Could you guide me on where to get some from a reputable, honest seller? There is none and I mean none in my city and I have looooooked and looked. I detest A-Z, too much tomfoolery and fake stuff.
Bebir (Aleppo pepper) - it's a very mild red smoked chili that has incredible earthiness, and only a soupçon of warmth. I put this in everything, even dishes that are supposed to taste bright
Espresso - I make lazy pot espresso and save the dregs. I put the coffee in so many dishes. Sometimes where the base ingredients are too acidic or sweet. But I will also add it in gravy, sauces, stews, braise my meat with it. A couple tablespoons in a pot of spicy soup. It's so versatile and deep
Cane sugars - raw, turbinado, or demerara - minimally processed where the molasses remains in the crystals. I know sugar has a bad reputation in our insane twisted diet lifestyle, but it's fine for a cooking, and it's amazing to caramelize things when frying or to take the edge off acidity. You need the tiniest amount. I will also pulverize it in a mortar and pestle... A teaspoon sprinkled on kettle corn is ludicrously delicious
I don't know if the molecule is destroyed or transformed.
But I use so little that it wouldn't affect anybody anyways... I don't even think a child who is naive to the molecule would feel a thing
Edit... My curiosity got the best of me, I wasn't able to Google the answer directly, but I found articles asking if reheating coffee destroys the molecule. Apparently an organic chemist got involved and stated that the molecules pretty stable, it will only break down around 350 F. So that would mean most of my food probably has the full effect of whatever caffeine was there.
I accidentally poisoned a love interest when I made her lasagna with espresso in the sauce. Turned out she was allergic to coffee, not caffeine. I didn't know... but whoops a daisy lol
I feel like the espresso I brew isn't really that potent? I get a 330ml mug of espresso out of 10g coffee grounds. And then it's not even real espresso, it's just crummy stove top pot "espresso". I started drinking it that way because I was poor and it was a great way to get a lot of flavor for a little coffee grounds. Which I'd also occasionally recycle haha. But I'd be curious to know how actually potent it becomes. How would a person measure such a thing?
I checked those out and the information is just vague.
They will say things like a 8 oz cup of coffee has 90 mg of caffeine. They won't tell you how much ground coffee was used to achieve that.
They use weasel statements like espresso will have more, longer brew times will have more. Vague descriptions like "a typical 12 oz coffee will have 95 mg of caffeine, depending on how much coffee grounds were used"
I consume both those things frequently, I’ll have to try it! I switched to freshly grinding my nutmeg earlier this year and will take any excuse to try it in different things.
Based on my favorite flavors, mustard seed, oregano, smoked paprika, lemon thyme, dill.
(The above excludes the obvious salt and pepper, as well as onion and garlic since I use those in enough quantity to be considered full-blown veggies, not spices.)
There is nothing, and I mean nothing, that doesn't benefit from these 5. You can always add other spices, too, but these are the baseline for every single dish that isn't meant to be sweet. And even on some sweet stuff, it's pretty good. I tried it on waffles once and it was amazing.
What do you think habanero goes well with? My father had no taste buds and could really only detect oil, salt, fat, and heat. Naturally this lead to him overloading in one area or another, because that's all he wanted to taste. One time he served me pizza with crushed habanero and the floral perfuminess bowled me over. I've never really used them since, but I remember loving them before that incident!!
Do chilli flakes and black pepper count? Otherwise I don't really use spices... The food is plenty seasoned by the mountain of garlic and black pepper I use
I have this roasted garlic paprika blend I really love and use as a shortcut for a lot of dishes. It's got other spices too but it's just delicious. I think it is McCormick.
My next favorites are Johnny's seasoning salt, black pepper, garlic, onion powder, smoked paprika, basil, Italian seasoning. All of these would go in a vegetable soup.
MSG is also nice in moderation. And cinnamon for sweet things of course.
I was house-sitting recently and my friend had club house roasted garlic and pepper blend. Shit was so good, I will definitely be picking some up for myself.
63 replies
I'm British
So ketchup on everything?
Salt, maybe
beige is not a spice
Cinnamon. Love it to bits.
Could you guide me on where to get some from a reputable, honest seller? There is none and I mean none in my city and I have looooooked and looked. I detest A-Z, too much tomfoolery and fake stuff.
I use paprika in pretty much everything I cook
Smoked paprika. It just adds so much depth to anything that I add it to! I'm also a big fan of cumin and turmeric.
Bebir (Aleppo pepper) - it's a very mild red smoked chili that has incredible earthiness, and only a soupçon of warmth. I put this in everything, even dishes that are supposed to taste bright
Espresso - I make lazy pot espresso and save the dregs. I put the coffee in so many dishes. Sometimes where the base ingredients are too acidic or sweet. But I will also add it in gravy, sauces, stews, braise my meat with it. A couple tablespoons in a pot of spicy soup. It's so versatile and deep
Cane sugars - raw, turbinado, or demerara - minimally processed where the molasses remains in the crystals. I know sugar has a bad reputation in our insane twisted diet lifestyle, but it's fine for a cooking, and it's amazing to caramelize things when frying or to take the edge off acidity. You need the tiniest amount. I will also pulverize it in a mortar and pestle... A teaspoon sprinkled on kettle corn is ludicrously delicious
Does cooking with espresso mean all your food is caffeinated? Or does it cook out eventually like alcohol?
That's a good question.
I don't know if the molecule is destroyed or transformed.
But I use so little that it wouldn't affect anybody anyways... I don't even think a child who is naive to the molecule would feel a thing
Edit... My curiosity got the best of me, I wasn't able to Google the answer directly, but I found articles asking if reheating coffee destroys the molecule. Apparently an organic chemist got involved and stated that the molecules pretty stable, it will only break down around 350 F. So that would mean most of my food probably has the full effect of whatever caffeine was there.
I accidentally poisoned a love interest when I made her lasagna with espresso in the sauce. Turned out she was allergic to coffee, not caffeine. I didn't know... but whoops a daisy lol
You sound confident, like you know things!
I feel like the espresso I brew isn't really that potent? I get a 330ml mug of espresso out of 10g coffee grounds. And then it's not even real espresso, it's just crummy stove top pot "espresso". I started drinking it that way because I was poor and it was a great way to get a lot of flavor for a little coffee grounds. Which I'd also occasionally recycle haha. But I'd be curious to know how actually potent it becomes. How would a person measure such a thing?
I checked those out and the information is just vague.
They will say things like a 8 oz cup of coffee has 90 mg of caffeine. They won't tell you how much ground coffee was used to achieve that.
They use weasel statements like espresso will have more, longer brew times will have more. Vague descriptions like "a typical 12 oz coffee will have 95 mg of caffeine, depending on how much coffee grounds were used"
Okay lol
Parsley, if that counts. I don't really enjoy spicy food 😄
I hate parsley! I genuinely hate it. You can have all mine
My grandmother put it on everything. Dried. I never thought it had much flavor as a kid.
Neither one sounds you advocate for parsley. 🤣
Good tips thanks 😊
Seems like a good plan ha ha
“All the spices!” lol I really enjoy Tarragon and Black Garlic. Not necessarily together.
Salt and pepper in every dish. Hands down my favorite.
I mean its in nearly every dang recipe, at least salt almost always is.
table salt and ground black pepper are the undisputed most powerful power couple of all western food
Smoked paprika ‼
I wanna say cilantro, but...
Can't go wrong with a combination of garlic, ginger, and chili pepper.
Sumac! And garlic, paprika, and asafoetida. Love ‘em all
Oh my God sumac is so good as a topping on slightly oily beef... Droool
Tumeric paprika and cumin on potatoes.
Paprika garlic and chilli on chicken.
Coriander/cilantro on everything asian.
And a tiny bit of salt and sugar on all.
Hungarian paprika is awesome, I like to mix the sweet and hot varieties 50-50, and often use smoked paprika on top of that. I like paprika
Bay leaves in savory dishes
Nutmeg on/in sweet things
Nutmeg also rocks in mashed potatoes and cheese sauces!
I consume both those things frequently, I’ll have to try it! I switched to freshly grinding my nutmeg earlier this year and will take any excuse to try it in different things.
I bought five nutmeg nuts two years ago... I'm halfway through my third one lol
Doesn't take much hey
Oooh that's a good price for 12 lb of nutmeg
See, now you have something useful to leave for the next generation
Black pepper and chili flake are my go-to. Chipotle powder too. I'm also a sucker for za'atar, which is amazing on roasted potatoes.
Paprika, everywhere
Also Madras Curry
Based on frequency/amount of use, cumin.
Based on my favorite flavors, mustard seed, oregano, smoked paprika, lemon thyme, dill.
(The above excludes the obvious salt and pepper, as well as onion and garlic since I use those in enough quantity to be considered full-blown veggies, not spices.)
The only 5 spices you'll ever need:
Salt
Pepper
Onion powder
Garlic powder
MSG
There is nothing, and I mean nothing, that doesn't benefit from these 5. You can always add other spices, too, but these are the baseline for every single dish that isn't meant to be sweet. And even on some sweet stuff, it's pretty good. I tried it on waffles once and it was amazing.
Smoked paprika, cumin, ground coriander, cayenne pepper, cardamon
There are so many more, but these are probably my most frequent flyers
Black cumin and rosemary, sometimes habareno pepper
What do you think habanero goes well with? My father had no taste buds and could really only detect oil, salt, fat, and heat. Naturally this lead to him overloading in one area or another, because that's all he wanted to taste. One time he served me pizza with crushed habanero and the floral perfuminess bowled me over. I've never really used them since, but I remember loving them before that incident!!
Thyme.
Yes actually you win. I had fresh for the first time last year and it destroyed my mind.
Mala lover?
Smoked paprika, turmeric, coriander, nutmeg, cinnamon
And salt/pepper
Garlic salt is what I use on anything when I don't wanna think about it but want it to be delicious. Black pepper to finish most things.
Aromat.
Probably cayenne pepper.
Do chilli flakes and black pepper count? Otherwise I don't really use spices... The food is plenty seasoned by the mountain of garlic and black pepper I use
I have this roasted garlic paprika blend I really love and use as a shortcut for a lot of dishes. It's got other spices too but it's just delicious. I think it is McCormick.
My next favorites are Johnny's seasoning salt, black pepper, garlic, onion powder, smoked paprika, basil, Italian seasoning. All of these would go in a vegetable soup.
MSG is also nice in moderation. And cinnamon for sweet things of course.
Yeah no cringing here, I'm drooling. When are you having me over for supper. You know your shit.
I was house-sitting recently and my friend had club house roasted garlic and pepper blend. Shit was so good, I will definitely be picking some up for myself.
Salt, pepper, cumin, and paprika.
Garlic, Onion, Paprika, Lemon Pepper, Gochugaru.
I'm horrible in cooking, so basil and garlic powder. And maybe white pepper. I have no idea how to use the other spice tbh.
Whichever has a discount when I'm shopping.
Braai spice
MSG
I wouldn't call this a spice any more than I would call table salt or white sugar a spice.
Salt, garlic, ancho chili powder, marjoram
old bay
Katsuri Methi. An absolute essential for a decent curry. Also Hing aka Devil's Piss, if for no other reason than the name.
Summer savory!
Okay so who here toasts their spices?