The AroWest Spice Library
Deep, sourced guides to the spices of the Western Ghats — history, botany, culinary uses, evidence-based health benefits and nutrition. Written by the people who grow and trade them.
Cardamom
The Queen of Spices — sweet, floral, citrus-eucalyptus. History, grades, uses, benefits & nutrition.
Read the guideBlack Pepper
The King of Spices — native to the Western Ghats. History, Tellicherry grades, piperine, uses & nutrition.
Read the guideClove
Warm, sweet, intensely aromatic flower buds. Origin, eugenol, grades, GI clove, uses & nutrition.
Read the guideNutmeg
Warm, sweet, woody seed — and mace, its scarlet aril. Origin, chemistry, the safety story, uses & nutrition.
Read the guideMace
The lacy scarlet aril of nutmeg — brighter and rarer. Origin, grades, flavour, uses & nutrition.
Read the guideCinnamon
True cinnamon (Cinnamomum verum), not cassia. Origin, coumarin, grades, uses & nutrition.
Read the guideDry Ginger
Dried rhizome — “chukku” / sonth. Origin, gingerol→shogaol, uses, benefits & nutrition.
Read the guideTurmeric
The golden, curcumin-rich root. Origin, curcumin (with pepper), uses, benefits & nutrition.
Read the guideKudampuli
Malabar tamarind / Garcinia gummi-gutta — Kerala’s smoky souring rind. Origin, HCA & the diet-pill myth.
Read the guideWild Forest Honey
Raw, unheated, single-origin honey from Western Ghats wild bees. How it’s made, types, benefits & nutrition.
Read the guideLarge Cardamom
The smoky one — badi elaichi. History, grades, uses, benefits & nutrition.
Read the guideVanilla
The orchid spice. History, grades, uses, benefits & nutrition.
Read the guideCoriander
The citrusy seed and the leaf — dhania, cilantro, one plant. History, grades, uses, benefits & nutrition.
Read the guideCumin
The seed India calls jeera. History, grades, uses, benefits & nutrition.
Read the guideFennel
The sweet, anise-scented seed — saunf, variyali, sombu. History, grades, uses, benefits & nutrition.
Read the guideFenugreek
The bitter seed that turns to maple. History, grades, uses, benefits & nutrition.
Read the guideMustard
The seed that bites back. History, grades, uses, benefits & nutrition.
Read the guideAjwain
Carom Seed · Trachyspermum ammi. History, grades, uses, benefits & nutrition.
Read the guideGarlic
The pungent bulb of cloves — lahsun, Allium sativum. History, grades, uses, benefits & nutrition.
Read the guideTamarind
The sweet-sour pod that South India cooks with daily. History, grades, uses, benefits & nutrition.
Read the guideDry Red Chilli
The sun-dried pod that carries both fire and colour — lal mirch. History, grades, uses, benefits & nutrition.
Read the guideTwenty-one in-depth, sourced guides — and growing. We research each spice thoroughly before we publish.
From knowledge to your kitchen.
Explore AroWest's plantation-direct spices and aromatics from the Western Ghats.
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