The most important basic spices in the kitchen on a housewife. Spices call plant products that are used to enhance the taste of the dishes. They are added to them in small quantities because they possess characteristic taste and aroma. In cooking there are over 100 different spices, but in everyday traditional cuisine using only a few dozen of them. It is customary to divide the spices of classic (exotic) and local. Belong to classic vanilla, cloves, ginger, cardamom, cinnamon, turmeric, bay leaf, nutmeg, pepper, rosemary, saffron and others. Local include onions, garlic, parsley, celery, basil, anise, coriander, marjoram, mint, thyme, fennel, savory, sage, tarragon and others.
Especially popular in cooking are widely used seasonings: curry, “Tabasco” sauce “Worcester” and others. They usually contain from 5 to 20 components. It is recommended that spices can be stored in a glass container airtight. The most common spice is considered black pepper. In culinary use both in ground form and beans. It combines perfectly with the various dishes and is considered a good antiseptic. White pepper is obtained after peel off the shell of the grains of pepper. Taste and flavor are less pronounced and is mainly used when not to spoil the dish bright color, such as white sauces. Pink and green pepper are used less frequently. Clove represents dried clove buds of the tropical tree.
They have a specific flavor and antiseptic. The taste is sharp, pungent and spicy. Traditionally used in the preparation of marinades, sauces and sweets. Cinnamon represents the dried bark of young shoots of the evergreen cinnamon tree. Used in the preparation of pasta and fruit cakes as an ingredient of vegetable and fruit marinades. Especially well combined with apples. Added to sauces, rice pudding, flavored it with hot red wine / punch /. Basil is found in cooking both in fresh and in dried form. They are used most often for the preparation of dishes of meat, fish and vegetables. Add it to salads, sauces and toppings. In traditional Bulgarian cuisine is used in cooking beef, ripe and green beans, mashed potatoes, sauerkraut, in dishes with vegetables and cooking sauces (put finely chopped fresh basil leaves). It is an irreplaceable ingredient of Italian pizza.
It has bactericidal properties and positively affects the digestive system. Bay leaf is indispensable in the preparation of spicy dishes. Combine with onion, garlic, vinegar, juniper, wine, allspice, pepper, root soup. They seasoned game dishes, beef and mutton, fish. Bay leaves are placed as a preservative in marinades, sauces, preserves and more. Have a pleasant aroma and bitter taste. Contain phytoncides, many trace elements and tannins, enhance immunity. Ginger is one of the first Asian spices entering the European cuisine. Typically used root – white (cleaned and dried in the sun) or black. Used in dishes of meat and poultry, rarely in soups. It improves digestion, so it is used when the dish contains more cellulose.
In pastry used for making soft drinks, liquors and others. Turmeric is also the root of a plant of the family ginger. Used in the form of a bright yellow powder. Adds zest and sharpness of soups, salads and steamed vegetables. Apply more for coloring and flavoring of baked chicken, mayonnaise, sauces, fish salads, soups, for coloring margarine, cheese, mustard, sauce “Worcester” and others. It possesses antibacterial and purgative action. Nutmeg has a pleasant specific aroma and pungent taste, so actively used as a spice.
Most used in confectionery. It is placed in frikaseta, pates, soups, dishes of minced meat, sauces, vegetable dishes. Improves digestion, stimulates blood circulation, nourishes and strengthens hair. It should be used cautiously because there psychotropic and hallucinogenic properties. Caraway seeds are used in pickling and salting, for flavoring meats and bread. Especially widely used in the preparation of a minced sausage and minced meat. They have a characteristic taste and aroma. Have antispasmodic and appetite exciting action antiseptic effect and prevent the flow of undesirable fermentation processes in the stomach and intestines. Rosemary is widely used in the preparation of soups, salads, sauces and stews.
Culinary applies mainly fish dishes, poultry, mutton, kidneys, liver, all in hard-foods. It can be combined in marinades with bay leaf, pepper, juniper, onion, garlic. It inhibits the smell of a delicate spices such as tarragon, parsley, basil and therefore should not be combined with them. The leaves of mint oil and increased secretion in the stomach and intestines, have antispasmodic, local anesthetic, antibacterial and antiseptic properties.
Fresh or dried, it serves to spice up soups and stews from dried beans in preparation puree of spinach and orache in stews of lamb, sheep and shileshko meat of lamb stuffing with stewed meats and boiled – pork or beef in cooking meatless and meat casseroles. Due to its specific and strong flavor, it should be closely combined with other spices because it can suppress them. Savory is widely used in Bulgarian cuisine to flavor all the harder to digest food – lentils, green beans, peas, beans. Suitable seasoning in soups and dishes of chicken and pork, potatoes, vegetables. It is one of the main ingredients of the Bulgarian colored salt. Combines well with parsley, dried vegetables, bay leaf, garlic, celery, fenugreek. It is also used in sausage and cheese flavor. Savory stimulates the activity of the stomach and intestine, has antispasmodic effect and a favorable effect on flatulence.