Like any other food products, it is important to choose the best spices for your cooking. Spices can bring in a huge difference in your regular cooking. Thus, it is important that you buy only the best spices. Here are some things to know before buying spice blends.
Avoid grocery store spices
There is no surety for how long a product has been on the shelf of an average grocery store. they could be there for a year or even older to that. The average shelf life of most spices is about six months, so there are high chances that the spices in the store might be stale. Also, these spices are of poor quality and may contain contaminants.
Purchase whole spices
Instead of buying spice powders, go for whole spices and grind them yourself so that you retain maximum potency and ensure that you get the true flavors. Moreover, whole spices stay fresh for a longer time. On the other hand, ground spices have a short shelf life, which makes it expire quickly. There are also various ingredients mixed in ground spices like rice, flour or even salt. Most suppliers do not mention these ingredients on the pack and you might never what you are consuming accidentally. There might be contaminants in ground spices as well.
Buy small amounts
If you are not happy with buying whole spices and grinding them, you can go for ground spices. But, make sure that you choose the highest quality and do not buy them in bulk quantities. Ground spices are not meant to be stored for a year or so as they go stale quickly. Unless, you are an active cook or like to add a lot of spices, buy a small number of spices. Moreover, if you are buying good quality of spices, you will only need a small amount for your cooking.
Conclusion
It is always better to grow your own herbs and spices or purchase whole spices. Buying ground spices should be the last option.
