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The Book of Spices Book of Spices The Book of Spices Book of Spices Handcrafted Bamboo Box in the form of a book, holding a collection of the best of organic Indian spices. Spices --the powerful, pleasurable, sensual ingredients used in foods, drinks, scented oils, perfumes, cosmetics, and drugs--have long been some of the most sought-after substances in the course of human history. In various forms, spices have served as appetizers, digestives, antiseptics, therapeutics, tonics, and aphrodisiacs. Spices have been the inspiration for trade, exploration, war and poetry since the beginning of civilization. The covers of the 'book' are made from strips of giant bamboo (Dendrocalamus giganteus) pasted together. The spine is made from reed bamboo (Ochlandra travancorica). They are joined using jute fabric. The inner frame is made of wood and the partitions are made of bamboo. The number of partitions can be changed and can even be taken out to produce a single larger box. The front cover depicts images associated with spices cultivation or trade, drawn by artists in Uravu. Pepper Pepper, (Piper nigrum) the “King of Spices”, is the most important spice traded internationally, accounting for one-third of the total volume and value. Pepper was one the earliest commodities traded between the Orient and Europe. In medieval times, pepper was the preferred currency, prized by the wealthy. The cities of Alexandria, Genoa and Venice carried on brisk trade in pepper during the middle Ages and owed their prosperity to this priceless commodity. Today the pepper trade encompasses the world with Western Europe, United States, Japan and Korea being the biggest consumers. The main pepper producing countries are Vietnam, India, Indonesia, Brazil, Malaysia, China and Sri Lanka Black pepper is a flowering vine in the family Piperaceae, cultivated for its fruit, which is usually dried and used as a spice and seasoning. Pepper gets its spicy heat mostly from the piperine compound. Black Pepper was believed to cure illness such as constipation, diarrhea, earache, gangrene, heart disease, hernia, hoarseness, indigestion, insect bites, insomnia, joint pain, liver problems, lung disease, oral abscesses, sunburn, tooth decay, and toothaches. Black pepper either powdered or its decoction is widely used in traditional Indian medicine and as a home remedy for relief from sore throat, throat congestion, cough etc. Clove Cloves (Syzygium aromaticum) are the aromatic dried flower buds of a tree in the family Myrtaceae. Cloves are native to Indonesia and used as a spice in cuisines all over the world. The English name derives from Latin clavus 'nail' as the buds vaguely resemble small irregular nails in shape. Cloves can be used in cooking either whole or in a ground form, but as they are extremely strong, they are used sparingly. In North Indian cuisine, it is used in almost all rich or spicy dishes as an ingredient of a mix named garam masala. Dried cloves are also a key ingredient in Indian masala chai, spiced tea. Cloves are used in Indian Ayurvedic medicine, Chinese medicine, and western herbalism and dentistry, where the essential oil is used as an anodyne (painkiller) for dental emergencies. Cinnamon Cinnamon is a spice obtained from the inner bark of several trees from the genus Cinnamomum that is used in both sweet and savoury foods. Cinnamon trees are native to South East Asia, and its origin was mysterious in Europe until the sixteenth century. Cinnamon has been known from remote antiquity. It was imported to Egypt as early as 2000 BCE. The Hebrew Bible makes mention of the spice when Moses is commanded to use sweet cinnamon in the holy anointing oil. It was so highly prized among ancient nations that it was regarded as a gift fit for monarchs and even for gods. Cinnamon bark is widely used as a spice. It is principally employed in cookery as a condiment and flavoring material. It is used in the preparation of chocolate, especially in Mexico, which is the main importer of true cinnamon. It is also used in many desserts recipes, such as apple pie, donuts, and cinnamon buns as well as spicy candies, tea, hot cocoa, and liqueurs. In the Middle East, it is often used in savory dishes of chicken and lamb. In the United States, cinnamon and sugar are often used to flavor cereals, bread-based dishes, and fruits, especially apples. Cardamom Cardamom is a native plant of parts of India, Sri Lanka and parts of south-east Asia, where it occurs in the wild. It has been introduced to other parts of Asia and is widely grown for its aromatic seeds. Cardamom has a strong, unique taste, with an intensely aromatic, resinous fragrance. Black and brown cardamoms are used in the same way as true cardamom but come from different species. Green cardamom is broadly used in South Asia to treat infections in teeth and gums, to prevent and treat throat troubles, congestion of the lungs and pulmonary tuberculosis, inflammation of eyelids and also digestive disorders. It also is used to break up kidney stones and gall stones, and was reportedly used as an antidote for both snake and scorpion venom. Ginger Ginger, the name, comes from the Middle English gingivere, but ginger dates back over 3,000 years to the Sanskrit srngaveram meaning "horn root" with reference to its appearance. In Greek it was ziggiberis, and in Latin, zinziberi. Although it was well-known to the ancient Romans, ginger nearly disappeared in Europe after the fall of the Roman Empire. Thanks to Marco Polo's trip to the Far East, ginger came back into favor in Europe, becoming not only a much-coveted spice, but also a very expensive one. Ginger is the rhizome of the plant Zingiber officinale, consumed as a delicacy, medicine, or spice. Ginger has been used for thousands of years in Chinese medicine to treat stomach upset, nausea and diarrhea. Indian Ayurvedic medicine utilizes it for the treatment of arthritis. Other traditional uses of ginger include treatment of colic, colds, fever and menstrual cramps and as appetite stimulant. Young ginger rhizomes are juicy and fleshy with a very mild taste. They are often pickled in vinegar or sherry as a snack or just cooked as an ingredient in many dishes. They can also be steeped in boiling water to make ginger tea, to which honey is often added; sliced orange or lemon fruit may also be added. Ginger can also be made into candy. Turmeric Turmeric grows wild in the forests of South and Southeast Asia. It has become the key ingredient for many Indian, Persian and Thai dishes such as in curry and many more. It is native to tropical South Asia and needs temperatures between 20 °C and 30 °C and a considerable amount of annual rainfall to thrive. In medieval Europe, turmeric became known as Indian saffron, since it was widely used as an alternative to the far more expensive saffron spice. Turmeric (Curcuma longa) is a rhizomatous herbaceous perennial plant of the ginger family, Zingiberaceae. In recipes outside South Asia, turmeric is sometimes used as an agent to impart a rich, custard- like yellow color. It is used in canned beverages and baked products, dairy products, ice cream, yogurt, yellow cakes, orange juice, biscuits, popcorn color, sweets, cake icings, cereals, sauces, gelatins, etc. It is a significant ingredient in most commercial curry powders. Turmeric is mostly used in savory dishes, as well as some sweet dishes. Although usually used in its dried, powdered form, turmeric is also used fresh, much like ginger. It has numerous uses in Far Eastern recipes, such as fresh turmeric pickle. Nutmeg & Mace Nutmeg was a prized and costly spice in European medieval cuisine as a flavouring, medicinal, and preservative agent. Saint Theodore the Studite (ca. 758 – ca. 826) allowed his monks to sprinkle nutmeg on their pease pudding when required to eat it. In Elizabethan times, it was believed nutmeg could ward off the plague, making it very popular. Nutmeg was traded by Arabs during the Middle Ages and sold to the Venetians for very high prices. No European was able to deduce their location until Afonso de Albuquerque conquered Malacca, on behalf of the king of Portugal. The common or fragrant nutmeg, Myristica fragrans, native to the Banda Islands of Indonesia, is also grown in Penang Island in Malaysia and the Caribbean, especially in Grenada. It also grows in Kerala, a state in southern India. Nutmeg tree is important for two spices derived from the fruit, nutmeg and mace. Nutmeg and mace have similar sensory qualities, with nutmeg having a slightly sweeter and mace a more delicate flavour. Mace is often preferred in light dishes for the bright orange, saffron-like hue it imparts. Nutmeg is usually used in ground or grated form, and is best grated fresh. Nutmeg is known to be a psychoactive substance. Vanilla Vanilla, according to Totonac mythology of the people who inhabit the Mazatlan Valley on the Gulf Coast of Mexico in the present-day state of Veracruz, was born when Princess Xanat, forbidden by her father from marrying a mortal, fled to the forest with her lover. The lovers were captured and beheaded. Where their blood touched the ground, the vine of the tropical orchid grew. Pre-Columbian Mesoamerican peoples cultivated vanilla and Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortés is credited with introducing both vanilla and chocolate to Europe in the 1520s. Attempts to cultivate the vanilla plant outside Mexico and Central America proved futile because of the symbiotic relationship between the tlilxochitl vine that produced the vanilla orchid and the local species of Melipona bee; it was not until 1837 that Belgian botanist Charles François Antoine Morren discovered this fact and pioneered a method of artificially pollinating the plant.
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