Fennel seeds – Foeniculum vulgare

The yellow seeds add an anise-like flavour to fish and Tuscan salami. Much used in French and Moroccan cooking.

Fenugreek – Trigonella foenum graecum

The hard, flat, brownish seeds provide essential bitterness to Indian fish curries, and are included in most curry powders. They are also common in the cuisines of Greece and Egypt.

Garlic – Allium sativum

In medieval times garlic was carried as a protection against evil spirits and the plague. It is available in fresh bulb form, dried in granules, or powdered.

Ginger – Zingiber officinale

An essential spice in India, China, Japan and southeast Asia, ginger was brought to Europe by the Romans. In today’s Western cuisine it is used mainly in desserts, cakes and breads, and as a candied or preserved sweetmeat.

Horseradish – Armoracia rusticana

This root gives fire to many dishes. Usually sold grated, and sometimes “creamed” as a sauce, it is also mixed into mustards and flavoured butters.

Juniper berries – Juniperus communis

Native to the northern hemisphere, these berries infuse wines and spirits (British gin and Dutch genever) and the cooking of Scandinavia, Germany and Alsace, especially with pork and game, sauerkraut and other cabbage dishes.

Licorice – Glycyrrhia glabra

Cultivated in western Europe as an aid to digestion since medieval times. Available sliced root or powdered. Today it is mainly used in confectionery.

Mace

Fragrant orange-red dried covering around nutmeg seed, with similar flavour. Whole - for pickling, fish, fish sauce, stewed fruit. Ground - delicious in baked foods, pastries, polony, bratwurst, pork sausage, knackwurst.

Mixed Spices

A special Crown blend of Cinnaqmon, Nutmeg and Allspice. Use in cakes, puddings, apple dishes and preserves.

Mustard seeds – Brassica sinapis alba, Brassica sinapis junica, Brassica sinapis nigra

This European and Asian native grows wild and cultivated in temperate regions. Whole seeds are used for pickles and in some eastern European and Indian dishes, but are more usually ground into a powder or made into a condiment.

Nutmeg – Myristica fragrans

The hard fruit kernel of the nutmeg tree has both sweet and savoury uses. The weblike red aril which surrounds the kernel is mace, used for more subtle flavour.

Onion

Salt, flakes, Minced and Powder. The humble onion is one of our most versatile seasonings. Use in practically any dish where the distinctive onion flavour is desired.

Onion seeds – Nigella sativa

These spicy pointed seeds are used in savoury Indian dishes and scattered on Middle Eastern breads and cakes.

Paprika – Capsicum annuum tetragonum

The ground pod of a dried sweet red pepper, paprika is widely used in Hungary and by the Spanish Basques.

Pepper – Piper nigrum

This spice was used in Europe before the Romans. To obtain black peppercorns, berries are picked green, then allowed to dry in the sun. White pepper, made from the milder inner kernel, is picked when the berry is ripe and red, and is usually sold ground. Green peppercorns preserved in brine are also available.

Pepper Black

The universal spice, from the East Indies. Whole - used for home grinders and in pickles, soups, and meats. Ground - adds flavour to most foods, boerewors, mettwurst, salami, pepperoni, pastrami rub.

Pepper White

White, mild-flavoured centre of pepper berry. Whole or ground. Use same as black pepper, or in dishes where pepper that doesn't show may be preferred.

Poppy seeds – Papaver somniferum; Papaver rhoeas

Poppy seeds are a particular favourite of Jewish, Levantine and central and eastern European pastry cooks.

Pumpkin seeds – Cucurbita maxima

Used in Mexican and Central American cooking to lend sutle flavour and noticeable texture to stews and sauces. Also toasted and eaten as snacks.

Red Pepper

Cayenne, From West Africa, Mexico, South Africa and others. The most pungent of all spices! Use sparingly - adds hot, zesty flavour. For polony, frankfurters, liverwurst and pepperoni.

Saffron – Crocus sativus

The most expensive spice, saffron scents, flavours and colours all it infuses. Indispensable to Spanish paella, French bouillabaisse, and Italian risotto, saffron is probably used more in northern India than anywhere else.

Sesame seeds – Sesamum indicum

A favourite in north African and Middle Eastern kitchens, sesame is toasted as a snack, decorates cakes and breads, and is the basis of halva, a sesame and nut confection. Far Eastern black sesame is used on Chinese toffee apples and bananas, and in Japanese condiments.

Star anise – Illicium verum

The dried, star-shaped fruit of an evergreen shrub, with pods containing small, peppery-anise-flavoured seeds. The whole pod or the ground seeds are used in oriental kitchens, and in many garam masalas. In the West it is used in liqueurs, cookies and pastries.

Sumac – Sumac

The crushed berries of the sumac tree have a bitter flavour, indispensable to certain fish marinades and to chicken, lentil and tomato-based dishes in Iran, Syria and Lebanon.

Tamarind – Tamarind indica

The thick-fleshed fruit of this African tree is seeded and the pulp dried and pressed to be sold in lumps. Indian and southeast Asian cooks soak the flesh to obtain the acid, bitter juice used in a variety of curried dishes.

Turmeric – Curcuma longa

The powder from the ground rhizome is used in commercial curry powders and lends colour and a mild acridity to rice dishes, condiments and curries.