"Unleashing the Flavors: A Comprehensive Guide to Understanding and Using Food Spices - Part 1"

Food spices are various seasonings that are used to add flavor and aroma to dishes. They can be derived from a variety of sources, including seeds, fruits, roots, and bark. Some common examples include black pepper, cumin, cinnamon, and nutmeg.

The essence of using food spices to cook is to enhance the overall taste and aroma of the dish, making it more delicious and appealing. Spices can be used to complement the natural flavors of the ingredients, or to create new and unique flavor combinations.

I know that most of us see this as a stressful thing. Like, why use different spices because I'm cooking. Who cares, why not just cook with the one I know?

Well, that's not it. Let's spice up our cooking. Spicing up our cooking helps us be more interested in cooking and also eating. 

Additionally, spices can also be used for their potential health benefits, such as anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. By using different types of spices, cooks can create a variety of different flavors and aromas, and thus make their dishes more interesting and diverse.

So, shall we?😉

1.) BLACK PEPPER: Black pepper is a popular spice used in a wide variety of dishes. It is often used to add a warm, pungent flavor to savory dishes. It may also have benefits such as being a natural antioxidant and anti-inflammatory agent.

Black pepper is the world's most traded spice, and is one of the most common spices added to cuisines around the world. 

Usage:

- Use black pepper as an ingredient in recipes to add flavor and spice to meats, fish, vegetables, salad dressings, soups, stir-fries, pasta, and more. 

- You can also add a dash of black pepper to scrambled eggs, avocado toast, fruit, and dipping sauces for a spicy kick.

- African black pepper is also highly medicinal and so should be seen as more than just a spice

- Other uses include the treatment of coughs and rashes. It is also used to relieve toothache, chest pains.

So, in other words, the black pepper spice is highly nutritional and it can be used for your Pepper Soup. 

2.) CUMIN: Cumin is a popular spice used in many Middle Eastern and Indian dishes. It has a warm, earthy flavor and is often used in curries and stews. It may also have benefits such as being able to aid in digestion and metabolism.

Cumin spice can be used in a variety of dishes. It has a warm and fragrant flavor that can be used to add to soups and as a seasoning to meats or vegetables.

- Helps in Boosting the immune system, Asthma and bronchitis treatment.

- Helps in treating anemia.

- Cumin aids digestion and is a natural laxative in powdered form which facilitates healing of infection in the excretory system

-  Aids digestion and facilates excretion naturally.

Usage:

The cumin seed is an important ingredient in the preparation of the popular Yoruba dish, jollof rice.

It is also used in other rice dishes such as rice and beans. 

Cumin is used to flavor stews and soups. 

It is also used in the preparation of certain types of bread.

if you can see the picture, we have the place of grounded cumin and the seeds. I would suggest you use the grounded one if you are just starting out with it. 

3.) CINNAMON: Cinnamon is a warm, sweet spice that is often used in desserts and breakfast dishes. It is also used in savory dishes in some cultures. It may also have benefits such as being a natural anti-inflammatory agent and antioxidant, and regulating blood sugar levels.

Usage:

The spice is used in flavoring juices, drinks, peanut butter (you will love the taste)! 

It is also used with meat dishes, such as the recipe for goat stew.

Infact, cinnamon powder is used in smoothening the texture of a chin chin. 😌

We will stop here for now. So you would be able to try them out.

Which one have you tried out and which one would you be trying out? I'd be in the comment section hearing your feedback.