Black Cardamom Pods

Smoky, spicy, savory, soothing Black Cardamom Pods deliver the highs and lows of edgy flavor. Smoked over a fire, the pods are a cross-section of wood and flame as their leathery exteriors take on characteristics that are almost bacony…but different. There’s a bit of deep, funky tar amid the smoke, and a touch of dark, tangy citrus fruit tucked in for sweet measure. The inner, pyramidic seeds take on some depth from the fire but primarily retain their biting, crisp menthol. Black Cardamom Pods are roughly 3.5% volatile oil by weight with more than 40 compounds identified as contributing factors to taste and smell the volatile oil provides, which accounts for their rich and complex flavor.

Black cardamom is a relative of green cardamom, but it’s distant. Both types of cardamom are members of the Zingiberaceae family, which means they’re related to ginger, as well. These fragrant black pods are about twice as large—and twice as thick—as their green cardamom cousins. While cardamom are indigenous to India and black cardamom selectively grows in the Himalayan region of India and into Nepal, relatives of cardamom can be found in Africa. “Ethiopian cardamom” is found in eastern Africa and Eritrea, and has a more gentle flavor that resembles green cardamom. Grains of Paradise can be found in western Africa, and we can see the resemblance to cardamom by the pods this spice grows in and the hard, triangular seeds that line the pods.

Tips From Our Kitchen

Black Cardamom Pods are best used by including them whole into a dish; they can be toasted to wake up the volatile oils and then crushed to allow the full flavors of the pod an inner seeds to be released. Remove pods before serving. This spice is best used in simmered dishes that will cook for a while, to allow the flavors to extract out of the pod. Use it in classic Indian dishes like rogan josh or Kashmiri biryani. Give potatoes a spicy kick with a potato and green pea curry. Pickle carrots or onions with black cardamom pods. Add to a pot of beans for a meaty-tasting vegetarian spice. Infuse Black Cardamom Pods into simple syrup and steep for two days for a smoky gourmet cocktail mixer.

Green cardamom pods may be substituted for black cardamom pods, though the dish will lack the smokiness of the black cardamom. Black cardamom can never substitute for green cardamom.

There are approximately one dozen black cardamom seeds per pod.

Our Black Cardamom Pods were cultivated in India.

This product is certified kosher.

Hungry for more information?

Spice Cabinet 101: Cardamom
Indian Food: More Than Just Curries
What Is Curry?
Fact Pages: Black Cardamom