Cooking with spice mixes, pastes and sauces

Alex Cramer, 2018

This cookbook is about the art of mixing herbs and spices.– You will get acquainted with the main theory of mixing the spices and herbs.– You will discover the 35 most popular spices and herbs.– You will find out a description of the 35 most popular varieties of chili peppers.– You will learn many more useful information.And finally you will plunge into the world of spicy combinations and get acquainted with the recipes of more than 300 dry spice mixes, pastes and sauces, as well as their variations.Step by step you will learn the art of fragrant spice balance and the taste's magic of spicy combinations!

ANISE

Anise seeds give the dish warm sweet and fruity accents. To open up its aroma, it is recommended to warm up seeds in a dry frying pan and crush it into powder after that. Anise is perfect for fish, seafood and poultry when paired with dill, fennel and coriander. It brightens flavor of stew, especially beef stew. Anise is the spice that balances sour sumac in syrian za'atar and makes up unsweetened taste in ras-el-hanout. Anise in some rare cases is able to replace fennel. It is added in the early stages of cooking process.

Anise pairing:

Fruits and vegetables: apricot, pineapple, watermelon, pomegranate, pear, melon, cabbage (including cauliflower and sauerkraut), potatoes, strawberries, cranberries, root vegetables, carrots, parsnips, peaches, rhubarb, turnips, beets, plums, pumpkin, citrus, apple.

Protein product: beef, wild game, legumes (especially beans, lentils, rice), seafood (especially crabs, mussels), nuts (almonds, hazelnuts, walnuts), poultry (especially chicken, duck), fish, pork, cheeses (especially goat cheese, ricotta), eggs.

Other foods: baked food and pastry, raisins, vegetable oil (olive oil), butter, honey, beverages (tea), sugar, lemon juice, pickles and marinades, soups and stews (especially fish), dough, dates, bread.

Seasonings and spices: star anise, basil, vanilla, cloves, cumin, ginger, cardamom, cilantro, coriander, cinnamon, sesame, turmeric, nutmeg, mint, fenugreek, allspice, black pepper, chili, celery, caraway, dill, fennel, garlic.

Cuisines and dishes: Middle Eastern cuisine, German cuisine, Greece cuisine, South American cuisine, Vietnamese cuisine, Indian cuisine, Chinese cuisine, Moroccan cuisine, Portuguese cuisine, Egypt cuisine, Scandinavian cuisine, sauce mole, Mediterranean cuisine, French cuisine.

BASIL

Basil is one of the most commonly used herbs in the culinary world. Its flavour can be described as a mixture of peppery anise with a peculiar astringency of mint, slightly bitter with a sweetish hint, and its aroma is spicy-sweet, with notes of anise and cloves. In most western cuisines basil is an integrated part of many sauces, especially of tomato sauces. Using it as a single spice you should add it in very end of cooking, as the flavour of basil fades away quickly during long heat treatment.

Basil pairings:

Fruits and vegetables: apricot, pineapple, watermelon, eggplant, broccoli, blueberries, green onions, zucchini, potatoes, corn, leafy vegetables, raspberries, carrots, cucumbers, olives, bell pepper, peach, tomato, beetroot, pumpkin, citrus, chives, spinach.

Protein product: lamb, beef and veal, wild game (especially rabbit), legumes (especially beans, rice, peas, wheat), coconut milk, seafood (especially crabs, mussels, scallops, shrimps), nuts (especially pine nut), poultry (especially chicken, duck), fish (especially salmon, sea bass, tuna), pork, by-products (especially liver), cheeses (especially goa cheese, ricotta, mozzarella, feta, parmesan, pecorino), eggs.

Other foods: mushrooms, vegetable oil (including olive oil), butter, honey, ice cream, drinks, soy sauce, juice (lemon, lime), tomato sauces, vinegar, bread, chocolate (including white chocolate).

Seasonings and spices: vanilla, cloves, mustard, ginger, cilantro, coriander, cinnamon, onion, marjoram, mint, oregano, black and white pepper, chili, parsley, rosemary, thyme, fennel, savory, garlic, tarragon.

Cuisines and dishes: Italian cuisine, Pan-Asian cuisine (especially Thai), pastas and various kinds of sauces, pesto, pizza, Mediterranean cuisine, French cuisine.