# What are your favorite spices? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 7, 2012, 12:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-spices/612063 "2012-02-07T12:47:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2012, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-spices/612063/21 "2012-02-07T16:57:21Z")
My “other” would be “cardamom”. Great in many sweet, and a few savory, dishes. And a few seeds in your coffee transports you to a caravan on the Rub Al 'Khali. Now, what do you guys mean by “curry” as a “spice”? Curry _leaf_? That’s good stuff, but it’s pretty rarely used in the US, and for the dishes that do use it, it’s usually a small addition to the overall flavor. Perhaps you all mean “cumin, tumeric, cayenne pepper, coriander, usually some mustard seed, and sometimes some other stuff, all mixed together”, but then you wouldn’t have listed those as separate spices. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2012, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-spices/612063/22 "2012-02-07T17:05:57Z")
> [@JKellyMap](#): > > Now, what do you guys mean by “curry” as a “spice”? Curry _leaf_? That’s good stuff, but it’s pretty rarely used in the US, and for the dishes that do use it, it’s usually a small addition to the overall flavor. > > Perhaps you all mean “cumin, tumeric, cayenne pepper, coriander, usually some mustard seed, and sometimes some other stuff, all mixed together”, but then you wouldn’t have listed those as separate spices. I was going to point that out, but didn’t have the time. I’ve never even seen curry, the actual spice. Even curry powder, the mixed blend, has no specific set of ingredients. I generally make the spice mix myself now, but still use curry powders to get that genuine Americanized Indian restaurant flavor. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2012, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-spices/612063/23 "2012-02-07T17:10:11Z")
FYI I originally included salt, then deleted it. My favorites are cumin, ceyenne, and paprika. mmm ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2012, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-spices/612063/24 "2012-02-07T17:11:47Z")
How is curry not winning?! ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2012, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-spices/612063/25 "2012-02-07T17:16:51Z")
We use a ton of spices and have a decent garden of fresh stuff (including a pretty bay leaf tree), but I honestly can’t answer the poll. Favorite? I use what is applicable to a situation/recipe. ---
**Author:** ![gallows\_fodder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8c91f0/32.png) [@gallows\_fodder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gallows_fodder)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2012, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-spices/612063/26 "2012-02-07T17:35:58Z")
I included a vote for bay leaf, because I use it in all my stews, but I have to confess…I don’t actually know what it tastes like. :o I don’t know that I could distinguish between a stew made with bay leaf and one without. I just use it out of tradition. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2012, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-spices/612063/27 "2012-02-07T17:39:10Z")
> [@needscoffee](#): > > How is curry not winning?! Most of us have taste buds? 😛 ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2012, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-spices/612063/28 "2012-02-07T17:41:07Z")
I can’t vote, as I’d vote for all them (unless by basil, dill, and parsley you mean the dried types.) You’re missing clove on the list, which is what I was initially looking for. I guess in the frequency I use _dried_ spices, it would be: powdered chiles/dried chiles/chile flakes of all kinds, black pepper, paprika, cumin, caraway, allspice or clove, thyme, cinnamon, marjoram, rosemary, nutmeg or mace. But all those I use with regularity, so the difference in frequency may not be that much between them. If you count fresh ginger root, than that will be up there in the top four or five. I pretty much use all of them fairly regularly, with the exception of anise (only specialized uses for me) and savory (I’ve been out since my plant died.) Also, I tend not to use garlic or onion powder except occasionally in a dry rub or Creole-type spice mix. I, too, use MSG shamelessly when I feel it is appropriate. ---
**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2012, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-spices/612063/29 "2012-02-07T19:41:18Z")
I voted for over half of them. I thought **Savory** meant **MSG** , if it’s not, oh well, I voted for it. My **Other** would be **Rosemary.** ETA: what the? I didn’t even see **rosemary** on the list. Okay, then I nominate **saffron** for Other. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2012, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-spices/612063/30 "2012-02-07T19:56:11Z")
> [@cmyk](#): > > I thought **Savory** meant **MSG** , if it’s not, oh well, I voted for it. [This is savory.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Savory_(genus)) The main varieties are summer savory and winter savory. It’s an herb in the general ballpark of thyme/sage/oregano, that sort of thing. ---
**Author:** ![aruvqan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aruvqan/32/2891_2.png) [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2012, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-spices/612063/31 "2012-02-07T20:22:08Z")
> [@Sigmagirl](#): > > I’m with **fluiddruid** on the smoked paprika. It took Penzey’s a long time to add it; I requested it for years. I like tarragon a lot and when I discovered my husband likes it (he’s extremely picky), I started using it more. I use Sunny Paris and Fox Point (unfortunately the latter is not salt-free). I like the taste of rosemary, but herbs that are based on bark, like rosemary and cinnamon are migraine triggers for me. I also cannot tolerate lavender, so herbes de Provence is out. > > I’m going to buy some Parisien Bonnes Herbes. Rosemary isn’t a bark, it is a prickly long slender oval leather like leaf. Sort of spikey. Makes it easy to poke into a slab of lamb or pork =) I use most every one - it is not unknown for me to drop over $100 at penzyes when we are flush with cash. ---
**Author:** ![Lukeinva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lukeinva/32/17872_2.png) [@Lukeinva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lukeinva)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2012, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-spices/612063/32 "2012-02-07T20:22:24Z")
A whole chicken brined in salt, sugar and cumin and then grilled (either butterfly or rotisserrie) is the best easiest Peruvian chicken you can make, and it is awesome. Accompany with a garlic aioli… ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2012, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-spices/612063/33 "2012-02-07T20:29:50Z")
32 replies and no one has yet belted out a verse of Parsley, Sage, Rosemary & Thyme?? mmm ---
**Author:** ![Labdad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/439d5e/32.png) [@Labdad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labdad)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2012, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-spices/612063/34 "2012-02-07T21:26:35Z")
I rarely use onion powder and garlic powdwr, but I use onion and garlic in most everything I cook. I just find it better to use in it natural state. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2012, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-spices/612063/35 "2012-02-07T21:40:40Z")
I object to the omission of garlic from the list. Yes, there’s garlic _powder_, but that’s a poor substitute for the real, fresh, thing. > [@](#): > > Quoth **silenus** : > You left out chilis in all forms. Not in all forms; the poll does include cayenne and paprika. And I didn’t check off “curry” because curry isn’t a spice; it’s a mixture of spices. ---
**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2012, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-spices/612063/36 "2012-02-08T03:20:43Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > [This is savory.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Savory_(genus)) The main varieties are summer savory and winter savory. It’s an herb in the general ballpark of thyme/sage/oregano, that sort of thing. :smack: Well, I love all three in that class, especially fresh Oregano (my favorite herb), so… Yay. ---
**Author:** ![VOW](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/vow/32/3043_2.png) [@VOW](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VOW)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2012, 3:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-spices/612063/37 "2012-02-08T03:26:11Z")
Cardamom is wonderful! I also like blends, like Chinese 5-spice, and Garam Masala. ~VOW ---
**Author:** ![chiroptera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/df705f/32.png) [@chiroptera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chiroptera)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2012, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-spices/612063/38 "2012-02-08T03:55:52Z")
Garlic and onion powder are abominations, I’ll use the real thing. Also, other - red pepper flakes, cayenne, etc. Quite possibly if I could only choose one spice in the world, it would be hot red pepper flakes. ---
**Author:** ![Taomist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/53a042/32.png) [@Taomist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Taomist)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2012, 6:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-spices/612063/39 "2012-02-08T06:26:33Z")
Garlic and cumin are the two that I simply cannot add too much of, in anything. And I try! Meatballs with cumin, fried in more cumin, tossed into albondigas made with more cumin…YUM!!! ---
**Author:** ![brittekland](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/aeb1de/32.png) [@brittekland](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brittekland)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2012, 8:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-spices/612063/40 "2012-02-08T08:16:10Z")
My favorite spices are black pepper, garlic (not so much powder but the real thing), basil, parsley, fresh (French) tarragon, thyme, rosemary and curry… but my favorite go to herb mix is Herbes de Provence; I use that for about 50% of my cooking. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-spices/612063.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-favorite-spices/612063.md?page=3)