| Cumin
(Cuminum cyminum L.) Cumin, is a small annual herb of the parsley family (Apiaceae). It grows from 1 to 2 feet tall and produces a stem with many branches. The seed like fruit, commonly termed "seed" is elongated, oval, approximately 1 cm. long, and yellowish-brown in color. The aroma is characteristic, strongly aromatic, hot, and of bitter taste which is modified by frying or dry roasting. The origin is Western Asia, where it is cultivated since Biblical times. Main production countries today are India, Iran, Indonesia, China and the South Mediterranean. Dried,
crushed cumin seed, distilled with steam, yields from 2 to 4% of essential oil
used in perfumery and for flavoring liquors. |