Important spices for recipes

Allspice are unripe sun-dried berries of the pimento tree. The flavor is a combination of cinnamon nutmeg and cloves and is used in curries, soups, bredies, desserts and cakes. Aniseed Atjar is a relish made from sliced vegetables or fuits flavourd with spices and covered with vinegar or oil Barishap is Fennel seeds which have a slightly bitter aniseed flavor. Ground barishap is used in breyanis or fish dishes. Bay leaf Cardamom. Is a member of the ginger family also known as the Seed of Paradise. It is sold ground or whole and is used to flavor curries soups eggs salads meats breyanis pudding and cakes Chilli is to be used sparingly when fresh. Chillies are used to flavor curry dishes chutneys and sambals. Green chillies are less hot. Cinnamon ground or in sticks. There’s also Cassia a reddish cinnamon. This is used to flavor various drinks savoury and sweet dishes. Cloves is unopened buds of the myrtaceous tree. Ground cloves are stronger than whole ones and are used as a pungent fragrant spice to flavor savoury and sweet dishes. Curry is slightly sweeter than Indian curry with less chilli and more spices. It’s used in meats and rice. Curry leaves can be bought fresh or dry. Fresh ones are used to garnish curry meals. Dried ones add extra flavor to savoury dishes. Curry powder is a mixture of cayenne pepper coriander cumin seed fenugreek turmeric cinnamon cardamom cloves fennel ginger mace mustard and black or white pepper.

Dhal is an Indian lentil used in breyanis

Dhania – fresh coriander leaves are used to garnish curries or to add flavor to savoury dishes. Also available in powder form. Garlic to be used to flavor meats or dishes etc. Masala is a mixture of certain spices used in breyanis curries atjars and other savoury dishes. There are many different varieties of masala including red leaf, leaf and tandoori masala. Methi or fenugreek is the pod of an annual plant related to the pea. It is finely ground and mixed with curry powder to flavor rice atjars and veggie dishes. Mint Mustard seed Naartjie peel is dried ground into a powder and store in a jar to flavor cakes puddings meats and vegetables. It goes well with cardamom and cinnamon. Nutmet is used to flavor bredies and confectionery. Pepper Rosewater is rosepetals and used to flavor puddings and milk drinks. Saffron is used to flavor or tint savoury dishes Sambal is usually served with curries or bredies. Starseed petal is star anice and can be used whole or ground in savoury dishes. Tamarind. Is a fruit of a tropical tree. The fruit is boiled sometimes sucked raw for the taste. The pods are pulped boiling water is poured over a lump of tamarind and left to soak for a short while resulting in tamarind water. This liquid is used to flavour curries. Turmeric comes from a tropical plant and is a member of the ginger family. The root is dried and ground and used to colour curry and rice and flavor savoury dishes. It is sometimes called borrie.

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