Prediction 3. A greater proportion of bacteria should be inhibited by recipes from hot climates than from cool climates. In support of this prediction, as average annual temperatures increased among countries, the mean fraction of recipes that called for each one of the highly inhibitory spices used in those countries increased significantly Figure 8a.
However, this correlation did not hold for less inhibitory spices Figure 8b. There was also a positive relationship between the fraction of bacterial species inhibited by each spice and the fraction of countries that used that spice, indicating widespread use of the spices that are most effective against bacteria.
To further test this corollary, we tried to determine if spices used in each country are particularly effective against local bacteria. Unfortunately, however, no comprehensive lists of indigenous bacteria are available for any country in our sample.
To estimate inhibition, therefore, we chose 30 meat-based recipes at random from the cookbooks for each country and tallied how many of 30 "target" bacterial species would be inhibited or killed by at least one spice in each recipe.
The target bacteria were those that have been challenged experimentally with the greatest number of spices, including such widespread species as Aeromonas hydrophila, Bacillus cereus, Bacillus subtilus, Clostridium botulinum, Listeria monocytogenes, Escherichia coli, Salmonella pullorum, Staphylococcus aureus, and Streptococcus faecalis. Results of this analysis Figure 9 showed that as annual temperatures increased, the estimated fraction of food spoilage bacteria inhibited by the spices in each country's recipes increased significantly.
Therefore, the cuisine of hotter countries potentially has greater antibacterial activity. Prediction 4. Within a country, cuisine from high latitudes and elevations i. We located regional cookbooks for only two countries, China and the United States. Consistent with the prediction, in both countries the total number of spices used, the fraction of recipes that called for at least one spice, and the frequency of use of highly inhibitory spices were greater in southern regions than in northern regions.
The mean number of spices per recipe was greater in southern China than in northern China, but no such difference was evident in the United States Table 1. In both countries, the spices called for in an average southern recipe had significantly greater antibacterial potential than those in northern recipes, mirroring the among-country pattern Billing and Sherman Because altitude-specific cookbooks are rare, we were unable to evaluate how altitude affects spice use. Prediction 5.
Quantities of spices called for in recipes should be sufficient to produce antimicrobial effects, and cooking should not destroy the potency of phytochemicals. The primary literature in food microbiology that we surveyed usually reported the minimum concentrations of purified phytochemicals that were necessary to inhibit growth of foodborne bacteria in vitro. Typically, these were solutions containing 0. However, there are as yet no analyses of how different amounts and types of spices affect microorganisms in cuisine.
Evaluating the antimicrobial efficacy of various spices in vivo i. Regarding the effects of cooking, most phytochemicals are thermostable, although a few are destroyed by heat Moyler Some spices e.
According to cookbook authors, the "delicate" flavors of the latter would be destroyed by heat. If, as seems likely, thermostable spices are the ones added early and thermolabile spices are added later or are used primarily as condiments , differences in timing of use may function to maintain beneficial antimicrobial properties and corresponding flavors until food is served.
Pepper and lemon and lime juice are among the most frequently used spices Figure 3 , but they are unusual in that the frequency with which they are used does not change much across the temperature gradient Figure Moreover, they are among the least effective bacteriocides Figure 4. Do these patterns weaken the antimicrobial hypothesis, or do these two spices function in a different way than "typical" spices? We believe that the second explanation is correct, and we suggest that pepper and citric acid play special roles-that is, as synergists.
Citric acid potentiates the antibacterial effects of other spices because low pH disrupts bacterial cell membranes Booth and Kroll Foods to which lemon or lime juice are added require less heating to cause the same levels of bacterial mortality that take place in foods cooked at higher pH and temperature for a longer time.
Black pepper comes from Piper nigrum, an exclusively tropical plant that has several useful properties. For example, the compound piperine inhibits the ubiquitous, deadly bacterium Clostridium botulinum Nakatani Black pepper is also a "bioavailability enhancer," meaning that it acts synergistically to increase the rate at which cells, including microorganisms, absorb phytotoxins Johri and Zutshi Many other spices exhibit greater antibacterial potency when they are mixed than when used alone Ziauddin et al.
Some are combined so frequently that the blends have acquired special names. An intriguing example is the French "quatre epices" pepper, cloves, ginger, and nutmeg , which is often used to make sausages. Sausages botulus in Latin are a rich medium for bacterial growth and have frequently been implicated as the source of botulinum toxin. Other blends, such as curry powder which contains 22 different spices , pickling spice 15 spices , and chili powder 10 spices , are broadspectrum antimicrobial melanges.
Other uses of spices In addition to their uses in cooking, individual spices and blends are employed as coloring agents, antivirals including suppressing HIV , brain stimulants, and aphrodisiacs Hirasa and Takemasa Among traditional societies, many spice plants also have ethnopharmacological uses, often as topical or ingested antibacterials and vermicides Chevallier , Cichewicz and Thorpe A few spices, particularly garlic, ginger, cinnamon, and chilis, have for centuries been used to counteract a broad spectrum of ailments, including dysentery, kidney stones, arthritis, and high blood pressure Johns , Duke However, the use of spices in food preparation differs from medicinal use in three ways.
In cooking, spices are used without regard to diners' health status, they are used in tiny quantities, and they are routinely added to specific recipes. This pattern suggests that the "targets" of spice chemicals are on or in the food before it is ingested.
By contrast, in medicinal usage, spices are taken in response to particular maladies, in large quantities, and not with any particular dish-more like swallowing a pill than preparing a meal.
An interesting question is whether other animals also "spice" foods. Presently, the answer appears to be "no. Undoubtedly, much of this plant material serves as nutrition, for example, when meat is scarce. Nevertheless, frequent ingestion of vegetation is potentially interesting in the context of the antimicrobial hypothesis because most wild carnivores scavenge carrion, so they are frequently exposed to food-spoilage bacteria and fungi.
Moreover, some animals that store food add plants with antibacterial and antifungal properties to their caches e. These possible prophylactic uses should not be confused with consumption of aromatic plants by wild primates as a potential means of "self-medication" e. In light of the beneficial effects of spices, why aren't spices used equally often everywhere?
The answer probably lies in the costs of spice use, including financial costs to procure parts of plants that do not grow locally e. Indeed, Ames et al. As one example, in small quantities chilis have antimicrobial and therapeutic effects, but ingestion of large amounts of capsaicin has been associated with necrosis, ulceration, and carcinogenesis Surh and Lee The implication is that too much of a good thing can be bad.
In hot climates, benefits of avoiding foodborne illnesses and food poisoning apparently outweigh the various costs of spices. But in cool climates, where unrefrigerated foods decay more slowly, benefits of further retarding spoilage may not be worth the costs and risks. Even in countries where spices are heavily used, pre-adolescent children Rozin and women in their first trimester of pregnancy Profet typically avoid highly spiced foods, especially meats. These differences in spice use may have a similar adaptive basis.
For example, Profet suggested that morning sickness may function to reduce maternal intake of foods containing teratogens during the early phase of embryogenesis, when delicate fetal tissues are most susceptible to chemical disruption.
Indeed, women who experience morning sickness are less likely to miscarry than women who do not Weigel and Weigel Young children, who are growing rapidly, may also be particularly sensitive tc environmental mutagens. Once pregnancy has progressed into the second trimester and once children reach puberty, the dangers of food poisoning and foodborne illnesses may again outweigh the mutagenic risks associated with phytochemicals Flaxman and Sherman in press.
Interestingly, maternal ingestion of spices late in pregnancy or during lactation can slightly bias offspring toward accepting spices e. The antimicrobial hypothesis is not the only explanation that has been proposed to explain spice use; however, careful consideration of the alternatives reveals that all have significant flaws.
For example, one proximate hypothesis is that spices disguise the smell and taste of spoiled foods Govindarajan Our finding that traditional meat-based recipes from hotter countries more frequently called for spices, and more pungent spices, is consistent with this idea because there would more often be foul smells and bad tastes to "cover up" due to rapid spoilage.
However, the problem with this hypothesis as an ultimate evolutionary explanation is that it ignores the potentially serious negative consequences of ingesting foods laced with bacteria or their toxins. Even poorly nourished individuals would often be better off if they recognized and passed up foods containing potentially deadly spoilage microorganisms.
How many times have you gone to use a spice only to find it is expired? By using whole spices and grinding them yourself, you reduce this chance since they last longer. Keep in mind that you will want to store your whole spices in a cool, dark place. Airtight jars are a great way to store spices in your pantry or cabinet. Try to avoid storing spices in cabinets above the stove top or refrigerator because the heat radiating from these appliances can shorten the lifetime of your spices.
Another benefit of buying whole spices is that you can buy them in bulk. Instead of being limited to a tiny bottle of a pre-ground spice, you can buy as much of the whole spice as you need.
Once you start cooking, you simply grind the amount you need for your recipe, keeping the rest of the whole spices stored away in the pantry. Remember, as soon as a spice is exposed to the air, its flavor will start to diminish. You may be wondering, where do I get these whole spices? Specialty grocery stores like Whole Foods that carry a unique variety of foods will typically have whole spices that you can purchase.
In addition, you can order whole spices in bulk online from places like spiceandtea. Since these spices will last for a long time, feel free to buy in bulk and store them until you need them. Better tasting food with deeper and richer flavors sounds great, right? But what about the convenience of just being able to grab a container of pre-ground spices and shake it over your recipe?
Who has the time to grind all of their spices? Fortunately, FinaMill gives people a simple solution. Our battery-operated spice grinder contains interchangeable pods that store the spices after the grinding.
For example, if you are making a recipe that needs salt, pepper, and cloves, start by grabbing the whole spices. Then put each spice in its own pod. Grind the salt; switch to the pepper pod. Grind the pepper; switch to the clove pod. These 17 flavor and taste characteristics can combine in, literally, tens of thousands of ways. Thanks to the manner in which our senses work together to interpret our world we can enjoy spices with complex flavor profiles that can be simultaneously cooling, earthy, floral, fruity, herbaceous, hot, nutty, piney, pungent, spicy, sulfury, or woody.
Food historians tend to believe that we developed the inherent ability to determine bitter tastes in self-defense—toxic compounds tend to give off bitter flavors, so tasting them would signal us to spit that food out. But not all bitter foods are toxic; when used judiciously in food preparation, a bitter element can bring balance to sweet food, enhance umami, and cleanse the palate by cutting through rich flavors, which then allows us to enjoy our food without being overwhelmed.
Bitter flavors can be found in a wide range of herbs and spices, and some of them may surprise you. We all know the brackish, prickly taste of salt, that serves to make other flavors pop. It is the only rock we eat, and it comes in a wide range of colors and sizes, from snowy white and finely ground to black and coarse. To see the varieties of salt we have available, please visit our page that features Gourmet Salts. Sour tastes, that pinch the sinuses and pucker the mouth, indicate the presence of organic acids.
One of the five basic tastes, sourness serves as a warning that food might have gone bad or be harmful. Acidic tartness, when applied sensibly, can bring playful balance to food; think of how a squeeze of lime brightens up the heaviness of a beef enchilada. Our tongues are wired to taste sugary sweetness. At its most basic form, sugar is energy, and our taste buds want sweetness because we want to find simple ways to ingest that energy. Sugar binds with chemical receptors in the mouth and goes directly to the gustatory cortex—the part of the brain that processes flavor and taste—triggering pleasant sensations and perceptions.
Umami — The newest taste to be officially recognized, umami is generally described as the savory and deep quality that gives craveable richness to foods. It was originally linked to the presence of glutamic acid found in seaweed, but has also been connected to the compounds inosinate and guanylate, which are often present in high-protein food.
The cool sensation you get from herbs like mint is known as chemesthesis, a reaction that occurs when certain chemical compounds in food activate certain receptors in your mouth. Earthy flavors are rich and minerally. They originate from an organic compound called geosmin , that is present in soil and can impact the foods that grow closely in it, like potatoes and beets. We are particularly sensitive to the presence of geosmin, and are able to detect it at concentrations of parts per trillion.
Some earthy spices include Achiote , Cumin , Saffron , Turmeric. Floral flavors tend to be sophisticated and elegant, and surprisingly strong. They can be tart, or bitter, or peppery, but share aromatic qualities that trigger the smell receptors that line the nose and throat.
Their smell is a profound factor in their flavor and we are wired to detect florals—we smell one of the chemical compounds in the aroma of roses at concentrations of 5 parts per billion—so they are easy to over-use. Used wisely, they bring ethereal fragrance and gentle sumptuousness to food. Fruity — Fruity flavors are generally bright and bracing.
They can be juicy and berry-like, or tart and citrusy. Fruit flavors are often the result of the presence of esters, a compound that develops from the synthesis of organic alcohols and acids.
Herbaceous — Herbaceous flavors are full of personality. The flavors can range from clean and grassy, like parsley, or warm and peppery, like sage, with a welcoming perfume that lingers as the flavor fades. Hot spices work the same way that cooling spices do, triggering a reflex reaction—chemesthesis—rather than changing the physical temperature of your mouth.
The chemical that causes the change is, most often, capsaicin, the active heat compound in chile peppers that gives it that fire, though there can be other compounds that elicit similar reactions.
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