Ingredients

Cinnamon

This spice is the dried inner bark of evergreen trees that are in the laurel family (such as bay laurel). There are three types. Cinnamon harvested from the Cinnamomum zeylanicum tree that is native to Sri Lanka is a softer and sweeter spice with a paler color. Because Sri Lanka was known as Ceylon, this is usually referred to as Ceylon cinnamon.

Cinnamon from the Cinnamomum cassia tree found in the Far East, as well as the Indonesian Cinnamomum loureirii tree, is bolder and more pungent.

The most common spice used in Europe and the Americas is the cassia cinnamon. It is darker than Ceylon cinnamon. Often cassia will be labeled from its country of origin as Chinese, Vietnamese, Sumatra or South America.

In stick form, you can tell the difference between Ceylon cinnamon and cassia cinnamon. The former curls inward from both edges, forming a sort of double stick, while cassia curls only from one edge.

As with any spice, buying the whole product and grinding it yourself is the surest way to get a fresh flavor but that’s not always practical. I have both stick and ground cinnamon in my cupboard. I generally use the whole product when I am going to grind other whole spices for marinades or rubs.