Herbal Spices

• Spices add flavor and color to foods. Martin Child/Photodisc/Getty Images

  According to the American Spice Trade Association, spices are dried plants or seeds that are used for seasoning foods. This definition encompasses all fragrant herbs, aromatic spices and a few dehydrated vegetables that are commonly used in cooking. Herbal spices are derived from a variety of plant parts, from the roots to the stigma, each offering unique flavors and colors to culinary creations.

Berries

• Berries are made of fleshy fruit that surrounds seeds, which are produced by a single ovary of a plant. Berry spices include cardamom, allspice, juniper and black, white, green and pink peppercorns.

Seeds

• Seeds are embryonic plants that can be used either crushed or whole in cooking recipes. Spice seeds include anise, annatto, caraway, black caraway, celery, coriander, cumin, dill, fennel, fenugreek, mustard, nutmeg, poppy and sesame.

Fruit

• Plants can disseminate seeds in a variety of ways including pods, cones and kernels, not just by the use of fleshy fruits. Fruits that are used as spices include star anise, capsicums, cardamom, paprika and vanilla beans.

Leaves

• The leaves of many herbs are used to flavor numerous culinary dishes. Leaves of plants that are used as spices include lemon balm, basil, bay, chervil, chives, cilantro, dill, marjoram, oregano, parsley, peppermint, rosemary, sage, savory, spearmint, tarragon and thyme.

Flowers

• Chamomile (Roman, Hungarian, English and German) and lavender are the two types of flowers that are used in cooking. Only flowers that are labeled as food grade should be used in cooking.

Bark

• Ceylon and cassia (both commonly known as cinnamon) are the only types of bark that are classified as spices. The outermost layer of bark is peeled away leaving the thinner, inner bark. This bark is allowed to curl up and dry, forming quills.

Buds

• Cloves are dried flower buds harvested from the evergreen clove tree. They can either be used whole or ground up. It is the key ingredient in chai tea.

Roots

• Ginger, horseradish and turmeric are all derived from the roots of plants. The roots are dried, then ground up before being added as a spice to dishes.

Arils

• Mace comes from an aril, which is the red, lacy coating of the nutmeg seed. This coating is removed from the nutmeg seed and allowed to dry. It is then ground into a powder, which is added to culinary dishes to impart a mild, nutmeg flavor.

Stigmas

• Saffron is the only spice derived from the stigma, which is a red, tubelike protrusion at the top of the pistil of the saffron crocus flower. The saffron crocus produces three stigmas per plant. The stigmas are allowed to dry before being used for cooking. The spice adds a yellow color to dishes, has a sweet taste and smells like new mown hay.

Bulbs

• Garlic and onion are both derived from the bulbs of plants. When dried and ground up, the American Spice Trade Association considers these bulbs culinary herbs.