Cumin

Description

Cuminum cyminum is an annual herbaceous plant that does not exceed thirty centimetres in height, whose cultivation is common in southern Italy, and whose seeds give an unmistakable flavour above all to the cooking of the Near East.

Leaves

Cumin leaves closely resemble those of fennel, are alternate, glabrous, made up of long, narrow segments, almost capillary.

Flowers

The small flowers, white or pink in colour, depending on the variety, appear in late spring and are followed by brown fruits, elongated in shape, with a hairy surface and a warm, spicy aroma, much stronger than that of caraway, a herb also known as meadow cumin.

Exposure

Cumin thrives in full sun in positions sheltered from the wind.

Propagation

Where the climate is cold, cumin must be sown late, when temperatures are steadily mild, that is, towards May.

Growth

Apart from the usual thinning of the seedlings, hoeing of the soil and watering (if the summer is dry), growing cumin requires no special care.

Harvesting

Harvest time runs from July to September, depending on the growing area: the umbels are picked when they begin to turn yellow, before they reach full ripeness and scatter a good part of their seeds. To complete ripening, immediately after harvesting the fruits should be exposed to the sun for a few days, hung upside down over a cloth on which the fallen seeds will collect.

Storage

The ripe fruits, well dried, they are stored in airtight boxes.

Properties

IN THE KITCHEN: The aroma of cumin is spicy, but slightly oily, so that European taste generally prefers that of caraway, also called meadow cumin or German cumin. Cumin is nonetheless used to flavour dishes based on cabbage and potatoes, meat and fresh cheeses.

Health

Chewing the ripe fruits combats bad breath; the infusion (about ten grams of cumin in roughly half a litre of water) has a digestive action, antispasmodic and sudorific.