condiments, herbs and spices

Condiments herbs and spices

IntroductionA condiment is a spice, sauce or other

food preparation that is added to food to impart a particular flavor, to enhance its flavor.

Herbs are any plants used for food, flavoring, medicine, or perfume. Culinary use typically distinguishes herbs from spices. Herbs refer to the leafy green parts of a plant.

A Spice is a product from another part of the plant (usually dried), including seeds, berries, bark, roots and fruits.

Condiments Aioli: is  sauce made

of garlic, olive oil, usually egg yolks, and seasonings.  There are many variations, such as the addition of mustard. Aioli is, like mayonnaise, an emulsion.

Barbecue sauce: is a flavoring sauce used as a marinade, basting or topping for meat cooked in the barbecue cooking style, including pork or beef ribs and chicken.

Chili sauce: is a condiment prepared with chili peppers and red tomato as primary ingredients. Chili sauce may be hot, sweet.

Chutney: is a family of condiments associated with South Asian cuisine made from a highly variable mixture of spices, vegetables, or fruit. They can range from a wet to dry, or coarse to fine.

Cocktail sauce: originally known as Marie Rose sauce is one of several types of cold or room temperature sauces often served as part of the dish referred to as seafood cocktail or as a condiment with other seafood.

Fish sauce: is an amber-colored liquid extracted from the fermentation of fish with sea salt. It is used as a condiment in various cuisines. Fish sauce is a staple ingredient in numerous cultures in Southeast Asia.

Fruit preserves :are preparations of fruits, vegetables and sugar, often canned or sealed for long-term storage. The preparation of fruit preserves today often involves adding commercial or natural pectin as a gelling agent.

Guacamole: is an avocado-based dip or salad. It is traditionally made by mashing ripe avocados and sea salt with a molcajete.

Horseradish: is a perennial plant of the Brassicaceae family (which also includes mustard, wasabi, broccoli, and cabbage).

Mayonnaise:  is a thick, creamy sauce often used as a condiment. It is a stable emulsion of oil, egg yolks and either vinegar or lemon juice.

Mustard is a condiment made from the seeds of a mustard plant The whole, ground, cracked, or bruised mustard seeds are mixed with water, salt, lemon juice, or other liquids, and sometimes other flavorings and spices, to create a paste or sauce.

AioliHorseradish

Cocktail Sauce

 Guacamole

Mustard sauce

Chutney

Barbecue Sauce

HerbsBasil: It is used to flavor

soups, stews, tomato dishes, meat, game, fish, egg dishes, herb butters and herb vinegars.

Caraway: Roots of caraway can be boiled and used like parsnips or carrot.  Fresh leaves can be harvested as needed and used in salads, soups, and stews or eaten like spinach.  Seeds are used in baking, slaws, cheese, and potato dishes. Caraway offers a licorice flavor.

Chervil: Leaves are used much the same way parsley is used in soups, salads, sauces and cheese and egg dishes.  It is also used as a garnish.

Parsley: Parsley is often seen used as a garnish.  It also has the unique ability to blend with the flavors of other herbs.  It is used to flavor stews, soups and other vegetables. 

Dill: Used to flavor fish, lamb, egg dishes, soups and potato salad.  Seeds are used in pickling recipes and vinegar. 

Cilantro: Cilantro is most often associated with Mexican or Asian foods.  It is used in salsa, fish and chicken dishes.

Fennel: Herb fennel is used in fish dishes, soup and stews and fennel seed is used in sausage.  Fennel bulbs are used raw in salads or steamed.

Lemon Grass: Leaves are used to flavor fish, soups, curries, sauces, and teas.  The stems and leaves are used in Vietnamese and Thai dishes.  Larger parts of the stalk can be added to stews or soup and removed much as you would a bay leaf.

Marjoram: Marjoram is used in soups, egg dishes, beef, and chicken dishes, sausages, cheese and tomato dishes.

Mint: Mint is often used with veal, lamb and pork dishes as well as beverages and jellies.

Oregano: Oregano is used in sauces, tomato dishes, pizza, Mexican dishes salads and soups.  

Rosemary: Use rosemary sparingly as an accent to food as the flavor can be somewhat pungent and resinous. Use with fish, pork, lamb, poultry and game.

Sage: Leaves are used in fish, pork and poultry dishes. Also with vegetables and in sausages.

 Sorrel: Used in mixed salads, sauces, soups, cheese dishes and pork and fish dishes. 

Tarragon: Use in vinegars, oils, marinades and salads.

Thyme: Thyme can be used either fresh or dry. It is widely used in soups, stews, casseroles, stuffing and poultry dishes.  Its flavor and fragrance is not adversely affected by long, slow cooking.

TarragonLemon Grass

OreganoDill

Parsley Mint

SorrelChervil

SpicesCardamom: The seeds of a plant used

for giving a particular flavor to food. Cinnamon: a brown powder or small

stick made from the bark of a tree and used for giving a special taste to food, especially sweet food. 

Clove:  a brown dried flower bud used as a spice for adding flavor to food.

Cumin: seeds used for adding a special flavor to food, or the plant that produces them.

Mace: the crushed shell of nutmeg, used for adding flavor to food. 

Nutmeg: a brown powder used as a spice to give flavor to food. It comes from the hard seed of a tropical tree.

Allspice: is ground from the immature berry of a tropical tree native to Jamaica. Historically, it was named “allspice” because it contained the flavor nuances of several other popular spices, including cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg. Due to its full and slightly sweet flavor, allspice is found in many baking recipes though also used in savory dishes.

Annatto seeds :are collected from a small tropical tree native to South America. Typically heated in oil, which retains the flavor, the taste is rather earthy and peppery. Annatto is used primarily in Latin and Caribbean cooking and as a natural coloring agent for cheese, rice, and vegetable dishes.

Bay Leaf: bay tree leaves add a tangy, earthy flavor to a recipe. Bay leaves are wonderful in soups, sauces, or cooked with meats and fish. They are usually added whole during cooking and then removed before serving.

Black Peppercorn: Left on the vine until about half ripe and just before they turn red, the peppercorns are then picked and allowed to dry. It is at this stage that they turn black in color and develop a deep robust flavor with hints of fruit and spiciness. Grind fresh on top of grilled meats, vegetables, salsas, etc.

Cardamom - Brown Pod: Its strong, smoky (with a hint of mint) flavor and aroma are derived from the open-flamed traditional drying procedure. Typically associated with Indo-Asian and African cooking, brown cardamom adds a wonderfully unusual flavor to hearty dishes such as stews, soups, and braised meats.

Cinnamon Stick: Cinnamon is a spice consisting of dried, cured tree bark. Korintje cinnamon (a cassia) comes primarily from Indonesia and is known for its slightly sweet flavor. It is notably fresh and the “sticks” are great for beverages; mulled wine, coffee, tea, cocoa, or ground for baking.

Star Anise: is a spice that closely resembles anise in flavor, obtained from, a medium-sized native evergreen tree of northeast Vietnam and southwest China. The star-shaped fruits are harvested just before ripening. Star anise oil is a highly fragrant oil used in cooking, perfumery, soaps, toothpastes, mouthwashes, and skin creams.

Spices