Biryani Spices List, Names, Pictures, Health Benefits

For the past few months, I have been sharing varieties of (Vegetarian)Veg biryani recipes in my blog under “Sunday Lunch Recipes”. I hope many of you had found it useful and tried them too. 


I am planning to compile list of all the biryani recipes under one page for easy and quick reference. But before that I want to make a post on list of spices used in most of the biryani along with pictures and names in different languages like English, Hindi, Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada and Tamil for people to identify & buy them easily in your place. I have also shared their health benefits so that you can enjoy your biryani without any guilt.


You can find about cinnamon, cloves, cardamom, bayleaf, black stone flower, mace, nutmeg, kapok buds and fennel seeds. Nowadays in most of the shops all these ingredients are together sold in small packets as “Biryani masala”. You can use these spices to make Biryani masala powder at home. Ok, lets see the biryani spices list with its names and pictures.



**All these informations are collected from Internet. Please leave your feedback in comments if you feel anything important is missed or mispelt. I will add them. Thanks !

BIRYANI SPICES NAMES IN TAMIL

English	Tamil
Cinnamon	Pattai
Cloves	Krambu/ Lavangam
Cardamom	Elakkai
Mace	Jathipathri / Jathikai thol
Black stone flower	Kalpasi
Fennel seeds/ Aniseed	Soambu
Star anise	Annasi poo
Bay leaf	Brinji ilai
Nutmeg	Jathikai
Dried kapok buds	Marathi mokku

BIRYANI SPICES NAMES IN HINDI

English	Hindi
Cinnamon	Dalchini
Cloves	Laung
Cardamom	Elachi
Mace	Jaipatri / Javintri
Black stone flower	Phathar ke phool, Dagad Phool
Fennel seed/ aniseed	Valaiti Saunf / Aawonf
Star anise	Anasphal / Badayan / Chakri Phool
Bayleaf	Tej Patta
Nutmeg	Jaiphal
Dried Kapok buds	Shalmali, Semul, Kachra, Kabra, Karer, Kariyal

BIRYANI SPICES NAMES IN TELUGU

English	Telugu
Cinnamon	Dhalchinachekka
Cloves	Lavangam
Cardamom	Elakayi
Mace	Japathri, Jajikaya Pathri
Black stone flower	Kallupachi, Rathipachi
Fennel seeds/Aniseed	Kuppi Soptu/Sompu
Star anise	Anaspuvu
Bay leaf	Masala Aku / Biryani Aaku
Nutmeg	Jajikaya
Dried Kapok buds	Marathi Mogga, Tella Buruga, Enugadanta, Mumudatu

BIRYANI SPICES NAMES IN MALAYALAM

English	Malayalam
Cinnamon	Patta / Karugapatta
Clove	Grambu
Cardamom	Elaka
Mace	JathiPoo
Black stone flower	Celeyam, kalppuvu
Fennel seeds/ Aniseed	Perum Jeerakam
Star anise	Takkolam
Bayleaf	Karuva Ela
Nutmeg	Jathikka
Dried kapok buds	Appakuttaka, Parappoola, Parapanni

BIRYANI SPICES NAMES IN KANNADA

English	Kannada
Cinnamon	Chakke
Clove	Lavang
Cardamom	Elakkaya / Elakka
Mace	Japatri / Jayithree
Black stone flower	Kallu huva
Fennel seeds / aniseed	Sompu
Star anise	Anasi hoova / Pineapple Mogg
Bayleaf	Biryani Ele / Paththa
Nutmeg	Jayikai
Dried kapok buds	Marathi Moggu or Ilavu or Puulaa, Mullilavu

Fennel seed

• Fennel symbolizes longevity, courage, and strength. In addition to its use as medicinal values, fennel has many health benefiting nutrients, essential compounds, anti-oxidants, dietary fiber, minerals, and vitamins.
• It offers protection from cancers, infection, aging and degenerative neurological diseases..
• Furthermore, fennel seeds indeed are the storehouse for many vital vitamins. Vitamin A, vitamin E, vitamin C as well as many B-complex vitamins like thiamin, pyridoxine, riboflavin and niacin particularly are concentrated in these seeds.

Source : http://www.nutrition-and-you.com/fennel-seed.html

Cardamom

• Cardamom is one of the most effective remedies against halitosis. Simply chewing on the seeds eliminates bad odors. Cardamom is even used in some chewing gums because of its effectiveness, billed as a surefire cure to the most offensive breath.It can also be used to help soothe a sore throat and relieve hoarseness of voice.
• The volatile oil in cardamom has been proven to soothe the stomach and intestines, making cardamom an ideal solution for a host of digestive problems, such as constipation, dysentery, and indigestion. 
• Cardamom can be used aromatically to increase or encourage appetite, and also assists in soothing gas and heartburn. Generally, cardamom relieves most upset stomachs. To use Cardamom for digestive problems, consume seeds alone, serve ground seed with food, or serve as a tea.
• South Asians use cardamom’s relieving properties to help with the discomfort of passing gall and kidney stones. Cardamom, combined with banana leaf and alma juice, can act as a diuretic, soothing a variety of kidney, bladder, and urinary problems like nephritis, burning or painful urination, and frequent urges to urinate. The relief from uncomfortable symptoms provided through cardamom should not be considered a cure to underlying diseases and disorders.
• Cardamom oils can be added to baths as a form of aromatherapy that fights depression and reduces stress. Ground Cardamom seeds can be made into a tea for similar benefits.
• Cardamom helps to fight cancers like breast cancer, ovarian cancer and prostate cancer. Early research suggests that consuming cardamom regularly may help with preventing these forms of cancer.

In addition to these specific medicinal uses, cardamom contains an abundance of antioxidants, which protect the body against aging and stress and fight common sicknesses.

Source : http://www.herbwisdom.com/herb-cardamom.html

Star Anise

• Medicinal Value :Star Anise fruit is anti-bacterial, anti-spasmodic and a diurectic. Hence widely used in flatulence or gas like conditions.
• Culinery and Other Values:Star Anise is a major ingredient in Chinese Dishes for flavoring meat, veggies, curries, confectionaries and for pickling purposes. The oil of Star Anise is used to flavor bakery products, soft drinks and liquors. Also used in perfumery.

Mace

• Good source of minerals like copper, calcium, potassium, manganese, iron, zinc etc. also rich in vitamin C, A, riboflavin, folic acid etc.
• Used as drug in Eastern countries due to its stimulant, carminative, astringent and aphrodisiac properties.
• Mace is used in savoury dishes.

Source:http://pachakam.com/GlossaryDetail/Mace=180

Cinnamon

• Cinnamon is loaded with powerful antioxidants, such as polyphenols (3, 4, 5).
• cinnamon can be used as a natural food preservative
• Cinnamon Has Anti-Inflammatory Properties.It helps the body fight infections and repair tissue damage.
• Cinnamon May Cut the Risk of Heart Disease.In people with type 2 diabetes, 1 gram of cinnamon per day has beneficial effects on blood markers.It reduces levels of total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol and triglycerides, while HDL cholesterol remains stable.
• Cinnamon May Be Protective Against Cancer.Cinnamon Helps Fight Bacterial and Fungal Infections.

Cloves

• Temporarily treat a toothache.
• Relieve upper respiratory infections.
• Treat scrapes and bruises.
• Improve digestion
• Enhance sexual health.
• Reduce inflammation.

Source :http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-9991/6-health-benefits-of-cloves.html

Black stone flower

Dagad phool/black stone flower are commonly found in any markets or with spice smiths and it has uses in many dishes in hyderabadi.Similar to those of sweet pepper, it has quite mild aromatic flavor. It is not only used for aromas in soup preparations but also used as soup thickeners.
Stone flowers have medical properties to cure HIV virus. Stone flowers are the biological indicators of air pollution.
It is a good pain reliever and also promotes early healing of wounds due to its bitter taste.
It helps treating the skin related problem due to its cold potency. It helps in reducing any kind of inflammation in body.

Source : http://www.etradeasia.com/

Nutmeg

• Provides relief from insomnia
• Helps to lower blood pressure
• Helps to eliminate bad breath
• Helps to dissolve kidney stone
• Boost health of bones of body
• Helps in elimination of toxins from body
• Beneficial in maintaining optimal brain health
• Helps to reduce inflammation and pain due to wounds,arthritis
• Induces secretion of gastric & intestinal juices to ease digestion.

When used appropriately, as a spice, the benefits of nutmeg are obvious, but keep the amount under control, and find your thrills somewhere else!

Source : https://www.organicfacts.net/health-benefits/herbs-and-spices/nutmeg.html

Bayleaf

• Bay leaves have been found to be effective in treating type 2 diabetes as they cause reduction in blood glucose, cholesterol and triglyceride levels.
• Bay leaves are good for promoting digestion and can treat digestive disorders such as heartburn and flatulence.
• The powerful phytonutrients in bay leaf provide protection against cardiovascular diseases such as heart attacks and strokes.
• Bay leaves are effective in fighting the symptoms of cold, flu and infections.

Source: http://www.stylecraze.com/articles/benefits-of-bay-leaf-for-skin-hair-and-health/

Kapok Buds

Kapok Buds or Marathi Moggu, best described as a type of caper, are the dried buds of the Kapok tree or the Silk Cotton tree. It is called moggu in Kannada and mogga in Telugu which literally means a bud. Moggu is a spice used in some of Karnataka’s cherished dishes such as Bisi Bele Bath, Saagu, Kannadiga style kootus to name a few. It is not eaten raw but is always roasted and ground with other spices before going into a dish.
Marathi Moggu is a term which is a misnomer, as this spice is native to Karnataka. However that has not come in the way of its adorning several Andhra style dishes as a specialty spice. This spice is widely used in preparing curry powders and also finds a place in Chettinad cuisine.

For making any biryani, all these spices plays a vital role. No worries if you skip one or two from the above list. But spices like cinnamon, cloves, bayleaf, black stone flower and cardamom should be used to get the actual flavor and taste of biryani. You can either add them as whole or powder them and add to biryani. Among these spices, I would say black stone flower is the hero. Adding just one or two flower takes the biryani to next level and gives restaurant flavor. So make sure you buy them and keep in your pantry. But remember, do not add more than one or two else its smell would over power the masala. Hope this biryani spices list would be useful to you all.

Catch you all soon in my next post !