Sri Lankan cinnamon is my favourite variety, with its delicate sweet aroma and flavour. To me, the smell of Sri Lankan cinnamon cooking with cloves is one of the great defining sensory experiences of the kitchen.
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Sri Lankan cinnamon tree | Sri Lankan cinnamon leaves and flower buds | Sri Lankan cinnamon quills |
| Species: | Cinnamomum zeylanicum. |
Origin: | Southern Asia. |
Source: | Cinnamomum zeylanicum originates from the island of Sri Lanka and is also native to South-Western India and to part of Burma. Attempts have been made to transplant cinnamon trees to other tropical countries, with success only in the Seychelles. Related species are found in Indonesia, Vietnam and China. |
Used Part: | Stem bark. |
Family: | Lauraceae(laurel family). |
Effect: | Strongly aromatic, sweet, pleasant and warm and but hardly bitter or astringent. Compared to its relatives, Sri Lankan cinnamon has a fresh or "lively" tone that is missing in other cinnamon species. |
Etymology: | The English name "cinnamon", along with the German zimt, Lithuanian cinamonas, Polish cynamon, Croatian cimet and other names derive from Latin cinnamomum, which was itself a loan from Greek kinnamōmon. The origin of the word is supposed to be Semitic, cf. Old Hebrew quinnāmōn. It is also possible that the word is ultimately loaned from an early Malaysian language, cf. the modern name kayu manis "sweet wood" in Malay and Indonesian. |
For names like Dutch kaneel and French cannelle, see Indonesian cinnamon. For another class of names, exemplified by Hindi dhal Chini, Farsi darchin and Turkish tarçını, see Chinese cinnamon. Species name zeylanicum is Latin for Sri Lankan (and the former English name for the territory, "Ceylon"). | |
Uses: | Cinnamon is an ancient spice mentioned in the Old Testament, although only Chinese cinnamon (cassia) was known in the West before the 16th century. Compared to the Chinese species, Sri Lankan cinnamon has a more delicate aroma and is the dominating quality on the Western market. |
The cuisines of Sri Lanka and India make heavy use of this spice, both for the fiery beef curries of Sri Lanka and for the subtle, fragrant rice dishes (biryanis) of Mogul North Indian cuisine. Cinnamon is also widely in use for flavouring tea and is popular in all regions where Persian or Arab influence was felt, including Western, South-Western and Central Asia, Northern and Eastern Africa. In India, the bark pieces fried in hot oil until they unroll to release fragrance. At this point the temperature is lowered by adding other components, typically tomatoes, onion and/or yoghurt. The cinnamon chunks may be removed before serving, but are more frequently kept as a fragrant decoration. | |
Although cinnamon was very popular in Europe in the 16th and 17th centuries, its importance is now considerably diminished and the main application today is in desserts and stewed fruits, with cinnamon rarely used for native European spicy dishes. In most other countries powdered cinnamon is preferred, added shortly before serving as it becomes bitter after some cooking time. Powdered cinnamon is contained in several spice mixtures including North Indian garam masala, curry powder and Arabic baharat. Arabic African spice mixes include Moroccan ras el hanout, Tunisian gâlat dagga and Ethiopian berbere. Sri Lankan cinnamon is an optional ingredient for French quatre épices, but Chinese cinnamon is used for Chinese five spice. Cinnamon is popular in Mexico and is used in mole sauces. | |
The so-called "cinnamon buds" are the unripe fruits harvested shortly after the blossom and are similar to cloves. These buds are less aromatic than the bark but have an odour that is mild and sweet. To release fragrance they are finely ground. Their usage has only regional importance in China and India (Gujarat). |