Eat To Live – Seasonings

Variety is The Spice of Life

Culinary Herbs and Spices

As the popularity of healthy, ethnic cooking home grows, our spice rack should expand to accommodate the seasonings that give vegan dishes their unique characters. Volumes can be written on the healing aspect of herbs and spices, but for now know that any spice or herb you add to your soup, stew or salad has beneficial value.

Focusing for the moment on TASTE ALONE, this section will give a brief overview of those seasonings most commonly used to flavour global whole food recipes.


Buying, Storage & Usage Tips

  • When buying herbs and spices by weight, buy only what will fit into an average-size spice jar. In other words, don’t stock up. Most go a very long way and are at their optimal flavour for up to a year, after which they begin losing their potency.
  • Keep dried herbs and spices in a place in your kitchen that is away from heat and moisture.
  • When substituting fresh herbs for dry, use about three times the amount of fresh herb as the dry.
  • Introduce dried herbs and spices into your recipe as early in the cooking process as possible, so that they have a chance to develop flavour. Add fresh herbs toward the middle or even the end of the cooking if you’d like to retain their pronounced flavour.
  • If using fresh herbs, remember to keep them only for a short time as they lose both flavour and nutritional value the older they become. 
  • To avoid wastage, place herbs into ice trays and add clean spring water then freeze.  Pop a handful of these iced herbs into soups and stews in the early stages of cooking to allow the cubes to melt and add flavour to your dish.
  • Use our spice charts to add some zip to your recipes. 
  • Experiment, have fun – it’s a great way to eat your way to health.

For information on how to take advantage of medicinal value of herbs and spices, by incorporating them into your daily diet – follow the link to our “Food As Medicine” page or you can read more on the specific Therapeutic Foods, Supplements and Herbs that DBM use frequently in their health programs, on this link.

“All those spices and herbs in your spice rack can do more than provide calorie-free, natural flavourings to enhance and make food delicious. They’re also an incredible source of antioxidants and help rev up your metabolism and improve your health at the same time.” – Suzanne Somers
Eat to Live - Seasonings
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