Field Guide to Herbs & Spices: How to Identify, Select, and Use Virtually Every Seasoning at the Market

by Aliza Green

Field Guide to Herbs & Spices will forever change the way you cook. With this practical guide—including full-color photographs of more than 200 different herbs, spices, and spice mixtures—you’ll never again be intimidated or confused by the vast array of spices available.
 
Learn to discern the differences between the varieties of basil, the various colors of sesame seeds, the diverse types of sugar and salt, and even how to identify spice pastes like zhoug, harissa, and achiote. Each entry features a basic history of the herb or spice (saffron used to be worth more than gold!), its season (if applicable), selection and preparation tips, a recipe featuring the seasoning, and some suggested flavor pairings. Complete with more than one hundred recipes, Field Guide to Herbs & Spices is a must-have resource for every home cook.
 
Meals will never be the same again!

Genres: Cookbooks, Cooking, Food, Reference, Culinary, Nonfiction

320 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2006

About the author

Aliza Green is an award-winning Philadelphia-based author, journalist, and influential chef whose books include The Fishmonger’s Apprentice (Quarry Books, 2010), Starting with Ingredients: Baking (Running Press, 2008) and Starting with Ingredients (Running Press, 2006), four Field Guides to food (Quirk, 2004-2007), Beans: More than 200 Delicious, Wholesome Recipes from Around the World (Running Press, 2004) and collaborations with famed chefs Guillermo Pernot and Georges Perrier. A former food columnist for the Philadelphia Inquirer and Philadelphia Daily News, Green now write regularly for Cooking Light, and is known for her encyclopedic knowledge of every possible ingredient, its history, culture, and use in the kitchen and bakery. Green’s books have garnered high praise from critics, readers, and culinary professionals alike, including a James Beard award for “Best Single-Subject Cookbook” in 2001 for Ceviche!: Seafood, Salads, and Cocktails with a Latino Twist (Running Press, 2001), which she co-authored with Chef Guillermo Pernot.
--bio from Making Artisan Pasta

Reviews

[Molly · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a sound little reference. My favorite part was that it lists what to look for when purchasing (and what to avoid). The parts about what to season with and recipes are great, but the what-to-look-for section is one I haven't seen in many other books.

[Manintheboat · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is amazing. I LOVE that it offers what to do with that spice. You think, "I have an entire sack of achiote. What do I do with it?" this book will tell you. I have learned about a bunch of spices I have never even heard of before. I love the pictures.

[Debbie · Rating 3 out of 5]

good little book. i'm already planning a new herb planter garden for the spring and this book got me ready. now for warmer weather.