As a spice
The line between spice and medicinal plant was never sharp historically: caraway, fennel, ginger, cinnamon and turmeric stand in both traditions. The decisive difference is the amount. A teaspoon of turmeric in food is not the same as a standardised capsule, and what is harmless in kitchen quantities can interact in therapeutic doses.
How it is done
- Buy whole spices and grind them shortly before use. Ground spice loses its essential oil within a few months.
- Toast seed spices such as caraway, coriander and fennel briefly in a dry pan until they smell — that opens the oil cells.
- Add delicate leaf herbs such as basil, parsley and dill at the end, otherwise they cook away.
- Fat-soluble compounds such as the curcumin of turmeric or the capsaicin of chilli need fat in the dish, otherwise they are largely not taken up.
- Digestive spices go into the dish, not after it — caraway in cabbage is the classic case.
What this form suits
Umbellifer seeds such as caraway, fennel, anise and coriander for flatulence, ginger for nausea, cinnamon and turmeric across the Ayurvedic and the European kitchen, bitters such as wormwood in herbal aperitifs before a meal.
Where it ends
Spice quantities are generally unproblematic for healthy adults. As soon as they become daily capsules or extracts, other rules apply: turmeric extracts have been linked to individual cases of liver damage, cassia cinnamon contains coumarin, which harms the liver in larger amounts, and ginger in high doses can affect blood clotting. Anyone on blood thinners, pregnant, or with liver disease should discuss spice preparations with a doctor or pharmacist — that does not apply to what goes into the food.
Plants used this way
42 plants in this database have at least one documented use in this form. Not on this list: toxic and legally controlled species — and, for plants carrying a caution, any internal use resting on folklore alone. Everything remains reachable through the search and the plant index.
Fresh leaves as a culinary herb for desserts, beverages (lemonade, cocktails), dressings, and poultry dishes.
Dried or fresh leaves as a culinary herb with fatty meats (goose, duck), stuffings, and gruit ale.
Dried peppercorns are a ubiquitous culinary seasoning; traditionally also used for cough, cold and digestive complaints (traditional use, not proof…
In the kitchen broccoli is used versatilely as a side vegetable, in soups, pasta dishes, raw in salads, and as a gratin ingredient.
As a vegetable side dish (steamed, blanched or roasted), Brussels sprouts provide dietary fibre (approx.
White cabbage in fermented products beyond sauerkraut: kimchi (Korean fermentation with chilli, garlic, ginger), tsukemono (Japanese salt-pickle va…
From fully ripe, dried and ground pepper fruits, paprika powder (sweet, hot, smoked) is produced.
Capsicum chinense provides the world's hottest cultivated edible fruits — Habanero (100,000–350,000 SHU), Scotch Bonnet (100,000–350,000 SHU), Bhut…
Carrots are one of the world's most widely used vegetables, present in nearly every cuisine: raw as a snack and salad ingredient, cooked in soups,…
In the traditional cuisine of Central and Eastern Europe, cauliflower is regarded as an easily digestible gentle vegetable and used after stomach p…
Roasted chicory root as caffeine-free coffee substitute (chicory coffee/'Muckefuck') - traditional ersatz coffee since the 18th century; its inulin…
Chives are a classic culinary herb of European and Asian cooking, cultivated since the Middle Ages.
True cinnamon (Ceylon cinnamon) is traditionally used as a spice for mild dyspeptic complaints, flatulence, and feeling of fullness.
As a culinary spice (whole or ground), cloves promote digestion, act carminatively (anti-flatulence), and stimulate gastric secretion.
Dried coriander seeds (fruits) are a classic culinary and medicinal spice.
In Azerbaijani and Georgian cuisine, cornelian cherries are used as a seasoning for rice dishes, meat sauces, and dried fruit preparations (Pestil/…
Pickled cucumbers (pickles, salt cucumbers, fermented sour cucumbers): cucumbers are preserved in vinegar brine (pickles) or via lactic acid fermen…
Dried cumin seeds are one of the oldest culinary spices in the world.
Rocket is used as a herb in Mediterranean cuisine in many forms: as pesto (raw-blended with Parmesan, pine nuts and olive oil), scattered over hot…
Briefly wilted or max.
Fresh root used as a spice – the clove-like eugenol aroma was historically popular as a beer flavouring (e.g.
In randomized trials, ground green cardamom was tested at 3 g per day over eight to sixteen weeks.
Kohlrabi is classically steamed or cooked as a side dish (with butter and herbs), processed into purée, used in stews and soups or for stuffings an…
Dried bay leaves are an indispensable spice in Mediterranean cooking: soups, stews, meat and fish dishes, marinades, bouquet garni.
Sweated or boiled leek as a mild, versatile vegetable in soups, stews and gratins — a classic winter vegetable of European cooking since antiquity.
Cornstarch (Amylum maydis, Maizena) is used worldwide as a thickener for sauces, soups, puddings and gluten-free baking.
Bitter component of stomach bitters and herbal digestive liqueurs to support digestion (digestif)
Table olive varieties as part of the Mediterranean diet — cardioprotective association documented by the PREDIMED trial; oleuropein debittering req…
Culinary staple used in nearly every cuisine: milder when cooked, sharper raw.
Fresh or frozen peas are steamed, boiled or added to stir-fries, risottos, pasta and soups.
Traditional kitchen bean in stews, salads and gratins — a classic of European and Latin American cuisine; traditionally combined with savory to red…
Dried and ground porcini yield an intensely aromatic seasoning powder for sauces, stocks and stews; the flavour intensifies on drying.
Potato starch (Amylum solani) is used industrially and in the household as a thickener for sauces, soups and desserts.
As a cooked vegetable, red cabbage is a staple of German and Austrian winter cuisine.
Classical use of the deseeded fruit flesh as jam, rose-hip liqueur, rose-hip sauce (e.g.
Culinary herb: the young leaves and bright red flowers have a fresh pineapple scent and a slightly sweet, fruity taste.
Dried and powdered stevia leaves are used worldwide as a calorie-free sugar substitute.
Culinary use (Georgia, Imereti region): dried ground ray florets are a traditional yellow spice — known as 'imeruli shaphrani' or Imeretian saffron.
Tomato paste, puree and cooked sauces (passata) are culinary preparations in which lycopene bioavailability is substantially improved by heat proce…
Dried turmeric rhizome powder for dyspeptic complaints — positive Kommission E monograph for Curcumae longae rhizoma.
The fermented vanilla pods (capsules) are one of the world's most important flavour spices.
Traditionally used to flavour bitter liqueurs and vermouth wine and as a digestive aperitif.