On food and cooking the science and lore of the kitchen ( PDFDrive ) 744

ABriefHistoryofSpices
The story of spices is a colorful one, and
hasbeentoldmanytimes.Itturnedoutthat
tropical Asia was especially rich in spice
plants.TothepeoplesoftheMediterranean
andEurope,whodependedonArabtraders
for both the spices and information about
them,thismeantthatcinnamonandpepper
andgingerwereraretreasuresfromfabled
lands.
TheRomansknewanumberofEastern
spices but in cooking used mainly pepper.
A thousand years later, Arab cultural
influence introduced other spices to
wealthy medieval tables throughout
Europe, and demand for them grew with
the middle classes. Medieval sauces often
call for a half-dozen spices, usually
beginning with cinnamon, ginger, and
grains of paradise. The Turkish control of
supplyroutesandpricesimpelledPortugal
andSpaintosearchforanewsearouteto


Asia;ColumbusreachedtheAmericas,the
home of chillis and vanilla, in 1492, and
VascodaGamareachedIndiain1498.The
PortugueseandthentheSpanishcontrolled
the Spice Islands and the trade in nutmeg
and cloves until around 1600, when the
Dutch embarked on two centuries of

brutallyefficientcontrol.
Asspiceswereplantedinothertropical
countries and became cheaper and more
commonly available, they slowly faded
fromtheirformerprominenceinEuropean
dishes, persisting mainly in sweets. But at
the end of the 20th century, the
consumption of herbs and spices rose
sharplyintheWest.IntheUnitedStatesit
tripledbetween1965and2000(toabout4
grams per day per person), thanks to a
growing appreciation of Asian and Latin
American foods, and especially the
spicinessof“hot”chillis.
TheNatureofFlavor