CUMIN

* (cuminum cyminum) seeds are native to the Mediterranean region and eastward into India. Cumin is a member of the parsley family. The ancient Egyptians who called it “tpnn” used cumin a lot. Ancient Egyptian king Rameses III offered gifts of cumin to the god Ra at Heliopolis. 

Several grains of ancient cumin are available for inspection at the Agricultural Museum in Dokki, Cairo and in the museum of Florence, Italy.

Cumin Seeds

The ancient Egyptians used cumin to treat gastro-intestinal disease, to expel intestinal parasites, and cumin was included in different medicinal recipes for mouth rinses, suppositories, and ear instillations. Cumin seed is listed in Biblical texts in both the Old and New Testaments. It was said in ancient Greece that if one planted coriander, during the sowing process it must be cursed – if the crop was to be abundant. Medieval healers recommended cumin seeds mixed with barley then boiled in wine as a general cure-all.

According to Keimer, Egyptian cumin (Cuminum cyminum) is different from the European cumin, Carum carvi, From the fact that the Egyptian name “tpjin”, preserved in Coptic “tapen”, is different from the Semitic names of the plant, one could conclude that the Arabs introduced the Semitic appellation kammoun when they invaded Egypt.

Cumin Plantation

The Roman epicurean Apicius reported that the Egyptians of his time used cumin when they cooked marrows and grilled fish. The Roman writer Pliny highly recommended cumin and wrote: Yet of all the seasonings that gratify a fastidious taste, cumin is the most agreeable. Pliny also mentioned that cumin mixed with water commonly was used to treat stomachache. In modern Egypt crushed cumin added to water and medicinal teas is used to treat colic and indigestion, and may be offered to pregnant and recently delivered women.

The Cumin Plant

Ancient Indian Ayurvedic medical texts report that cumin seeds are crushed and prepared as decoctions, sometimes fermented, and may be prepared as pills and mixed with ghee (clarified butter). Such preparations are used to enhance appetite, digestion, lactation, and taste perception. The medicinal use of these cumin-based pills is extended to treat conditions such as appetite loss, diarrhea, and fever. Several recent Indian medical journal reports claim that cumin contains anti-diabetic properties and that consumption improves secretion of saliva.

The Gerarde herbal reports says: cumin seeds scattereth and breaketh all the windiness of the stomachs, belly, guts, and matrix [uterus]; prepared as a broth cumin seeds are good for the chest and cold lungs; when mixed with vinegar and smelled, will stop nosebleeds.

Cumin Flowers

In the Mediterranean and Near Eastern countries, sweetening agents, jams, sweet jellies, or fruits, are not generally eaten with meats or cooked dishes, as they are in northern Europe or America. But spices are used more freely. Speaking in a rather schematic way, mint, oregano, thyme and laurel prevail in Greece; fennel, laurel, tarragon in Southern France; coriander, cumin and black pepper in Egypt; hot peppers in the Sudan and Congo; cardamom and saffron in the Arabian Peninsula; while pine seeds, raisins, pistachio nuts and almonds are often added to rice or to stuffing in Syria and the Lebanon.

A mixture of spices coriander and cumin, along with toasted nuts, salt and garlic was used to sweeten the coarse bread of daily life in ancient Egypt. That tradition lives on today in the Dukkah, a popular spice blend that modern Egyptians enjoy just as their ancestors did thousands of years ago.

The Plant & Seeds

Follow the recipe for Dukkah below to bring a taste of ancient Egypt into your own kitchen. It can be used as a condiment for roasted meat, as a topping for hummus or as a dip with crusty bread.

Ingredients

1-cup whole shelled hazelnuts

1-cup whole shelled almonds

1-tablespoon whole coriander seeds

1-tablespoon whole cumin seeds

1/4-cup whole sesame seeds

1/4-teaspoon salt

Preparation

1.   Preheat the oven to 350 F.

2.   On a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, spread the sesame seeds out in a single layer.

3.   Roast in the oven for about 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool.

4.   Place the hazelnuts and almonds on the same baking sheet and roast in the oven for about 5 minutes.

5.   Remove and combine with the toasted sesame seeds.

6.   Combine the sesame seeds, hazelnuts, almonds, coriander seeds, cumin seeds and salt, in a food processor and grind for 2 to 4 minutes.

7.   Store in an airtight container.

Dokka on Crust