The market · Spices · South Asia, The Middle East

Nigella seeds

Small, matt black seeds — kalonji — with an oniony, slightly bitter, toasty taste. One of the five seeds in Bengali panch phoron, and scattered on naan.

oniony · toasty · bitter

What to do with it

Classics built on it
BengaliMacher jholFreshwater fish, fried in mustard oil, then simmered in a thin, gingery broth with potato and turmeric — Bengal's everyday fish curry, eaten over rice.No one here has made it yetBengaliShorshe ilishHilsa steaks cooked in a pungent paste of ground mustard seed, green chilli and raw mustard oil — the most prized fish dish in Bengal.No one here has made it yetBengaliAloo postoPotatoes cooked in a thick paste of ground white poppy seed and green chilli, finished with raw mustard oil — nutty, creamy and plain in the best way.No one here has made it yet

If you can't find it

Indian and Middle Eastern grocers, as kalonji or black onion seed.

  1. 1Sesame seed
    Black sesame, with a pinch of dried oregano
    You lose the oniony, slightly bitter note.

Goes with

mustard oilpotatoflatbreadfish

Knowing it

Where to buy
Indian and Middle Eastern grocers. Sometimes sold, wrongly, as black onion seed or black cumin.
Worth knowing
Toast them in hot oil until they crackle, which takes seconds, before anything else goes in.

Kitchens that keep it in

West Bengal — eastern India, on the Ganges deltaBengaliFish, rice and mustard: a delta kitchen of sharp mustard oil and freshwater fish, eaten in courses from bitter to sweet, and ending with some of India's most famous sweets.9 classics

More spices

SpicesAchiote pasteearthy, peppery2 classicsSpicesAjwainthyme-like, sharp, bitter8 classicsSpicesAllspicewarm, sweet-spiced, peppery2 classicsSpicesAsafoetidapungent, sulphurous, garlicky when cooked12 classics