Cinnamon or Cassia?
As I sit here and write, I’m sipping a cup of richly flavored iced coffee. Despite the fact that the drink is decaf (I’m trying to wean myself off caffeine!), I can still taste the overpowering robustness of coffee beans. But wait, what’s this? There’s another flavor in there; something subtle, sweet, and spicy. Actually, I know what I taste; I’m the one who sprinkled it in my drink in the first place. It’s cinnamon!
Or is it? In the U.S., another spice, cassia, is sometimes sold under the name cinnamon. Cassia, which is similar to cinnamon, originates from China and India. In Britain, spices labeled cinnamon contain only ‘true cinnamon’, or ceylon, from plants that are native to Sri Lanka, Malabar, and parts of the Indian coast. Although cassia has its own rich history and its own functionality as an ingredient, it isn’t considered as fine as cinnamon, having a harsher flavor and thicker quills. If you’re trying to distinguish the two, cinnamon quills will be light or yellowish brown with thinner bark:
photo by Luc Viatour
Cassia quills will have slightly thicker rolls and will be darker and more grayish:
Ceylon is often more expensive than cassia, but it’s worth it!
For more details on Cassia and Ceylon check out this well-organized book:
Loewenfeld, Claire, and Black, Philippa. Complete Book of Herbs and Spices. New ed. London: David & Charles Newton Abbot, 1979.
And this one, which is great for the armchair historian, and has the benefit of still being in print:
The Lore of Spices: Their History, Nature and Uses Around the World
