spice
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spice
A substance, usually of plant origin, that is added to food to improve or change its flavor.
Für das Curry benötigst du Gewürze wie Kurkuma, Kreuzkümmel und Koriander.
For the curry, you need spices like turmeric, cumin, and coriander.
The word consists of the prefix 'Ge-' and the stem 'würz'. The prefix 'Ge-' here, as often with nouns, forms a collective term. So 'Gewürz' (spice) refers to the whole group of things used for seasoning.
In der indischen Küche werden viele verschiedene Gewürze verwendet.
Many different spices are used in Indian cuisine.
'Das Gewürz' (the spice) belongs to a word family related to taste. The related verb is 'würzen' (to season, to give flavor to a dish), and the adjective is 'würzig' (spicy, savory, strongly and pleasantly flavored).
Ich muss die Suppe noch etwas würzen.
I still need to season the soup a little.
In connection with cooking, 'Gewürz' (spice) is often combined with certain verbs. Typical phrases are: 'Gewürze hinzufügen' (to add spices), 'eine Speise mit Gewürzen abschmecken' (to season a dish to taste with spices), or 'Gewürze im Mörser zerstoßen' (to crush spices in a mortar).
Zum Schluss schmeckt man die Soße mit Salz und Pfeffer ab.
At the end, you season the sauce to taste with salt and pepper.
messy / chaotic
Here, a Kraut is an aromatic plant or a part of a plant that is used. A Gewürz, by contrast, is a substance added to a dish for flavor. The same plant can therefore be called a Kraut when fresh and a Gewürz when dried or processed.
Die Köchin gibt getrocknetes Basilikum als Gewürz in die Soße.
The cook adds dried basil as a spice to the sauce.
Die Köchin gibt frisches Basilikum als Kraut in die Soße.
The cook adds fresh basil as a herb to the sauce.
