The Contemporary Encyclopedia of Herbs and Spices: Seasonings for the Global Kitchen [Hardcover]

Tony Hill (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 10, 2004

IACP Cookbook Award Finalist

Nobody knows herbs and spices like Tony Hill, owner of Seattle's famed World Merchants Spice, Herb & Teahouse. Now, in this acclaimed book, Hill gives us a comprehensive guide to these essential flavorings based on his travels around the globe. Blending culinary history, the lore of the spice routes, and his own inimitable tasting notes, he profiles more than 125 herbs and spices, ranging from the familiar to the exotic. He gives practical information and advice, including how best to use nine popular chiles, what distinguishes true cinnamon from cassia cinnamon, and why it makes a difference where your bay leaf comes from—plus more than 75 delicious recipes for distinctively spiced dishes. To top it all off, Hill reveals the secret recipes for 85 of his signature herb and spice blends, including barbecue rubs, mulling spices, chili powders, chai mixes, and curry powders. Complete with 185 color photographs, The Spice Lover's Guide to Herbs & Spices is an indispensable culinary reference that is both a pleasure to cook with and enjoyable to read.

"Hill . . . is way ahead of cookbook authors who cling to parsley in a cilantro world. . . . This is the book for anyone who has been lucky enough to find grains of paradise or Aleppo pepper and wonders where to go from there."

—Regina Schrambling, Los Angeles Times

"Even those who never cook may find themselves often dipping into this intriguing read."

—CeCe Sullivan, The Seattle Times

Editorial Reviews

Review

Hill, owner of World Merchants, Spice, Herb and Tea House in Seattle, has traveled the globe in search of spices. In this book he generously shares the wealth of knowledge he's brought back. Information on 350 spices and herbs is included, with details on alternate and botanical names, plant family, countries of origin and cultivation, seasons of harvest, parts used, and colors to look for. There are also 75 different recipes and some 200 color photos. Hill's enthusiasm for his subject shines through, especially in the short essays covering historical and culinary details of individual herbs and spices. Jill Norman's superb Herbs and Spices: The Cook's Reference covers much of the same territory, but the alphabetic arrangement of Hill's book is perhaps easier to use than Norman's grouping by aroma and flavor. Hill's broader scope also means cooks will discover spices such as boldina leaf that are not included in Norman's book. On the other hand, the gorgeous visual design of Norman's book trumps the illustrations in Hill's.
Bottom Line Public libraries with limited budgets will definitely want Norman's book, but Hill's engaging and entertaining guide to herbs and spices would also be an excellent addition to any library's culinary collection. --John Charles, Scottsdale P.L., AZ (Library Journal, January 15, 2005)

The Contemporary Encyclopedia of Herbs & Spices is intended to attract dustings of fenugreek and drippings of gumbo with sassafras. Tony Hill lards his book with recipes that make you want to measure out anise-hyssop and cardamom lavishly after reading one of his chapters on the origins, alternate names and significant uses for both exotic and predictable seasonings.
Hill, who did much of his research while traveling as proprietor of the World Merchants spice and tea house in Seattle, is way ahead of cookbook authors who cling to parsley in a cilantro world. With spices so widely available on the Internet, he encourages exploration, not only describing what nigella seeds are (not spawn of Lawson but an Indian flavoring) but how to use them (to bake surprisingly easy crackers for cheese). This is the book for anyone who has been lucky enough to find grains of paradise or Aleppo pepper and wonders where to go from there. (Los Angeles Times, December 5, 2004)

From the Inside Flap

"The mere word 'spice' conjures up images of sailing ships and treasures from distant lands. Wars have been waged for cargos of cloves from the Banda Islands and empires bought and sold for trading rights to nutmeg. Ransoms and tribute were paid to the Emperor with spices in the days of old, outstripping even the value of gold. They all know that the secret to revealing food's wonders was in the spice."
—Tony Hill

Ingredients from around the world are more widely available to today's cooks than ever before, putting an international array of culinary possibilities within easy reach. An Understanding of herbs and spices is essential to making the most of this new "global Kitchen"—and Tony Hill's comprehensive, up-to-date resource is the ultimate guide to cooking with the seasonings that bring the world's cuisines to life.

In lively fashion, The Contemporary Encyclopedia of Herbs and Spices offers in-depth information on more than 350 herbs, spices, and spice blends. Entries range from familiar favorites like allspice to less familiar choices such as Kaffir limes leaves, and from American blends like Memphis-style dry rubs to more exotic seasonings such as Tunisian five-spice. Defining spice as any part of a plant that adds significant flavor—including seeds, barks, fruits, roots, leaves, stems, resins, flowers, and pods—this encyclopedia covers everything from availability to historical and botanical origins to cooking guidelines, plus more than 75 recipes that bring this colorful culinary world to life.

As acclaimed spice merchant and author Tony Hill writes, food is the passport to other cultures, and it is almost always the herbs and spices native to a region that create the "signature" taste people recognize and crave. Whether it's choosing between Allepo or maresh pepper, deciding whether to use Greek or Mexican oregano, or selecting just the right chile to turn up the heat in fresh salsa, the information in this invaluable reference will help you bring authentic flavor to any dish, no matter what its place of origin.

International in scope, with an eye toward up-to-the-minute seasonings, the encyclopedia explores the rich spectrum of herbs and spices used in cuisines all over the globe. Packed with need-to-know information, it is an invaluable tool that culinary enthusiast will turn to time and again.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 464 pages
• Publisher: Wiley; 1 edition (September 10, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 047121423X
• ISBN-13: 978-0471214236
• Product Dimensions: 9.6 x 7.5 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #466,139 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #66 in Books > Education & Reference > Encyclopedias > Cooking

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

63 of 67 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fresh insights on herbs and spices. Buy It!, November 17, 2005

By 

B. Marold "Bruce W. Marold" (Bethlehem, PA United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Contemporary Encyclopedia of Herbs and Spices: Seasonings for the Global Kitchen (Hardcover)

`The Contemporary Encyclopedia of herbs & spices' by Seattle spice merchant Tony Hill is a great contrast to the previous spice reference I reviewed, Jill Norman's `herbs & spices, the cook's reference' which I stated at the time may be the only book the amateur cook needs as a reference on herbs and spices. Herr Hill's work does not change my original opinion of Norman's book, but that is not because Hill's book is of lower quality than Norman's reference. It is because Norman's work is much more skillfully arranged to serve the average cook.

One of the great virtues of Ms. Norman's book is its arrangement by the general flavor of the spice or herb plant species and variation. Mr. Hill, as his title suggests, is a totally alphabetical arrangement by the most familiar common name for the herb or spice used from the plant. Therefore, Hill's book gives no easy resource for finding an herb that tastes something like borage. Mr. Hill's very personally phenomenological essay on the borage plant and its edible portions suggest it tastes something like mint and goes well with dill.

The single area where Mr. Hill outdoes Ms. Norman is in discoursing on the various types of bay, the one subject on which I gigged Ms. Norman in my review of her book. While Ms. Norman gives us only the classic Mediterranean (Turkish) bay, Mr. Hill cites four different varieties of plant yielding leaves called `bay leaves'. He echos most chef's preference for the Turkish variety, but gives us information whereby the California leaf can be put into service with the proper care to avoid having your recipe develop an aroma of Vicks Vaporub (metaphor stolen from Alton Brown). In the end, Ms. Norman still comes out ahead in the sense that all we really need is the Turkish bay, as I have never seen a recipe specify the California, Indian, or Indonesian varieties of bay. Ms. Norman pulls far ahead when we get to basil, for which she cites fourteen (14) different varieties, many of which are indeed specified in various Mediterranean, Indian, and East Asian recipes.

Ms. Norman is also a far better reference for spice sources (although for some odd reason, she overlooks Pensey's Spices) since Mr. Hill is himself a spice merchant. You would hardly expect a book written by Mr. Starbuck to tell you where to find Maxwell House coffee (I do find it odd, though, that Mr. Hill gives us no information on how to reach his business in Seattle by either phone, mail, or Internet. If it's there, he has hidden it well.). Ms. Norman, being the scholar that she is, also has the better bibliography, although for the casual reader, the two are equally useful.

For herb and spice mix recipes, I find Ms. Norman's selection to be just a bit more useful, although I strongly suggest you get both books for the ways in which the two complement one another. While Ms. Norman gives us six different variations on a bouquet garni, she has but one recipe for a barbecue spice rub, while American Hill gives us recipes for Memphis style, Kansas style, and Carolina style spice rubs plus a Louisiana spice mix for both Cajun and Creole dishes.

The greatest weakness in Mr. Hill's book is the fact that his photographs accompanying each essay are in black and white. All his color illustrations are in a special rotogravure section on their own center section. Ms. Norman's book, on the other hand, is in full color with excellent illustrations accompanying all her information on each species and variety. This is odd, since Ms. Norman's book lists at $30 and Mr. Hill's book lists at $40 U.S.

So, if you must have just one herb and spice book, Ms. Norman's book is the easy choice. But, if you are an avid student of the nuances of herbs and spices, especially if you happen to be a culinary professional who buys herbs and spices wholesale, I strongly recommend you get a copy of Mr. Hill's book. If you also happen to be a foodie who likes interesting talk about all food matters, I also suggest you stop now and click on the little button for ordering this volume. The one to two page essays accompanying each named species or variety is rich with personal experiences with these plant products as well as rare information on coaxing the best performance and value out of your purchases. The fact that they are so personal and immediate makes them that much more interesting to read.

Highly recommended `second book' on herbs and spices.

21 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Encyclopedia of Herbs & Spices: Every has got to have one!, October 7, 2004

By 

Karla Evans "Klare" (Seattle, WA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Contemporary Encyclopedia of Herbs and Spices: Seasonings for the Global Kitchen (Hardcover)

This is a book every must have in the kitchen! A complete dictionary of spices, the origin, botanical name, use, storage and everything else you would want to know. The book also includes fantastic recipes that anyone create without being an expert but with expert results! This book also contains spice rubs for just about everthing you can imagine. I have already purchased a copy for everyone in my family. A definate MUST HAVE!

13 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Must Have Reference!, November 30, 2004

By 

Lance E. Rasmussen "Lance from West Seattle" (Seattle, WA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Contemporary Encyclopedia of Herbs and Spices: Seasonings for the Global Kitchen (Hardcover)

Living in Seattle, I have the pleasure of shopping in Tony's culinary "lair" of herbs, spices and teas, and is at least a monthly venture if not more often.

You just wont see a walking encyclopedia of seasonings like Tony. And I have been anxiously awaiting this book for years.

You will find great background on many of your favorite herbs and spices as well as information on many of the obscure ones. Tony gives great backgound on uses, buying seasons, and more.

There are wonderful recipies that show off particular seasonings, and I have begun the task of experiencing these great pleasures, in order to find out how to better my own cooking.

You will enjoy!