Spices & Herbs

1. Spices & Herbs

2. Difference between spice and herb? • No clear distinction • Herbs usually leaves (sometimes seeds), usually from temperate-origin plants • Spices usually flowers, fruits, or bark of tropical-origin plants

4. Herbs • Usually aromatic leaves • Used in cooking • Also, in shampoos, cosmetics, soaps, medicines, aromatherapy (e.g., Vicks vaporub, with camphor, menthol, & eucalyptus oils) • See Table 17a

5. Spices & herbs • Scents & flavors usually due to unique “essential oils”; i.e., to secondary compounds, especially isoprenoids (terpenes). • Natural plant function in pollinator & fruit/seed-disperser attraction. • And/or plant protection from herbivores, & pathogens (mostly fungi, bacteria). • Most of these secondary compounds have anti-microbial activities.

6. “spice” • Derives from the Latin word species, meaning specific kind, and later, goods or merchandise. Plants that Changed History, Joan Elma Rhan, 1982

7. First use of spices & herbs • Origins pre-date ancient Greeks & Romans, etc. • Today we use spices & herbs primarily to make good food taste even better. • In the days before refrigeration, spices were used to hide the taste and odor of less-than-fresh food, and to prolong the freshness of food (especially in warm climates). • Today, some perfumes, soaps, and lotions are lightly scented with spices & herbs. • In the days before people took frequent baths, spices/herbs were used as deodorants. Those who could afford to do so had spices/herbs sown or tucked into their clothes to hide their body odors. Plants that Changed History, Joan Elma Rhan, 1982

8. Herbs and Spices • Herbs and spices have been used to flavor food as long as we have been cooking. They are among the earliest trade items. They have also been used as parts of incense and perfumes, as medicine, and as aphrodisiacs. • There is no great difference between herbs and spices. Herbs are usually leaves or seeds from temperate climates, and spices are other plant parts (flowers, bark, roots, etc.) from tropical climates. There is clearly some overlap in the definition. Both are used to flavor food.

9. Herbs • Before trade with Asia was widespread, food in Europe was flavored primarily with members of four plant families. These represent the majority of the herbs used in cooking. All are native to Europe. • onion family (Allium) • parsley (carrot) family • mint family • mustard family

10. Onion Family • Important onion family members include onions, garlic, and chives (and also leeks, shallots, and scallions). • They are monocots that form bulbs (underground stem bases with fleshy leaves). • The flavor comes from sulfur-containing compounds. Some of these compounds pass undigested from the digestive tract into the blood, and then get excreted through the lungs and skin: garlic breath. • Eating fresh parsley helps with garlic breath. • Most onion family members are cultivated for the bulbs, but the leaves of chives are used as an herb. • Alliumphobia is the irrational fear of garlic. • Garlic is also considered to be protective against werewolves and vampires, in Central European folklore. “Alliumphobia” by Ambera Wellman

11. Mint Family • Many familiar herbs are in the mint family: (Lamiaceae) basil, oregano, marjoram, rosemary, sage, thyme. • Mint family plants have a characteristic square stem. • Many of these go well with tomatoes and Italian food. American soldiers in World War 2 developed as taste for Italian food and contributed greatly to the popularity of pizza after 1945. • Mint itself is important as a flavoring for candy, toothpaste, tea, and cigarettes. • For an intense experience: the Celestial Seasonings factory in Boulder Colorado has a mint room that will overwhelm your sense of smell. • In mythology, Menthe was a Greek nymph who got involved with Hades, god of the Underworld. Unfortunately, his wife Persephone found out, and she turned Menthe into the sweet-smelling mint plant. • Salvia divinorum, Diviner’s sage, is a Mexican plant used to induce visions. Possession is illegal in Illinois. • Catnip is also a mint. Cats love it, but it just smells bad to people.

12. Carrot Family Herbs • The carrot family (Apiaceae) has characteristic umbel-shaped flowers. We discussed the family members used as vegetables: carrots, celery and parsnips. • Carrot family herbs include coriander, cilantro, cumin, dill, and fennel. • Parsley is said to be the world’s most widely used herb. In this country it is widely used as a garnish, a decoration on the plate that is mostly just pushed aside. The custom of using parsley as a food decoration started in butcher shops: it was a spot of green that contrasted nicely with all that red and white of the meat. • Parsley is actually used as a breath freshener. • Anise contains a licorice flavor, but real licorice is extracted from the root of another plant, a legume.

13. Mustard Family • The mustard family is Brassicaceae, which we discussed earlier under Fruits and Vegetables. • The flowers are yellow of white, with 4 petals. • Two related species are used as a condiment, often mixed together: black mustard and white mustard (which is milder than black mustard). • Mustard seeds are ground up to make the spice. • Horseradish is also in this family. Grated horseradish roots also produce a hot taste. • Mustard gas, used as poison gas in World War 1, is not related to the mustard plant or the compounds it contains, although the color and smell are similar.

14. Early Spices • Orient/Old World • cinnamon, nutmeg, mace, black pepper, ginger, cloves, cardamom, anise, caraway, mustard, saffron • New World • allspice, chilies & paprika, vanilla

15. Ancient History • Egypt • Greeks • Romans • Arabs & Middle East • After fall of Rome and during the Dark Ages (ca. 600-1000 AD) • Lost access to spices from the Orient Trade between the empires of Asia and Rome

16. Why were spices popular for trading? • it was very lucrative • transported easily • improved food & health • many diverse uses for most spices • very popular with the upper classes • spicy food considered classy, sign of wealth

17. Spice Trade, post-dark ages • Crusades in 1096: Europeans are out fighting in the Middle East and taste exotic spices and want to bring them back. • 1180’s: Pepperer’s guild, predecessor to herbalist and physicians. • Middle Ages: spices valuable trade item used to pay bills, taxes. • 1300: Polo brothers travel to China and bring back tales of spices. • By 1300’s: spice trade was a legitimate profession.

18. Pepper • Pepper was the most important spice in Europe for a long time: we consider it an essential part of a dinner table setting: salt and pepper. Getting pepper from India was the initial driving force behind European exploration starting with Prince Henry the Navigator (from Portugal) in the early 1400’s. • Pepper comes from the berries of the pepper vine Piper nigrum, which is native to India. • Black pepper is made from the unripe berries, which become black when dried in the sun. The process is quite similar to the fermentation process used with cacao and coffee. The whole fruit plus the seed (one seed per fruit) are used. • White pepper is made from ripe berries (which are red). The red fruit is removed by allowing it to rot away, and the seeds are dried to become white pepper. • Red pepper gets its color from the ripe berries, which is preserved by soaking them in brine and vinegar (pickling). • Currently, Vietnam is the largest producer of pepper.

19. More Pepper • Alaric the Visigoth and Attila the Hun both demanded a ton of pepper from Rome when they besieged the city in the 400’s. Eventually, Alaric sacked the city anyway. • It was also imported to China at about this time. • The flavor comes from piperine, an alkaloid. When purified, it is about 1% as hot as capsaicin, the active ingredient in chili peppers. Other terpene compounds in the peppercorns add other flavors. The flavors are lost through evaporation, so grinding whole peppercorns immediately before use gives the best flavor. • Pepper is the world’s most traded spice, and has been for a very long time. • There is a related species, the long pepper Piper longum, which was an important spice in Roman times. It comes from Northwest India, and so it was more accessible to the overland trade routes. Not used much today.

20. Cinnamon Cinnamon is the inner bark of the Cinnamomum zeylanicum tree, usually from young twigs. Originally from Sri Lanka and the southwester coast of India (the Malabar Coast). Closely related is cassia, the bark of Cinnamomum cassia and some related trees. It is native to Burma and was mostly imported through China. We don’t usually distinguish between these, calling both cinnamon. Cinnamon was uses for embalming in ancient Egypt, and the Romans used huge amounts of it. After Nero killed his wife Poppaea (or perhaps she died as a consequence of miscarriage), he burned a year’s supply of cinnamon as a tribute. He also had her elevated to the status of godhood.

21. Nutmeg and Mace • These two spices both come from the same plant, Myristica fragrans. Nutmeg is the seed, and mace is the red seed covering. The fruits grow on the nutmeg tree, which has male and female flowers on different plants. Since the males are unproductive and there is no way to tell males from females before they mature (8 years), most nutmeg trees are grown from cuttings. • Connecticut is called the Nutmeg State, because sailors from there used to carve fake nutmegs from wood and sell them as the real thing. • The Caribbean island of Grenada is a major source for these spices. • Nutmeg has been used for hallucinogenic purposes, but it has variable and often unpleasant effects. Grenada flag. On left: a stylized nutmeg

22. The Spice Islands • Before modern times, the nutmeg tree was found exclusively in the Banda Islands, a small group in eastern Indonesia. They are part of the Moluccas, the Spice Islands. • Arab traders knew of the islands but kept their location secret. • In 1511, the Portuguese captured the Strait of Malacca, the main sea route between China and India. From this they learned to location of the Spice Islands. • The Dutch captured the islands from the Portuguese in the 1600’s, and killed or enslaved the entire native population. The nutmeg trees were then confined to plantations to better control the supply. All other nutmeg trees were removed. The Dutch ruled for the next 200 years. • To end a war in 1667, the Dutch traded with the British: exclusive rights to the Spice Islands vs. New Amsterdam (Manhattan). • A lapse in Dutch rule during the time of Napoleon (1800) allowed the British to transplant some trees to Zanzibar (island of the east coast of Africa) and Grenada (Caribbean), breaking the Dutch monopoly.

23. The Spice Islands

24. Cloves • Cloves are the dried flower buds of Syzygium aromaticum, a tree in the same family as nutmeg. • The name “clove” is derived from clavus, which means “nail” in Latin, because cloves looks vaguely like nails. • Cloves originally came from two small volcanic islands, Ternate and Tidore, a few hundred miles north of the Banda Islands (source of nutmeg). The volcanoes are active, and the soil is regularly fertilized by volcanic ash. • This is a bit north of the Equator: the North Molucca Islands. The Banda Islands are the South Molucca Islands. • The two islands were separate kingdoms that spent a lot of time warring with each other. • The Portuguese found these islands on the same voyage that led them to the Banda Islands. • A few years later, Magellan’s crew visited these islands during the first voyage around the world (Magellan himself had been killed earlier). • Also, the Dutch eventually controlled the islands, forced all clove growing to be done on plantations while killing all other clove trees, and generally treated everyone horribly. • The French managed to steal some trees and transplanted them to the Caribbean and east Africa. The island of Zanzibar is the main source today.

25. Cloves As with nutmeg, the location of islands was known to Arab and Chinese traders, but most of the crop was shipped through the port of Malacca. And then on to India and eventually to Europe. Both nutmeg and cloves were used in ancient Rome: very expensive. The Chinese also used them: when addressing the Emperor, a courtier would keep a clove or two in his mouth to sweeten his breath. This was in Han Dynasty times, 200 BC-200AD. Most cloves are used for cooking. However, they are sometimes stuck into an orange and used as a pomander ball, to improve the smell of a room or closet. Another important use in Indonesia is as a flavoring for tobacco: clove cigarettes. They were outlawed in the US in 2009, and are now sold as clove cigars. Oil of cloves is very useful as a temporary cure for toothache. Dentists use it today, as both an anaesthetic and a disinfectant. The active ingredient is eugenol. It also works quite well as an anesthetic for aquarium fish.

26. Ginger • Ginger is native to southern China and is made from the rhizome (horizontal underground stem base) of Zingiber officinale. • The spice is made by harvesting the rhizomes after flowering is finished, then scalding it to prevent it from sprouting. It is usually ground up. • The best ginger comes from Jamaica, where it was introduced by the Spanish in the 1500’s. • Turmeric and cardamom come from the same family. • Turmeric produces a yellow dye, and it gives the yellow color to American mustard. • Cardamom is made from the seeds, not the roots. • The taste come from a volatile essential oil. • Ginger ale is made from ginger: it is a common folk remedy for an upset stomach. • The North American plant “wild ginger” (Asarum canadense) also has an aromatic root, but it is not related to the real ginger plant. • There are also several other “ginger” plants around the world.

27. Saffron • Saffron comes from the autumn crocus, Crocus sativus, native to Asia Minor (Turkey). It has been cultivated for more than 3000 years, and it was well known in ancient Rome. It was brought to India and China 2000 years ago at least. • It is mentioned in Shen Nung’s book of herbal medicine. • The spice come from the stigmas (the sticky parts at the end of the carpels that receive pollen grains). Each flower has 3 vividly red stigmas, and they are picked by hand. This makes saffron the most expensive of all spices by weight. It takes about 75,000 flowers to make a pound of saffron. • This leads to a great deal of adulteration of saffron with cheaper yellow things like turmeric and marigolds. • The plant is a sterile triploid, propagated through corms (swollen stem bases surrounded by fleshy leaves, like onions). It is unknown in the wild: the triploid form has been the only cultivated form since antiquity. • It was also used as yellow-red dye. The dye compound is related to carotene (carrot pigment). The flavor comes from a glucoside: a sugar attached to the active principle. • Saffron is used to flavor rice. • Cleopatra used it in her bath, as an aphrodisiac.

28. Chili Peppers • Chili peppers are a New World crop. They are in the nightshade family along with potatoes and tomatoes. They have been cultivated for thousands of years. • The active principle, which makes peppers hot, is capsaicin, an alkaloid. It is 100 times as hot as the active ingredient in black pepper. • When Columbus tasted chili peppers, he was sure he had reached India, the source of black pepper. • There are 5 cultivated Capsicum species, and many varieties. Some have almost no capsaicin (such as sweet bell peppers) while others are extremely hot. • Pepper hotness is measured in Scoville units. A panel of subjects tastes a series of dilutions of pepper extracts, to find the dilution where it is just barely detectable. Habanero peppers can have up to 350,000 Scoville units, and jalapeños are about 5000 units. Pepper spray is up to 5,000,000 units. • Capsaicin is used to relieve pain by rubbing it on the skin. It seems to deplete the supply of Substance P, the body’s main neurotransmitter for pain and heat.

29. Vanilla • Vanilla planifolia is a tropical New World vine, from Central America. It is a monocot, a member of the orchid family. • It was introduced into Europe by Hernan Cortes, who also introduced chocolate. • Vanilla was a plant that proved hard to move to new locations. The problem was, it was pollinated by a species of bee that didn’t make the move. Once this was discovered (after 300 years!), artificial pollination was developed, and the plant is grown in tropical regions worldwide now, especially Madagascar and Indonesia. • The hand pollination method was developed by Edmond Albius, a 12 year-old slave. • This makes vanilla a very expensive spice • The vanilla spice is produced by the fruit, which is a dry fruit that contains very tiny black seeds. “Vanilla beans” are dried, fermented (cured) pods. The flavor develops during the fermentation process. • The most common form used in cooking in vanilla extract, in which the vanilla flavor is extracted from the beans by soaking them in alcohol. • The main flavor comes from vanillin, which can be synthesized chemically. But vanilla beans contain other flavors.

30. Were Columbus and Magellan voyages “failures” ? • Neither won for Spain the easy access to spices that she wanted. • Columbus never found the spices or the lands he sought. • Magellan’s expedition reached the Spice Islands, but the route across the Pacific Ocean was much too long and much too dangerous to be practical then. Plants that Changed History, Joan Elma Rhan, 1982

31. What spice trade accomplished • New lands were discovered, and the question of whether the world was spherical or flat was finally decided. • New plants and animals were discovered; some of them were transported to continents where they had never been before, but where the climate was suitable. • People’s diets became more varied and better balanced. Europeans, whose homelands were beginning to be overpopulated, colonized the newly discovered lands, some of which had plenty of space. • Generally, this worked out well for the Europeans, but rather badly for the natives of the colonized countries. • For better or worse, the search for species brought together the civilizations that had developed separately in the ancient worlds. They would never be isolated again. Plants that Changed History, Joan Elma Rhan, 1982

32. Imperialism • Portugal, via colonies and outposts, dominated spice trading for ca. 100 years (16th century). • Thereafter, the Dutch, especially, and British took control of spice trading. • Dutch took over the Indonesia & Ceylon • Dutch East India company • England took over India, Singapore, Hong Kong • British East India company

33. Spices & Herbs A quick survey of representatives

34. Piper nigrum(black & white pepper) • Climbing vine native to India and East Indies; in Piperaceae (pepper) family • Berries picked green, darken & shrivel upon drying. • Biting flavor due to volatile oils, flavor dissipates after grinding. • White pepper – berries ripen on vine, outer hull removed. • The most widely used spice today.

35. Cinnamomum zeylanicum(cinnamon) • Parts used- oil & bark • Evergreen tree native to India & Sri Lanka; in Laurel family • Properties- Astringent, stimulant, anti-infective, anti-fungal, digestive aid • One of the oldest and most valuable spices • Related spice, called cassia, from C. cassia.

36. Eugenia caryophyllata(clove) • Parts Used: closed flower buds • Active Compounds:  Clove oil is 60 to 90 percent eugenol, which is the source of its anesthetic and antiseptic properties. • An evergreen tree, 15 to 30 feet tall; in Myrtaceae (Myrtle) family • Native to the Spice Islands and the Philippines, but also grown in India, Sumatra, Jamaica, the West Indies, Brazil, and other tropical areas.

37. Myristica fragans(nutmeg & mace) • Part used- dried kernel of the seed. • Tree is about 25 feet high, has a greyish-brown smooth bark, abounding in a yellow juice. • Native to Spice Islands; Myristicaceae (nutmeg) family • Fruit is source of 2 spices, nutmeg & mace. • Mace is derived from the net-like aril that is wrapped around the pit. • Within the pit is a single seed, the source of nutmeg.

38. Zingiber officinale (ginger) • Member of “ginger” family • Perennial native to tropical Asia • Plant part used = Rhizome • name from Sanskrit word stringa-vera, which means “with a body like a horn”, as in antlers. • In English pubs and taverns in the nineteenth century, bar-keepers put out small containers of ground ginger, for people to sprinkle into their beer — the origin of ginger ale.

39. Curcuma longa (turmeric) • Member of “ginger” family • Perennial native to tropical Asia • Part used: rhizome • Culinary uses (e.g., Middle East & India) • Dyes uses too (yellow)

40. Crocus sativus(saffron) • Member of “Iris” family • From ‘zafaran’ in Arabic • From 3-parted Stigma of flower • Dried by slow roasting • Imparts delicate & distinct taste & color • Used in French, Spanish, Middle Eastern & Indian cooking • Each saffron crocus flower has 3 stigmas • Ca. 80,000 flowers (240,000) stigmas to make a pound of saffron • 12 days to pick • cost is > $250 per ounce • (so most costly spice) • 1444: any merchant caught selling adulterated saffron in Bavaria was burned alive

41. Capsicum species(hot & sweet peppers) • Members of tomato family (Solonaceae) • Many are cultivars of Capsicum annum • E.g., bell pepper & cayenne • Four other common species • E.g., C. clilense includes habenero and C. fructescens includes tabasco pepper • Many varieties • Origin = New World; used by 9000 y. ago • “Hot” due to seven related alkaloids, including capsaicin (mostly in seeds & fruit)

42. 16,000,000: Pure capsaicin 100,000-350,000: Habanero 30,000-50,000: Cayenne pepper 5,000-23,000: Serrano pepper 2,500-5,000: Tabasco sauce /Jalapeno 1,000-2,000: Poblano pepper 100-500 Pepperoncini pepper Ca. 0: Sweet Bell pepper Scoville ratings(for pepper “hotness”)

43. Vanilla planifolia (vanilla) • flavoring comes from the seed pod, or the ‘bean’ of the vanilla plant • member of orchid family (Orchidaceae); perennial vine • behind saffron and cardamom, vanilla is 3rd most expensive spice • non-culinary uses, including aromatizing perfumes, cigars, & liqueurs • Europeans prefer the bean, while N. Americans the extract • extract made by percolating alcohol & water through chopped cured beans

44. Herbs

45. Bee balmMonarda fistulosa • Kick a cold • Breathe easy • Help control oily skin • Cook with a taste of native America

46. BorageBorago officinalis • The hero’s herb • Help heal the heart • Squelch stubborn skin inflammations • eczema • Create stellar salads

47. CatnipNepeta cataria • Calm after a storm • Take the sting out of stress • Make a cat happy • Enjoy a roman salad

48. ChamomileMatricaria sp. • Better than counting sheep • Beat anxiety and insomnia • Relieve indigestion • Soothe irritated skin

49. Alliums (Lily family)(onion group) • Onion- A. cepa • Garlic- A. sativum • Leeks- A. porrum • Shallots- A. ascalonicum • Chives- A. schoenprasum • Most rich in volatile sulfur-containing compounds • Culinary & medicinal uses • Among oldest cultivated plants

50. Onions • Originated in Asia • Ancient Egyptians worshipped the onion, believing that its spherical shape and concentric rings symbolized eternity. Of all the vegetables that had their images created from precious metals by Egyptian artists, only the onion was made out of gold. • Ranks sixth among the world's leading vegetable crops. • You can get rid of onion breath by eating parsley. • Yellow onions make up more than 75% of the worlds production of onions. • The official state vegetable of Georgia is the Vidalia onion. • The official state vegetable of Texas is the Texas Sweet onion. • According to the National Onion Association, onion consumption in the U.S. has increased approximately 50% over the past 20 years.