Young cinnamon leaves have a red colour
From cinnamon leaves, another essential oil (1%) can be obtained that
consists mainly of eugenol (70 to 95%) and can be used as a substitute for
clove. Small amounts (1 to 5%) of cinnamaldehyde,
benzyl benzoate, linalool and β-caryophyllene have also been
found.
A completely different composition is found in the essential oil of
cinnamon root bark; here, camphor (60%) dominates. This oil is not
used commercially.
Last, in cinnamon fruits (cassia buds
, cinnamon buds
), the main components
were found to be trans-cinnamyl acetate and β-caryophyllene.
(Flavour and Fragrance Journal, 12, 331, 1997)
Origin
Cinnamomum zeylanicum originates from the island Sri Lanka
(formerly called Ceylon), southeast of India. It is also native to south-west
India and the Tenasserim Hills of Burma. Several attempts have been made to
transplant cinnamon trees to other parts of the tropic world, but they have
become naturalized only on the Seychelles.
Related cinnamon species are found in Indonesia, Vietnam and China.
Etymology
English cinnamon, German Zimt,
Lithuanian cinamonas, Belarusian cynamon [цынамон],
Serbocroatian cimet [цимет],
Yiddish tsimering [צימערינג] and
Armenian ginamon [կինամոն]
all derive from Latin cinnamomum, which was in turn a loan
from Greek kinnamomon [κιννάμωμον] (also spelled kinamomon [κινάμωμον]).
Cinnamomum zeylanicum: Cinnamon flowers
Cinnamon flowers
www.rz.uni-karlsruhe.de
The Greek had borrowed the word from a Semitic tongue, cf.
Old Hebrew kinamom [קנמון]
and Aramaic qunimun [ܩܘܢܝܡܘܢ].
However, these words can hardly be native Semitic, and their further origin is
not known; it has been suggested that they ultimately stem from early Malaysian language
and are thus related to modern Indonesian kayu manis sweet wood
(although this is a problematic assumption).
Similar descriptive designations also exist in other languages, e. g.,
Dhivehi foni thoshi [ފޮނި ތޮށި] sweet bark
.
For names like Dutch kaneel and French
cannelle, see Indonesian cinnamon.
Another class of names, exemplified by Hindi dal chini [दाल चीनी],
Farsi darchin [دارچین]
and Turkish tarçın, is explained in the
article on cassia; see also
juniper for an etymological explanation of the
first part in these names.
Most Indian languages have names of the dalchini type,
but some tongues of Southern India name cinnamon by a word whose relatives
in other languages mean cloves,
e. g., Tamil ilavangam [இலவங்கம்].
Selected Links
More about Ceylon Cinnamon (ceylon-cinnamon.com)
Indian Spices: Cinnamon (indianetzone.com)
Ilkas und Ullis Kochecke: Zimt (rezkonv.de via archive.org)
A Pinch of Cinnamon (www.apinchof.com)
The Epicentre: Cinnamon
Fragen und Antworten zu Cumarin in Zimt und anderen Lebensmitteln (bfr.bund.de)
Medical Spice Exhibit: Cinnamon (via archive.org) (via archive.org)
Nature One Health: Cinnamon
Transport Information Service: Cinnamon/Cassia
Sorting Cinnamomum names (www.plantnames.unimelb.edu.au)
chemikalienlexikon.de: Zimtaldehyd
Altes Gewürzamt: Zimtblüten
The Mythic Chinese Unicorn zhi: The Cinnamon Route (via web.archive.org)
The Periplus of the Erythraean Sea
Francesco Sirene: Spices & Herbs (cassia buds)
Cinnamon and Type-2 Diabetes (diabetesjournals.org)
Cinnamomum zeylanicum: Cinnamon twigs
Branches of cinnamon trees in Sri Lanka
Cinnamomum zeylanicum: Cinnamon branch
Branch of cinnamon tree
Cinnamon is an ancient spice mentioned several times in the
Old Testament (see
pomegranate on this topic),
although only Chinese cinnamon (
cassia) has been
known in the West until the 16.th century. Compared to the Chinese species,
Ceylon cinnamon has a more delicate aroma and is the dominating quality on the
Western market.
See Indonesian cinnamon for a comparison of
different cinnamon species. See also cassia for
usage of cinnamon in Chinese cuisine and Vietnamese
cinnamon for cinnamon usage in Vietnam.
Since Ceylon cinnamon is native in South Asia, it is not surprising that the
cuisines of Sri Lanka and India make heavy use of it. It is equally suited for
the fiery beef curries of Sri Lanka and the subtle, fragrant rice dishes (biriyani) of the Imperial North Indian cuisine. It is also
widely in use for flavouring tea. Cinnamon is also popular in all regions where
Persian or Arab influence is felt: West, South West and Central Asia,
Northern and Eastern Africa.
Although cinnamon was very popular in Europe in the 16.th to 18.th centuries,
is importance is now rather shrunken: the main application for cinnamon in
Western cooking are several kinds of desserts; stewed fruits, for instance, are
usually flavoured with a mixture of cloves and
cinnamon. Cinnamon is, however, only rarely tried for spicy dishes.
In India, cinnamon is applied as a whole; the bark pieces are fried in hot oil
until they unroll (this is important to release the fragrance); then,
temperature is quenched by adding other components, like tomatoes, onions or
yoghurt (see onions and black cumin for further details). The cinnamon chunks
may be removed before serving, but are more frequently kept as a fragrant
decoration.
Cinnamomum zeylanicum: Cinnamom berries
Cinnamon fruits
Cinnamomum zeylanicum: Cassia buds
Cinnamon buds (dried cinnamon fruits)
In most other countries, powdered cinnamon is preferred. The powder should be
added shortly before serving, as it becomes slightly bitter after some time of
cooking. Powdered cinnamon is contained in several spice mixtures, like North
Indian garam masala (see cumin),
curry powder (see curry leaves) and Arabic
baharat (see paprika). African
spice mixtures in Arabic style are Moroccan ras el hanout
(see cubeb pepper), Tunisian gâlat dagga (see grains of
paradise) and berbere, an Ethiopian spice mixture with
somewhat Indian character (see long pepper).
Cinnamon bark is, furthermore, an optional ingredient for the classical French
mixture quatre épices (see nutmeg). For Chinese five spice powder, see cassia. Cinnamon has become popular in México;
see paprika for its usage for the famous mole sauces.
The so-called cinnamon buds
are the unripe fruits harvested shortly after the
blossom; in appearance, they are similar to cloves.
These buds are less aromatic than the bark; their odour is, however, rather
interesting: mild, pure and sweet. To release their fragrance, they must be
finely ground. Their usage as a spice has only regional importance in China
(there obtained from the cassia tree) and India
(region Kutch in the union state Gujarat). I cannot explain why, but spice
vendors tend to confuse cinnamon buds with cubeb
pepper berries, which look and taste totally different.
Cinnamon and its relatives are Asian plants and have, to my knowledge, not much
been transferred to New World countries. In Northern South America, however, there are
plants referred to as American
or Native Cinnamon
; the most common
is Ocotea quixos from Ecuador
and Perú; the bark of that tree has a flavour very close to cinnamon.
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