Cooking Herbs ? Spices ? what do you use in your kitchen ? chilis, sauces, condiments, garnishes all welcome!!

[Daisys and Diamonds]

How long do you keep dried spices before emptying the jars and getting fresh product? I've read that many spices lose flavour after a year, but I have spices on hand that I don't use much, and they're much older than a year. Perhaps they taste less full/strong than new? But I wouldn't know unless I buy new to compare. Heh.

i think it depends on the herb or spice and how strong you like it
i had whole star anise in the pantry for im embarrased to say how long but more than a decade, i made pickled pork and used one and it was still fine ! (ive since had to buy two new packets in the last year -its my herb sucess story and i now use 2 of them at a time -the recepie calls for 4)
i think its because they are whole but in saying that i had some ground Chinese 5 spice that was about as old and it was fine too, i now use lots of that too
and my tumeric still seems to work, even the Garam masala was ok
But we have a very Western pallet
i had jumiper berries for years and years and they were still very aromatic, when i finally remembered to use them in a pork roast, yum yum, a bottle of gin would never last that long !

i would just use them up, like if it calls for a teaspoon of some dried herb id chuck the whole packet in
i think something like rosemary would stay good for a long time -lucky my neighbour over the road has a hedge ! i usually have a branch drying on the kitchen window sill

im terrible i like to buy herbs and spices in the little jars but if i buy them in the packets i never close them up probably, but they are the herbs and spices i use the most so they dont get very old

i do keep my dried bay leaves in a little glass jar to keep them fresh, i love bay, some people think its a waste of time but i can taste it, its so good in chicken soup
i put some in the beef (venision) stroganoff im making in the slow cooker right now, you can guarentee Gary will get the one i forget to fish out as i dish it up tonight
i need to buy a tree, its so expensive and you have to make sure its not old stock when you buy it

now the ginger you buy minced int he little jars in the produce section that you have to keep in the fridge -that always goes mouldy real quick
not sure what i do wrong? i use a clean fresh spoon everytime and i try yo use it up in two or three weeks but i always end up having to throw it out becuase it gets the blue mould

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

We are on a road trip in USA and my granddaughter wanted some savory snacks.
Smart Food cheese popcorn tastes like it has sugar?????

i bet you are having a great time cheese popcorn aside ( we dont get the flavoured popcorn you guys get in those shops in your malls)

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

Interesting! I had not really thought about mentioning the change until now, It is neat that she also overcame that initial dislike. My daughter likes it well too. She never had the soap reaction.


HA, some of my more obscure spices probably qualify for retirement plans at this point. I will occasionally throw something out. If it doesnt have much aroma, it won't have much flavor either. As long as the color and smell are potent, I will use it.

I can Southern Lime pickles every other year and make my own pickle seasoning. I will usually buy new spices for that. My mother in law introduced me to those, which we have an addiction, It takes a few days to make with food grade lime soaks for crispness. The first time i tasted them at her house, I fell in love. She told me it was a family recipe. When I married my husband, she gifted me a pound of the Mrs Wages lime, with the recipe of back.

The ginormous mega bottles in the pantry are mostly high consumables that I will use almost daily, such as garlic and onion powder. We make our own bread and bagels at home. I buy yeast by the pound and usually have about 60 lbs of bread flour in the pantry.

Homemade burger buns. Homemade everything bagels.



Oh yeah, bagels and bun dough is made in my Jojirushi bread machine. I premeasure kits ahead of time, so it’s dump the things in from quart jars, add water and yeast and push button.

oh yum those look so good
@Garry H (Cut Nut) i hope you are enjoying American beagles

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

The food is pretty good I think we're fat for a few reasons. We can't walk anywhere...it's a car or you're stuck miles from a store.

I was suprised a few weeks ago. I was in DC, and everyone was walking, and also, people were very fit. The neighbourhoods were set up to walk and live (Near Adams Morgan and Dupont Circle).
I also think our food is corrupt. Too much of it, too processed, too many sketchy additives and sugar in everything.

i only learnt this recently about how so many of your towns and cities arnt really set up for people to walk to work
i used to walk every where ! till my knee became the old lady knee and now i have to take the bus
in Wellington after work thousands (maybe many hundards) of people would walk through town down the quays or along the warf rather than take the bus to the railway station)

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

We are on a road trip in USA and my granddaughter wanted some savory snacks.
Smart Food cheese popcorn tastes like it has sugar?????

what really makes me mad is Woolworths, before covid they did all sorts of low sugar options especially in their own brand, like tomato sauace, baked beans and jams but they fazed them out saying it was a supply train issue when really its about maximizing profit over consumer choice, we had brought those products for years, i miss the marmalade

 

[Garry H (Cut Nut)]

How long do you keep dried spices before emptying the jars and getting fresh product? I've read that many spices lose flavour after a year, but I have spices on hand that I don't use much, and they're much older than a year. Perhaps they taste less full/strong than new? But I wouldn't know unless I buy new to compare. Heh.

From Claude AI
The user is asking about which dried spices lose potency after a year or more. This is a question about food storage and cooking that I can answer from my knowledge without needing to search, as information about spice shelf life is fairly stable and well-established.

Let me think about the categories of spices and their typical shelf lives:

1. Whole spices generally last longer than ground spices
2. Some spices are more delicate than others
3. Storage conditions affect longevity
4. Some spices lose potency faster than others

This is definitely something I can answer without searching, as it's established culinary knowledge that doesn't change frequently.

Most dried spices do lose significant potency after about a year, though some decline faster than others. Here are the ones that typically lose their punch most noticeably:

**Ground spices** (lose potency fastest - 6 months to 1 year):
- Ground cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves
- Ground ginger and turmeric
- Paprika and chili powder
- Ground cumin and coriander
- Dried herbs like oregano, basil, and thyme

**Delicate spices** (fade quickly):
- Saffron (though expensive, so people tend to use it up faster)
- Ground cardamom
- Sumac
- Za'atar blends

**Whole spices last longer** (2-3 years) but even these eventually fade:
- Whole peppercorns
- Whole cinnamon sticks
- Whole cloves and star anise
- Whole cumin and coriander seeds

The main signs of lost potency are faded color, weak aroma when you smell them, and needing to use much more to get the same flavor impact. Heat, light, and air exposure speed up this process significantly.

A good test: if you can't smell much when you open the container, or if the color looks dull compared to fresh spices, it's probably time to replace them. Grinding whole spices fresh when possible gives you much better flavor and longer storage life.

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

anybody use nasturtiums
i should plant some
in the winter when lettuce is so expensive sometimes i use the leaves in a burger
they are nice and peppery
the flowers are nice too
Gary will quite happily eat both

 

[xsouzie]

I cook all manner of foods...Chinese, Thai, Italian, Mexican, Middle Eastern etc...so I use a lot of spices. This is my spice cabinet

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

sometimes i just cheat

 

[MMtwo]

We buy our Chicken Curry at Coatco. Always have a tin around in the fridge. It’s so nice to have quick options. Hubby and I love curry. My son is not a fan.

 

[SparklieBug]

I got inspired and went through the spice cabinet/drawer, and cleared out all the old spices/herbs that had little fragrance left. I had duplicates of faves, so the old versions went. Boom! The space looks so much better, now!

 

[MMtwo]

I got inspired and went through the spice cabinet/drawer, and cleared out all the old spices/herbs that had little fragrance left. I had duplicates of faves, so the old versions went. Boom! The space looks so much better, now!

That is impressively productive!!!

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

i made French onion soup so now im out of thyme
the small but very useful and sharply priced grocery store next to work hardly ever lets me down
but they did this time (no pun intended)
and worse. there wasnt even a place on the shelf where it should have been
ill have to use oragano till i do the next big grocery shop