How to choose the right ground cinnamon. Cinnamon - the benefits and harms, useful properties and contraindications of ground spices

Ecology of life: It is now hard to imagine that wars were fought over this fragrant spice, and the cinnamon trade enriched or ruined countries. The aroma of cinnamon was known in ancient China and Egypt long before the appearance of the famous pyramids.

Real cinnamon and cassia

Now it is hard to imagine that wars were fought because of this fragrant spice, and the cinnamon trade enriched or ruined countries. The aroma of cinnamon was known in ancient China and Egypt long before the appearance of the famous pyramids.

Even during the trade of the Phoenicians with the Egyptians, two main types of cinnamon were distinguished: real cinnamon(Cinnamomum zeylonicum/Cinnamomum ceylanicum Bs.) and cassia(Cinnamomum aromaticum/Cinnamomum Cassia Bl.) or Chinese cinnamon tree.

Real cinnamon has a dark brown color, bright and strong aroma, sharp taste, thin and fragile walls of cinnamon sticks.

Cassia, on the other hand, has a light color, not such a bright aroma and taste, the structure of cinnamon sticks is dense, it breaks hard.

Both types of cinnamon differ not only in aromas, but also in chemical composition.

Cassia contains a large amount of starch and the substance coumarin (lat. Cumarin), dangerous to health. True cinnamon also contains both substances, but in very small quantities.

In addition to these two main types, there are also Malabar and spicy types of cinnamon, which are of less value and worse taste, but which are often used in mixtures of ready-made cinnamon powder in small packages.

real cinnamon(Cinnamomum ceylanicum Bs.) is obtained from bark cut from cinnamon trees that grow in subtropical climates in India and Ceylon at an altitude of 1000 meters above sea level. In places of active collection, cinnamon trees look like a dense undersized shrub with many shoots.

Cinnamon pickers work only with copper knives, and this has not only an ancient sacred meaning, but also a practical meaning - the bark of the cinnamon tree contains a lot of tannins, and other metals (except gold and silver) are oxidized.

The bark is cut in August-September, when the rainy season ends and the bark is easily removed from the branches. Humidity makes the bark more fragrant, and cinnamon picked just after the rains are over is especially prized.

Distinguish between outer and inner bark. The inside is cut into strips, the skin is scraped off and dried in the shade until it curls up and darkens. The outer layer is dried most often in the shade to a golden brown color. After drying, the thickness of the outer bark can be less than a millimeter. The best grades are similar in thickness to a sheet of paper.

Real cinnamon, that is, the dried bark of cinnamon trees, grown in Ceylon or southern India, looks like tubes with concave edges, light brown or yellow-brown on the outside and dark brown hues on the inside. Real cinnamon is very thin, often the tubes are put one into the other. Another important difference is fragility. Ceylon cinnamon is brittle, breaks easily and has a delicate, delicate and refined aroma. The smell of real cinnamon is fresh, you can catch fruity notes or shades of dried fruits in it with a predominance of cinnamon aroma. The taste is sweetish, slightly pungent.

Cassius(Cinnamoum Cassia Bl. - Chinese cinnamon) or as it is also called, simple cinnamon is harvested by cutting the bark from 8-10 year old trees. The procedure is repeated after 7-10 years. Dry cassia in the shade in the same way as Ceylon or Indian cinnamon. When dried, cinnamon is short, thick-walled tubes with a rough red-brown outer surface with a smooth brown inner surface. Cassia is much more resistant to fracture due to its structure and wall thickness, which can be from 2 to 4 mm. The aroma of cassia is less refined, but bright and simple. The taste is more pronounced, tart, spicy-sweet, a little astringent and even a little burning. Supermarkets usually sell cassia. At best, this is a high-grade, thin-walled cassia from China.

Malabar cinnamon(Cinnamomum Tamala Nees) is otherwise called cinnamon tree, brown cinnamon, tree cinnamon, or cassia vera. This type of cinnamon grows in the southern regions of India and Burma. The structure, taste and aroma are rougher than those of cassia, a dirty brown hue. The aroma is not strong, the taste is sharply astringent with bitterness.

cinnamon(Cinnamomum Culilawan Bl.) or spicy cinnamon is grown in Indonesia. When dried, cinnamon is small pieces of concave, thin bark, beige on the outside and yellow-red on the inside, with a sharp-spicy aroma and spicy-burning taste.

On sale you can find two types of cinnamon - in the form of tubes and powder. For those who want to be sure what they are buying, we can recommend buying cinnamon only in tubes, having the opportunity to clearly see the product. Cinnamon in opaque packaging is better to buy, produced in Ceylon, China or Laos. You can count on a good quality product when buying cinnamon of well-known brands or countries, former owners of colonies, for example, England, France, Holland. Cinnamon produced in the USA, Israel and Germany should be avoided - they do not have their own production facilities or traditional ties with producing countries.

The main use of cinnamon is in the confectionery industry. for flavoring cookies, chocolate, gingerbread and pies. Cinnamon is a part of traditional English puddings, mulled wine, various cocktails, chocolate drinks, jams, sweet pilafs, curd masses, charlotte, fruit salads and cold soups.

Cinnamon is very popular in Indian and Transcaucasian cuisines, where it is used in the preparation of poultry meat (chicken, turkey). In Chinese cuisine, cinnamon is used in roasting pork, which greatly improves the taste of meat. In Europe, cinnamon is added to some beers. Without cinnamon, the famous French muffins from Bordeaux are inconceivable. Cinnamon can be used in spice mixes for marinades. Vegetables, fruits, mushrooms and meat are pickled with cinnamon.

Ceylon (real) cinnamon is used mainly in sweet dishes. Its subtle aroma goes very well with pastries, chocolate, fruits, vegetables and cocktails.

Chinese cinnamon is often used in meat dishes, as part of spice mixtures and marinades.

In Russia, cinnamon has long been used as a condiment for cold soups, fritters, porridges, and jellied fish.In Belarus, cinnamon is added to the marinade for lingonberries, and in Ukraine, when pickling cucumbers and pickling watermelons. In Caucasian cuisine, cinnamon is one of the essential seasonings for meat and soups, zucchini and eggplant dishes. In Greece, lamb stew is not prepared without cinnamon, and in Italy, true connoisseurs do not drink cappuccino coffee without a pinch of cinnamon.

Real Ceylon cinnamon is able to fill the house with its aroma, making the evening cozy and calmer. This spice sounds great in various pastries, especially when next to apples and plums, complements coffee with its spicy taste, gives new original notes to meat dishes, etc. However, do you use cinnamon, and what can be in a small bag for this spice instead?

Real cinnamon and fake

Ceylon cinnamon (kinamon) is the bark of the Cinnamomumzeylanicyn plant, which grows in Western India and Sri Lanka. This spice is produced from a thin inner layer of bark cut from three-year-old shoots. The collected raw materials are laid out in an open area and dried in the sun.

Fake cinnamon (cassia) is made from the Cinnamomumaromaticum plant, which is native to Indonesia, China, and Vietnam. This seasoning is made from the bark of old shoots that are 8-9 years old. At the same time, not the tender inner part of the bark, but all of it is used as a raw material. As a result, a spice with much lower quality indicators is obtained.

Main differences

The following characteristics distinguish real Ceylon cinnamon from a fake.

Real Ceylon cinnamon is very fragrant and has high taste qualities, and therefore everyone who has tried it at least once will never forget what this spice should be like. But its main difference from a fake is a small portion of the coumarin content. And if in cassia this substance contains about 2 g / kg, then in kinamone only 0.02 g / kg.

On a note! Coumarin is a harmful substance, large doses of which can cause headaches, dizziness and disturbances in the digestive system. And at the same time, four small cookies with cassia will be dangerous for the health of a preschooler, six for a schoolboy and eight for an adult.

How can you tell if a spice is real?

First of all, you need to inspect the packaging. Usually the manufacturer there honestly indicates from what raw materials this product was produced - from the Cinnamomumaromaticum plant, if this is cassia, or from the Cinnamomumzeylonicum plant, if it is Ceylon cinnamon. But if such an inscription could not be found, then in this case you should look at the country of origin. Sri Lanka is written, which means that you have a real product in front of you, Indonesia, China or Vietnam are indicated - a spice that is more unhealthy.

It is very easy to check the authenticity of cinnamon when the seasoning was purchased in powder form. It is necessary to pour a small amount of it into a teaspoon and drip iodine. If the color of the seasoning turns dark blue, you have cassia, a less saturated shade indicates that you bought Ceylon cinnamon.

However, many experts are inclined to believe that it is better to purchase this seasoning in the form of sticks, since it will be much easier to find differences in this form. For Ceylon cinnamon:

• the sticks are painted in a light color evenly, and the shade is the same inside and outside;
• the walls are very thin, fragile, they are easy to break with a slight pressure;
• real Ceylon cinnamon is a thin sheet of bark rolled into a roll, which resembles papyrus with many curls.

Beneficial features

Ceylon cinnamon has long been used in folk medicine as a healing agent. Modern science is also talking about its beneficial properties. The use of this spice has a positive effect on the work of almost all organs and systems of our body. It contains tannins, minerals, vitamins, essential oils and dietary fiber.

First of all, it should be noted that Ceylon cinnamon, when used in moderation, is unable to harm a healthy person. An exception in this case is individual intolerance.

It will be contraindicated in the following cases:

• pregnancy - this spice, especially in large quantities, can provoke uterine contractions, which will lead to premature birth;
• breastfeeding period - when the cinnamon taste is transferred to milk, the child does not like it, in addition, this spice can cause allergies in the baby;
• cinnamon has the ability to thin the blood, and therefore it is highly discouraged for use with its low coagulability;
• spice must be excluded from the menu for acute peptic ulcer and diseases that are accompanied by increased acidity of the stomach;
• it has warming properties, and therefore its use at high body temperature can only worsen the condition;
• with excessive use, a rash on the skin and the development of puffiness may occur.

Where to find real cinnamon

Since a fake spice is harmful, you want, of course, to protect yourself from health problems. But where can you buy real Ceylon cinnamon? You can endlessly bypass stores, reading labels and trying to break the sticks sealed in them, or choose a spice in an online store. In the latter case, there is also a big risk of purchasing a low-quality product, for which no one will return the money to you after. Here you can be advised to shop in trusted stores with a good reputation.

By the way, today many users recommend Iherb.com. This is an American online store with a positive reputation. In it you can find many natural products, including real Ceylon cinnamon. Moreover, despite the fact that the store is American, as evidenced by the reviews, the prices are quite affordable, and the delivery is cheap.

It’s not worth saving on health, and if you still haven’t managed to get Ceylon cinnamon, then it’s better to completely refuse to use its analogue.

Cassia and cinnamon how to distinguish? Just! On the left is cassia, on the right is cinnamon.

There are hundreds of types of cinnamon. But only 4 of their varieties are used for commercial purposes. These are Ceylon cinnamon, Chinese cassia, Saigon cassia and Indonesian cassia. Cassia and cinnamon how to distinguish a "fake" from the original? What are the benefits of cinnamon for the body?

With the exception of Ceylon cinnamon, all others are classified as cassia because they are very similar to each other with only slight variations in color, taste, shape and coumarin content.

All types of cassia-cinnamon are hard and have high levels of coumarin, which is known to cause liver damage when consumed in excess of certain doses. Only Ceylon Cinnamon is the only soft and brittle variety with ultra low levels of coumarin.

Ceylon cinnamon sticks are crumbly, like cigars, with layers of soft, pliable bark. All other cinnamon cassias are very hard, hollow and have only one rolled layer.

Pay attention to the difference in color. Ceylon Cinnamon is lighter in color while Cassia is darker in color.
Typically, grocery stores sell cassia, which is passed off as real cinnamon. Usually it is either Chinese or Vietnamese cassia. True cinnamon has huge health benefits, while the other one can cause damage to our liver….
It's the spice that evokes comfort, provides a delightful atmosphere, and evokes the best of our most cherished memories...

Real cinnamon and cassia are made from completely different types of wood. Ceylon real cinnamon is usually produced in Sri Lanka, India, Madagascar, Brazil, or the Caribbean, while the fake cassia is usually grown in China, Indonesia or Vietnam.

Another difference is the appearance and taste. While the "cinnamon" we're used to seeing on grocery store shelves is typically dark reddish brown in color and quite spicy in flavor, real cinnamon is much lighter in color and has a sweeter, softer, thinner, and richer flavor. taste. And finally, the biggest difference is the content of a compound called coumarin. Ceylon cinnamon contains about 0.017 g/kg while other types of cinnamon contain between 2.15-6.97 g/kg of coumarin.

This substance acts on the blood and is an anticoagulant. Studies have also shown that coumarin is toxic to the liver if we consume more than the tolerable daily dose, which is set at 0.1 mg/kg body weight. This means that for a person weighing 68 kg, the maximum allowable daily dose is 6.8 mg. Since one gram of cinnamon can contain 2.15-6.97mg of coumarin, you can reach this upper limit by consuming about 1/5 teaspoon per day.

If you are going to add this spice to your diet to improve your health, then you will probably take a little more of it ... So it is better to look for Ceylon cinnamon (just in case). Your liver does a great job for you, so show it your love by eating the best quality spices!

How to find the best quality real cinnamon?

1. Look for a seasoning that is labeled as:

• real cinnamon
• Cinnamomum Zeylanicum

2. Buy organic cinnamon to prevent contamination by pesticides and other fillers or preservatives. (Following the link, you can buy real Ceylon organic cinnamon with a $5 discount on your first order)

3. If you buy bark, real cinnamon is "sticky", the thin bark will be rolled into a circle in layers, not a stick with two curls.

4. Often it is light brown in color, more loose and fluffy, easily crumbles and breaks.

5. It will, as a rule, be 10 times more expensive. This is not always an indicator :), but in combination with the rest of the differences described above, this can be useful.

What are the benefits of cinnamon for the body?

The benefits of cinnamon for the body

Now that you know the differences between the types of cinnamon and how to buy a quality spice, let's take a look at the incredible health benefits of the nutrients it contains.

1. It is an excellent source of manganese, which is a trace mineral essential for bone health and proper fat and carbohydrate metabolism. This super spice also contains fiber to aid digestion, calcium for strong bones, and iron for energy production. a teaspoon of cinnamon powder contains up to 16% of the recommended daily intake of manganese, 5% fiber, 3% iron and 3% calcium.

3. Research shows that its anti-inflammatory properties may be protective against neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's. This disease is becoming more and more common throughout the world.

4. If you suffer from prediabetes, type 2 diabetes, insulin resistance, cinnamon can be a true lifesaver! Even a small amount, like ½ teaspoon a day on an empty stomach, can help lower glucose levels. As a result of taking this spice, blood pressure also normalizes.

5. We are all getting older every day (lucky us! :), but including cinnamon in your daily diet can help prevent signs of aging. This is due to its powerful effect on inflammatory and oxidative processes in the body. Cinnamon is a powerful antioxidant, even better than garlic. The benefits of cinnamon for the body are huge!

6. Cinnamon essential oil reduces itching from insect bites, repels them, and is also effective for fungal skin diseases and indigestion.

And finally, most importantly

The powdered cinnamon you find in the store is most likely made using an industrial milling process. Flour is added several times to prevent sticking. Therefore, buying chopped seasoning is highly discouraged. Sometimes they write that you can check the authenticity of cinnamon powder by dropping iodine. If cassium powder - it will turn blue. This is a little different. The powder may turn blue if starch has been added to the ground seasoning. Therefore, buy the bark and grind it yourself as needed.

If cinnamon is stored for a long period of time, its nutritional value will be low. Do not store it in the refrigerator and open containers. Place in a tightly sealed container or jar.

Hello everyone!

I am a big fan of cinnamon. I constantly add it when cooking, brew tea with it, mix it with honey, and also often use it for home cosmetics.

And I describe all these recipes of mine here on my blog.

Recently, I have received a lot of letters with the same question: why does mucus form when preparing cinnamon with honey, as well as when brewing it?

So I decided to answer here, all at once!

This is because you are using a bad variety of cinnamon, which can also be called fake cinnamon.

Real cinnamon - how to distinguish from a fake?

Cinnamon is a super useful spice. It relieves inflammatory processes in the body, has antiseptic and bactericidal effects.

It is an antioxidant, a means to improve blood circulation and weight loss, cleanse the blood, consciousness, and it is also an energy spice that improves life!

Really great!?

But, far from any bag of this spice bought in stores is able to give us all the useful properties that real cinnamon has.

Now I will tell you how to distinguish good cinnamon from bad. Actually, it's not that hard.)

Types of cinnamon

Today, the most popular types of cinnamon are:

• Ceylon or Cinnamon from Sri Lanka
• Chinese or Indian
• Malabar or Wood Cinnamon
• cinnamon

CEYLON CINNAMON

(cinnamomum ceylanicum)

Ceylon, noble or real cinnamon.

This is the most valuable species in quality superior to all others.

It is this variety of cinnamon that will bring enormous benefits to our body, heal it, give beauty and joy.

The homeland of this variety, as you can easily guess, is Sri Lanka, the sunny island of Ceylon, and this type of cinnamon is also grown in India, Indonesia, Brazil and other subtropical countries.

This cinnamon comes from the inner bark of the Ceylon cinnamon tree.

A distinctive feature of Ceylon cinnamon is its sweetish, slightly burning, warming taste and very delicate aroma, as well as a thickness that can hardly reach 1 mm, as well as the fact that it is very tightly rolled into sticks.

CHINESE CINNAMON OR CASSIA

This variety of cinnamon is also called plain cinnamon, Indian cinnamon, fragrant cinnamon, cassia, cassia canel.

Sometimes it is called fake cinnamon, which is not entirely true. This is also cinnamon.

Cassia is currently cultivated in China, Burma, Laos, and Indonesia.

The bark for the preparation of this variety of cinnamon is removed from Chinese cinnamon trees that have reached the age of seven, in contrast to Ceylon cinnamon, which is obtained from the bark of one to three-year-old shoots of a cinnamon tree.

Therefore, during drying, such a bark acquires a concave shape and a rough surface, and its thickness is from 1.5-2 cm and a granular fracture.

It is cassia that is most often sold in our stores, both in sticks and in powder.

Also, the characteristic features of this cinnamon, which distinguish it from Ceylon, are a reddish-brown color, a more burning, tart taste, and the absence of a delicate aroma.

When steeped in water, cassia forms a slime, which is another difference between this variety and Ceylon cinnamon.

Ceylon cinnamon and Cassia

There are two other types of cinnamon that are also not considered particularly valuable, and which can also be confused with Ceylon cinnamon.

MALABARI CINNAMON

In another way, this type of cinnamon is called brown cinnamon, wood cinnamon or cassia vera. Its homeland is India and Burma.

The main distinguishing feature of this cinnamon from all other types is a dark brown color and a sharply bitter taste.

CINNAMON - SPICY CINNAMON

The source of this type of cinnamon is the shoots of the Cinnamon shrub. Such bushes are grown on the plantations of the Moluccas.

The main distinguishing feature of this type of cinnamon is a strong pungent smell, burning taste, increased fragility and granularity at the break.

CONCLUSION

Naturally, as you already understood, the best variety for use in medicine and cooking will be real noble Ceylon cinnamon.

It is this variety that has the most valuable chemical composition, is a component for the production of valuable cinnamon essential oil.

It is she who should be given preference when buying, preferably choosing an organic natural product with a good shelf life.

Therefore, try to buy cinnamon not in powder, but in sticks. In packages through which it can be seen, and on which the period of preparation of the spice is indicated, or at least its expiration date. After all, cinnamon, after a year of storage, loses all its beneficial properties and aroma.

I hope I was able to explain how to distinguish real cinnamon from not quite real. Check yourself, where is cassia and where is cinnamon? :-)

Fragrant cinnamon is one of the highly valued spices that has been used since Biblical times and is valued for its healing properties. The spice has been time-tested and has found its use not only as an addition to pastries, second courses and desserts, but also as a remedy: it lowers blood sugar levels, is an antibacterial agent, thins the blood and cleanses blood vessels, fights excess weight, speeds up metabolism. The main task is to find and buy real cinnamon, not a fake.

Store-bought cinnamon is the crushed bark or small sprigs of an evergreen cinnamon tree native to Sri Lanka and southern India.

Among the four main types of cinnamon (which is sold in stores), the two most common are Ceylon and Cassia. But Cassia is the so-called "fake" cinnamon, the bark of a related spicy-aromatic tree, not natural. And it is with it that the shelves of our stores are now clogged.

Ceylon cinnamon is recognized as one of the highest quality and sweetest in taste. It has a lighter brown hue and a rich aroma. In the form of sticks, Ceylon is more fragile and crumbles easily, since only the inner layer of the bark is cut.

Cassia is darker in appearance, with a reddish tint. Its smell leaves a bitter tart aftertaste. Cassia tubules are thicker and hard to grind (before putting them in your home coffee grinder, just try to break them into a few pieces to prevent electrical damage).

What to do if the store can not smell and touch the cinnamon directly?

Pay attention to the product packaging. It should indicate the type of plant itself, but if it is missing, you should look at the country of origin. If China, Vietnam or Indonesia are indicated as such, you are holding Cassia, if Sri Lanka is Ceylon.

Of course, it is advisable to buy spice in the form of sticks and grind it yourself at home. For Ceylon cinnamon, this procedure is absolutely safe.

The cost of Ceylon cinnamon is about 10 times higher than that of Cassia.

How to check the quality of ground cinnamon at home?

You can check the authenticity of cinnamon with iodine. It is necessary to drop a drop of iodine on a small amount of the purchased spice. True cinnamon powder will hardly change its color, while Cassia bark spice powder will take on a dark blue tint.

The benefits and harms of cinnamon

But external differences are not everything! Cassia contains a very high level of coumarin (1200 times higher than allowed) in its composition, which is very harmful to the liver and kidneys, especially when eaten regularly. By the way, rats are successfully poisoned with coumarin (aka rat poison) in Russia, and it’s not at all necessary for an animal to eat it, it’s enough to lick or sniff it.

In addition, scientists have found that real cinnamon has an antimicrobial effect, slows down the growth of fungal and yeast microorganisms, regulates blood sugar levels, improves memory, and promotes the removal of excess salts.

Therapeutic effect

Cinnamon stimulates, invigorates, improves mood, removes depression, restores strength, improves memory, coordination and attentiveness.

It improves the circulation of fluids and thins the blood, lowers cholesterol, cleanses the liver and choleretic system.

Cinnamon is used to strengthen the heart, prevent strokes and heart attacks.

The use of cinnamon relieves a runny nose, cough - dry and with phlegm, removes mucus from the nose, removes congestion and congestion in the sinuses. It can relieve a sore throat, relieve headaches, colds, cure flu and bronchial asthma.

A large amount of cinnamon causes uterine contractions. The spice helps to recover in the postpartum period and increases the flow of milk. This is a traditional Indian remedy for reducing the risk of re-pregnancy immediately after childbirth up to 20 months.

In addition, cinnamon freshens breath, relieves muscle spasms, relieves colic, helps with indigestion, facilitates digestion, removes gas accumulation, and helps to normalize weight. By the way, cinnamon is recommended to be used with ginger for those who want to lose weight - the remedy normalizes the digestive tract, calms the nervous system and reduces appetite.