2024 Author: Jasmine Walkman | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 08:29
The homeland of the nutmeg is the Mollus Islands and Banda Island. The nutmeg tree can reach up to 15 meters in height. The spice is extremely popular among the Arabs - they traded with the Far East from ancient times until the end of the Middle Ages.
Nutmeg was brought to Europe and quickly became a popular spice among Europeans. In the beginning, the spice was extremely difficult to find, as very small quantities of it were imported to the mainland.
After the Portuguese ruled the Moluccas, the nutmeg began to enjoy much greater interest - the Portuguese imposed a monopoly on the export of the spice.
About a century later, the Mollus Islands were conquered by the Dutch, who in turn also kept a very close eye on the nutmeg. Anyone who dared to pluck even a single nut was threatened with severe punishment. The most severe sentence for such an act was to leave the thief without a hand.
Later, the French managed to get seedlings from the tree and planted nutmeg plantations on the island of Mauritius. The spice tree is evergreen and belongs to the Myristic family.
In the Banda Islands and the Mollus Islands, which are considered the birthplace of the spice, they did not actually pay much attention to the culinary benefits of nutmeg. For the first harvest of the tree you have to wait between 7 and 9 years after planting. The trees reach their full potential after 20 years.
According to some sources in the past, nutmeg was among the most expensive spices. It is even said that a few cashews were sold for an amount large enough to provide a person with financial independence for life.
Today, nutmeg is an integral part of many cuisines - the aromatic spice can be successfully combined with black pepper, bay leaf, parsley and more. Very popular and often used in Indian, Caribbean, French, Italian, Greek cuisine.
The spice is also added to some dishes that are typical of the Middle East and Latin America. In addition to being a much-loved and used spice, nutmeg is often used for healing.
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