A Simple Spice Guide

Spices are a huge part of cooking and the most experienced cooks use the perfect amount of spices and blend them together to create amazingly tasteful meals. As a college student, I'm used to just bland cafeteria meals which mass produce grilled chicken for hundreds of students and do not always add in a rich amount of spices to make the chicken as tasty as possible. After a while, and after I moved into an apartment with a kitchen instead of a dorm with a microwave, I decided to start cooking on my own. One of the things I had to learn was how to use and what to use to enhance the quality of my meals. Here is a simple list of some common spices and herbs that you might use while cooking.

Basil: This herb is probably the most common and is added to a food right before serving and is best used fresh. A big fan of pesto? You'll need this to make the perfect pesto pasta.

Cinnamon: Cinnamon is actually bark from an evergreen tree that has been ground up. This is used mostly on candy and baked goods. A talented coffee connoisseur might add a pinch to their brew in the morning as well.

Horseradish: This is a very popular herb that is used mainly with sausage and beef products.

Garlic: Probably one of the most popular herbs and is used in pasta and pretty much anything Italian you want to cook. Add a little olive oil and a few cloves of garlic and you will have a great smelling kitchen, not to mention a great tasting pasta or chicken.

Oregano: This bitter herb is very popular for adding taste to your pizzas and other Italian meals.

Sage: This strong herb is tastes almost like pepper and is most commonly used for chicken and sausage.

Tarragon: Everyone has probably heard of tarragon, but not a lot of people know what it is, how it tastes and what it is used for. Tarragon is very very aromatic and if you add a pinch to your chicken and eggs, you will be in for a delightful surprise.