Decorticated Cardamom Seeds

Tucked inside the fibrous pale green jacket of a cardamom pod sit twelve or so nubbly little black seeds. The pods, while flavorful, are tough and inedible. The seeds, though. They’re what you want. Woodsy and fragrant with pops of spicy pepper and sweet citrus, cardamom has a complicated flavor profile. It is initially sweet and warm, a little peppery, a little floral. That fades to bittersweet, tempered with a hint of mint, and ends with a lemony finish. Cardamom Seeds have a minimum of 2% volatile oil by weight, and the complex blend of compounds that comprise the oils underscore the complexity of the flavor and bouquet.

Cardamom, a plant that is indigenous to tropical southern India, has been in use as ayurvedic medicine for more than 4,000 years and has been in trade for about 2,000 years. Somewhere around 1,000 years ago, cardamom found its way to the frozen northlands of Scandinavia. Food historians are unclear if the Vikings brought it back from Constantinople, or if cardamom came to Scandinavia thanks to the Moorish presence on the Iberian peninsula, but regardless of the original influx it has become an integral part of Scandinavian cuisine. Per capita, Sweden consumes 60% more cardamom than the United States.

Tips From Our Kitchen

Cardamom Seeds should be cracked or crushed in a mortar and pestle before use, and to bring out full flavor, toast in a dry pan before using. Use judiciously; they are potent and can easily take over a dish. Cardamom Seeds shine in Indian-style curries like butter chicken or the Kerala-style fish stew. Add them to turkey dumplings, or on salmon as a rub, and top with maple syrup. Cardamom Seeds also shine in desserts, so toast and grind them to add to ice cream or Swedish Christmas bread. We also carry top quality Ground Cardamom.

Our Cardamom Seeds come from Guatemala or Honduras.

Hungry for more information?

Spice Cabinet 101: Cardamom
Most Popular Spices by Cuisine
Exotic Spices
The Hidden History of Scandinavia's Love of Cardamom