To your health... (long)
Herbs and Spices for healthy eating
From Huff Post, originally
The easiest way to make sure you are getting more nutrients into every meal, even when you are grazing at the office cocktail party or the neighborhood potluck dinner is by choosing foods that are loaded with spices. Every time you flavor your meals with herbs or spices you are literally "upgrading" your food without adding a single calorie. You are taking something ordinary and turning it into something extraordinary by adding color, flavor, vitamins, and often medicinal properties.
More - (some verbage left out)
* Spices and herbs maximize nutrient density.
* Spices and herbs create a more thermogenic diet. Because spices are nutrient dense, they are thermogenic, which means they naturally increase your metabolism.
* Some spices and herbs increase your overall feeling of fullness and satiety, so you'll eat less. One study conducted at Maanstricht University in the Netherlands showed that when one consumes an appetizer with half a teaspoon of red pepper flakes before each meal, it decreased their calorie intake by 10-16%. If you're planning a holiday menu, think of starting with a tomato soup sprinkled with red pepper.
* You can eliminate salt. When you flavor your foods with spices instead of salt you'll immediately see health and physical benefits.
* Spices and herbs have real medicinal properties. Study after study shows the benefits of distinct herbs and spices. One study at Malmà University Hospital in Sweden showed that up to two hours after eating, people who ate cinnamon-spiced rice pudding measured significantly lower blood-glucose levels than those who had eaten the unspiced version.
Every little bit counts, so spice it up! Change your eating habits now, especially if your next meal is a pile of franks 'n blanks or cheeseburger sliders. Choose flavor over blandness every time, and try to incorporate these specific herbs and spices into your diet if you have the following health concerns:
* rosemary and basil for their anti-inflammatory power
* cumin and sage for their dementia-fighting power
* cayenne and cinnamon for their obesity-fighting power
* coriander and cinnamon for their sugar regulating powers
* lemon grass, nutmeg, bay leaves and saffron for their calming effects on your mood
* turmeric for its cancer fighting power
* oregano for its fungus-beating power
* garlic, mustard seed and chicory for their heart-pumping power
* basil and thyme for their skin-saving power
* turmeric, basil, cinnamon, thyme, saffron, and ginger for their immune-boosting power
* coriander, rosemary, cayenne, allspice and black pepper for their depression-busting power
The average American housewife (or househusband) uses a dozen spices or so in cooking (my mother used salt, pepper, cinnamon, sugar, celery seed, cloves, bay leaves, chili powder, sage, turmeric and cayenne pepper). The average Pakistani uses quite a few more than that.
Here's a list of typical herbs and spices:
Allspice, anise, basil, bay leaves, caraway seeds, cardamom seed, celery seed, cinnamon, cloves, coriander, cumin, dill seed, fennel, fenugreek, ginger, mace, marjoram, mint, mustard, nutmeg, oregano, paprika, parsley, black and white pepper, poppy seed, red pepper, rosemary, saffron, sage, savory, sesame seed, sweet pepper flakes, tarragon, thyme, turmeric.
How many do you know how to use? There's 36 spices in that list. I know how to use most of those, and I use, when cooking on a regular basis, most of them.
About spices and Greek cooking, but more for some comments on storing:
Spices should be kept in airtight glass jars. To get the most out of your spices, there are three utensils you should have in your kitchen:
* A pepper mill with adjustable grind size.
* A mortar and pestle.
* A spice grater.
And, list of Greek herbs
list of Greek spices
Spices for Barbecuing
(list extracted by me; excludes most spice blends)
Arrowroot, Basil, Bay Leaves, Black Pepper, Caraway (Seed), Cayenne (Red ) Pepper, Celery Seed (Salt), Chervil, Chili Powder, Cilantro, Cinnamon, Cloves, Coriander, Cumin, Curry Powder, Dill, Fenugreek, Fil'e Gumbo, Garam Masala, Garlic (Powder, Salt), Ginger, Herbs De Province, Italian Seasoning, Jamaican Jerk, Jamaican Spice, Juniper Berries , Kosher Salt, Marjoram, Mustard (Seed, Ground), Nutmeg & Mace, Onion (Flakes, Powder, Salt), Oregano, Paprika, Parsley, Rosemary , Sage, Savory, Szechwan Peppers, Tarragon, Thyme, Turbinado Sugar, White Pepper, Whole Mixed Pickling Spice
Netcooks' Herbs and Spices
ALLSPICE
(Pimenta dioica)
ANISE
(Pimpinella anisum)
ARROWROOT
(Maranta arundinacea)
BASIL
(Ocimum basilcum)
BAY LEAVES
(Laurus nobilis)
CAPERS
(Capparis spinosa)
CARAWAY SEED
(Carum carvi)
CARDAMOM
(Elettaria cardamomum)
CAROB
(Ceratonia Siliqua)
CELERY SEED
(Apium graveolens)
CHERVIL
(Anthriscus cerefolium)
CHICORY
CHILI POWDER
(Capsicum frutescens)
CHIVES
(Allium schoenoprasum)
CILANTRO
(Coriandrum sativum)
CINNAMON
(Cinnamomum)
CLOVES
(Syzygium aromaticum)
CORIANDER
(Coriandrum sativum)
CUMIN SEED
(Cuminum cyminum)
CURRY POWDER
DILL
(Anethum graveolens)
FENNEL
(Foeniculum vulgare)
GALANGAL
GARLIC
(Allium sativum)
GINGER
(Zingiber officinale)
JUNIPER BERRY
MACE
(Myristica fragrans)
MARJORAM
(Majorana hortensis)
MINT
(Mentha piperita)
MUSTARD
(Brassica hirta)
NUTMEG
(Myristica fragrans)
OREGANO
(Origanum vulgare)
PAPRIKA
(Capsicum annuum)
PARSLEY
(Petroselinum crispum)
PEPPER
(Piper nigrum)
POPPY SEED
(Papaver somniferum)
ROSEMARY
(Rosmarinus officinalis)
SAFFRON
(Crocus sativus)
SAGE
(Salvia officinalis)
SALT
SAVORY
(Satureja hortensis)
SESAME SEED
(Sesamum indicum)
TARRAGON
(Artemisia dracunculus)
THYME
(Thymus vulgaris)
TURMERIC
(Curcuma domestica)
List of herbs and spices (Wikipedia)
This is a list of culinary herbs and spices. Specifically these are food or drink additives of mostly botanical origin used in nutritionally insignificant quantities for flavoring or coloring. As such, this list does not contain salt, which is a mineral, herbs or spices that are purely medicinal such as valerian, fictional plants such as aglaophotis, or recreational drugs such as marijuana. For medicinal herbs see list of medicinal herbs.
That list is very long.
List of Indian spices (Wikipedia)
About Spices:
Spice lore
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. Spices have been the inspiration for trade, exploration, war, and poetry since the beginning of civilization. That ground pepper you shake on your salad was once worth its weight in gold; the nutmeg you grate onto holiday eggnog once fueled a war that gained Long Island for England.
Spices have antimicrobial activity -
Why some like it hot
Antimicrobial effects of spices
Fans of hot, spicy cuisine can thank nasty bacteria and other foodborne pathogens for the recipes that come -- not so coincidentally -- from countries with hot climates. Humans' use of antimicrobial spices developed in parallel with food-spoilage microorganisms, Cornell University biologists have demonstrated in a international survey of spice use in cooking.
The same chemical compounds that protect the spiciest spice plants from their natural enemies are at work today in foods from parts of the world where -- before refrigeration -- food-spoilage microbes were an even more serious threat to human health and survival than they are today, Jennifer Billing and Paul W. Sherman report in the March 1998 issue of the journal "Quarterly Review of Biology".
Cinnamon lethal to E coli strain O157:H7
Lead researcher Erdogan Ceylan, M.S., reported that in apple juice samples inoculated with about one million E. coli O157:H7 bacteria, about one teaspoon (0.3 percent) of cinnamon killed 99.5 percent of the bacteria in three days at room temperature (25 C). When the same amount of cinnamon was combined with either 0.1 percent sodium benzoate or potassium sorbate, preservatives approved by the Food and Drug Administration, the E. coli were knocked out to an undetectable level. The number of bacteria added to the test samples was 100 times the number typically found in contaminated food.
"This research indicates that the use of cinnamon alone and in combination with preservatives in apple juice, besides its flavoring effect, might reduce and control the number of E. coli O157:H7," concluded Ceylan, a Ph.D. graduate assistant at K-State. "Cinna-mon may help protect consumers against foodborne bacteria that may be in unpasteurized juices and may partially or completely replace preservatives in foods to maintain their safety," he said.
That's... at room temperature!
spices kill microbes in meat
The addition of 1.0 percent spice (garlic, clove, and cinnamon) to salami mixed with starter culture and E. coli O157:H7 resulted in successful salami fermentation and slight reduction of the pathogen. However, the addition of 7.5 percent garlic and clove killed 99 percent of the pathogen and still resulted in successful salami fermentation.
Doesn't eliminate all of it, though; meat still needs to be cooked to eliminate this E. coli strain.
From Huff Post, originally
The easiest way to make sure you are getting more nutrients into every meal, even when you are grazing at the office cocktail party or the neighborhood potluck dinner is by choosing foods that are loaded with spices. Every time you flavor your meals with herbs or spices you are literally "upgrading" your food without adding a single calorie. You are taking something ordinary and turning it into something extraordinary by adding color, flavor, vitamins, and often medicinal properties.
More - (some verbage left out)
* Spices and herbs maximize nutrient density.
* Spices and herbs create a more thermogenic diet. Because spices are nutrient dense, they are thermogenic, which means they naturally increase your metabolism.
* Some spices and herbs increase your overall feeling of fullness and satiety, so you'll eat less. One study conducted at Maanstricht University in the Netherlands showed that when one consumes an appetizer with half a teaspoon of red pepper flakes before each meal, it decreased their calorie intake by 10-16%. If you're planning a holiday menu, think of starting with a tomato soup sprinkled with red pepper.
* You can eliminate salt. When you flavor your foods with spices instead of salt you'll immediately see health and physical benefits.
* Spices and herbs have real medicinal properties. Study after study shows the benefits of distinct herbs and spices. One study at Malmà University Hospital in Sweden showed that up to two hours after eating, people who ate cinnamon-spiced rice pudding measured significantly lower blood-glucose levels than those who had eaten the unspiced version.
Every little bit counts, so spice it up! Change your eating habits now, especially if your next meal is a pile of franks 'n blanks or cheeseburger sliders. Choose flavor over blandness every time, and try to incorporate these specific herbs and spices into your diet if you have the following health concerns:
* rosemary and basil for their anti-inflammatory power
* cumin and sage for their dementia-fighting power
* cayenne and cinnamon for their obesity-fighting power
* coriander and cinnamon for their sugar regulating powers
* lemon grass, nutmeg, bay leaves and saffron for their calming effects on your mood
* turmeric for its cancer fighting power
* oregano for its fungus-beating power
* garlic, mustard seed and chicory for their heart-pumping power
* basil and thyme for their skin-saving power
* turmeric, basil, cinnamon, thyme, saffron, and ginger for their immune-boosting power
* coriander, rosemary, cayenne, allspice and black pepper for their depression-busting power
The average American housewife (or househusband) uses a dozen spices or so in cooking (my mother used salt, pepper, cinnamon, sugar, celery seed, cloves, bay leaves, chili powder, sage, turmeric and cayenne pepper). The average Pakistani uses quite a few more than that.
Here's a list of typical herbs and spices:
Allspice, anise, basil, bay leaves, caraway seeds, cardamom seed, celery seed, cinnamon, cloves, coriander, cumin, dill seed, fennel, fenugreek, ginger, mace, marjoram, mint, mustard, nutmeg, oregano, paprika, parsley, black and white pepper, poppy seed, red pepper, rosemary, saffron, sage, savory, sesame seed, sweet pepper flakes, tarragon, thyme, turmeric.
How many do you know how to use? There's 36 spices in that list. I know how to use most of those, and I use, when cooking on a regular basis, most of them.
About spices and Greek cooking, but more for some comments on storing:
Spices should be kept in airtight glass jars. To get the most out of your spices, there are three utensils you should have in your kitchen:
* A pepper mill with adjustable grind size.
* A mortar and pestle.
* A spice grater.
And, list of Greek herbs
list of Greek spices
Spices for Barbecuing
(list extracted by me; excludes most spice blends)
Arrowroot, Basil, Bay Leaves, Black Pepper, Caraway (Seed), Cayenne (Red ) Pepper, Celery Seed (Salt), Chervil, Chili Powder, Cilantro, Cinnamon, Cloves, Coriander, Cumin, Curry Powder, Dill, Fenugreek, Fil'e Gumbo, Garam Masala, Garlic (Powder, Salt), Ginger, Herbs De Province, Italian Seasoning, Jamaican Jerk, Jamaican Spice, Juniper Berries , Kosher Salt, Marjoram, Mustard (Seed, Ground), Nutmeg & Mace, Onion (Flakes, Powder, Salt), Oregano, Paprika, Parsley, Rosemary , Sage, Savory, Szechwan Peppers, Tarragon, Thyme, Turbinado Sugar, White Pepper, Whole Mixed Pickling Spice
Netcooks' Herbs and Spices
ALLSPICE
(Pimenta dioica)
ANISE
(Pimpinella anisum)
ARROWROOT
(Maranta arundinacea)
BASIL
(Ocimum basilcum)
BAY LEAVES
(Laurus nobilis)
CAPERS
(Capparis spinosa)
CARAWAY SEED
(Carum carvi)
CARDAMOM
(Elettaria cardamomum)
CAROB
(Ceratonia Siliqua)
CELERY SEED
(Apium graveolens)
CHERVIL
(Anthriscus cerefolium)
CHICORY
CHILI POWDER
(Capsicum frutescens)
CHIVES
(Allium schoenoprasum)
CILANTRO
(Coriandrum sativum)
CINNAMON
(Cinnamomum)
CLOVES
(Syzygium aromaticum)
CORIANDER
(Coriandrum sativum)
CUMIN SEED
(Cuminum cyminum)
CURRY POWDER
DILL
(Anethum graveolens)
FENNEL
(Foeniculum vulgare)
GALANGAL
GARLIC
(Allium sativum)
GINGER
(Zingiber officinale)
JUNIPER BERRY
MACE
(Myristica fragrans)
MARJORAM
(Majorana hortensis)
MINT
(Mentha piperita)
MUSTARD
(Brassica hirta)
NUTMEG
(Myristica fragrans)
OREGANO
(Origanum vulgare)
PAPRIKA
(Capsicum annuum)
PARSLEY
(Petroselinum crispum)
PEPPER
(Piper nigrum)
POPPY SEED
(Papaver somniferum)
ROSEMARY
(Rosmarinus officinalis)
SAFFRON
(Crocus sativus)
SAGE
(Salvia officinalis)
SALT
SAVORY
(Satureja hortensis)
SESAME SEED
(Sesamum indicum)
TARRAGON
(Artemisia dracunculus)
THYME
(Thymus vulgaris)
TURMERIC
(Curcuma domestica)
List of herbs and spices (Wikipedia)
This is a list of culinary herbs and spices. Specifically these are food or drink additives of mostly botanical origin used in nutritionally insignificant quantities for flavoring or coloring. As such, this list does not contain salt, which is a mineral, herbs or spices that are purely medicinal such as valerian, fictional plants such as aglaophotis, or recreational drugs such as marijuana. For medicinal herbs see list of medicinal herbs.
That list is very long.
List of Indian spices (Wikipedia)
About Spices:
Spice lore
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. Spices have been the inspiration for trade, exploration, war, and poetry since the beginning of civilization. That ground pepper you shake on your salad was once worth its weight in gold; the nutmeg you grate onto holiday eggnog once fueled a war that gained Long Island for England.
Spices have antimicrobial activity -
Why some like it hot
Antimicrobial effects of spices
Fans of hot, spicy cuisine can thank nasty bacteria and other foodborne pathogens for the recipes that come -- not so coincidentally -- from countries with hot climates. Humans' use of antimicrobial spices developed in parallel with food-spoilage microorganisms, Cornell University biologists have demonstrated in a international survey of spice use in cooking.
The same chemical compounds that protect the spiciest spice plants from their natural enemies are at work today in foods from parts of the world where -- before refrigeration -- food-spoilage microbes were an even more serious threat to human health and survival than they are today, Jennifer Billing and Paul W. Sherman report in the March 1998 issue of the journal "Quarterly Review of Biology".
Cinnamon lethal to E coli strain O157:H7
Lead researcher Erdogan Ceylan, M.S., reported that in apple juice samples inoculated with about one million E. coli O157:H7 bacteria, about one teaspoon (0.3 percent) of cinnamon killed 99.5 percent of the bacteria in three days at room temperature (25 C). When the same amount of cinnamon was combined with either 0.1 percent sodium benzoate or potassium sorbate, preservatives approved by the Food and Drug Administration, the E. coli were knocked out to an undetectable level. The number of bacteria added to the test samples was 100 times the number typically found in contaminated food.
"This research indicates that the use of cinnamon alone and in combination with preservatives in apple juice, besides its flavoring effect, might reduce and control the number of E. coli O157:H7," concluded Ceylan, a Ph.D. graduate assistant at K-State. "Cinna-mon may help protect consumers against foodborne bacteria that may be in unpasteurized juices and may partially or completely replace preservatives in foods to maintain their safety," he said.
That's... at room temperature!
spices kill microbes in meat
The addition of 1.0 percent spice (garlic, clove, and cinnamon) to salami mixed with starter culture and E. coli O157:H7 resulted in successful salami fermentation and slight reduction of the pathogen. However, the addition of 7.5 percent garlic and clove killed 99 percent of the pathogen and still resulted in successful salami fermentation.
Doesn't eliminate all of it, though; meat still needs to be cooked to eliminate this E. coli strain.