of colours: black, green, red or white. Black peppercorns, the most pungent, are used in meat and vegetable dishes. White ones are used in pale sauces. A good deal more expensive, green peppercorns are sold pickled, fresh, or dried (soak the latter in water before using) and used to flavour steaks and meat sauces. Ground pepper just can't compare to freshly ground peppercorns. Buying a good pepper mill is an investment in good eating.

Saffron—Also called red gold, saffron comes from the pistils of the saffron crocus. It takes 100,000 flowers to make one kilogram of powdered saffron and 48 saffron threads to flavour a dish for four. Saffron is the costliest spice in the world. But it takes only a few pinches to give a paella, risotto, fish soup or crème brûlée a deep golden colour and a bit of bite. Turmeric, a golden yellow spice, is sometimes substituted for saffron in Moroccan or Indian lamb and chicken dishes.

Star anise—Is the fruit of a small oriental tree native to China. Star-shaped with five to ten points, usually eight, this spice is used in herbal teas a well as in fish dishes, custards, compotes and melon preserves.

Vanilla—Adds subtle flavour to chocolate, ice cream, cakes, rice pudding. It's best to use the whole bean. Rinsed, dried and stored in an airtight jar, it can be used several more times.

What is Chinese five-spice? This subtle Chinese blend encompassing all five flavours: sweet, salty, sour, bitter and pungent, is made with various spices such as star anise, cinnamon, cloves, fennel, ginger, Chinese pepper and licorice. Chinese five-spice is used in cakes, pies and compotes as well as fish, meat and poultry dishes.

And four-spice? Four-spice is a blend of ground cloves, ginger, nutmeg and white pepper, somewhat similar in flavour to allspice.

Spices bring us the flavours of other cultures. Fall’s lengthening nights are the perfect time to explore their sensual, subtle pleasures.