Baharat-Mixed Spices for Syrian, Lebanese, and Palestinian Cooking
Baharat
Region: Arab Levant
Category: Basic Recipes and Sauces
Season: Any
Difficulty: Easy and Quick

 Baharat means "spice" in Arabic, derived from the word bahar, which means pepper, so it is a mixed spice with black pepper. It is an all-purpose spice mix used in Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, and Palestine and found in many prepared savory dishes.

    Baharat can be bought at Middle Eastern groceries and markets but it is also quite easy to make fresh for yourself and keep it stored in a spice jar. There are many different variations, all based on the basic ingredients of black pepper and allspice. Some mixes might include paprika, coriander seeds, cassia bark, sumac, nutmeg, cumin seed, or cardamon seed. This recipe is basic, if you like, you can fiddle with it by adding some of the other spices mentioned.

Yield: Makes about 1/ 2 cup
Preparation Time: 5 minutes

1/4 cup black peppercorns     1/4 cup allspice berries

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon     1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

Grind the peppercorns and allspice together and blend with the cinnamon and nutmeg. Store in a jar in your spice rack, away from sunlight. It will lose pungency as time goes by, but, properly stored it can be good for many months.

Posted: 01/09/2007