History of Cumin

Not that I want this entire thing to be about cumin,  but I did read up on the history of cumin using the Internet. After a while I started to get a little bit annoyed that every page said just about the same thing. Its like there is no original content; everyone is just copying everyone else and posting the same things over and over on the Internet. Really? It's like the grocery store. Instead of the shelves being stocked with lots of different things,  there are five and six different brands of the same thing. I know people swear one brand of tomatoes are far superior to another, but I'll let you in on a secret,  mi amiga, the best tomatoes do not come in a can!

I won't bore you with the stuff you can read on any page, but just drop off a few interesting cumin-ology.

Cumin is from the Apiaceae family of aromatic plants with hollow stems. Other family members include:  parsley,  dill, carrots, parsnips, fennel, caraway. Some regions of the world do not really differentiate all that well between cumin and caraway. It is also called Roman caraway and, likewise,  caraway is called Persian cumin.  Fennel (anise) is sometimes called sweet cumin.

Cumin is considered to be a major spice in Indian cuisine, as well as North African, Middle Eastern,  western Chinese, and Mexican cuisines. Actually, it is really only used in the northern parts of Mexico and only sparingly. It is more widely used further south like in Colombia. [citation needed] Not really.  My husband is Colombian and he insists that everything has cumin in it.

Here comes our first cumin recipe. Well not a recipe for cumin,  but rather,  one that contains cumin.

Scrambled Eggs

Ingredients

• 6 eggs
• Salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• Ground cumin
• 1 tablespoon butter

Instructions

Heat a non-stick skillet over low heat.

Break the eggs into a bowl and scramble vigorously with a fork.  You'll get better action with a dinner fork; the one with the long tines.  Add a little water, no more than a tablespoon, and continue to scramble until the eggs get a little frothy.

You can either season the eggs in the bowl or after you add them to the skillet.  Melt the butter in the skillet, then pour in the eggs.  Use your fork to move the eggs around as the cook.  They are technically done while they still look a little wet, but they continue to cook after being plated.

Serves 4.