20 Indian Spices for a Flavoury Cooking | Mevive International
                     
● Spices are one of the things that make Indian food very distinct and so 
full of flavour. 
● Spices are not all chillies, but cumin, cinnamon, cardamom; fragrant 
spices, flavourful ones, sweet ones, peppery ones and what not. 
● Flowers, leaves, roots, bark, seeds and bulbs, the simplest of natural 
ingredients are used in endless combinations to produce an infinite 
variety of flavours: sweet, sharp, hot, sour, spicy, aromatic, tart, mild, 
fragrant or pungent. 
● Indian spices not only add flavour to Indian cuisine, but also enrich it 
with essential nutrients and contribute towards an individual's healthy 
life.
Red Chilli:
● The scorching aroma of Red Chilli adds a 
tingling effect to our taste buds with their 
sharp, spicy and zesty flavour to exquisite 
delicacies. 
● It also adds a glowing natural red colour to 
various gravies, chutneys, curried dishes 
and pickles, making them more palatable.
● An excellent antioxidant, it increases 
metabolism, prevents diabetes and reduces 
the risk of cancer.
Coriander:
● Coriander seeds (or dhania) are warm, nutty, 
spicy, and orange-flavoured traditional spice. 
● These plump and brown seeds have a hollow 
cavity that bears essential oils, which upon 
roasting increase their flavour, aroma, and 
pungency; that they flavour various kinds of 
masala, sambhar, rasam, and other Indian 
curries.  
● With antiseptic properties, coriander Powder 
cure skin ailments and hair fall. They aid in 
digestion, tackle diabetes and keep a check 
on cholesterol.
Cardamom:
● An aromatic seed pod, cardamom lends a distinct 
aroma and a sweet flavour. Cardamom is spindle-
shaped and has a triangular brownish-black seeds, 
and it has a warm pungent taste. 
● The cardamom pod can be used whole or ground. 
Cardamom is used in gravies, curries, pulao or 
biryani, kheer, sweets, etc.
● Cardamoms are prized for their healing qualities too, 
such as, digestion problem, common cold, cough, 
bronchitis, sore throat, urinary problems, epilepsy, 
headache, and high blood pressure.
Turmeric:
● An ancient Indian spice, it has a (pungent) distinct 
earthy, slightly bitter, hot peppery and a mustardy 
fragrance and gives a beautiful golden hue to various 
curries. 
● Grown as a rhizome, turmeric has curcumin as its 
active ingredient that has medicinal properties.  
● It is an anti-inflammatory, an antioxidant and a 
natural antibiotic. 
● It lowers cholesterol and is widely used in Ayurvedic 
treatment.
Fennel:
● Resembling cumin, in shape and size, fennel is a 
different spice altogether. 
● Fennel (saunf) exude an anise-like sweet fruity 
aroma that makes them a widely-used savoury 
spice in pizzas, soups, sauces, confectionaries, etc. 
● They are added in cooking, mainly as a flavouring 
base. 
● They are used as a condiment after food to improve 
digestion and also as a mouth freshener. 
● They reduce cholesterol, and treat asthma and help 
combat diabetes.
Asafoetida:
● An essential spice in Indian cuisine, asafoetida is 
acrid and bitter in taste and emits a strong 
disagreeable pungent odour.
● Asafoetida changes colour from white when it is 
raw to brown. This spice is used as a condiment in 
food and in pickling too. 
● Asafoetida acts as a savoury enhancer and adds 
great flavour to curries, sauces, and pickles. 
● It helps treat irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), 
breathing or throat problems, digestion problem.
Pepper:
● Black pepper has a distinct and undeniable earthiness 
flavour that is woody, piney and sharp all at the same time. 
It has a unique pungent taste as well.
● There is black and white pepper. While the former is made 
out of green berries, the latter is allowed to ripen fully. 
● Though white pepper retains the full pungency of black 
pepper, it tastes different due to partial loss of aroma.
● Black pepper is used in South Indian delicacies like Pongal, 
dosa, kootu, soups, sandwiches, cheese spreads, etc. while 
because of its colour, white pepper is used in white sauces, 
pasta, salads, seafood dishes, etc. 
● Pepper aid digestion and helps cure common cough, cold 
and respiratory disorders and heart diseases.
Cumin:
Cumin (jeera) can be identified by its distinct 
ridged brown seeds and intense fragrance.
Cumin is used to add a distinct smoky note and 
a robust flavour to most Indian curries. So, it is 
often used as a whole, to flavour rice, stuffed 
vegetables, curries and many savoury dishes, 
and as a powder for puddings and buttermilk.
Cumin aids digestion improves cholesterol and 
helps fight diabetes.
Bay leaf:
Pleasantly aromatic, the Bay leaf/ tejpata has a 
clove-like taste and a faint pepper-like odour.
The glossy, dark-green Bay leaf is oval, pointed 
and smooth, 2.5 – 8 cm (1 to 3 inches) long.
Bay leaves give off a pleasing and sweet aroma 
that makes it a great flavouring condiment for 
soups, sauces, stews and pickles.
Bay leaf is useful for treating high blood sugar, 
migraine headaches, bacterial and fungal 
infections, and gastric ulcers.
Cinnamon:
● A sweet-tasting spice with a warm and woody 
aroma, cinnamon chips are rough non-
peelable barks scraped off from the thicker 
stems.
● Cinnamon is a wonderful spice with a 
pleasant taste that makes it a great ingredient 
to be used in cakes and desserts.
● It is widely used in Hyderabadi Biryani, 
gravies and curry dishes in India. 
● Cinnamon helps prevent cancer, fight 
diabetes and lower blood pressure.
Cloves:
● Dark-brownish in colour, cloves are the dried 
aromatic flower buds of the clove tree. 
● They have elongated bodies with a flowery 
head and look like small nails. 
● They have a strong taste and sweet pungent 
smell that gives spicy warmth to soups, sauces, 
curries, meat, pickles and also to flavour sweet 
dishes like cookies, cakes and fruit pies. 
● Cloves act as antioxidants, cure mild 
toothaches, aid digestion and help control 
blood pressure, etc. 
Fenugreek seeds:
● Commonly known as Methi, fenugreek 
seeds are hot in nature, with a bitter, 
nutty taste.
●  It is a common condiment in spice blends 
in Indian cuisine over a variety of dishes 
like gravies, curries, parathas, beverages, 
etc. 
● Fenugreek seeds have been used to 
enhance the sensory quality of food. From 
adding flavour to dishes, they help control 
diabetes, prevent cancer and alleviating 
digestive problems.
Black Stone Flower:
● Black Stone Flower (Kalpasi) is a species of 
lichens used as a spice in India.
●  A rare dried flower, Kalpasi has a sweet and 
strong earthy aroma and dry texture. Its 
upper surface is dark green and much lighter 
inside. 
● This spice is used to make soups, Bombay 
Biryani, and meat dishes. 
● It improves digestion, helps heal wounds and 
cures respiratory disorders.
Nutmeg and Mace:
● While nutmeg is a shelled dried seed of a 
plant, mace is a dried net-like covering of 
the shell of the seed.
● While nutmeg has a distinctive pungent 
fragrance and a warm slightly sweet taste, 
mace has a more delicate flavour and gives 
a saffron-like hue to dishes.
● Both are used as a condiment for sweet 
products such as baked items, custards, 
puddings, jellies, etc.
● Mace is also used for seasoning. Both 
together treat cancer, kidney diseases, 
diarrhea, stomach pains, etc. 
Saffron:
● The saffron (Kesar) is the most expensive 
spice and it is a colour too.
● Saffron has a very subtle flavour and aroma. It 
is used as a culinary seasoning for chicken and 
meat, biriyani, pulao, etc.
● It adds taste, colour, and aroma to Indian 
sweets like Rasmalai, Kesar Pista etc. and 
flavours kheer, badam milk, saffron milk, etc. 
● Saffron increases immunity and strength, 
heals arthritis, helps in diet control and 
maintaining skin texture. 
Sesame seeds:
● With a crunchy texture and a nutty taste, 
sesame seeds are added to many dishes for the 
extra flavour.
● The oldest known oil seeds, sesame are tiny 
flat oval seeds and come in a variety of colours 
that includes white, black and red.
● Sesame offers a pleasant aroma and rich taste 
to South Indian delicacies, rice dishes and 
confectioneries such as sweets, bread, muffins, 
and cookies.
● Sesame helps reduce cholesterol, prevent 
blood pressure and protects liver damage. 
Star Anise:
● Star Anise is famed for its strong and 
distinct flavour. As goes its name, this star-
shaped, reddish-brown pod consists of 6-8 
carpels arranged in a coil.
● The carpel is 10 mm, boat-shaped and hard 
and wrinkled containing a seed.
● It is used as a condiment to flavour curries, 
confectionaries, bakery products and also 
pickling.
● Anti-bacterial in nature, star anise 
strengthens the immune system, treats 
asthma and bronchitis, and reduces the 
rheumatic disorders and lower back pain.
Pomegranate seeds:
● The beautiful red seeds are of one of the 
healthiest fruits namely pomegranate. 
Hard and fibrous, these seeds are a 
mildly sweet and tangy flavour.
● These aromatic are thus used as a 
souring agent in Indian gravies such as 
Chole, Dals, etc., curries, salads and 
bakery products too.
● Rich in antioxidants, pomegranate seeds 
are low in calories and help indigestion. 
Dried Ginger and Powder:
● Dry ginger is nothing but dehydrated 
ginger that turns pale white with a beautiful 
fragrance and a sharp taste.
● And the ginger powder is a fine off-whitish 
powder with a strong aroma and a slightly 
pungent flavour.
● Dried ginger is used to flavour 
gingerbreads, sweets, tea, gravies, curries, 
stews, etc.
● Dried ginger aids digestion, cures cold and 
cough, sore throat, stimulates blood 
circulation, cleanses the kidney, etc. 
Mint:
● Refreshing, zingy and delightful, a dash 
of mint adds a peppy flavour with a 
refreshing aroma.
● It is often used in sauces, chutneys, 
raitas, desserts and even garnishes 
biryanis and its cooling essence often 
make it handy for mocktails, jaljeera, 
sweet lime-mint juices, etc.
● From boosting digestion to keep the 
mouth fresh, mint has powerful 
antioxidant properties. Mint helps 
control blood sugar levels.
Thus, the secret of Indian food is the right combination of spices that makes 
Indian cuisine one of the most popular and the finest in the world today.
About Us: We mevive international (food ingredient company in India) deals 
with a variety of Indian Spices  at a best price in India. Submit your requirements 
here. Quick shipment! Bulk pricing!
 
 
Source: 
http://www.dehydratedveg.com/blog/20-indian-spices-for-a-flavoury-cooking.ht
ml