Cardamom is the sweet spice that surprises you every time. To paraphrase singer-songwriter Bill Callahan, it’s the one that’s hardest to get to know, and near impossible to forget. Make masala chai or a batch of kanelbullar without it and you’re setting yourself up for the kind of epic disappointment that wreaks havoc with a toddler’s composure.
There are two different kinds of cardamom – green or “true” cardamom (Elettaria cardamomum), and black cardamom (Amomum costatum and Amomum subulatum), both genera of the ginger family. The white cardamom you sometimes find is simply the green variety blanched for cosmetic reasons, although the flavour follows suit.
The winning recipe: Cardamom cake
Carol Kohll, I’m not sure I’ve ever eaten a better cake, let alone made one. Moist, light, tender, it’s perfectly sweet and delicately aromatic from the cardamom and citrus – a formidable flavour combination. Usually a crumb this soft is a culinary wildflower, its beauty faded by nightfall. But Kohll’s cake was just as good the day after. And while it doesn’t remotely need dressing up, a thick slice served with a dollop of gently sweetened cardamom mascarpone made for one hell of a dessert.
Makes 1 large cake
3 eggs
300g sugar
350g self-raising flour
½ tsp salt
1 tsp seeds from cardamom pods, freshly ground
½ tsp cinnammon
Zest of 1 orange, finely chopped
Zest of ½ lemon, finely chopped
180ml sunflower seed oil
1 tsp vanilla essence
180ml orange juice
1 Heat the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4 and grease and flour a 24cm bundt or ring cake tin. In a large mixing bowl, beat the eggs with the sugar for about 8 minutes.
2 In a separate bowl, mix the flour with the salt, spices and zests.
3 Add the oil and vanilla essence to the egg mixture, followed by the juice and finally the dry ingredients.
4 Pour the mixture into the tin and bake for about 35 minutes until golden and a toothpick comes out clean when inserted into the middle of the cake.
Cardamom and vanilla coffee
If vanilla is the comforting background noise in Binnyshah’s brew, cardamom is the candlelight. Bright and fresh, the sweet spice highlights the acidic notes in the coffee and makes it the lushest of brunch mugfuls.
Makes 1
240ml milk
½ tsp ground cardamom
1 tsp vanilla syrup
1½ tsp sugar
120ml freshly made, strong black coffee
1 In a saucepan, combine the milk, cardamom, vanilla syrup and sugar and simmer over a medium-high heat.
2 Transfer the mixture to a blender and give it a good blitz so it becomes frothy.
3 Pour it into the coffee, stir and serve.
Swedish cardamom buns
I was so happy to see LoveLoretta’s kanelbullar recipe. As with all leavened dough, this recipe takes some commitment, but the knotting of the strands and the speedy bake at the end are a lot of fun. Obviously, the biggest payoff is biting into a hot one right out of the oven. To have with Binnyshah’s coffee.
Makes 15-20
For the dough
Flavourless oil, for greasing
7g dry active yeast
250ml milk, lukewarm
70g light brown sugar
400g plain flour, plus more for dusting
1 tsp ground cardamom
¼ tsp salt
1½ tsp almond essence
75g butter, at room temperature, cubed
For the filling
60g unsalted butter, at room temperature
65g dark brown sugar
3 tbsp orange zest, freshly grated
2 tbsp ground cardamom
2 tbsp cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp almond essence
For the glaze
1 egg, whisked
1 Grease a large bowl with the oil and set aside. In a separate small bowl, add the yeast to the lukewarm milk with 1 tsp of the light brown sugar and stir until the yeast has dissolved. Allow to activate for 10 minutes.
2 In a large bowl, mix together the flour, remaining light brown sugar, cardamom and salt.
3 After the yeast has been activated, add the almond essence to the mixture, then the flour and mix gently until the dough begins to come together.
4 Add the butter in handfuls and mix. Once all the butter has been added, turn the dough out on to a lightly floured surface and knead for 10-15 minutes until smooth, soft and elastic. You want this to be a fairly loose dough, so whatever you do, don’t overknead. Shape into a bun and place seam-side down in your greased bowl. Cover with a clean tea towel, place in a warm spot and let it rise for at least 40 minutes.
5 Meanwhile, make the filling. In a bowl, combine the butter, dark brown sugar, zest, cardamom and remaining spices until creamy and smooth.
6 Line a couple of baking sheets with baking paper. Once the dough has risen, roll it out into a 33cm x 53cm rectangle on a lightly floured surface. Spread the filling on to the dough so that it covers the entire area.
7 With the back of a knife, divide the longest side of the rectangle into three equal sections. Fold the left side into the middle, then the right side over the top. Turn the dough so that the openings are on the sides. Roll out the dough again slightly, then cut into 15-20 2cm strands from top to bottom.
8 To shape the buns, hold the end of one strand between your thumb and two fingers, wrap the dough around your fingers twice, twisting it slightly as you wrap. Slip your thumb out of the roll, then tuck the ends underneath. Watch Martin Johansson’s “Snurra en kanelbulle” video on YouTube for an excellent tutorial. Repeat with all strands.
9 Place the knotted buns on your pre-lined baking sheets, leaving enough room between each bun for the dough to rise and spread. Cover with a clean tea towel and allow to rise for about 30 minutes
10 While proofing, preheat oven to 220C/435F/gas mark 7. When ready to bake, brush the surface of each bun with the whisked egg and bake for 7-8 minutes or until golden brown.
Badam sharbat
Mehrunnisa Yusuf’s Pakistani drink lies somewhere between condensed almond milk and a cardamom cordial – refreshing and enlivening. It can be used to make a milk- or water-based drink: simply mix the desired amount with your choice of liquid.
Serves 4-6
300g blanched almonds
750g caster sugar
20 whole green caradamom pods, lightly crushed
A large pinch of saffron (optional)
1.5 litres water
1 Finely grind the almonds in a food processor. You can use some of the water to help the process.
2 Place the ground almonds, sugar, water, cardamom and saffron (if using) in a large pan and bring to a boil. Make sure you watch the mixture and stir regularly.
3 Continue to boil the mixture until it becomes syrup-like. Strain twice through a sieve, pressing down on the ground almonds so they release their flavour.
4 Using a funnel, transfer the sharbat into bottles while it is still hot.
Cardamom syllabub with rice biscuits
Fadime Tiskaya’s take on the Kurdish teatime staple nane birinci (rice biscuits) is a cookie so delicate, it practically crumbles when you look at it and can only be eaten at home, sitting down. The fruit and rose water are wonderful companions to the spice.
Serves 6-8
For the syrup (makes 200g)
160g sugar
60g water
Zest of 1 orange, finely grated
1 tbsp rose water
For the biscuits
300g rice flour
100g ground pistachios
1 tsp ground cardamom
2 egg yolks
2 tbsp icing sugar, sifted
200g ghee or clarified butter
100g syrup (as above)
Pistachio kernels, chopped, to finish
For the syllabub
300g double cream
2 tbsp icing sugar
Seeds from 10 cardamom pods, freshly ground
150g mascarpone (or cream cheese)
100g syrup (as above)
Zest and juice of 4 limes
4 passion fruit, to serve
1 To make the syrup, add the sugar, water and orange zest to a saucepan and bring to the boil. Boil for about 3 minutes until the sugar dissolves and it starts to become syrupy. Take off the heat and add the rose water. Let it cool until ready to use.
2 In a mixing bowl, combine the rice flour, pistachios and cardamom to make the biscuits. In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and icing sugar until smooth and creamy. Add the clarified butter and pour this mixture into the flour bowl. Using your hands, mix until evenly combined. Add in the syrup and mix well again. If it feels quite wet, sprinkle in a little extra flour. Flatten into a large disc, wrap in clingfilm and let it rest in the fridge for 30 minutes.
3 When the dough is ready, set the oven to 150C/300F/gas mark 2. Place the dough between two sheets of non-stick paper or clingfilm and, with a rolling pin, roll to a 1cm thickness then cut into cookies using a small cookie cutter. Place them on a lined baking tray.
4 Press some chopped pistachio kernels into the top of the biscuits and bake for about 15 minutes until golden on the sides. Allow them to cool on the baking sheets before carefully transferring to a rack.
5 For the syllabub, whisk together the cream, sugar and cardamom until stiff. Mix in the mascarpone, syrup, lime zest and juice. Divide into individual cups, top with passion fruit, and serve with the biscuits.
Javanese cardamom rice with pickled mango
Bobby Ananta sent in not one but four recipes for a full-on trad cardamom feast. Due to sheer lack of space, we’ve only featured his nasi liwêt kapulaga and asinan mangga pickle, but while the spread might be diminished in size, its flavour is by no means diluted. Rice and cardamom, and mango and cardamom, are pairings both deserving of dedicated Flavour Thesaurus entries.
Serves 4-5
For the pickle
2 large unripe mangoes, peeled and julienned
Juice of 2 limes
300ml rice wine vinegar
200ml water
Seeds from 10 cardamom pods
½ tsp coriander seeds
1 red chilli, cut in half lengthways (optional)
2 bay leaves
Zest of 1 orange
3 tbsp caster sugar
For the rice
1 medium onion finely chopped
1 tbsp coconut oil
Seeds from 6 cardamom pods, lightly toasted and finely ground
½ tsp coriander seeds, lightly toasted and finely ground
1 cinnamon stick
½ tsp nutmeg
2 cloves
380g jasmine rice
900ml water
165ml coconut milk
2 bay leaves
5cm pandan leaf (optional)
Salt
To serve
Fried garlic
Bunch of coriander leaves, roughly chopped
4 hard-boiled eggs, cut into quarters
1 Make the pickle the day before serving. Toss the mango with the lime juice and set aside. In medium pan, toast the cardamom and coriander seeds, then add the water and rice wine vinegar. Add the bay leaves, orange zest, chilli and sugar, stir well and bring to the boil. Remove from the heat and allow to cool. Add the mixture to the mango and lime and refrigerate overnight in an airtight container.
2 On a medium heat, cook the onion in the coconut oil until slightly caramelised, then add the cardamom, coriander, cinnamon stick, nutmeg and cloves. Add the rice, water, coconut milk, bay leaves, pandan leaf and salt, stir well and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat, cover and cook for another 20-25 minutes.
3 Turn off the heat, and leave the lid on to let the rice steam for 10-15 minutes. Fluff up, and serve with fried garlic, coriander leaves and hard-boiled eggs.
- This article was amended on 13 and 14 June 2016 to include the size and shape of the cake tin in the winning recipe.
