Discussion Board

My general guideline for flavorings is the same as it is for the foods being flavored: variety, variety, variety. I have about 15 or so flavorings lined up on a kitchen shelf, and I try to use a different one everyday (in addition to some that I use everyday). That is a way of making sure I get a wide variety of specialized substances that the flavorings contain -- if they contain any, that is. If nothing else, at least I get a variety of tastes.

Unfortunately, I usually can't eat any flavorings made from seeds (as described here http://www.aristotleadventure.com/anti-itis/ ), so I try to maximize the list of flavorings I can use.

I would like to offer my list in hopes someone here could add to it. (I like hunting for new flavorings.) All are in dry form, and most I can buy economically in bulk in the "natural foods" section of the grocery store I go to.

I have shown below which part of the plant they come from, as far as I know. This process of accumulating flavorings has been educational for me.

basil (from leaves), chives, cilantro (leaves), cinnamon (inside of tree bark), dill weed (leaves), garlic (minced), ginger (roots), marjoram (leaves), onions (minced), oregano (leaves), sage (leaves), tarragon (leaves), thyme (leaves), turmeric (roots).

How about:
-- sorrel (amazing in soups that my Dad makes, tastes rather lemony)--leaves
--shallots (roots)--kind of combination of onions and garlic flavor
--anise--bulb--wonderful raw, baked or sauteed (licorice flavor)--I think you will have to buy fresh as the spice bottles usually have ground seeds
--lemon, lime and orange zest
--chipotle peppers or other peppers (you remove the seeds before cooking)
--peppermint (wonderful if you buy the teas and sprinkle a small amount on fruit salads)

I don't know if you live in a warm climate with farmer's markets around, but you can often buy herbs in pots for way more reasonable than the fresh herbs in the grocery store. I am sure there are others (like verbenum) you could buy and keep in your window sill. When they start to look at little straggly you can strip the leaves, put on a baking pan in a very low oven and dry them yourself.

What is nutmeg? Is it technically a seed? How about cloves?

Here are a few more.

Available dry:
Bay leaves
Lemongrass (stalks)
Mint (leaves)
Savory (leaves)

Available fresh:
Dandelion (leaves) - spicy addition to salads
Lemongrass (stalks) - may have to go to Asian market
Mint (leaves)
Watercress (leaves) - spicy addition to salads

Hope101 and Chile,

Wow! With all the additions you have suggested, my list of flavorings has doubled! Now I have a lot of new ones to search for -- in either dried form (preferred for storage) or fresh. Thank you for the suggestions!

Who needs salt when one has a list of almost 30 flavorings -- which are also nutritious themselves.

P. S. -- To happyalyssa, so far as I was able to determine, both nutmeg and cloves, in ground form, come from seeds. In fact, they are seeds.

You might find some ideas of something new to enjoy that fits your needs at the "The Spice Hunter" website. Their listings of ingredients and suggested uses might be useful.

http://www.spicehunter.com/spices_herbs ... fm?&DID=27

happyalyssa, nutmeg is a seed and cloves are the dried parts of the flower that contain the seed, I believe. So Burgess couldn't use them, unfortunately. But I love them!

How about Kaffir Lime leaf and rosemary? Depending on where you live, there could be tons of rosemary growing in your neighborhood as part of people's landscaping! It's an evergreen, and I don't know if that would make a difference for you, but it's my all time favorite leaf-herb. It's a fantastic accompaniment to garlic. I have a Kaffir Lime growing in a pot on my back porch. The leaves are minced or slivered and used in Thai cooking all the time. I ordered the little tree online.

Burgess: Thought of a few more. It is wonderful to have expanded horizons, isn't it?
--horseradish--root
--dried veggie flakes--root
--rosemary--leaves
--parsley--leaves
--dulse or kelp--leaves
--liquid smoke

Mace is a lovely fragrant spice that comes from the outside of the nutmeg seed. This is a kind of wrapping around the seed, don't know its technical term, or whether it's appropriate for Burgess to eat. It has many of the same properties as nutmeg but in a way is a more interesting flavor. You can buy it in dried pieces in a jar, or as powder. I use it in "pumpkin pie" mixtures and in apple cider. It would be good with apples along with cinnamon.

This is a powder made from red sweet peppers, supposedly with the seeds removed. Here's a link about the manufacture of paprika:
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20070117154830AAg6nIr

Anyway, I LOVE paprika. When I make oven-baked potato "fries", I sprinkle them with paprika and garlic granules. It's great in a lot of different foods, goes well with tomatoes.