Fennel seeds and anise seeds are two very similar spices that many cooks use interchangeably, especially in Italian and Indian cooking. They are similar enough to be confused with each other—some cooks refer to fennel seeds as anise and vice versa. If you are going to make certain classic European dishes (especially Italian dishes), you […]
Carob Vs. Cocoa: SPICEography Showdown
Carob is considered by many to be the best option for a chocolate-like flavor and consistency without actually using cocoa powder. Cocoa powder is the main flavoring ingredient in most chocolate food items. It is versatile enough that it can be adapted to work in multiple forms such as chocolate cakes, ganaches and ice creams. […]
Star Anise Vs. Anise Seed: SPICEography Showdown
Star anise and anise seed are two spices that not only sound similar, they have similar flavors. Their flavors are enough alike that some cooks consider interchangeable. Both spices are versatile enough to stay in the background as they do in some spice blends and savory dishes or to play the starring role as they […]
Gumbo File Powder: The Choctaw Spice
True gumbo file powder is made entirely from ground leaves of the sassafras tree. Note that there are gumbo file seasonings that may include sassafras along with other spices. Sassafras is considered by many to be the only truly North American spice. The use of sassafras began with native Americans. In particular, the Choctaw people […]
Anise Seed: More Than A Flavoring For Italian Sausage
Anise got its name in Latin from the Greek term for dill due to being confused with that herb. As a result, all languages that descended from Latin have retained the Latin word for the spice without much alteration. The anise plant most likely originated in Egypt but may come from the Eastern Mediterranean or […]
What’s A Good Carob Powder Substitute?
Carob is best known as an alternative to products made with cocoa. It is easily the most popular natural substitute for products from the Theobroma cacao tree, which is the tree from which cocoa beans are harvested. Carob powder is made from pods from the Ceratonia siliqua tree, which is not related to Theobroma cacao. […]
What’s A Good Citric Acid Substitute?
Citric acid is a weak acid with quite a few culinary applications. It is used in cheese-making to acidify the milk and it is added to borscht to give it a tart note. Citric acid is also an effective preservative that you can find in many beverages. Due to its very specific and important role, […]
What’s A Good Curing Salt Substitute?
Curing salt’s role is to prevent food-borne illness and spoilage by killing microbes in the food it is used to preserve. The sodium nitrate it contains breaks down into sodium nitrite, which draws out the moisture that the bacteria need to survive. While the different types of curing salt are very effective for preservation, there […]
Carob Powder: An Ancient Cocoa Substitute
Carob’s origins lie in the eastern Mediterranean. From there, Spanish explorers carried it to the New World where it thrived in Mexico and South America. The British would take it throughout their empire as well, to areas that included South Africa as well as India and Australia. Carob was used as far back as ancient […]
Citric Acid: An Ancient Souring Agent And Preservative
Citric acid was discovered around the 8th century. According to historians, its discoverer was the Persian alchemist Jabir Ibn Hayyan. It would not be isolated until 1794 when a Swedish chemist named Carl Wilhelm Scheele discovered how to isolate citric acid from lemon juice. Scheele was the first to isolate a variety of acids, including […]
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