What Good Foods Are Made Of

Speaking of spices, I just counted, and including black pepper but not salt, I have 41 containers of herbs, spices, and standard pre-mixes like chili powder.  A couple of them overlap, like two (distinctively) different varieties of Italian seasoning, but mostly they’re different.  That also doesn’t count bottles of extracts like vanilla and almond.

I recently added the aforementioned lemon pepper, plus chili powder, cilantro, pumpkin pie spice, mesquite stuff, and cumin.  All while I was looking for white pepper, which the Raynham Wal-Mart Supercenter didn’t have, despite its massive selection.

I ended up using the cumin promptly, and making a discovery.

I thawed and shredded a couple hamburgers in a frying pan with some butter, spicing the meat with a little chili powder, a lot of garlic and red pepper, black pepper, this and that, and some cumin.  Hey, it was pseudo-Mexican, so good reason to try it.  I knew it was strong from the smell.  Since I often don’t know what to use in what food, or what goes with what, I open the jars and smell to give me an idea.  Which has convinced me there are certain things that aren’t the same dried as fresh, because the dried versions has little or no scent.

The burger went in with a can of refried beans, and on small flour tortillas with shredded jack and cheddar cheese.  Yum!  In fact, unusually yummy, because of the cumin, which was almost too much and drowned the other spices.

My observation: It tasted like Taco Bell!

I knew Taco Bell had a prominent flavor I’d never identified and replicated, and it’s apparently heavy on the cumin.

I also learned, or re-learned, that cumin is a component of chili powder, curry powder, and garam masala.

I still have spices I am not clear on the use of, or haven’t used ad-hoc based on their scents.  Is there anything one uses mint in besides lamb?  Does dill have a good use besides pickles and beef stroganoff?  Is parsley, speaking of things that lack good scents dried and bottled, good for anything besides maybe parslied potatoes?

What are your favorite spices or flavorings?  What are ones you love but only in selected dishes for which they work best?

1. My favorite spices ever...garlic pepper and Emeril’s Essence.  I use the garlic pepper on so many dishes I couldn’t even begin to list them here and the Essence is great for making a dip for homemade buffalo wings.

   Posted by Sharon  on  08/18  at  12:35 PM

2. Mint actually is good (non-food) as a kid-safe ant repellant.  Parsley is good for baking in liquids, like coq-au-vin (chicken in wine).  Mostly, it just gives more color to the dish.

   One spice I love is Herbes de Provence.  When used with butter, it really makes good roasted, baked, or grilled chicken.  The blend can actually be made from other spices, so you don’t have to buy it separately.  I have found the recipe for the herbes in a lot of grilling cookbooks.

   Posted by  on  08/18  at  01:38 PM

3. I know nothing about spices.  But, I spent a week with a Vietnamese family last spring, which involved eating a lot of Vietnamese food, and one thing that startled me was that time a meal included fresh greens, there was tons of fresh mint mixed in.  (Never did figure out what kind of mint it was, but it was definitely something.) It was a very . . . peculiar flavor.

   Posted by Emma M  on  08/18  at  11:16 PM

4. Re: different spices.  I use mint with pork as well as with lamb.  Dilled chicken is delicious, and parsley goes into any stew or casserole to add color.  My favorite spice is oregano.  It is strong enough to taste, but not overpowering.  I don’t really like spicy spices; I prefer cinnamon, lemmon pepper - lighter flavors.  I like your blog very much; it encompasses all the elements a good blog should have - pictures, a certain eloquence, and variety.  Please keep up the good work!

   In solidarity,

   Lily Maskew
   Pittsburgh, PA

   Posted by  on  08/21  at  01:08 PM

5. For the next time you cook salmon filets… a little butter or mayo & dill, put in with with a filet in an aluminum foil packet, then broil or grill it. 
   The dill is just enough to flavor the fish without overwhelming it.

   Posted by  on  08/23  at  05:48 PM

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