The market · Spices · South Asia, The Middle East, The Americas
Cumin seeds
Small, ridged seeds with a warm, earthy smell that turns toasty in hot fat.
earthy · warm · toasty
What to do with it
Uyghur and XinjiangUyghur poloRice steamed over lamb, onion and a heap of carrots in one deep pan, so it comes out glossy with the fat — the dish for guests and celebrations.No one here has made it yetGujaratiDal dhokliPieces of spiced wholewheat dough simmered in a sweet-sour toor dal with peanuts, jaggery and lemon — a whole meal in one pot.No one here has made it yetGujaratiGujarati kadhiYoghurt thickened with a little gram flour, simmered thin with ginger and chilli, sweetened slightly and tempered with ghee, cumin, clove and curry leaves.No one here has made it yetGujaratiSev tameta nu shaakTomatoes cooked down with garlic, chilli and a little jaggery into a sweet-sour gravy, with crisp gram-flour sev scattered over just before eating.No one here has made it yetGoanVindalooPork marinated in a paste of dried red chillies, garlic and spice ground in vinegar, then cooked slowly until sharp, rich and deep red.No one here has made it yetGoanXacutiChicken or mutton in a dark, complex sauce of grated coconut and a long list of whole spices, all roasted until brown and ground together.No one here has made it yetGoanPrawn balchãoPrawns cooked in a fiery, sweet-sour red paste of chilli, garlic and vinegar until thick — half curry, half pickle, and keeps for weeks.No one here has made it yetGoanSorpotelPork and pork liver boiled, diced small and cooked in a hot, sharp sauce of chilli, spice and vinegar — a Christmas and wedding dish, made days ahead.No one here has made it yetGoanGoan fish curryFish simmered in a coconut sauce ground with red chillies and coriander seed, soured with kokum or tamarind — eaten with red rice every day in Goa.No one here has made it yetGoanGoan sausageCubes of fatty pork cured with chilli, garlic, spice and vinegar, stuffed into casings, dried in the sun and smoked — then fried with onion and eaten in bread.No one here has made it yetRajasthaniDal baati churmaHard, round wheat breads baked in the coals and soaked in ghee, eaten with a spiced mixed dal and churma — the same dough crushed with ghee and sugar.No one here has made it yetRajasthaniGatte ki sabziDumplings of spiced gram flour, boiled and sliced, then simmered in a tangy yoghurt gravy.No one here has made it yetRajasthaniKer sangriDried desert berries and beans, soaked and cooked in oil with red chilli, dried mango and spice into something tangy, hot and chewy.No one here has made it yetSouth IndianRasamA thin, peppery, sour broth of tamarind and tomato, with cumin and garlic — poured over rice, or drunk from a cup.No one here has made it yetSouth IndianChettinad chickenChicken in a dark, fiery masala of freshly roasted spices — pepper, dried chilli, fennel, star anise — with coconut and curry leaves.No one here has made it yetSouth IndianKori rottiA chicken curry of coconut milk and roasted red chilli, poured over crisp, paper-thin wafers of dried rice that soften as you eat.No one here has made it yetSri LankanParippuRed lentils cooked soft in coconut milk with turmeric and green chilli, then tempered with onion, mustard seed, curry leaves and rampe.No one here has made it yet
GeorgianKhinkaliLarge pleated dumplings of spiced minced meat that fill with broth as they boil, eaten by hand.No one here has made it yet
GeorgianKhinkaliLarge pleated dumplings of spiced minced meat that fill with broth as they boil, eaten by hand.No one here has made it yetKinds
- Whole seed
- Bloomed in oil or ghee at the start — a tarka.
- Ground
- Best toasted and ground yourself; it fades fast.
- Black cumin
- Kala jeera: thinner, darker, sweeter. Not nigella, whatever the label says.
Goes with
Knowing it
- Where to buy
- South Asian, Middle Eastern or Latin American grocers, in bags far cheaper than jars.
- Worth knowing
- Take it off the heat the moment it darkens a shade and smells nutty. Burnt cumin is bitter.
Kitchens that keep it in
Punjab — northern India and eastern PakistanPunjabiWheat, dairy and the tandoor: rich, generous cooking from the land of five rivers, and the source of much of what the world calls Indian food.10 classicsGoa — the Konkan coast of western IndiaGoanCoconut, chilli and vinegar: a coastal kitchen where Konkani fish curry and rice meet pork, bread and sweets from four and a half centuries of Portuguese rule.9 classicsRajasthan — the Thar Desert and the Aravalli hills of north-western IndiaRajasthaniDesert cooking: millet, lentils and gram flour, ghee in generous measure, dried beans and berries that keep, fiery red meat from the Rajput courts and sweets made for festivals.9 classics