On the road to Taliouine's organic saffron 12 days always go by quickly, especially in Morocco where time stands still and you take your time. Take your time, then, to get from Marrakech Menara airport to Taliouine via the Test Pass road in the High Atlas (Tizi n'Test // Tizi meaning Pass in Arabic). This road, which will soon be a century old (1924), has been badly damaged in recent weeks by heavy rain...Continue Reading

A wide-ranging debate, but a simple reality: spices have a harvesting time. In fact, spices are flowers, bark, buds, roots and other leaves, parts of plants that are harvested at a very specific time, which varies according to the plant species. Unfortunately, when you buy a spice from a retailer, especially a supermarket, you don't know the harvest date, and yet it's from this date that the...Continue Reading

Well, after 3 hours of inspection, as we do every six months, Place des Epices has once again received a favorable opinion from our certifier Ecocert. We're very proud of this, as it's been one of our credos since the company was founded. I often hear allegations that controls are non-existent or even "bought in"; I can assure you that this is absolutely false. When you process...Continue Reading

Spring is here, and I'd like to take this opportunity to offer you an overview of Rub(s)...for parties and, of course, lunch 😉 What is a Rub? Rub in English means to rub. So we're dealing with spices to rub... on meat or fish. What do you have in mind? Yes! ham, which is salted and then rubbed before being smoked: rub's primary use; or pepper steak, which is...Continue Reading

Superb report on pepper on France 5 on Sunday evening, on replay until March 1, 2020. Don't hesitate to watch it, it's quite short and explains perfectly why it's important to consume organic, fair trade and especially spices, which all too often concentrate cocktails of pesticides in conventional agriculture. A beautiful moment on IGP Kampot red pepper. https://www.france.tv/france-5/le-doc-du-dimanche/1254981-poivre-les-secrets-de-la-perle-noire.htmlContinue Reading

We are extremely proud to have been unanimously accepted by the Collège Culinaire de France as an Artisan de qualité. As passionate about gastronomy as we are, to be recognized by such exceptional men as Alain Ducasse, Joël Robuchon, Alain Dutournier and Thierry Marx as one of the fifteen great founding chefs, is a rare privilege that we fully appreciate. The Collège Culinaire de France is the benchmark institution for French gastronomic culture, and to be part of it as an Artisan de...Continue Reading

Masala chai, or "spiced tea", is renowned for its abundance of comforting spices. There are many variations of chai spices, depending on region, family tradition and individual preference. Here's a guide to the Masala chai spices used in India and elsewhere. Main organic spices in Masala chai These spices are present in almost all versions of Masala chai: Real cinnamon Cinnamon is rich, very slightly pungent and tannic - a great base for most...Continue Reading

In 120 hours, the garlic is totally transformed, going from white to black and from hard to soft. The temperature is a constant 80 degrees day and night, and the humidity is 85/90%, with the first 24 hours at almost 100%. Some heads have lost more weight than others, which is quite uneven. I'll try to find out why, but the fact remains. A bulb that weighed...Continue Reading

Marathon runners tend to drink this beverage on a daily basis for a reason. This is what we call an "effort" or isotonic drink, with the difference that in our recipe we won't be adding maltodextrin-type sugars (slow sugars excellent for endurance and recovery). In these hot weather conditions, drinking an "effort" drink may seem rather surprising, but in the end it's not. In summer, we dehydrate much more...Continue Reading

Kuro Nikkoku is the Nipponese name for black garlic. Of Korean origin for some, Japanese for others, black garlic leaves no one indifferent when you see it, but above all when you taste it. Black garlic has been used for thousands of years in Asian cuisine, and particularly in Japanese cuisine, where it has become an everyday staple for both its culinary qualities and its medicinal virtues. Slow food, slow process, black garlic takes time...Continue Reading

You either know Vadouvan or you don't. If you've tasted it or smelled it once, you'll never forget it! If you've tasted or smelled it once, you'll never forget it! Its unique, bewitching fragrance will leave you breathless, and its musky, amber, smoky, sweet and salty taste is inimitable. What is vadouvan? Vadouvan is a blend of spices, the first part being onion, shallot and garlic, and the second part spices such as fenugreek, cumin and turmeric. A lot of...Continue Reading

Finding quality, pure-origin organic peppers is no easy task. Today, we're delighted to expand our range of organic peppers and introduce them to you. From Africa and Asia, these new black peppers come from East Africa (Tanzania), southern Sumatra and south-west India (Malabar and Tellicherry). Killindi pepper from Tanzania is a little-known pepper. It is hand-harvested by independent farmers in the most...Continue Reading

In India, sesame seeds are considered a symbol of immortality, and perhaps this is one of the reasons for the exceptional longevity of the Japanese, for whom gomasio is one of their flagship condiments? What is gomasio? On paper, nothing could be simpler: sesame seeds and salt. But not just any sesame, nor just any salt. For the sesame, choose organic wholegrain (blond or black); for the salt, a sea salt such as fleur de...Continue Reading

It's the new discovery of top chefs, but little known to the general public: loumi. But what is loumi? Loumi is originally a lime that has been scalded and then dried in the sun for several days. It's better known as black lemon or dried lemon. Iraqis call it noomi basra, while in Iran it's known as limoo omani or loomi tout court in the Sultanate of Oman...Continue Reading

The choice to sell organic and responsible spices is not a whim, nor even a temporary fad, but a desire to be in line with our daily eating habits. We eat organic and/or responsibly farmed fruit and vegetables, and tend to do the same with dried products. Today, to consume non-organic spices is to sign a pact with one of the world's two biggest agri-food companies, which is bleeding the planet's farmers dry...Continue Reading

Here are some explanations to help you understand what a spice is? a. What parts of plants are eaten in spices? the root: - turmeric, ginger, galangal the fruit : - vanilla, chillies, cardamom the fruit casing : - false peppers - mace (nutmeg) the fruit seed : - nuts (nutmeg, almond, ...), peppers and false peppers - cumin, fenugreek, aniseed the flower bud...Continue Reading

4000 years of saffron cultivation worldwide From the Latin safranum, zarparan in Persia or Sahafaran in Hebrew, traces of crocus sativus - saffron - can be found on tablets in Iraq over 2000 years BC. Present on certain Santorini frescoes, it was discovered 2000 years ago in the Roman Empire. Greece is undoubtedly the birthplace of the famous Crocus Sativus (the Greek endemic Crocus cartwrightianus being its presumed ancestor). It is...Continue Reading

From the 11th to the 13th century, a balance of strongholds The great Italian republics played an important role in the spice trade. Venice, Genoa, Amalfi, Pisa and even Florence became rivals, so important was the trade. France and the people of Marseille mastered the west coasts of Africa and Europe as far as Norway, and increasingly strengthened their position towards the East: trade flourished. Trade relations with the Levant were naturally affected by...Continue Reading

It's summer, and we're avoiding turning on the oven in favor of salads, barbecues and chilled desserts. So here's a simple yet refreshing recipe for this hot summer season. Made with fresh fruit and Indian spices infused in brown cane sugar syrup, this fruit salad is a delight. Depending on your eating habits, you can replace the cane sugar with a lower glycemic index sugar. Fruit salad with Indian spices...Continue Reading

Whether it's from Algeria, Tunisia or Morocco, couscous is all about sharing and celebrating with family and friends. Berbers celebrate the New Year with couscous, and colorful eggs are sprinkled throughout the dish. What are the origins of couscous in France? It's no coincidence that couscous is one of France's top 10 favorite dishes. It's been known in France since the 16th century, and in 1534 Rabelais wrote "Force coscossons, et renfort de potages" (Gargantua,...Continue Reading