Spice encyclopedia

The 'phantom spice', carrying the scent of lemongrass

The conductor of sweetness — cherry leaf and apricot kernel in one bean

A wild pepper said to look 'just like caviar'

Nepal's sanshō. A citrus finish that lingers

The sweet leaf said to be the 'scent left behind' by a curry

A sweetness like maple. The depth that makes a curry taste like curry

Smoke, as if cured over a fire. It lights the memory of flame in a dish

The West African spice once called 'grains of paradise'

Japanese tingle, from a narrow band of land in Okuhida, Gifu

The 'queen of spices'. Cool and floral

The toasted core that comes to mind at the words 'the smell of curry'

The source of curry colour. A quiet, earthen scent

A thyme-like coolness; the great supporting player of the Indian kitchen

One berry that suggests cinnamon, clove and nutmeg at once

A carrot-family seed that recalls sweet herbal confectionery

The scent of sun. A herb that joins Italy to Asia

The leaf of the cassia tree. A sweetness that runs towards cinnamon

The sweet-sour of dried cherry, folded into the depth of a curry

The 'king of spices'. The black berry that moved the world

Cacao itself, before it becomes chocolate

That scent of rye bread and sauerkraut

The sturdier cinnamon, the one that holds up chai

A spice made of pulse, carrying toast and body

The source of heat. Variety and handling change its face

The 'queen of spices'. A byword for sweet scent

A nail-shaped bud, and the densest scent of all

Cacao as pure powder, with no sugar in it

Citrus in a seed; the quiet lead of a curry

A black tea for chai, that milk cannot drown

A gift of the desert. Fruit with the deep sweetness of dark sugar

Fennel of the finest sort, and the sweetest

The fish herb. A green seed, sweet and clearing

A warming rhizome, in kitchens the world over

The young berry of pepper. Fresh, green heat

A scent like lime, and a vivid tingle

The emblem of extreme heat, used here as a fuse for aroma

A clear Japanese tingle, grown in the mountains of Hida

What gin actually smells of. The fruit of a forest conifer

The scent of tom yum. A citrus leaf of South-East Asia

A black seed, toasted and onion-like

Where umami begins. A 'stock spice' out of the sea

The leaf of the laurel. Quiet keeper of the simmering pot

The true body of lemon scent lives in the peel

A pepper older than pepper. Heat that is sweet and almost scorched

Crimson lace around the nutmeg, and its scent

Oregano's refined relative. A sweet, gentle herb

Toasted whole, pungent when crushed — two faces

Partner to minced meat. A seed, sweet and warm

The strong, wild herb of pizza and tomato

A chilli without heat. The painter of colour and sweet scent

The drive behind toast and body. The groundnut

Menthol, and clarity. The coolest herb of all

Not a pepper at all. A rose-coloured, festive berry

The queen of nuts. A green kernel, sweet and toasted

The 'ma' of mapo tofu. A red husk with a bright tingle

A pinch of mineral that draws the sweetness of chai together

Memory, and dew of the sea. A herb as upright as pine

A silver-leaved herb, said by some to have given the sausage its name

A small oily seed that gives more scent the longer it toasts

Guanylate umami. The heavy artillery of Japanese scent

From Sichuan itself: a piercing tingle and a green scent

The eight-pointed star. A scent both sweet and dense

The scent of French cooking. A fine herb, running towards anise

The top grade of black pepper. Complexity that comes with size

Holy basil. The most revered herb in India

The 'scent of stillness'. A grass root, held in the earth

Black pepper, fully ripened. Refined heat that leaves the colour clean

The 'memory of the prairie'. A North American flower with the green of hay

The 'stillness of blue'. A flower that speaks in colour, not scent

The 'quiet mint'. A greyed, gentle coolness

A rounded coolness. The leaf that comes to mind at the word 'mint'

Sweet aroma in the shape of a leaf. Between basil and cinnamon

A chilli not chosen for heat. It is here for the scent of fruit

Mandarin peel, dried. Japan's citrus spice

A small seed that gives its scent only when bitten

The very standard of sweetness. A pod made by fermentation

A clear green scent. The herb of kusa-mochi, brought into a drink