Spices can be used in various forms, including fresh, whole, dried, grated, chopped, crushed, ground, or extracted into a tincture. These processes may occur before the spice is sold, during meal preparation in the kitchen, or even at the table when serving a dish, such as grinding peppercorns as a condiment. Certain spices, like turmeric[dubious –discuss], are rarely available fresh or whole and are typically purchased in ground form. Small seeds, such as fennel and mustard, can be used either in their whole form or as a powder.
A whole dried spice has the longest shelf life, so it can be purchased and stored in larger amounts, making it cheaper on a per-serving basis. A fresh spice, such asginger, is usually more flavorful than its dried form, but fresh spices are more expensive and have a much shorter shelf life.
India contributes to 75% of global spice production.[4] This is reflected culturally through itscuisine. Historically, thespice trade developed throughout theIndian subcontinent as well as inEast Asia and theMiddle East. Europe's demand for spices was among the economic and cultural factors that encouraged exploration in theearly modern period.
Although defining spice is difficult, varying definitions cover several common aspects. One such aspect is the biological source of spices: theOxford English Dictionary (OED) identifies the source as vegetables, while Redgrove (1933) is more specific as to the part of the plant, specifically theroot,rhizome,flower,fruit,seed andbark when they are dried, in contrast with herbaceous parts which constituteherbs.The Oxford Companion to Food challenges spices as sourced from plants being a hard rule, pointing toambergris being often identified as a spice despite its animal origin.[5]
Another aspect is the geographical source: TheOED specifies spices are sourced from the tropics, whileThe Oxford Companion to Food gives the example ofcaraway seeds as demonstrating that spices can come from temperate climes. The notion that spices have a tropical origin is historic: originally "spice" was understood as a type of merchandise from the Orient. As Europeans encountered the Americas, beginning theColumbian exchange, the meaning expanded to capture new aromatics, and the meaning later shifted again to refer to culinary use. This historic development has led to some ingredients indigenous to European cooking such as garlic and horseradish not being considered spices despite sharing many attributes.[5]
Cloves were used inMesopotamia by 1700 BCE.[note 1] The earliest written records of spices come from ancient Egyptian, Chinese, and Indian cultures. TheEbers Papyrus from early Egypt dating from 1550 BCE describes some eight hundred differentherbal medicinal remedies and numerous medicinal procedures.[11]
By 1000 BCE, medical systems based on herbs could be found inChina,Korea, andIndia.[12] Early uses were associated with magic, medicine, religion, tradition, and preservation.[13]
Indonesian merchants traveled around China, India, the Middle East, and the east coast of Africa.Arab merchants facilitated the routes through the Middle East and India. This resulted in the Egyptianport city of Alexandria being the main trading center for spices. The most important discovery prior to the European spice trade was themonsoon winds (40 CE). Sailing from Eastern spice cultivators to Western European consumers gradually replaced the land-locked spice routes once facilitated by the Middle East Arab caravans.[13]
Spices were prominent enough in the ancient world that they are mentioned in theOld Testament. InGenesis,Joseph was sold into slavery by his brothers to spice merchants. InExodus,manna is described as being similar to coriander in appearance. In theSong of Solomon, the male narrator compares his beloved to many saffron, cinnamon, and other spices.[14]
Spices were among the most demanded and expensive products available in Europe in theMiddle Ages,[5] the most common beingblack pepper,cinnamon (and the cheaper alternativecassia),cumin,nutmeg, ginger, andcloves. Given medieval medicine's main theory ofhumorism, spices and herbs were indispensable to balance "humors" in food,[6] on a daily basis for good health at a time of recurrentpandemics. In addition to being desired by those usingmedieval medicine, the European elite also craved spices in the Middle Ages, believing spices to be from and a connection to "paradise".[17] An example of the European aristocracy's demand for spice comes from theKing of Aragon, who invested substantial resources into importing spices toSpain in the 12th century. He was specifically looking for spices to put inwine and was not alone amongEuropean monarchs at the time to have such a desire for spice.[18]
Spices were all imported from plantations in Asia and Africa, which made them expensive. From the 8th until the 15th century, theRepublic of Venice held a monopoly on spice trade with the Middle East, using this position to dominate the neighboring Italianmaritime republics and city-states. The trade made the region rich. It has been estimated that around 1,000 tons of pepper and 1,000 tons of other common spices were imported into Western Europe each year during theLate Middle Ages. The value of these goods was the equivalent of a yearly supply of grain for 1.5 million people.[19] The most exclusive wassaffron, used as much for its vivid yellow-red color as for its flavor. Spices that have now fallen into obscurity in European cuisine includegrains of paradise, a relative ofcardamom which mostly replaced pepper in late medieval north French cooking, along withlong pepper,mace,spikenard,galangal, andcubeb.[20]
Voyagers fromSpain andPortugal were interested in seeking new routes to trade in spices and other valuable products from Asia. The control of trade routes and the spice-producing regions were the main reasons thatPortuguese navigatorVasco da Gama sailed toIndia in 1499.[8] When da Gama discovered the pepper market in India, he was able to secure peppers for a much lower cost than demanded byVenice.[18] At around the same time,Christopher Columbus returned from theNew World. He described toinvestors the new spices available there.[21][a]
Another source of competition in the spice trade during the 15th and 16th centuries was theRagusans from the maritime republic ofDubrovnik in southern Croatia.[22] The military prowess ofAfonso de Albuquerque (1453–1515) allowed the Portuguese to take control of the sea routes to India. In 1506, he took the island ofSocotra in the mouth of theRed Sea and, in 1507,Ormuz in thePersian Gulf. Since becoming theviceroy of theIndies, he tookGoa in India in 1510, andMalacca on theMalay Peninsula in 1511. The Portuguese could now trade directly withSiam,China, and theMaluku Islands.[citation needed]
With the discovery of the New World came new spices, includingallspice,chili peppers,vanilla, andchocolate. This development kept the spice trade, with the Americas as a latecomer with their new seasonings, profitable well into the 19th century.[23]
Spices are primarily used as foodflavoring or to create variety.[24] They are also used to perfumecosmetics andincense. At various periods, many spices were used inherbal medicine. Finally, since they can be expensive, rare and exotic commodities, theirconspicuous consumption has often been a symbol of wealth and social class.[20]
The most popular explanation for the love of spices in the Middle Ages is that they were used to preserve meat from spoiling, or to cover up the taste of meat that had already gone off. This compelling but false idea constitutes something of an urban legend, a story so instinctively attractive that mere fact seems unable to wipe it out... Anyone who could afford spices could easily find meat fresher than what city dwellers today buy in their local supermarket.[20]
It is often claimed that spices were used either asfood preservatives or to mask the taste ofspoiled meat, especially in the EuropeanMiddle Ages.[20][25] This is false.[26][27][28][20] In fact, spices are rather ineffective as preservatives as compared tosalting,smoking,pickling, ordrying, and are ineffective in covering the taste of spoiled meat.[20] Moreover, spices have always been comparatively expensive: in 15th century Oxford, a whole pig cost about the same as a pound of the cheapest spice, pepper.[20] There is also no evidence of such use from contemporary cookbooks: "Old cookbooks make it clear that spices weren't used as a preservative. They typically suggest adding spices toward the end of the cooking process, where they could have no preservative effect whatsoever."[29] Indeed,Cristoforo di Messisbugo suggested in the 16th century that pepper may speed up spoilage.[29]
Though some spices haveantimicrobial properties in vitro,[30] pepper—by far the most common spice—is relatively ineffective, and in any case, salt, which is far cheaper, is also far more effective.[29]
A shelf of common spices for a home kitchen in Canada or the United States
Pepper mill
Amortar and pestle is the classic set of tools for grinding a whole spice. Less labor-intensive tools are more common now: amicroplane or finegrater can be used to grind small amounts; acoffee grinder[note 2] is useful for larger amounts. A frequently used spice such as black pepper may merit storage in its own hand grinder ormill.
The flavor of a spice is derived in part from compounds (volatile oils) thatoxidize or evaporate when exposed to air. Grinding a spice greatly increases its surface area and so increases the rates of oxidation and evaporation. Thus, the flavor is maximized by storing a spice whole and grinding when needed. The shelf life of a whole dry spice is roughly two years; of a ground spice roughly six months.[31] The "flavor life" of a ground spice can be much shorter.[note 3] Ground spices are better stored away from light.[note 4]
Some flavor elements in spices are soluble in water; many are soluble in oil or fat. As a general rule, the flavors from a spice take time to infuse into the food so spices are added early in preparation. This contrasts toherbs which are usually added late in preparation.[31]
A study by theFood and Drug Administration of shipments of spices to the United States during fiscal years 2007–2009 showed about 7% of the shipments were contaminated bySalmonella bacteria, some of it antibiotic-resistant.[32] As most spices are cooked before being served salmonella contamination often has no effect, but some spices, particularly pepper, are often eaten raw and are present at the table for convenient use. Shipments from Mexico and India, a major producer, were the most frequently contaminated.[33]Food irradiation is said to minimize this risk.[34][35]
^A team of archaeologists led byGiorgio Buccellati excavating the ruins of a burned-down house at the site ofTerqa, in modern-daySyria, found a ceramic pot containing a handful of cloves. The house had burned down around 1720 BC and this was the first evidence of cloves being used in the west before Roman times.[8][9][10]
^Other types of coffee grinders, such as aburr mill, can grind spices just as well as coffee beans.
^Nutmeg, in particular, suffers from grinding and the flavor will degrade noticeably in a matter of days.
^Moore, Katherine M (2013). "The archaeology of food". InAlbala, Ken (ed.).Routledge International Handbook of Food Studies. Oxford & New York:Routledge.ISBN978-0-415-78264-7.
^Buccellati, G., M. Kelly-Buccellati, Terqa: The First Eight Seasons, Les Annales Archeologiques Arabes Syriennes 33(2), 1983, 47–67
^O'Connell, John (2016).The Book of Spice: From Anise to Zedoary. Pegasus Books.ISBN978-1-68177-152-6.
^Woodward, Penny (2003). "Herbs and Spices". In Katz (ed.).Encyclopedia of Food and Culture. Vol. 2. Charles Scribner's Sons. pp. 187–195.
^Sonal Dubey (2017)."Indian Spices and their medicinal value".Indian Journal of Pharmaceutical Education and Research.51 (3s2):s330 –s332.doi:10.5530/ijper.51.3s.41. RetrievedJuly 27, 2025.By 1000 BCE, medical systems based upon herbs could be found in China, Korea, and India.
^abMurdock, Linda (2001).A Busy Cook's Guide to Spices: How to Introduce New Flavors to Everyday Meals. Bellwether Books. p. 14.ISBN978-0-9704285-0-9.
^Schivelbusch, Wolfgang (1992).Tastes of paradise : a social history of spices, stimulants, and intoxicants. Pantheon Books.ISBN0-394-57984-4.OCLC24702170.
^abFreedman, Paul (June 5, 2015). "Health, wellness and the allure of spices in the Middle Ages".Journal of Ethnopharmacology. Potent Substances: On the Boundaries of Food and Medicine.167:47–53.doi:10.1016/j.jep.2014.10.065.PMID25450779.
^Paul Freedman, "Food Histories of the Middle Ages", in Kyri W. Claflin, Peter Scholliers,Writing Food History: A Global Perspective,ISBN1847888097, p. 24
^Calucci, L.; Pinzino, C.; Zandomeneghi, M.; Capocchi, A.; Ghiringhelli, S.; Saviozzi, F.; Tozzi, S.; Galleschi, L. (2003). "Effects of gamma-irradiation on the free radical and antioxidant contents in nine aromatic herbs and spices".Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.51 (4):927–34.Bibcode:2003JAFC...51..927C.doi:10.1021/jf020739n.PMID12568551.
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