Spice

Spice
A spice is a dried seed, fruit, root, bark, or vegetative substance used in nutritionally insignificant quantities as a food additive for flavor, color, or as a preservative that kills harmful bacteria or prevents their growth.[1] Flavoring may be to hide other flavors.[2] In the kitchen, spices are distinguished from herbs, which are leafy, green plant parts used for flavoring. Many spices are used for other purposes, such as medicine, religious rituals, cosmetics, perfumery, or for eating as vegetables. For example, turmeric is also used as a preservative; liquorice as a medicine; garlic as a vegetable.

Spices and herbs at a grocery shop in Goa, India

Shop with spices in Morocco

Classification and types

Grouping by plant part
Spices can be grouped as: Dried fruits or seeds, such as fennel, mustard, and black pepper. Arils, such as mace. Barks, such as cinnamon and cassia. Dried flower buds, such as cloves. Stigmas, such as saffron. Roots and rhizomes, such as turmeric, ginger and galingale. Resins, such as asafoetida.
The Gato Negro caf and spice shop (Buenos Aires, Argentina).

Spice

Common spice mixtures

Baharat (Arab world, and the Middle East in general) Berbere (Ethiopia and Eritrea) Chili powder Curry powder Five-spice powder (China) Garam masala (South Asia) Harissa (Northwest Africa) Jerk spice (Jamaica) Khmeli suneli (Georgia, former U.S.S.R.) Masala (an Indian name for any mixture of spices) Old Bay Seasoning (United States) Panch phoron (Bangladesh) Pumpkin pie spice (United States) Quatre pices (France) Ras el hanout (Middle East/North Africa) Shichimi togarashi (Japan) Za'atar (Middle East)
Some Spices from the Spice Market in Cairo, used in Arabic cuisine

History
Early history
Humans were using spices in 50,000 BC. The spice trade developed throughout the Middle East in around 2000 BC with cinnamon and pepper, and in East Asia (Korea, China) with herbs and pepper. The Egyptians used herbs for embalming and their need for exotic herbs helped stimulate world trade. The word spice comes from the Old French word "espice" which became "epice" and which came from the Latin root "spec", the noun referring to appearance, sort, kind ('Species' has the same root.) By 1000 BC, China, Korea and India had medical systems based upon herbs. Early uses were connected with magic, medicine, religion, tradition, and preservation.[3] Digs found a clove burnt onto the floor of a burned down kitchen in the Mesopotamian site of Terqa, in what is now modern-day Syria, dated to 1700 BC.[4] In the story of Genesis, Joseph was sold into slavery by his brothers to spice merchants. In the biblical poem Song of Solomon, the male speaker compares his beloved to many forms of spices. Generally, early Egyptian, Chinese, Indian, and Mesopotamian sources do not refer to known spices. In South Asia, nutmeg, which originates from the Banda Islands in the Molukas, has a Sanskrit name. Sanskrit is the ancient language of India, showing how old the usage of this spice is in this region. Historians believe that nutmeg was introduced to Europe in the 6th century BC.[5] The ancient Indian epic of Ramayana mentions cloves. The Romans had cloves in the 1st century AD, as Pliny the Elder wrote about them. Indonesian merchants went around China, India, the Middle East and the east coast of Africa. Arab merchants facilitated the routes through the Middle East and India. This made the city of Alexandria in Egypt the main trading centre for spices because of its port. The most important discovery prior to the European spice trade were the monsoon winds (40 AD). Sailing from Eastern spice growers to Western European consumers gradually replaced the land-locked spice routes once facilitated by the Middle East Arab caravans.[3]

Spice

Middle Ages
Spices were among the most demanded and expensive products available in Europe in the Middle Ages, the most common being black pepper, cinnamon (and the cheaper alternative cassia), cumin, nutmeg, ginger and cloves. Given the medieval medicine's main theory of humorism, spices and herbs were indispensable to balance "humors" in food,[6] a daily basis for good health at a time of recurrent pandemics. Spices were all imported from plantations in Asia and Africa, "The Mullus" Harvesting pepper. Illustration from a which made them expensive. From the 8th until the 15th century, French edition of The Travels of Marco Polo. the Republic of Venice had the monopoly on spice trade with the Middle East, and along with it the neighboring Italian city-states. The trade made the region rich. It has been estimated that around 1,000tons of pepper and 1,000tons of the other common spices were imported into Western Europe each year during the Late Middle Ages. The value of these goods was the equivalent of a yearly supply of grain for 1.5 million people.[7] The most exclusive was saffron, used as much for its vivid yellow-red color as for its flavor. Spices that have now fallen into obscurity in European cuisine include grains of paradise, a relative of cardamom which most replaced pepper in late medieval north French cooking, long pepper, mace, spikenard, galangal and cubeb.

Early modern period

The control of trade routes and the spice-producing regions were the main reasons that Portuguese navigator Vasco da Gama sailed to India in 1499. Spain and Portugal were not happy to pay the high price that Venice demanded for spices. At around the same time, Christopher Columbus returned from the New World, he described to investors new spices available there. The military prowess of Afonso de Albuquerque (14531515) allowed the Portuguese to take control of the sea routes to India. In 1506, he took the island of Socotra in the mouth of the Red Sea and, in 1507, Ormuz in the Persian Gulf. Since becoming the viceroy of the Indies, he took Goa in India in 1510, and Malacca on the Malay peninsula in 1511. The Portuguese could now trade directly with Siam, China, and the Moluccas. The Silk Road complemented the Portuguese sea routes, and brought the treasures of the Orient to Europe via Lisbon, including many spices. With the discovery of the New World came new spices, including allspice, bell and chili peppers, vanilla, and chocolate. This development kept the spice trade, with America as a late comer with its new seasonings, profitable well into the 19th century. In the Caribbean, the island of Grenada is well known for growing and exporting a number of spices, including the nutmeg, which was introduced to Grenada by the settlers.

Spice

Handling spices
A spice may be available in several forms: fresh, whole dried, or pre-ground dried. Generally, spices are dried.[8] A whole dried spice has the longest shelf life so can be purchased and stored in larger amounts, making it cheaper on a per-serving basis. Some spices are rarely available either fresh or whole, for example turmeric, and must be purchased in ground form. Small seeds, such as fennel and mustard seeds, are used both whole and in powder form. The flavor of a spice is derived in part from compounds that oxidize or evaporate when exposed to air. Grinding a spice greatly A typical home's kitchen shelf of spices as would be seen in the United States or Canada. increases its surface area and so increases the rates of oxidation and evaporation. Thus, flavor is maximized by storing a spice whole and grinding when needed. The shelf life of a whole spice is roughly two years; of a ground spice roughly six months.[9] The "flavor life" of a ground spice can much shorter.[10] Ground spices are better stored away from light.[11] To grind a whole spice, the classic tool is mortar and pestle. Less labor-intensive tools are more common now: a microplane or fine grater can be used to grind small amounts; a coffee grinder[12] is useful for larger amounts. A frequently used spice such as black pepper may merit storage in its own hand grinder or mill. Some flavor elements in spices are soluble in water; many are soluble in oil or fat. As a general rule, the flavors from a spice take time to infuse into the food so spices are added early in preparation.[13]

Production
Production in tonnes. Figures 2003-2004 Researched by FAOSTAT (FAO) India China Bangladesh Pakistan Nepal Other countries Total 1 600 000 99 000 48 000 45 300 15 500 60 900 1 868 700 86 % 5% 3% 2% 1% 3% 100 %

Standardization
ISO has published a series of standards regarding the products of the topic. These standards are covered by ICS 67.220.[14]

Research
The Indian Institute of Spices Research, located at Calicut (Kozhikode) in Kerala, India, is exclusively devoted to conduct research on all aspects of spice crops such as black pepper, cardamom, ginger, turmeric, cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, garcinia and vanilla.

Spice

Sources
Adamson, Melitta Weiss (2004). Food in Medieval Times. Westport, Conn: Greenwood Press. ISBN0-313-32147-7. Scully, Terence (1995). The art of cookery in the Middle Ages. Ipswich: Boydell Press. ISBN0-85115-611-8. "Spice Capades". Host: Alton Brown. Good Eats. Food Network. 14 January 2004. No. 14, season 7.

Further reading
Books Corn, Charles. Scents of Eden: A History of the Spice Trade. New York: Kodansha, 1999. Czarra, Fred (2009). Spices: A Global History. Reaktion Books. p.128. ISBN9781861894267.[15] Dalby, Andrew. Dangerous Tastes: The Story of Spices. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2002. Freedman, Paul. Out of the East: Spices and the Medieval Imagination. New Haven: Yale UP, 2008. Keay, John. The Spice Route: A History. Berkeley: U of California P, 2006. Krondl, Michael. The Taste of Conquest: The Rise and Fall of the Three Great Cities of Spice. New York: Ballantine Books, 2007. Miller, J. Innes. The Spice Trade of the Roman Empire. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1969. Morton, Timothy. Poetics of Spice: Romantic Consumerism and the Exotic. Cambridge UP, 2000. Turner, Jack (2004). Spice: The History of a Temptation. Knopf. ISBN0-375-40721-9. Articles "Food Bacteria-Spice Survey Shows Why Some Cultures Like It Hot" [16]. Retrieved 2008-12-20. "...Garlic, onion, allspice and oregano, for example, were found to be the best all-around bacteria killers (they kill everything)" Sallam, Kh.I.; Ishioroshi, M; Samejimab, K. (December 2004). "Antioxidant and antimicrobial effects of garlic in chicken sausage". Lebensm. Wiss. Technol. 37 (8): 849855. doi:10.1016/j.lwt.2004.04.001. PMC1805705. PMID17330154. Billing, Jennifer; Sherman, Paul W. (March 1998). "Antimicrobial Functions of Spices: Why Some Like it Hot". The Quarterly Review of Biology 73 (1): 3. doi:10.1086/420058. PMID9586227. "Common Kitchen Spices Kill E. Coli O157:H7" [17]. 18 August 1998. "...The study is the first in the United States that looks at the effect of common spices on E. coli O157:H7. Previous studies have concluded spices kill other foodborne pathogens. 'In the first part of our study, we tested 23 spices against E. coli O157:H7 in the laboratory', Fung said. 'We found that several spices are good at killing this strain of E. coli.'" "The Lure and Lore of Spices" [18]. "If the appearance of spices were to reflect their real importance in the history of the world, the bottles of spices would be filled with bright glittery substances, diamonds, rubies, emeralds or gold would be appropriate. When you opened the bottle, a poof of vibrantly colored, mystically fragrant, magical smoke would slowly billow softly throughout the room." "Spice" [19]. Encyclopedia of Spices, Spice Blends by Region, The Spice Trade. Retrieved 2008-12-20. "Food Bacteria-Spice Survey Shows Why Some Cultures Like It Hot" [16]. ScienceDaily. March 5, 1998. International Organization for Standardization (2009). "67.220: Spices and condiments. Food additives" [20]. Retrieved 2009-04-23.

Spice

Notes
[1] "spices Definition in the Food Dictionary at" (http:/ / www. epicurious. com/ tools/ fooddictionary/ search?query=spices). Epicurious.com. . Retrieved 2011-02-18. [2] Scully, pp. 84-86. [3] A Busy Cook's Guide to Spices by Linda Murdock (p.14) [4] Buccellati et Buccellati (1983) [5] Burkill (1966) [6] Linda Civitello, Cuisine and culture: a history of food and people (http:/ / books. google. com/ books?id=JCmLY7aAqWgC& lpg=PA95& dq=spices humorism& lr& as_brr=3& pg=PA95#v=onepage& q& f=false), John Wiley and Sons, 2007 ISBN 0471741728 [7] Adamson, p. 65 [8] A fresh spice, such as ginger, is usually more flavorful than its dried form, but fresh spices are more expensive and have a much shorter shelf life. [9] Spice Capades [10] Nutmeg, in particular, suffers from grinding and the flavor will degrade noticeably in a matter of days. [11] Light aids oxidation processes. [12] Other types of coffee grinders, such as a burr mill, can grind spices just as well as coffee beans. [13] Spice Capades This contrasts to herbs which are usually added late in preparation. [14] International Organization for Standardization (2009). "67.220: Spices and condiments. Food additives" (http:/ / www. iso. org/ iso/ iso_catalogue/ catalogue_ics/ catalogue_ics_browse. htm?ICS1=67& ICS2=220& development=on). . Retrieved 2009-04-23. [15] "Spices: Fred Czarra" (http:/ / www. press. uchicago. edu/ presssite/ metadata. epl?mode=synopsis& bookkey=406255). Press.uchicago.edu. . Retrieved 2011-02-18. [16] [17] [18] [19] [20] http:/ / www. sciencedaily. com/ releases/ 1998/ 03/ 980305053307. htm http:/ / www. oznet. ksu. edu/ pr_fsaf/ News%20Releases/ relspicfung. htm http:/ / www. thespicehouse. com/ info/ lore/ http:/ / www. theepicentre. com/ Spices/ spiceref. html http:/ / www. iso. org/ iso/ iso_catalogue/ catalogue_ics/ catalogue_ics_browse. htm?ICS1=67& ICS2=220& development=on

Article Sources and Contributors

Article Sources and Contributors

Spice Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=419742897 Contributors: -Majestic-, 0, A. B., ACEDBA, AVand, Aarkfood, Acalamari, Admin@about-thai.com, Ahoerstemeier, Aiden Fisher, Aitter, Akamad, Akarkera, Alex Ex, Alizulfqar, Amalas, Amarie918, Amcguinn, Ampersand777, Andres, Anetode, Anthere, AquaRichy, Arab Hafez, Aranherunar, Arolga, Artaxiad, Bbfish101, Bctwriter, Beastiepaws, Bkell, Bleh fu, Bluelion, Bongwarrior, Brion VIBBER, Buckyboy314, CIreland, CSWarren, Cacycle, Carrieo80, Categorer, Cburnett, Christian75, Cibyd, Coastie13, Coldmember, Comesturnruler, Conti, Conversion script, Craig Pemberton, Curps, CzarB, DARTH SIDIOUS 2, DSRH, Dan Guan, Dbo789, Dbtfz, DeadEyeArrow, December21st2012Freak, Dekisugi, Deli nk, Dgrant, Discospinster, Dmforcier, Dominus, Donarreiskoffer, EdC, Edward, Eje211, Ellenois, Ellywa, Ember of Light, Emily.barton, Enigma Blues, Epbr123, Eras-mus, Erianna, Esb, Everyone Dies In the End, Excirial, Extransit, Faithlessthewonderboy, Favonian, FiP, Fig wright, Foreveroptimist, Frecklefoot, Fubar Obfusco, Fuzzygenius, Gadfium, Garion96, Gary King, Gatechjon, Gentgeen, Georgeeee, Gigemag76, Glenn, Gogo Dodo, Greyhood, Habibaruiz, Haham hanuka, Haleth, HenkvD, Henry W. Schmitt, Hike hikey, Hqb, Hurbluver, Hwalee76, I already forgot, Ian Herbie Hemphill, Iball, Icarus3, Infrogmation, IronGargoyle, IvanLanin, J.delanoy, J04n, JHeinonen, JQF, Jackol, Jaeger5432, Jalo, Janet Davis, John Reid, JohnnyMrNinja, Jojit fb, Jolenine, Jon chirnside, Joseph Solis in Australia, JoshRaspberry, Joy, Juneleo1994, Jusjih, Jwy, KCinDC, Kakofonous, Kalafakal, Karnesky, Kcat2, Keilana, Kintetsubuffalo, KnightMove, Kotra, Kukini, Kurieeto, KuwarOnline, LDHan, Le Anh-Huy, LeadSongDog, Lerdsuwa, Liftarn, Lightmouse, Lijealso, Littleflagman, Loof1, Luckylover911, Luna Santin, M.e, MER-C, Magister Mathematicae, Malo, Man vyi, Manmanmanman1234, MarkMascolino, Masso2k6, Max Naylor, MaxSem, Mbc362, Mcdooglede, MichaelTinkler, MilCivHR, MisterSheik, Mkweise, Mongol, Monotonehell, Montrealais, Mr.chetanladdha, MrHen, Muthukutty, Mxn, NawlinWiki, Nhackler, Nihiltres, Nikai, Nivix, Nixn, Nuttycoconut, Nwbeeson, Nyarpy, Olve Utne, Opinionatedchef, OsamaK, Otets, Pdelong, PenguiN42, Peter Isotalo, Pharaoh of the Wizards, Piano non troppo, Pinethicket, Piotrus, Pointillist, Polykat, Pretzelpaws, Prlim, PubliusFL, Puzzle Person, Quadell, RDBrown, RWyn, Ragesoss, Rd232, RedHillian, Reyk, Riana, Rich Farmbrough, Rimx01, Rkr1991, RobertG, Rodhullandemu, Ronhjones, Rotinajeht, Ryanmark123456789, S3000, Sanjivahuja, ScAvenger lv, Schwegles, Scriberius, Seb az86556, Sherlock4000, SimonP, Sinn, Sinoue@yahoo.com, Sirlearnsalot, Siroxo, Snarfies, Sofia Roberts, Solipsist, SparrowsWing, Spicenews, Squids and Chips, Stwra, Targa, Taxman, Techman224, Tensheapz, Thaamaa, Thaimoss, The Anome, The Thing That Should Not Be, Thingg, Thorpe, Tommy2010, TravisAF, UkPaolo, Unicyklist, Unschool, UserDoe, Utvols12, Valermos, Valoem, Vgranucci, Vicloic, Vignaux, Visumancer, Whitebox, Whosyourjudas, Wikitza, Wikiwikisalt, Willissmelly, Willscrlt, Wimt, WojPob, Woohookitty, Worm That Turned, WormRunner, YUL89YYZ, Yeng-Wang-Yeh, Zacwin, ZimZalaBim, Zobby marley, Zotel, 914 , anonymous edits

Image Sources, Licenses and Contributors

File:409841087 b7bcac1bd5 o.jpg Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:409841087_b7bcac1bd5_o.jpg License: Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Contributors: judepics File:Morocco, Spices.JPG Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Morocco,_Spices.JPG License: Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Contributors: user:donarreiskoffer File:Gato negro.jpg Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Gato_negro.jpg License: Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Contributors: ALE!, Barcex, EugeneZelenko, FlickrLickr, FlickreviewR, Roberto Fiadone, 1 anonymous edits File:Arabic spices.png Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Arabic_spices.png License: Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Contributors: User:Arab League File:Le livre des merveilles de Marco Polo-pepper.jpg Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Le_livre_des_merveilles_de_Marco_Polo-pepper.jpg License: Public Domain Contributors: Peter Isotalo File:Spice-shelf.jpg Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Spice-shelf.jpg License: GNU Free Documentation License Contributors: John Reid File:Flag of India.svg Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Flag_of_India.svg License: Public Domain Contributors: User:SKopp File:Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Flag_of_the_People's_Republic_of_China.svg License: Public Domain Contributors: User:Denelson83, User:SKopp, User:Shizhao, User:Zscout370 File:Flag of Bangladesh.svg Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Flag_of_Bangladesh.svg License: Public Domain Contributors: User:SKopp File:Flag of Pakistan.svg Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Flag_of_Pakistan.svg License: Public Domain Contributors: Abaezriv, AnonMoos, Badseed, Dbenbenn, Duduziq, F. F. Fjodor, Fry1989, Gabbe, Himasaram, Homo lupus, Juiced lemon, Klemen Kocjancic, Mattes, Mollajutt, Neq00, Pumbaa80, Rfc1394, Srtxg, ThomasPusch, Trelio, Zscout370, 9 anonymous edits File:Flag of Nepal.svg Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Flag_of_Nepal.svg License: Public Domain Contributors: User:SKopp

License
Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported http:/ / creativecommons. org/ licenses/ by-sa/ 3. 0/