SRM INSTITUTE OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

HOR18303 Production technology of spices

Assignment on
Classification of spices and flavouring compounds in
spices

Course Teacher Submitted By

Dr. S. Anandhi Jaiganesh.J
Asst. Professor RA1871001010017

External Examiner

FACULTY OF AGRICULTURAL SCIENCES

SRM INSTITUTE OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
(Deemed to be University u/s 3 of UGC Act, 1956)
Kattankulathur, Kancheepuram – 603 203, Tamil Nadu, India.
2019-2020
Spices:
 Spices are those plants, the products of which are made use as food
adjuncts to add aroma and flavour.
 They contains essential oil which provide the flavour and taste.
 They are little nutritive value.
 There are about 63 spices grown in India and almost all spices can be
grown in India because of the varied climate

Classification of spices:
1.Major spices:
Black pepper, Cardamom, Ginger, Turmeric
2.Seed spices:
Coriander, fennel, cumin fenugreek, Dill, Aniseed, caraway, celery and Bishop
weed
3.Tree spices:
Clove, Nutmeg, Cinnamon, All spice, cassia, tamarind, Bay leaf, curry leaf
4.Herbal spices:
Rosemary, thyme, horse radish, parsley etc.,
5.Other spices:
Vanilla, saffron, asafetida, garlic etc...,

Major spices
Black pepper
Scientific name: Piper nigrum
 Ground dried and cooked peppercorns have been used since antiquity, both for flavour
and as a traditional medicine.
  Black pepper is the world's most traded spice, and is one of the most common spices
added to cuisines around the world.
 Its spiciness is due to the chemical compound piperine, which is a different kind of spicy
from the capsaicin characteristic of chili peppers.
 It is ubiquitous in the modern world as a seasoning, and is often paired with salt and
available on dining tables in shakers or mills.
 Pepper loses flavor and aroma through evaporation, so airtight storage helps preserve its
spiciness longer.
 Pepper can also lose flavor when exposed to light, which can transform piperine into
nearly tasteless isochavicine. Once ground, pepper's aromatics can evaporate quickly;
most culinary sources recommend grinding whole peppercorns immediately before use
for this reason.
 Handheld pepper mills or grinders, which mechanically grind or crush whole
peppercorns, are used for this as an alternative to pepper shakers that dispense ground
pepper.
 Spice mills such as pepper mills were found in European kitchens as early as the 14th
century, but the mortar and pestle used earlier for crushing pepper have remained a
popular method for centuries, as well.

Cardamom
Scientific name: Elettaria cardamomum
 Cardamom has a strong, unique taste, with an intensely aromatic, resinous fragrance.

 Black cardamom has a distinctly more smoky, though not bitter, aroma, with a coolness
some consider similar to mint.

 It is a common ingredient in Indian cooking. It is also often used in baking in the Nordic
countries, in particular in Sweden, Norway, and Finland, where it is used in traditional
treats such as the Scandinavian Jule bread Julekake, the Swedish kardemummabullar
sweet bun, and Finnish sweet bread pulla.

 In the Middle East, green cardamom powder is used as a spice for sweet dishes, as well
as traditional flavouring in coffee and tea. Cardamom is used to a wide extent in savoury
dishes.
  In some Middle Eastern countries, coffee and cardamom are often ground in a wooden
mortar, a mihbaj, and cooked together in a skillet, a mehmas, over wood or gas, to
produce mixtures as much as 40% cardamom.
 Flavour compounds: a-terpinyl acetate. 1-8-cineule. Linalool

Seed spices
Coriander
Scientific name : Coriandrum sativum
 Most people perceive the taste of coriander leaves as a tart, lemon/lime taste, but a
smaller group of about 3–21% of people tested (depending on ethnicity) think the leaves
taste like dish soap, linked to a gene which detects some specific aldehydes that are also
used as odorant substances in many soaps and detergents.
 Raw coriander leaves are 92% water, 4% carbohydrates, 2% protein, and less than 1% fat
(table). The nutritional profile of coriander seeds is different from the fresh stems or
leaves. In a 100 gram reference amount, leaves are particularly rich in vitamin A, vitamin
C and vitamin K, with moderate content of dietary minerals.
 Although seeds generally have lower content of vitamins, they do provide significant
amounts of dietary fiber, calcium, selenium, iron, magnesium and manganese.
 Flavour compound: d-linalool. C10-C 14-2-alkenals

Fennel
Scientific name : Foeniculum vulgare
 Fennel is widely cultivated, both in its native range and elsewhere, for its edible, strongly
flavored leaves and fruits.
 Its aniseed flavor comes from anethole, an aromatic compound also found in anise and
star anise, and its taste and aroma are similar to theirs, though usually not as strong.
 The aromatic character of fennel fruits derives from volatile oils imparting mixed aromas,
including trans-anethole and estragole (resembling liquorice), fenchone (mint and
camphor), limonene,1-octen-3-ol (mushroom). Other phytochemicals found in fennel
 fruits include polyphenols, such as rosmarinic acid and luteolin, among others in minor
content.
 Flavour compound:(E)-anethole, fenchone

Tree spices:
clove:
Scientific name: Syzygium aromaticum
 Cloves may be used to give aromatic and flavor qualities to hot beverages, often
combined with other ingredients such as lemon and sugar.
 They are a common element in spice blends such as pumpkin pie spice and speculoos
spices. Eugenol is toxic in relatively small quantities; for example, a dose of 5–10 ml has
be Eugenol composes 72–90% of the essential oil extracted from cloves, and is the
compound most responsible for clove aroma.
 Complete extraction occurs at 80 minutes in pressurized water at 125 °C (257 °F).
Ultrasound-assisted and microwave-assisted extraction methods provide more rapid
extraction rates with lower energy costs. Reported as being a near fatal dose for a two-
year-old child
 Flavour compound: Eugenol, eugeneyl acetate

Cinnamon
Scientific name: Cinnamomum verum
 Cinnamon is used mainly as an aromatic condiment and flavouring additive in a wide
variety of cuisines, sweet and savoury dishes, breakfast cereals, snackfoods, tea and
traditional foods.
 The aroma and flavour of cinnamon derive from its essential oil and principal component,
cinnamaldehyde, as well as numerous other constituents, including eugenol.
Flavour compound: Cinnamaldehyde, eugenol
Herbal spices
Rosemary
Scientific name : Rosmarinus officinalis
 Rosemary leaves are used as a flavoring in foods, such as stuffing and roast lamb, pork,
chicken, and turkey.
 Fresh or dried leaves are used in traditional Mediterranean cuisine.
 They have a bitter, astringent taste and a characteristic aroma which complements many
cooked foods.
 Herbal tea can be made from the leaves.
 When roasted with meats or vegetables, the leaves impart a mustard-like aroma with an
additional fragrance of charred wood that goes well with barbecued foods.
 Flavour compound:Verbenone,1-8-cineole, camphor, linanool

Parsley
Scientific name : Petroselinum crispum
 Parsley is widely used in European, Middle Eastern, and American cuisine.
 Curly leaf parsley is often used as a garnish.
 In central Europe, eastern Europe, and southern Europe, as well as in western Asia, many
dishes are served with fresh green chopped parsley sprinkled on top.
 Parsley is the main ingredient in Italian salsa verde, which is a mixed condiment of
parsley, capers, anchovies, garlic, and sometimes bread, soaked in vinegar.
 It is an Italian custom to serve it with bollito misto or fish.
 Gremolata, a mixture of parsley, garlic, and lemon zest, is a traditional accompaniment
to the Italian veal stew, ossobuco alla milanese.
 Flavour compound: Apiol

Other spices
Vanilla
Scientific name : Vanilla planifolia
  Vanilla is the second-most expensive spice after saffron because growing the vanilla seed
pods is labor-intensive.
 Despite the expense, vanilla is highly valued for its flavor.
 As a result, vanilla is widely used in both commercial and domestic baking, perfume
manufacture, and aromatherapy.
 Vanilla essence occurs in two forms. Real seedpod extract is a complex mixture of
several hundred different compounds, including vanillin, acetaldehyde, acetic acid,
furfural, hexanoic acid, 4-hydroxybenzaldehyde, eugenol, methyl cinnamate, and
isobutyric acid.
 Synthetic essence consists of a solution of synthetic vanillin in ethanol. The chemical
compound vanillin (4-hydroxy-3-methoxybenzaldehyde) is a major contributor to the
characteristic flavor and aroma of real vanilla and is the main flavor component of cured
vanilla beans.
 Vanillin was first isolated from vanilla pods by Gobley in 1858.By 1874, it had been
obtained from glycosides of pine tree sap, temporarily causing a depression in the natural
vanilla industry.
 Vanillin can be easily synthesized from various raw materials, but the majority of food-
grade (> 99% pure) vanillin is made from guaiacol.
 Flavour compound:Vanillin, p-OH-benzyl-methyl ether

Saffron
Scientific name : Crocus sativus
 Saffron is a spice derived from the flower of Crocus sativus, commonly known as the
"saffron crocus".
 The vivid crimson stigma and styles, called threads, are collected and dried to be used
mainly as a seasoning and colouring agent in food.
 Saffron has long been the world's most costly spice by weight.
 Although some doubts remain on its origin, it is believed that saffron originated in Iran.
 Flavour compound: Safranol