Cooking with Spices for Flavor and Health

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Don’t sacrifice flavor for the sake of being healthy. You can include many tasty additions to your meals that may come with health benefits of their own. For your next meal, try cooking with spices and herbs instead of salt.

Whether you’re the household meal planner or preparing one-off recipes for yourself, cooking with spices can add a new dimension of flavor to recipes. With a sprinkle of fresh or dried herbs or a twist of ground black pepper, cooking with spices can amplify almost any dish—and potentially add a layer of nutrition to a meal.

Why Cook with Spices and Herbs?

Cooking with spices isn’t new—turn to practically any historical cooking tradition around the globe for the incorporation of spices and herbs in recipes. From zesty garlic to warm, roasted spices like turmeric, herbs have the potential to elevate flavors and add nuance to a dish. Cooking with herbs and spices can elevate your health, as well as add flavor and dynamic tastes to foods without necessarily adding more salt.

If you’re looking to improve your health, cooking with spices and herbs offers an alternative to high-sodium, processed foods or even home-cooked meals that are laden with extra salt or fat. Avoid high blood pressure and reduce your risk of heart disease, heart attack and stroke by following either the DASH diet or Mediterranean diet, two dietary approaches that incorporate fresh vegetables and fruits, low-fat proteins, and vegetable oils while limiting sodium, sweets, and full-fat dairy and fatty meats. Both of these dietary approaches rely on herbs instead of excess salt to add flavor.

Benefits of Cooking with Spices and Herbs

Herbs and spices deliver potential health benefits with antioxidant, antiviral and antimicrobial effects. Some herbs and spices, including ginger, garlic and turmeric, have the potential ability to reduce inflammation. In general, fresh herbs and spices deliver more nutritional potential than their dried counterparts, but it’s best to use whatever you have access to—dried herbs are a fine addition to a dish if fresh herbs are out of season or inaccessible.

Herbs like rosemary, parsley and cilantro pack a punch when added to recipes. Spices like black peppers, cinnamon, ginger and cumin add depth to foods. Aromatic vegetables, such as onions, garlic and pepper, add complexity to dishes without adding salt. Boost flavor with fruit, such as citrus juice and citrus zest.

As with anything new, consider adding herbs and spices to your food as a fun experiment, putting a twist on an old favorite dish or trying new flavors. Speaking of fun, herbs and spices are an excellent way to get your kids to eat more vegetables. Even picky eaters are more likely to eat their vegetables with herbs and spices added into the mix. A University of Maryland School of Medicine study found an 18.2% increase in school lunch vegetable consumption among teenage students following the addition of herbs and spices to the usual selection of vegetables.

Expand your taste buds and find recipes that incorporate some of the following herbs.

Black Pepper

Black pepper is a common spice known as a source of antioxidants, or a substance that can prevent damage to your body’s cells. Some studies show the potential of black pepper’s most active component, piperine, as potentially scavenging free radicals, which are substances in the body that contribute to damage to cells in your body, also known as oxidative stress. More research is needed to determine the health benefits of black pepper. But don’t let that stop you from adding freshly ground pepper to dishes—pepper is an easy and accessible way to add flavor to meats, vegetables, dressings and more.

Turmeric

Turmeric has a history of medicinal use dating back at least 4,000 years. This herb is used widely in Southeast Asian cultures, though its popularity is now worldwide—and the focus of thousands of studies into its potential health properties.

Turmeric is a rhizome, or rooted plant, that is a bold, bright yellow color. One of the most studied compounds in turmeric is curcumin, with other related compounds called curcuminoids. These components of turmeric have antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antiviral, antibacterial and antifungal properties. Some studies show curcumin has potential activity against cancer, diabetes, arthritis and Alzheimer’s disease.

Turmeric and curcumin extracts are now commonly found in tablet or capsule form in health food stores and drug stores. As with any alternative medicine or treatment, it’s best to talk with your health care provider when you’re adding any supplements or vitamins to your routine, as some over-the-counter supplements may interact with prescription medications.

An easy way to add turmeric to your diet is to add it to foods. Consider the following additions to your regular kitchen roundup:

Add turmeric to a pot of rice or pilaf.
Combine turmeric with roasted root vegetables.
Add it to egg or tofu scrambles.
Use it in soups.
Blend fresh turmeric root into a smoothie.
Try turmeric brewed as tea.

Cayenne Pepper

Cayenne pepper often takes the heat—and the potential beneficial health properties – from capsaicin, a phytochemical that gives chili peppers their heat. In addition to boasting vitamins A and C, cayenne peppers may be used for pain relief. Red peppers may have the potential to decrease appetite.

Cinnamon

This warming, sweet spice contains antioxidants and can be used to flavor foods without adding extra sugar. Top applesauce or yogurt, or add to peanut butter toast for something extra scrumptious. Additionally, two small studies showed people with Type 2 diabetes had modest improvement in lowering blood glucose levels with cinnamon supplementation, but cinnamon is not a replacement for the proven standard of care.

Consider adding cinnamon to whole grain muffins, waffles or pancakes. Cinnamon also makes a flavorful addition to savory dishes, including some chili recipes and meat-based dishes.

Ginger

Ginger is a spicy herb similar to turmeric that has been used for centuries. Many people consume ginger—as ginger ale, ginger chews or ginger capsules—to alleviate nausea and vomiting caused by morning sickness during pregnancy, chemotherapy and seasickness.

Beyond its use as a potential therapeutic agent, ginger makes a wonderful earthy and zesty addition to dishes. This root pairs well with both savory and sweet dishes. Consider adding it to other root vegetables, such as carrots and sweet potatoes, or seafood, pork and chicken dishes. Ginger is commonly used in holiday favorites, like gingersnap cookies, and can be brewed into a tasty, warming tea with honey and lemon.

Garlic

This powerful plant and spice can pack a punch when added to recipes. Sliced, pressed, crushed or whole, garlic adds significant aroma and flavor to recipes. In addition to its wonderful flavor, the therapeutic benefits of garlic have been widely studied. Garlic boasts antioxidant capacity, anti-inflammatory properties and a potential lipid-lowering effect.

Although garlic is available in supplement form as capsules, consider a food-first approach by eating a diet rich in nutrient-dense fruits and vegetables and flavored with diverse herbs and spices, including garlic. Talk with your primary care provider about any recommended supplements to best manage your health and how they might interact with any prescription medications.

Peppermint

Peppermint is a common flavor—and if you’ve ever grown this fresh herb, it has the potential to take over a garden. While peppermint and peppermint oil have been used to relieve certain digestive problems, including irritable bowel syndrome, sinus infections and headaches, more studies in humans are needed to confirm the explicit health benefits of peppermint and peppermint oil. Talk with your primary care provider to determine if peppermint oil could be a complementary herb to help control symptoms. Similarly, peppermint has the potential to cause heartburn or exacerbate symptoms of GERD, so tread lightly if you suffer from heartburn.

Peppermint may have certain antimicrobial and antiviral qualities. Brew a peppermint tea and taste this enlivening herb at its finest. The smell may help alleviate nausea and clear sinus passages when you have a cold.

Foods to Avoid

If you suffer from digestive disruptions like heartburn, do you know what herbs and spices can exacerbate or worsen your symptoms? Heartburn and gastroesophageal reflux disease, or GERD, can be uncomfortable conditions to live with. Up to 20% of Americans live with GERD, which is characterized by stomach contents leaking backward into the esophagus. This action can cause heartburn and nausea, among other symptoms, as well as discomfort after eating.

If you suffer from heartburn, it’s important to talk with your health care provider about symptoms you experience. Your provider may recommend lifestyle changes that can help relieve heartburn. They may also recommend either over-the-counter or prescription medications to treat GERD.

If symptoms aren’t relieved with lifestyle changes or medications, your medical provider may recommend further testing, including an upper endoscopy, which examines the lining of the upper gastrointestinal system including the esophagus, stomach, and top of the small intestine, to determine the severity of the condition.

Choosing certain foods and avoiding others may help limit or control symptoms of GERD and heartburn. Food and drinks that can trigger symptoms of heartburn include:

Spicy foods, including foods with mint or chocolate
Acidic foods, including those with oranges, lemons and tomatoes
Alcohol
Caffeinated beverages, including coffee and tea
Fatty foods
Carbonated beverages

If you have GERD or other condition that affects your gastrointestinal system, you may benefit from keeping a food diary to better understand the foods and conditions that amplify your symptoms. Talk with your health care provider for other tips to alleviate heartburn and gastric distress.