Spices are the soul of a cuisine. They not only add flavor, color, and aroma but also makes cooking an immensely exciting form of art that it is. They enable the cook to creatively express his emotions through his cooking and by inventing infinite number of recipes! On a given day he might choose to add just a few spices to keep things fresh and simple, while on another day he might be tempted to throw in a number of spices in order to combine multiple layers of complex flavors. But perhaps the most important role spices play in our lives, is that it saves us from the horrible monotony of tasting the same range of flavors everyday. By adding flavors to our food, spices essentially add flavors to our lives!
The spices mentioned here can be used whole or in a powdered form except the turmeric, nutmeg, and dried ginger, which is added to the dish only in the powdered form. A common spice that you may have heard of, garam masala, is actually a mixture of several spices, usually cinnamon, cardamom, clove, mace, nutmeg and bay leaf. Another one, paanch phoron, is usually a mixture of equal quantities of cumin seed, fennel seed, nigella, fenugreek seed and brown mustard seed. However the spice radhuni (which is not used much anywhere else but Bangladesh) is used in the mixture either as a replacement for brown mustard seed or fenugreek seed. I will have to check on that! Though celery seed is used as a substitute for radhuni, they are not exactly the same stuff.
The spices mentioned here can be used whole or in a powdered form except the turmeric, nutmeg, and dried ginger, which is added to the dish only in the powdered form. A common spice that you may have heard of, garam masala, is actually a mixture of several spices, usually cinnamon, cardamom, clove, mace, nutmeg and bay leaf. Another one, paanch phoron, is usually a mixture of equal quantities of cumin seed, fennel seed, nigella, fenugreek seed and brown mustard seed. However the spice radhuni (which is not used much anywhere else but Bangladesh) is used in the mixture either as a replacement for brown mustard seed or fenugreek seed. I will have to check on that! Though celery seed is used as a substitute for radhuni, they are not exactly the same stuff.
Bengali (Transliteration) | Hindi | English |
হলুদ (holud) | Haldi | Turmeric |
শুকনো মরিচ (shukno morich) | Lalmirch | Dried Red Chili |
জিরা (jeera) | Jeera | Cumin Seed |
ধনিয়া (dhonia) | Dhaniya | Coriander Seed |
মৌরি (mouri) | Saunf | Fennel Seed |
কালোজিরা (kalojeera) | Kalonji | Nigella/Onion Seed |
মেথি (methi) | Methi | Fenugreek Seed |
রাই (rai) | Rai | Brown Mustard Seed |
সরিষা (shorisha) | Sarson | Yellow Mustard Seed |
জওয়ান (jowan) | Ajwain | Carom Seed |
সাজীরা/শাহী জিরা (shajeera/shahijeera) | Shahi Jeera | Caraway Seed |
পোস্তদানা (postodana) | Khus Khus | Poppy Seed (white) |
তিল (til) | Til | Sesame Seed |
দারচিনি (darchini) | Dalchini | Cinnamon |
এলাচ/এলাচি (elach/elachi) | Elaichi | Cardamom |
লবঙ্গ (lobongo) | Lavang | Clove |
তেজপাতা (tejpata) | Tejpatte | Bay Leaf |
জয়ফল (joyfol) | Jaifal | Nutmeg |
জয়ত্রী (joyotri) | Javitri | Mace |
গোলমরিচ (golmorich) | Kalimirch | Black Pepper |
সাদা গোলমরিচ (shada golmorich) | Safed mirch | White Pepper |
রাঁধুনি (radhuni) | Ajmud | Wild Celery Seed |
বড় এলাচ (boro elach) | Bari Elaichi | Brown Cardamom |
জাফরান (zafran) | Kesar | Saffrom |
কাবাবচিনি (kababchini) | Kebabchini | Allspice |
কেওড়া পাতা (kewra pata) | Kevra | Vetiver Leaf |
আদা চূর্ণ (ada churno) | Adrak Powder | Dried Ginger Powder |
আমচুর (aamchur) | Aamchur | Dried Mango Powder |
হিং (hing) | Hing | Hing |
বিট লবন (bit lobon) | Kali Namak | Black/Rock Salt |
Kali jeera | Black Cumin Seed | |
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