12.29.2021
Best Spices & Recipes of 2021
Following another challenging year, cooking remains a key source of comfort, nourishment, and adventure. Spices, herbs, and seasonings are the accents that make culinary memories stand out. We are delighted to bring you staple seasonings for the recipes you prepare the most, while offering new flavors to further your culinary experiences. Of all the spices, stories, and recipes we shared with you in 2021, these are our most popular. If you have any spicy cooking stories that stand out from this year, please tell us about them in the comments below.
Top Five Spices & Blends
1. Back of the Yards Garlic Pepper Butcher’s Rub
If one flavor combination could represent The Spice House, it is this hard-working butcher's rub. Back of the Yards Garlic Pepper Butcher’s Rub, our most popular blend, is ideal for grilling, great in burgers, amazing with steaks, and perfect with fish or roasted potatoes. This spice blend takes inspiration from the many immigrant cooking traditions that grew out of Chicago's historic meatpacking district.
2. Lake Shore Drive Shallot & Herb Seasoning
To emulate the elegance and sophistication of Chicago’s famous Lake Shore Drive, we start with hand-grated freeze-dried shallots, powdered green peppercorns, and chives, while the garlic, onion, and salt give this blend an all-purpose versatility. This seasoning blend is perfect for whitefish, shrimp, tuna salad, or any other seafood. Stir into sour cream or yogurt for a quick vegetable dip or to marinate grilled vegetables.
3. Saigon Ground Cassia Cinnamon
For half a century, Vietnamese cinnamon was extremely hard to find in the United States. Spicy and sweet, this cinnamon is our most popular varietal. Its high volatile oil content makes the bark extremely potent. Vietnamese cinnamon is fiery, rich, fragrant, and amazing with chocolate or in cinnamon rolls, where it can be the entire flavor. Our customers often tell us that this flavorful cinnamon has changed their lives.
4. Tellicherry Peppercorns
For millennia, these bold Indian peppercorns have been the gold standard for black pepper. Tellicherry peppercorns are in almost every kitchen worldwide. These extra large berries are left to ripen longer on the vine, maximizing their rich fruitiness and Tellicherry peppercorn flavor. Grinding whole peppercorns delivers the freshest flavor. We also offer this pepper in several different grind sizes, ground only in small batches.
5. Granulated Garlic
Garlic’s sharp flavor is the backbone of so many of our favorite recipes, particularly within Chinese, Italian, Indian, French, and Latin American cookery. Our USA-grown Granulated Garlic powder is a versatile weapon in the kitchen. Garlic has its greatest impact when it is dried and used as a spice, especially in dry rubs and seasonings. Zest up those chicken breasts, hamburgers, bowls of popcorn and other recipes.
Top Five New Products
1. Pasilla de Oaxaca Chiles
The fog-kissed mountains of Oaxaca are the only place where this pasilla chile cultivar is grown. The region's cool air makes sun-drying chiles nearly impossible. Pasilla de Oaxaca chiles are dried over a smoldering wood coals, giving them a smoky flavor that's twice as complex as a chipotle. These chiles are a seasonal item, and we are looking to offer this rare type of chile pepper in the late spring of next year.
2. Merguez Seasoning
The traditional Berber recipe’s flavor was too good for sausage alone, so we captured it in a spice blend for grilled vegetables, hearty stews, simmering lentils, and anything else in need of North African flair. For authentic Merguez sausage, heavily spiced with cumin, garlic, and chiles, mix three tablespoons of spice per pound of ground meat. Form meat into links or patties, before grilling over medium heat.
3. Morimoto Gift Boxes
Chef Morimoto’s playful take on Japanese cuisine has charmed diners around the world. He is famous for his seamless integration of Western and Japanese ingredients This premium spice collection brings his tastes and talents into your own kitchen. We are proud to present this collaboration of exclusive seasonings for crafting and complementing favorites like ramen, seafood, barbecue, and even fried chicken.
4. Italian Steak Seasoning
Northern Italy is cattle country, where pastures are dotted with juniper trees and rosemary shrubs. That culinary palette inspired this Italian-style steak rub with added accents of minced garlic and freshly cracked black peppercorns. Robust and aromatic, this spice blend is perfect for seasoning an authentic Tuscan Bistecca alla Fiorentina, or simply sprucing up a classic cut of New York Strip. Buon appetito!
5. Southwest ExactPack Variety Packs
These pre-measured seasoning packets help you put dinner on the table in 30 minutes, but make it taste like you spent all afternoon preparing it. Can’t decide between all four of our ExactPacks? Our Southwestern-inspired ExactPack variety set helps you effortlessly prepare chile lime shrimp, carne asada, vegan chorizo burgers, and ancho chile chicken. Simply follow the recipes printed on each ExactPack label.
Top Five Recipes
1. Hot Pot with Three Sauces
2. Porcini Mushrooms with Cream and Parmesan
3. Chicken Divan
4. Cilantro-Free Pico de Gallo Salsa
5. Yogurt Dressing with Indian Spices
Top Five Blog Posts
1. What is Mace?
2. What Are the Different Types of Cinnamon?
3. Spice Spotlight: Cumin Seeds
4. Spice Substitute: Fennel Seeds
5. 12 Secrets to a Perfect Chili
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