Black Cardamom (Amomum subulatum Roxb.)

Black cardamom plants in a private garden in Nepal

Black cardamom plants in Sikkim

Group of black cardamom pods Single unripe pod

Black cardamom is, in most books, described as an inferior substitute to green cardamom, but this is simply untrue. In India, black cardamom has its special field of application, and although green and black cardamoms are frequently interchangeable, the black variety is felt superior for spicy and rustic dishes, while green cardamom is much preferred by the Imperial (Mughal) cuisine with its subtle blend of sweet fragrances.

Black cardamom can be used in rather liberal amounts, up to a few capsules per person. The smoky fragrance of the pure spice is not discernible in the finished dish; black cardamom cannot dominate a dish, but enhances and intensifies the taste of other ingredients. The pods should be slightly crushed before usage, but not so much that the seeds are released; you may remove them before serving (though I do not), but if you don’t, be sure to warn your guests about dark, woody and, hmmm, intensive tasting objects in the sauce.

Black cardamom, as other spices used in Northern India, needs some time to develop its aroma best. This behaviour is shared by other unground spices, like cinnamon, cloves and green cardamom, all of which are popular in Northern India and mostly used unground (see also onion). Thus, it is generally a good idea to prepare Northern Indian dishes of braising type (kormas) a few hours or even one day in advance.

The dried flower remains attached to each pod in the cluster

Although there are many distinct species of black cardamom, ranging in pod size from 2 cm (A. subulatum, Nepal to North Vietnam) to more than 5 cm (A. tsao-ko, China), their tastes do not differ much, although only the Nepal variety is smoked. Apart from usage in Indian (and Nepali) cuisine, they are not much known, but have some regional importance in Central and Southern China. There, the ground seeds are an optional ingredient to the five spice powder (see star anise).

In the mountains of Sichuan province in central China, black cardamom is commonly employed in long-simmered meet stews together with other dried spices. Slowly simmered foods, particularly of beef, are rather typical for Sichuan cookery (see Sichuan pepper for an example) and are less frequently found in other Chinese cooking styles. The term xiang liao [香料] fragrant grains refers to such mixtures of dried spices which are prepared differently for each recipe. Typical components of xiang liao are cassia, Sichuan pepper, black cardamom, star anise and lesser galangale; less commonly, Sichuan cooks employ greater galangale, cloves, nutmeg and licorice. See also cassia on another Chinese cooking technique that uses dried spices, namely master sauce.