Your favorite all around general spice

[georgevan]

besides salt and pepper what is your favorite spice. Maybe I should ask your number one spice that you use on most things. I guess mine might be garlic powder. I feel that it doesn't ruin the taste of most recipes. Also red pepperflakes seem only to add aspice and not changed the taste of a whole recipe.

 

[pepperhead212]

I'm not a fan of garlic powder, but fresh garlic I use more of than anything, except for all those peppers.

 

[GotGarlic]

I use so many, and enjoy so many cuisines, it's impossible to land on just one.

 

[Andy M.]

I have dozens of herb and spice bottles in a cabinet. Cumin is the only one that I really enjoy the smell of. I use it in a number of recipes. When I'm tossing something together without a recipe, cumin is always a spice I consider.

When I make roasted potatoes, I open the spice cabinet and just grab random bottles after covering the basics. Cumin is always on the list.

 

[WhateverYouWant]

Kinda got to agree with Andy on cumin. I use it in chili, falafel, hummus, soups, and a lot of other recipes. It is one of the few spices I buy in bulk.

 

[pepperhead212]

Cumin a favorite of mine, that I buy in bulk, too, along with coriander, since they are used in large amounts in Indian cooking, as well as many other cuisines. Another I buy by the pound is caraway, for all that bread I put it in.

 

[PrincessFiona60]

Garlic and Ginger...my favorite spices, also fond of Cumin.

 

[georgevan]

Garlic and Ginger...my favorite spices, also fond of Cumin.

Would you say that you use ginger on anything as freely as you use garlic?

 

[CharlieD]

I do not like garlic powder or dried garlic either. But i do not always use fresh garlic. I found that for me garlic salt works the best. it is easier to control the flavor (for me) of garlic. I made two sauces the other day. Side by side. One was with fresh garlic and salt, the other one with garlic salt. The result was strikingly similar. As the matter of fact my wife could not even tell which one was which.
Otherwise I love cayenne pepper.
Then of course ethnic cuisines require different spices.

Is cumin a spice or an herb?

 

[PrincessFiona60]

Would you say that you use ginger on anything as freely as you use garlic?

Yes, I love the mingled flavors and health benefits. Of course, if I am going Italian or Mexican, I do not use ginger. But most foods I eat these days are towards Asian.

 

[JudySmith]

Actually salt and pepper agree with me least. I only ingest salt in tiny amounts, and have always preferred unsalted potato chips. Excess salt and spices cause me tongue sores, and internal burning, and headaches. Ditto re: ginger & cinnamon & potent garlic powder.

There's lots of spices i've not tried yet, but i did try cumin and love it. I also like turmeric but not the mess it causes.

I realize many people do not prefer sweet 'n sour foods (or half-sour pickles), but those are my favorites, probably due to acidic saliva. I assume most others have sweeter saliva than me (and perhaps fewer tastebuds). Maybe that's why they tolerate salty/acidic/bitter/spicy foods. Whereas i need to buffer salt/acid/bitters/spices with one or more of these:

sugar and/or mayo and/or dairy and/or eggs.

 

[Sir_Loin_of_Beef]

Frank's Red Hot Sauce. I use that on everything!

 

[Janet H]

I LOVE Black pepper..
I also love these: Rubbed sage (love on popcorn) Garlic, basil and toasted sesame oil.

 

[larry_stewart]

Like others, it depends what Im in the mood for or what Im cooking. But, the two that have the biggest impact on me when I smell them is Basil and Garlic. Not necessarily in dry spice form, but fresh basil just says " Summer" to my mind and garlic is like an addiction for me.

 

[GotGarlic]

I do not like garlic powder or dried garlic either. But i do not always use fresh garlic. I found that for me garlic salt works the best. it is easier to control the flavor (for me) of garlic. I made two sauces the other day. Side by side. One was with fresh garlic and salt, the other one with garlic salt. The result was strikingly similar. As the matter of fact my wife could not even tell which one was which.
Otherwise I love cayenne pepper.
Then of course ethnic cuisines require different spices.

Is cumin a spice or an herb?

It's a spice. Herbs are the edible leaves of plants. Spices are other plant parts, including seeds (coriander, cumin, dill), bark (cinnamon), berries (pepper), rhizomes (ginger), bulbs (garlic) and stamens (saffron). Those are just examples, of course.

 

[GotGarlic]

Frank's Red Hot Sauce. I use that on everything!

That's not a spice - it's an infusion.

 

[taxlady]

For me it's probably garlic. That could be fresh garlic or garlic powder. They go in so many different dishes, dips, dressing, etc.

 

[BWinCA]

As others have said there are so many that are great it's difficult to choose one. Having said that there are two I noticed have made a great improvement on my recipes, Italian in particular. One of them is Italian Herb Blend by Morton & Bassett, and the other is Ariosto for Grilled and Spicy meat, which is an Italian blend. Both of those spices have markedly improved the flavor, imo.

But nothing beats walking into a spice store and just inhaling the air!

 

[RCJoe]

Beyond salt and pepper the next would be something like "Season All" or Lawry's. I grew up with it and have acquired a taste for it so it works for me. I also use a lot of herbs & spices in my cooking but a multi purpose
like Lawry's is adequate for many of things I prepare at home.

 

[larry_stewart]

But nothing beats walking into a spice store and just inhaling the air!

Walking into a spice store in Grand Central Terminal NYC. Both a smell and visual experience.