Black Cardamom Pods Standard jar - 30g - Steenbergs details and description

Steenbergs Black Cardamom comes from Northern India, Nepal or Pakistan.  Black cardamom is often regarded as the poor cousin of green cardamom pods and sometimes unfairly called bastard cardamom or false cardamom, whereas it is really a useful and authentic spice in its own right.  Black cardamom smells more medicinal than green cardamom with a hint of pine smoke.  Black cardamom's flavour is almost peppery and eucalyptus like and similar to Grains of Paradise, a close relative.  Black cardamom is used in many Indian dishes and we use it as one of the 22 ingredients in Steenbergs Ras al-hanut blend.

Similar to green cardamom bushes, brown cardamom plants have long, lance-shaped leaves that grow to about 2m (6ft) in length and rise high above the centre of the plant, giving a dramatic arching & flamboyant shape to the bushes.  The black cardamom pods are the fruit of the cardamom plant and grow in small spikes close to the ground.  The oval pods are 2.5cm long and have a deep red colour when ripe; the seed casing contains around 40 dark-brown and hard seeds.  The dried brown cardamom pods are dark brown and rough with a fibrous outer surface; when you peel back this leathery outer layer, you uncover the small tar-coloured seeds, while releasing a really strong, camphorous aroma.  The smoky aroma of brown cardamom comes from the processing of the pods, whereby the picked pods are dried on platforms over a fire with the hot, smoky air from the fire imparting the distinctive lapsang souchongy aroma.

Use black cardamom as directed in recipe books for example in my Lamb Curry Recipe, or include it in chicken tikka masala or chicken maharani, where its unique woody, smokiness provides that smokiness that home cooks do not usually get as they do not get that barbecue flavour that would come from using a charcoal-burning tandoor. 

For more information on black cardamom, look at Gernot Katzer's Spice Pages and Wikipedia.

Steenbergs' Black Cardamom is part of our range of over specialist organic herbs, spices, seasonings and extracts.  Steenbergs' black cardamom is not normally taken by our retail customers, so the best way to buy it is via this website, Amazon or you can contact us on 01765 640 088 or by email at sales@steenbergs.co.uk.