Herbs - Allspice : Introduction part 2

Preparation/Form

Allspice is not, as is mistakenly believed by some people who have only come across it in ground form, a mixture of spices. Rather, it is the dried fruit of the Pimenta dioica plant. The fruit is picked when it is green and unripe, traditionally they are then sun dried. When dry they are brown and look like large brown peppercorns.

Allspice is most commonly sold as whole dried fruits or as a powder. The whole fruits have a longer shelf-life than the powdered product and produce a more aromatic product when freshly ground before use. Fresh leaves are also used where available: they are similar in texture to bay leaves and are thus infused during cooking and then removed before serving. Unlike bay leaves, they lose much flavour when dried and stored. The leaves and wood are often used for smoking meats where allspice is a local crop.


Uses

Allspice is one of the most important ingredients of Caribbean cuisine. It is used in Caribbean jerk seasoning (the wood is used to smoke jerk in Jamaica, although the spice is a good substitute), in mole sauces, and in pickling; it is also an ingredient in commercial sausage preparations and curry powders. Allspice is commonly used in Great Britain and appears in many dishes, including in cakes. Even in many countries where allspice is not very popular in the household, such as Germany, it is used in large amounts by commercial sausage makers. Allspice is also a main flavor used in barbeque sauces.

Folklore suggests that allspice provides relief for digestive problems.

Volatile oils found in plant contain eugenol, a weak antimicrobial agent (Yaniv, Sohara et al. 2005).


Cultivation

Allspice is a small shrubby tree, quite similar to the bay laurel in size and form. It can be grown outdoors in the tropics and subtropics with normal garden soil and watering. Smaller plants can be killed by frost, although larger plants are more tolerant. It adapts well to container culture and can be kept as a houseplant or in a greenhouse. The plant has separate sexes, hence male and female plants must be kept in proximity in order to allow fruits to develop.


Notes

    * ^ Note however, that the name pimento is also used for a certain kind of large, red, heart-shaped sweet pepper that measures three to four inches long and two to three inches wide. The flesh of this pimento—the Spanish word for "pepper"—is sweet, succulent and more aromatic than that of the red bell pepper. These pimientos are the familiar red stuffing found in quality green olives.


Cite: Wikipedia





source : hydroponicsearch