Quick guide to use spices

You open the spice cabinet and you find like ten spices you never, ever, hear about before, not even on Youtube recipes; and the other five you just see there, but you never dare to use. If you have gone through these situations, follow us on this road to find out how good spices can be and why you should use them in your recipes. Because there is a life far beyond oregano, we introduce you this quick guide into the spice world to spice up your life that you were waiting for:

What’s new on the spice racks

Let’s begin with two basic questions:

  • Do you use all the spices you have in the kitchen?
  • Do you know what they are for and how to combine them to enhance the flavour of food?

If the answer is a long doubt sound or a categorical “no”, you are in the right post.

Spices are ingredients that were misused, most of the time, along history to experiment with recipes in the kitchen, without any previous knowledge of how they actually taste and combination possibilities. We want to put some order into this chaos and turn you into a spice ninja.

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 Safron

Taste: earthy, delicate

Use for: rice, stews

Vanilla

Taste: sweet

Use for: drinks, bakery

Oregano

Taste: lightly earthy

Use for: sauces, dressings

 

Sage (Silvia, te pongo en rojo en castellano qué significan las que son menos obvias, como esta, salvia)

Taste: Lightly bitter

Use for: sauces, creams

Curry

Taste: assorted flavours

Use for: stews, rice

Coriander seeds

Taste: Earthy and a bit hot

Use for: sauces, filling

Ground garlic

Taste: strong

Use for: stir-fry, sauces

Black mustard

Taste: pungent and hot

Use for: stews, casserole

Chives

Taste: lightly hot

Use for: stews, salads

Cinnamon

Taste: strongly sweet

Use for: desserts

Chilli

Taste: very hot

Use for: dressing, sauces

Turmeric (cúrcuma)

Taste: bitter hot

Use for: rice, stews

Laurel

Taste: bitter notes

Use for: stews, rice

Thyme (tomillo)

Taste: earthy

Use for: stews

Rosemary (romero)

Taste: earthy

Use for: marinade, meat

Panela

Taste: sweet

Use for: bakery

Cloves

Taste: lightly earthy

Use for: stews, desserts

Pepper

Taste: pungent

Use for: stews, sauces

Basil

Taste: soft

Use for: dressing, sauces

Forget about those tasteless recipes and enjoy spice powers to enhance aromas and taste to bring them to the next level.