Takeaway: Cinnamon has been used for millennia for both its flavor and medicinal properties.

You are currently viewing Takeaway: Cinnamon has been used for millennia for both its flavor and medicinal properties.

Cinnamon is a spice obtained from the inner bark of several tree species from the genus Cinnamomum. Cinnamon is used in both savory and sweet foods. The flavor of cinnamon has been described as warm, spicy, and slightly bitter, with mouth watering and astringent qualities. It can be used in both sweet and savory dishes and it complements or enhances other flavors such as apples, cocoa or chocolate, vanilla, ginger, parsley, sage and saffron.

The History of Cinnamon

Cinnamon has been known since ancient times. It was originally found in Ceylon (now Sri Lanka), India and China. There is evidence that cinnamon was in use earlier than 200 B.C. It has been used for millennia for both its flavor and medicinal properties.

The Ancient Egyptians were among the first to use cinnamon as a spice around 3500 B.C., as evidenced by wall paintings found on the tomb of Baqet III. Greeks and Romans also used cinnamon during their time. In fact, one of the earliest recorded uses of cinnamon was to embalm Alexander The Great approximately 2,000 years ago!

The ancient Chinese used cinnamon for medicinal purposes more than for flavoring food or drink, but it was still an important item for

Cinnamon, the fragrant bark of several trees belonging to the laurel family, has been used for millennia in both food and medicine. In its native countries, cinnamon is expensive.

Cinnamon is derived from the Greek word kinnamomon which translates to “true cinnamon” and refers to the inner bark of Cinnamomum verum , Cinnamomum zeylanicum , or Cinnamomum cassia . Most of what we buy in the store is actually cassia, a distinction that most people don’t really think about when they see “cinnamon.” Cassia is cheaper than true cinnamon, but it’s also less aromatic, and can have a harsher flavor.

Cassia is native to Sri Lanka and India. Cinnamon has been traded across Asia since antiquity, and has been a valuable commodity. The Chinese were using cinnamon as early as 500 BCE, and it was traded by the Persians around 300 BCE. Marco Polo reported that traders purchased 1,000 kilograms (2,200 pounds) of cinnamon in Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) in 1288 but that 4,000 kilograms (8,800 pounds) would have been a more typical amount. The Dutch began growing their own cinnamon in Ceylon from 1730 through 18

Cinnamon is a spice obtained from the inner bark of several trees from the genus “Cinnamomum”. Cinnamon is indigenous to Sri Lanka, India, China and Indonesia. In Sri Lanka, cinnamon is called “kurundu” (Sinhala: කුරුඳු)and was introduced to Europe in the 16th century by Venetian traders.

Today, Ceylon cinnamon accounts for about 80% of world production. Other sources of commercial cinnamon include Madagascar, China and Vietnam. About 30 tons are harvested annually in Sri Lanka.[3] The spice is produced from the dried inner bark of Cinnamomum verum and Cinnamomum burmannii, two closely related species which are grown mainly in Sri Lanka[4][5] and in Indonesia. There are two types of cinnamon derived from similar cultivars: Ceylon (“true”) cinnamon (Cinnamomum verum) also called “true cinnamon”, and Cassia (“Bark Cinnamon”) (Cinnamomum aromaticum), also called “Chinese cinnamon.”

This spice is used in both savory dishes and desserts as a condiment or flavor enhancer. Its aroma is

The spice trade was a major factor in the development of the Middle Eastern and Mediterranean regions, both before and during the rise of Rome. By the year 1000, cinnamon was so highly prized by Western Europeans that it was imported from India, Ceylon, and China. The Arabs introduced the spice to India around 1200.

The ancient Greeks and Romans both used cinnamon as an ingredient in funeral pyres and burned it as incense during religious ceremonies in honor of the dead. They also valued it for its medicinal properties. Galen recommended it to treat colic and other stomach problems, while Dioscorides wrote that ground cinnamon bark could be used to treat wounds and to expel tapeworms. Pliny the Elder suggested crushing cinnamon with salt as a remedy for snakebites.

But it wasn’t until 1835 that chemists isolated the first of cinnamon’s two main components; they named it cinnamaldehyde after the Latin word for cinnamon. It is found mainly in the bark of Cinnamomum trees (Cinamomum cassia or Cinamomum zeylanicum), which are native to China, Japan, Vietnam, Sri Lanka, Madagascar and Indonesia.

The second component was not discovered until 1951; chemists named it cou

Cinnamon is a spice obtained from the inner bark of several trees from the genus Cinnamomum. The adjective cinnamon comes from the Greek κιννάμωμον kinnámōmon, via Latin and medieval French intermediate forms. The Greek was borrowed from a Phoenician term, which was similar to the related Hebrew qinnamon. The name cassia is ultimately derived from Arabic, although it took its present form through Medieval Latin and Middle English.

Cinnamon has been known since antiquity both for its culinary and medicinal value; as a food additive, a fragrance component and as a traditional medicine used for toothache and stomach ache.

Cinnamon is a spice obtained from the inner bark of several trees from the genus “Cinnamomum”. The essential oil is used in perfumery and in food flavoring.

Cinnamomum verum “true cinnamon”, native to Sri Lanka, is used as a spice. Its flavor is due to the chemical compound cinnamaldehyde (a type of aldehyde). It’s the world’s third-most expensive spice, after vanilla and saffron. Cinnamomum cassia (“Chinese cinnamon”) is native to South East Asia. Cinnamomum zeylanicum is native to Sri Lanka.

Cinnamon has a sweet, warm taste and a distinct fragrance, with woody notes. Cinnamon is one of the most popular spices in European cuisine and its descendants; it’s also a traditional element of Chinese cuisine. Cassia bark is often confused with cinnamon bark. Cassia bark has a harsher taste than cinnamon, it contains more tannins and other chemicals that are potentially toxic, but it also has medicinal properties that are lacking in true cinnamon.

Cinnamon is a spice obtained from the inner bark of several tree species from the genus Cinnamomum. Cinnamon is used in both sweet and savoury foods. The flavor of cinnamon derive from its chemical components, mainly ester-linked phenylpropanoids, including eugenol and cinnamaldehyde.

The essential oil is used as a flavouring agent for food and drink; the flavour of cinnamon is due to an aromatic ester found in the bark called cinnamaldehyde, a chemical which gives cinnamon its distinctive aroma and flavour.

Leave a Reply