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Monday, August 8, 2011

THAI HERBS AND SPICES Ob Choei

Cinnamon is another spice utilized in Thai cooking, in fact it is used in most Asian countries. The spice is sold primarily in a stick, or grounded into a fine powder, it gives dishes a sweet aroma and a distinct taste. The sticks come from the cinnamon tree, it takes about 2 years to grow. The inner part of the bark is used.
Wild Cinnamon Tree Leaves














Cinnamon Sticks (quills) Ob Choei a very ancient spice, there are passages in the Bible that talks about cinnamon. Is it a holy spice? Some people believe it is, it is a blessed spice, very fragrant, put into braises and stews, or the powdered form into desserts and cold drinks with a team of nutmeg and brown sugar with coconut milk over crushed ice lends a very simple drink. Thai chefs utilize cinnamon in some dishes but not all. This spice is used by many Asiain chefs, and it is a standard in the Filipino's pork and peas dish. Cinnamon can be rather costly, but watch for the bad quality cinnamon out there, always take a good sniff at the cinnamon, usually sold in glass jars, don't waste time and money on cheap cinnamon which is probably old, it is better to spend a little extra and get good stuff. Usually in fine gourmet shops you will find very good spices either in whole form or grounded, take my word for it, once you purchase good quality spices, you won't dare waste your time and money on cheap low quality spices, like the old saying goes, "you get what you pay for."

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