* The beginning
 * Style and fashion
 * Cosmetics
 * Intim
 * Family
 * Health
 * My house
 * Cookery
 * Councils
 * Music
 * Celebrities
 * Creativity
 * The adviser
 * Horoscopes
 * The dream book
 * The cosmetic        

 

SPICES

Ancient Greeks, later - Romans were the first Europeans who have got acquainted with the Asian spices. Already in those days the great value was given to spices. Their price was very high. In ancient Rome expenses on spices were one of basic articles of the budget. They were a luxury sign, were used, as currency, as the best and expensive medicines. There is an opinion, that America has been opened because Columbus has recovered to India for … spices. Christopher Columbus spoke: "I use the best efforts to get there where I will manage to find gold and spices". Today spices cause strong feelings unless in gourmets. And meanwhile their history захватывающе is interesting, their world is huge and fascinating, their properties are exclusive.

 

Spices is not spices and not aromatic additives

Aromatic additives (the rose, a jasmin, cocoa), unlike spices, give to food only aroma and do not influence in any way its taste.
Seasonings (a barberry, plum, a pomegranate, the Bulgarian pepper), наооборот, can change taste of meal, not influencing at all to its smell. But it not spices. Spices also smell, and taste change. Seasonings in meal put much, sometimes them eat as a separate dish, and spices - absolutely slightly.
Spices are more difficult for distinguishing from spices. Spices name the most running food additives - salt, vinegar, sugar and some of spices: red and black pepper, a carnation, cinnamon, a bay leaf. In total is about one and a half hundred spices, therefore to put an equal-sign between spices and spices it is impossible.
Spices - the word "spice" occurs from a word "pepper": it is the first, become known in Russia foreign spice. Pepper, together with other spices, necessarily was included into a compounding of the gingerbread test, therefore spice-cake and is called as "spice-cake".

 

Spices happen with what

To classify spices it is difficult. These are plants of thirty botanical families. For preparation of spices use different parts of the plants, sometimes any one, sometimes a little or all at once. In kitchens of different nations of the world the same spice meets in essentially different dishes: for example, one can flavour with it sweet, and others - fish. Spices happen classical, them still name exotic, (spices of a subtropical origin concern them - from Asia and America) and local, that is to a geographical sign (grow anywhere, except subtropics, mainly in Europe). For the different countries absolutely different spices can appear the local.
Classical spices always use in a dry kind. Local - sometimes dry, sometimes fresh. At classical spices are more expressed aroma and жгучесть. At strong heating or at excessive сдабривании them of food classical spices start to taste bitter.
Local spices share on two subgroups: spicy vegetables and spicy grasses. At spicy vegetables (a horse-radish, фенхель, garlic) backs, and at spicy grasses - all наооборот are used. Unlike spicy vegetables, spicy grasses meet in a wild kind.

 

How to use spices

Many spices - fine preservatives. With their help it is possible to disguise the present colour of a dish. They can make a dish brighter, with that end in view usually use a saffron, fennel greens, фенхеля, a coriander. Or to give to a boiled dish a kind жаренного, red pepper, cinnamon, бадьян, ginger and fresh greens for this purpose suit. White products are most easier painted: fresh fish, fig. use spices More often to enrich and diversify taste and aroma of habitual products. But it is necessary to know some culinary cunnings because the inept reference with spices not only will not decorate a dish, and can even spoil it.

To use spices it is necessary only possessing well developed feeling of a measure. Because of an overabundance of spices the food will taste bitter. It is necessary to remember, that the dry crushed spices it is easy экстрагируются, therefore to pawn them in dish follows all some minutes prior to readiness. Dry spices can be entered into liquid dishes packed into a small sack from a fabric - during the necessary moment to take out them it is possible. Even better in liquid dishes to add spices entirely, in the form of branches. Sometimes fresh spicy grasses and vegetables put already in a ready dish, and then insist within several minutes.

To work with spices it is necessary in absolutely dry conditions: dry hands, on a dry table, dry devices. It is not necessary to cut fresh spices on a wooden board: the tree will absorb their tasty and odorous juice. The dish with spices is not subject to repeated heating: from it taste of meal can change not to the best. The same can occur and to the meal flavoured with spices at боле - less long storage. Therefore, to eat dishes in which spices are added, is better at once and entirely.

 

How to store spices

To store spices, as well as any other grasses, it is necessary in a dry place. Ware is better to take ceramic, glass or porcelain. In such ware of spice well keep the taste and a smell. It is desirable, that the ware from glass was opaque - then spices will not fade.

Integral spices is easier and longer keep the aroma. Therefore to crush them is better directly before the use. But it is not always possible, because usually them sell already reduced to powder.
Spices very easily allocate the aromatic substances in space surrounding them, and incorporate extraneous smells. For this reason it is impossible to store various spices in one capacity. Spices in the form of the whole rhizomes or tubers are necessary for storing in small baskets passing air, wattled туесках or clay pots, otherwise they simply rot.

 

Mixes of spices

To learn to mix correctly spices, first of all it is necessary to know their compatibility with those or other products. The main rule of mixing of spices: that the mix approached to a product, it is necessary that each of its components was separately combined with it also. For example, caraway seeds are never combined with fish. Therefore the mix which structure includes caraway seeds, for fish is not necessary. It is necessary to consider, that the same mix in different dishes is felt differently. On ready compoundings in house conditions it is possible to prepare classical mixes of spices. For example, карри.

The first Hindus have thought up карри, and now it is the most widespread mix in the world with weight of versions. Obligatory components карри are куркума (20-30 %), a coriander (20-50 %), фенугрек (5-10 %) and red pepper (1-6 %). The structure "full карри" includes still ажгон, ginger, black pepper, асафетида, a carnation, cardamom, cinnamon, muscat colour, garlic and the Jamaican pepper, white pepper, a basil, галгант, каллиджери, mint, фенхель.
Salt always raises activity of spices, therefore to salt the dish flavoured with spices it is necessary cautiously. But also недосол too it is inadmissible: against spices the lack of salt is more appreciable, than without them.

 

Spices and our health

Spices promote allocation of enzymes at the expense of what appetite and digestion improve. But in cookery so small doses of spices are used, that they will not make the big improving effect, spices in cookery have more likely preventive effect, than improving.
To refuse other methods of treatment, completely relying on medicinal influence of spices, it is impossible. To increase doses of spices too it is not necessary. Their use in considerable quantities of the general with cookery has no anything, it already treatment by grasses, independently to be engaged which dangerously.
There are some spices, which can be used constantly and by that a little to receive medical treatment. The Chinese medicine recommends as it is possible to use cinnamon is more often: it improves blood circulation in brain vessels. Фенхель can facilitate a life that who suffers from formation of gases in intestines. At the lowered acidity it is possible to use caraway seeds safely.

In spice mixes can lose the medicinal properties as many of them will neutralise each other. At mixing of spices it is necessary to remember: not эксперементируйте with асафетидой. In certain combinations this spice can become very poisonous.
Practically all spices stimulate appetite, therefore excessive hobby for spices conducts to weight increase. On the other hand, by means of spices it is possible and to dump superfluous kgs - diuretic grasses are for this purpose used. There are such spices in which in our cold Russian climate it is better not to take a great interest, otherwise in an organism can arise power дисбаланс. Ability to cause дисбаланс all exotic spices to some extent possess. The their historical native land is more removed from us, the they are less desirable for our organism.

Never be engaged in self-treatment, correctly use spices and good luck!

 

Irina Rusina

 

30.06.03

 

You can send your culinary recipes on