Caraway

Group: Spices

Caraway is one of the oldest spices and is known for not only its culinary uses but is also of equal importance in medicine, cosmetics and perfumery. It belongs to the plant family Umbelliferae or also called as Apiaceae. The Umbelliferae is one of the great families of flowering plants, and contains about 300 genera with three thousand species with perennial, biennial or annual herbs, generally native to the temperate zones.

The plants usually have sturdy, hollow, erect stems bearing large alternate leaves. The characteristic feature of the family is the inflorescence, which forms a simple or compound umbell of small regular flowers.The fruits are generally known as seeds and are best used as spice and also are the main source of essential oil.

There are thirty species in the genus Carum which is found in Europe, N Africa, and temperate Asia, and the most important herb in this genus is Carum Carvi (Caraway). It is a cultivated herb, both in gardens and commercially. Its name is said to be derived from the Greek kapov, in English known as caraway, considered to be from the old Arabic karauya. Furthermore, it is believed that Carum is named after Caria, an ancient region of Asia Minor that corresponds to present-day southern Aydin and western Mugla in Turkey. Talking of its nativity, it is native to Europe, Western Asia, Germany, Holland, Russia, Scandinavia, United States.
 

Its remains said to have been found in food debris of Mesolithic sites. It was used in the ancient Mesopotamian civilisations, the Dynastic Egypt and by the Greeks and Romans. Caraway was initially brought to Britain by the Romans, but it was not cultivated until much later. That's interesting to learn about the spices we use everyday have actually existed since centuries.

Caraway is basically biennial but usually treated as annual and hence, we can say it is divided into two types, winter (biennial) and spring (annual). Similar to many carum species, the roots of caraway are cooked as a vegetable. An essential oil can be extracted from the roots whose composition varies with the age of plant. The leaves are bright green, alternate, in an approximately 2/5 arrangements and smell like dill-parsley. Young leaves are used as a raw or cooked vegetable. In Germany, caraway plants with immature fruits are a highly regarded component of special meadows producing herbal hay, enhancing milk yield and quality in dairy cattle.
 

The flowers are usually white, sometimes pink tipped with five petals and five stamens. The fruit is commonly called seed and when it is dried, it is brown in colour, it has pungent aroma and a distinctly warm and sweet flavor. As for pollination, insects are the main pollinating agents.


Looking at its records from history, It is believed that cooked roots of caraway mixed with milk and molded into cakes were the Chara of Julius Caesar. In present day, similar recipe is still used in breads in Scandinavia. In his Materia Medica of the first century, Dioscorides recommended an extract of the fruit as a tonic for pale faced girls. During Medieval times, in Central Europe, it was used in baked products and in England, chopped caraway leaves were added in soups and salads, but the seeds were more regarded as medicine than spice. And now, alongside medicine, the seeds are equally used in cooking such as baked foods and curries. To this day, it remains as a widely used and an important ingredient in cooking, herbal medicine and liqueurs.

Having similarities between caraway and cumin, people often get confused that if caraway and cumin is the same. Well, they are both different and there's a distinct difference between the flavour of caraway and its relative, cumin. Caraway seeds are light brown to dark brown, long curved and tapered at one end. They smell aromatic, warm and pungent whereas, cumin seeds are yellowish-brown and slightly whitish. They smell nutty and herbaceous and the taste is slightly bitter, and a mixture of little peppery and menthol. It would be also worth learning that both belong to the plant family Apiaceae which also includes more aromatic spices such as, anise, celery, chervil, coriander, dill, fennel and parsley. There are also some wonderful edible plants like the carrot and parsnip in this family.



Caraway is best known as a carminative herb, one that prevents flatulence, and promotes appetite and digestion. Caraway seeds are useful in strengthening the functions of the stomach. They relieve flatulence and are useful in flatulent colic, a cup of tea made from caraway seeds gives relief in it. It also helps in increasing milk in nursing mothers. Moreover, when mother uses caraway, her baby won't suffer from flatulence and indigestion. It relieves period pains, also good in case of menopause. When blended in a cream, it can help to fight itching skin, scalp and skin problems such as acne and reduces bruising.

Caraway essential oil is extracted chiefly from seeds using steam distillation. Carvone and limonene are the principal components in caraway oil. The aroma of the oil is mostly dominated by carvone (50 to 85%) and limonene (20 to 30%).These active principles are known to have antioxidant, digestive, carminative and anti-flatulent properties. The oil is used to get rid of mental depression. It is also used in pharmaceuticals as flavoring agent in mouth-wash and gargle preparations. Its uses can also be seen as a fragrance component in toothpastes, soaps, lotions and perfumes.

The use of caraway in the ancient times was more in medicine due to its extensive healing properties. Later, combined with other aromatic herbs, it was also used in the incense which was burned for religious services. And now in modern perfumery, we can witness its uses in spicy, aromatic, floriental, fougere and in almost all fragrance groups.

In Eau Dynamisante by Clarins, caraway accompanies coriander, lemon and orange in the top notes.

Cruise Collection - Escale a Portofino Dior: In the base notes, caraway creates an aromatic atmosphere combining with musk, galbanum, cypress and cedar.

Red for Men Giorgio Beverly Hills: Added in the top notes, starts spicy and potent.  

Yvresse Yves Saint Laurent: Accompanies peach, apricot, mint, basil and anise in the top.



Magnifique Lancome: Here are some lines from a Fragrantican, Tigerlillian's review and there she spots on the spiciness," Oh, this fragrance has such a hypnotic effect on me. When I first sprayed it, I almost got a lightly jarring sensation of clean, nutrient-rich bark mulch, infused with spices and a hint of rose, which immediately got my attention."



Green Tea Elizabeth Arden: And a few lines copy-pasted from gypsy parfumista's review," The dry down (as one member already said) really shines long after applying it. The celery seeds are very green and also aromatic and make this even greener, but still light and fresh. Cloves and caraway, add a subtle warmth and delightful hint of spices and the green tea."
 

Perfumes and Colognes With Caraway