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The Spice Rack: Coriander

The Spice Rack: Coriander ~ The culinary and historically diverse spice, both whole and ground, has many uses in the modern global kitchen. The Spice Rack: Coriander ~ The culinary and historically diverse spice, both whole and ground, has many uses in the modern global kitchen ~ The Complete Savorist by Michelle De La Cerda I decided coriander was the best place to start this series, The Spice Rack. It’s probably one of the most confused ingredients when it comes to herbs and spices.

Confusion is often compounded when reading ‘foreign to you’ recipes (i.e. an American reading a UK, Mexican, or Indian recipe blogger post/cookbook or vice versa).

In America, the green leafy plant is called cilantro, but, it is also known globally as coriander. It’s also culinarily classified as an herb, so I won’t be talking about it much in this article since this is about spices, but I will eventually delve into it when I hit herbs.

For this series, I don’t want to go into all the scientific mumbo jumbo that you can gleam off Wikipedia, because I’d just be regurgitating Wikipedia to you and who needs that?The Spice Rack: Coriander ~ The culinary and historically diverse spice, both whole and ground, has many uses in the modern global kitchen ~ The Complete Savorist by Michelle De La Cerda

Alright, so when you are reading cookbooks, recipe blogs, etc, and you see coriander or cilantro listed you have to look at the author/source to know what is actually needed:

  • America: the fresh plant is called cilantro and seeds are dried and used either whole or ground but will be listed as coriander.
  • UK: coriander is the plant Americans call cilantro and the dried seed, either whole or ground is generally referred to as coriander seed, then specifying whole or ground.
  • Mexico: the plant is referred to as cilantro (which is the Spanish word for coriander) and the seed is referred to as such; coriander seed, then specifying whole or ground.
  • India: the most straight forward and least confusing of all: fresh coriander leaves (which often includes some stems as well), coriander seed, and ground coriander.
  • Asia (all cuisines in general): fresh coriander for the leaves and stems, coriander seed, then specifying whole or ground. If you see an ingredient listing for Chinese parsley, that is fresh coriander/cilantro as well.

The Spice Rack: Coriander ~ The culinary and historically diverse spice, both whole and ground, has many uses in the modern global kitchen ~ The Complete Savorist by Michelle De La Cerda

Back when I was in college studying ancient and classical history, I was always fascinated by what food remains were discovered in tombs and other archaeological sites.

Coriander has been found in many places throughout time:

  • Nahal Hemar Cave in Israel dating back to 7600-6000 BCE indicating its early culinary uses.
  • King Tutankhamen’s (1332-23 BCE) body was treated with coriander during the mummification process which would point to an Ancient Egyptian knowledge/belief in its medicinal and/or spiritual properties.
  • Coriander seeds have been found in many classical antiquity sites c. 8th C BCE-7th C CE (Greece and Roman strongholds throughout Europe) in both kitchen/hearth areas and in religious areas where they were used as sacraments or offerings to the gods.
  • Made its way to the Americas in 1670 by the British colonists.

The Spice Rack: Coriander ~ The culinary and historically diverse spice, both whole and ground, has many uses in the modern global kitchen ~ The Complete Savorist by Michelle De La Cerda

Coriander is now used in so many cuisines all over the world, making it one of the most versatile and well known. I have used coriander is countless recipes and I gathered a few recipes from fellow recipe developers to show how diverse the spice truly is.

American/Western European:

Spiced Roasted Potatoes ~ Three types of potatoes (sweet, red, and golden), diced and spiced then roasted; the perfect side dish to any meal ~ The Complete Savorist

Grilled Chicken with Fennel and Apricots by She Loves Biscotti

Charred Lemon, Rosemary and Coriander Gin & Tonic by Sprinkles and Sprouts

Indian:

Indian Spiced Butter Chicken ~ Classic Indian chicken dish in a hearty spiced creamy tomato sauce of yogurt, cream, and ghee served with basmati rice ~ The Complete Savorist

hrimp Coconut Curry by Happy and Harried

Latin/Hispanic:

Slow Cooker White Bean and Chicken Chili by Karen's Kitchen Stories

Blue Corn Fish Tacos by Compass and Fork

Asian:

Malaysian Chicken Satay by Wok and Skillet

Pho Ga (Vietnamese Chicken Noodle Soup) by The Rustic Foodie

Middle Eastern/African:

Pumpkin Hummus ~ Classic hummus of chickpeas (garbanzo beans), tahini, olive oil, and lemon juice given a fresh twist with pumpkin puree, pepitas, and warming spices ~ The Complete Savorist #SamsClubMag ad

Sheet Pan Moroccan Spiced Chicken by Bourbon and Honey

The Spice Rack: Coriander ~ The culinary and historically diverse spice, both whole and ground, has many uses in the modern global kitchen ~ The Complete Savorist by Michelle De La Cerda References (Contains some affiliate links)

Coriander by Axel Diederichsen

Wikipedia
The Spice Rack: Coriander ~ The culinary and historically diverse spice, both whole and ground, has many uses in the modern global kitchen ~ The Complete Savorist by Michelle De La Cerda

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16 Comments

  • Reply
    Dorothy at Shockingly Delicious
    July 3, 2017 at 5:20 am

    What a great collection of recipes! I love cilantro AND coriander, and consider them both essential to my kitchen. Thanks for including my recipe for Avocado on Toast with Truffle Salt in your list. Pinning and sharing now.

    • Reply
      Michelle De La Cerda
      July 3, 2017 at 10:02 am

      It’s an essential item in my kitchen as well. Thanks for letting me use your post in my collection.

  • Reply
    Joanie @ One Dish Kitchen
    July 3, 2017 at 3:12 pm

    I love this series and look forward to learning more about different spices. I can’t wait to browse through the collection of recipes featured here, I happen to love using coriander but don’t use if often enough. I think these recipes will inspire me to cook with it more often.

    • Reply
      Michelle De La Cerda
      July 3, 2017 at 3:51 pm

      Thank you Joanie, I am having a lot of fun with this series. The research is so enjoyable to me.

  • Reply
    Amanda | The Chunky Chef
    July 3, 2017 at 6:53 pm

    I love learning about different spices, and coriander is such a great flavor!

  • Reply
    Jen
    July 3, 2017 at 8:21 pm

    What an informative series! I loved learning the history behind it. Can’t wait for the next one.

  • Reply
    Eshika Roy
    July 4, 2017 at 12:42 am

    Thank you for sharing all these amazing recipes. I didn’t knew that coriander can be used in such a wide variety of dishes. I can’t wait to try some of these dishes. Looking forward to your next post.

  • Reply
    Anna @ Crunchy Creamy Sweet
    July 4, 2017 at 11:20 am

    Love this series! Coriander is one of my favorite to cook with.

  • Reply
    Dee
    July 4, 2017 at 11:31 am

    Fascinating — It’s one of my favorites!

  • Reply
    Erin Dee
    July 4, 2017 at 5:53 pm

    What a great series! Lots of great information you shared in this post about coriander! And the recipes sound so good too!

  • Reply
    eat good 4 life
    July 5, 2017 at 5:22 am

    Great information. I love coriander and use it for many of my recipes. Great recipe suggestions too.

  • Reply
    Hawaiian-Inspired BBQ Spice Blend - The Complete Savorist
    July 5, 2017 at 2:04 pm

    […] the Spice Rack series (and newest article is about coriander) has really motivated me to delve into my own spice rack and see what concoctions I can come up […]

  • Reply
    Christine
    July 8, 2017 at 5:24 am

    Love this post – Coriander is such a great spice! Thank you for including my Pho Ga recipe. I will share this post all around!

  • Reply
    Mushroom Tarragon Roasted Pork Tenderloin - The Complete Savorist
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    […] a few weeks ago, after publishing on Coriander, I asked for everyone to vote between tarragon and oregano, the top two from the original vote. […]

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