Recipes / Spice know-how
Spice know-how · 4 min read
Why roasting cumin changes everything
What heat does to cumin, and when to stop.
You’ll need
- Whole cumin seeds
- A heavy dry pan
Method
- 01Raw cumin is grassy and slightly bitter. Heat drives off moisture and turns its oils toasty and nutty.
- 02Roast on a medium flame, shaking the pan, until the seeds go one shade darker and smell like popcorn — about 90 seconds.
- 03Stop before any seed turns black; burnt cumin tastes acrid and nothing fixes it.
- 04Cool completely before grinding, or the powder will clump.
- 05Our Roasted Cumin Powder is roasted and ground the same day for exactly this reason.
