How to Buy Spices and Herbs
Choosing, Sourcing, Selecting, and Buying for Quality
LAST UPDATED: August 25, 2025
READ TIME: 16 minutes
Table of Contents
From Ancient Caravans...
For much of written history, the pursuit of spices was at the heart of human desire. They were currency, medicine, perfume, and even political leverage. With a bag of cloves, you could win the favor of a king. Indeed, the world had a spice obsession. From camel caravans hauling bundles of cinnamon along the Silk Road to Portuguese ships chasing pepper winds across the Indian Ocean, people risked lives and fortunes for a taste of the exotic.
Today, you can buy saffron with a few clicks or stroll into a local market for cumin. Yes, you no longer need a fleet of ships to bring cardamom to your kitchen, but the challenge remains: finding quality that delivers the potency and character worthy of the spice’s legacy.
The difference between dull and dazzling often comes down to quality, freshness, and smart buying choices. But it isn’t that complicated. By following just a few simple rules, you can make sure every seasoning you buy gives your dishes its all. This guide blends centuries of spice wisdom with modern sourcing insights to help you shop with confidence—whether you’re wandering through a crowded market or scrolling through specialty suppliers online. After all, how exciting is it to take part in a trade older than money itself?
1. How to Choose the Right Spices and Herbs
Before you even think about sourcing, you need to decide what to buy. This isn’t about filling your pantry with as many jars as you can. And it's more than just jotting down a shopping list. It's the continual process of aligning your cooking style with your flavor preferences and the cuisines you want to explore.
Start your spice odyssey with the familiar global staples that work well across dozens of dishes. From there, your choices branch out like the trade routes of old: to India for cardamom, the Middle East for sumac, and Jamaica for allspice. Let your interests, travels, and relationships be your guide. It's a fun and utterly satisfying journey.
Start with Core Essentials, then Build with Purpose
When you're building your base spice rack, start small. Buy only what you’ll use in the next 1 to 3 months. Try new seasonings and hone your taste over time. The same philosophy applies to picking up fresh herbs from the market. You may start with basil, cilantro, and dill until you get the hang of them, and then experiment with fennel, sage, and thyme. Every cook’s preferences will be at least a little bit different, but this is an example of a mindful progression as you expand your repertoire:
1. Bare Necessities
These are the absolute musts every kitchen should have from day one:
- Coarse Kosher Salt (or a finishing sea salt like Maldon and fleur de sel): Salt is the foundational flavor.
- Black Pepper: Ideally, whole peppercorns with a grinder, not pre-ground.
- Garlic Powder: For convenience when fresh garlic isn’t available or practical.
2. Go-Tos
These are the common building blocks of your home cuisine, cooking style, or everyday dishes. It's very subjective, but it may look something like this in a typical Western kitchen:
- Basil: Pairs well with tomatoes, pasta, and soups.
- Bay Leaf: Transforms soups, stews, and braises.
- Ceylon Cinnamon: Core to baking and so much more. Spring for Ceylon cinnamon when you can—it offers a more delicate, complex experience than cassia.
- Chili Powder or Crushed Red Pepper: Quickly adds warmth and heat, essential for countless dishes.
- Dill: Classic for fish, potatoes, and creamy sauces.
- Ginger: Widely used in baking, marinades, and stir-fries.
- Oregano: Dried oregano seems to make everything better. Critical to many Italian, Greek, and Latin American recipes.
- Paprika: Extremely versatile, works with everything from soups and roasted vegetables to meat rubs.
- Parsley: Brightens soups, salads, and roasted vegetables; pairs well with lemon and garlic, so it can be used frequently!
3. Broadening Horizons
In this stage, you're expanding to more diverse cuisines and flavor profiles:
- Cardamom: The "Queen of Spices", beloved in South Asian curries, Nordic baking, and Arabic coffee.
- Cloves: Intensely aromatic, with sweet and woody notes. Used sparingly, they elevate baked goods, mulled wine, pickles, and savory dishes like biryanis, curries, and beef rendang.
- Coriander: Citrusy counterpoint to cumin, often paired with it.
- Cumin: warm, earthy, and savory; essential in Latin American, Middle Eastern, and Indian cuisines.
- Fenugreek Seed: Prized for its complex flavor and thickening ability; essential in Indian curries and Ethiopian berbere.
- Lemongrass: Citrusy, herbal, and slightly floral; perfect for brightening curries, soups, teas, and marinades with a zesty lift.
- Mustard Seed: Sharp, nutty, and pungent. Used in pickling, curries, and of course, mustard itself.
- Nutmeg and Mace: As essential to baking as cinnamon and similarly fantastic in savory dishes. Buy whole—never settle for the bland powders sold next to the eggnog!
- Sumac: Tangy, lemony, and bright; adds acidity without liquid. So good in salads and with grilled meats.
- Turmeric: Earthy and slightly bitter with notes of ginger and mustard. Gives curries, soups, and rice dishes their signature vibrant color and warm depth.
4. New Adventures
Once you’ve mastered your favorites, you can explore spices that are rarer and more luxurious or more specialized to certain regions or cuisines:
- Dill Pollen or Fennel Pollen: Premier gourmet finishing spices.
- Fresh Wasabi: The rare, whole rhizomes of the true wasabi plant, the "green jewels of Japan."
- Grains of Paradise or Long Pepper: Exotic black pepper substitutes that offer even more heat and complexity than the "King of Spices."
- Passila de Oaxaca Chile: A chilaca pepper from the Sierra Mixe mountains of Southern Mexico that is uniquely smoke-dried over wood coals in an adobe oven for several days. It is cherished for its pronounced smoky aroma, chocolatey and earthy taste, meaty texture, and lightly fruity heat.
- Saffron: The most expensive spice in the world. Floral and honeyed; prized for adding a golden hue and elegant aroma to rice dishes, stews, and desserts.
- Vanilla: Genuine vanilla beans, which are actually the seed pods of tropical climbing orchids, are one of nature's greatest gifts.
Seasonality can play a role in your decision-making as well. In summer, bright green herbs like basil, mint, and cilantro mirror the fresh produce on your plate. In winter, warming spices like nutmeg, clove, and allspice can make a pot of stew feel like a warm embrace. The goal is to curate, not hoard. Every spice in your cabinet should earn its place and be used frequently enough to still be fresh for the last dish that needs it. Then you can reorder it or replace it with a new spice adventure. Star anise for some homemade Vietnamese pho? Annatto for some Filipino kare-kare stew?
2. How to Source the Finest
The Journey Matters
Quality begins long before you open a jar. It starts in the soil, the climate, and the hands that cultivate the crop. Spices are essentially dried produce. Terroir changes their flavor as much as it does for wine. Ceylon cinnamon, originally from the humid lowlands of Sri Lanka, has a delicate floral sweetness. Cassia cinnamon, common in China, Vietnam, and Indonesia, leans bold and spicy. Indian cumin is bold, earthy, and pungent, while Turkish cumin is milder, sweeter, and more citrusy. Indian dill is also stronger than European dill. You get the point.
Ask where your spices come from and how quickly they reach you after harvest. Spices lose potency as their volatile oils oxidize, and the clock starts ticking the moment they’re harvested. The shorter the supply chain, the fresher the flavor.
A good supplier will tell you the harvest date and the drying/curing method. Many of the best sellers work directly with farmers, ensuring fair trade, sustainable harvests, and consistent quality. They will also run tests, quality assure every batch, and apply the appropriate food certifications (organic, kosher, gluten-free, etc.). When a company is transparent, it’s a sign that they have nothing to hide and everything to be proud of.
So, great flavor starts at the source. Here are the key things to keep in mind and why they matter:
- Know the origin: Terroir and cultivation methods shape aroma and taste.
- Understand the supply chain: The shorter the journey from harvest to your kitchen, the fresher the flavor.
- Seek transparency: Reputable suppliers tell you where and when the spice was harvested and how it was processed.
- Ethics Matter: Fair trade and sustainable harvesting protect both ecosystems and the communities that grow spices.
- Seasonal Differences: A dry year can make chiles smaller but hotter; too much rain can mute their flavor. Climate changes and even local crime rates year to year affect spice farms. Cyclones and theft often raise the price of vanilla.
- Geopolitics: Conflict can disrupt supply, as with Syria’s Aleppo pepper and Iranian saffron.
Where to Buy and What to Avoid
Not all spice shopping is created equal. Supermarkets are convenient, but turnover can be slow, and light-filled aisles aren’t a spice’s friend, as we know. Specialty international markets, on the other hand, can be treasure chests—their cumin may be fresher, their cinnamon sweeter, their chiles more vivid than anything in a big-box store.
However, specialty spice merchants are your best option, whether in person or online. They often source directly from growers and store their stock in optimal conditions. Find sellers who can tell you where a spice comes from, when it was harvested, and how it was processed. A jar of turmeric simply labeled “Product of Asia” tells you far less than one that says “Lakadong turmeric, harvested October 2024, Meghalaya, India.” For blends, sugar and salt should never be the first ingredients listed. The spices themselves should get top billing (if they're really in there!).
And despite the evocative allure of the ancient open-air spice bazaars of Marrakesh, Jerusalem, and Istanbul, it's best to avoid those bulk bins or bags like you see above. Light, air, heat, humidity, and continual handling will strip away essential oils long before you buy. If that wasn't enough to deter you, sometimes they have bugs in them! So if you're fortunate enough to find yourself perusing those age-old, bustling markets, make sure the spices you buy come in airtight containers and were stored properly in the merchant's inventory.
3. How to Assess Quality and Select the Best
The Sensory Test
Spices
Once you have the spice in front of you, it is a sensory evaluation. You’re looking for signs of vibrancy and potency.
- Sight: Color is often a good indicator of freshness—deep, brick-red smoked paprika, golden turmeric, crimson saffron. Dullness signals age or poor storage.
- Smell: Fresh spices hit you immediately. A faint, dusty, or musky aroma means the volatile oils have faded.
- Taste: If sampling is allowed, even a small pinch should deliver a full spectrum of deep and complex flavor, not just a flat, single note.
- Texture: Whole spices should typically be firm and dense. A shriveled, lightweight seed, pod, or fruit may have already lost most of its oils.
Fresh Herbs
When browsing for herbs at the grocery store or farmer's market, you're looking for vitality and freshness.
- Sight: Leaves should be vibrant, crisp, and richly green. Yellowing or dark spots suggest age or poor handling.
- Smell: Rub a leaf lightly between your fingers—it should release a bright, unmistakable aroma. A faint or grassy smell means the oils have begun to fade.
- Taste: If tasting is allowed, a small leaf should still deliver its characteristic punch—basil sweet and peppery, mint cool and sharp, cilantro bright and citrusy. Bland or bitter notes indicate decline.
- Texture: Stems should feel firm and hydrated, not slimy. Leaves should be tender yet resilient, not limp.
Grading Systems
Some high-value spices are judged by international or regional grading systems that help buyers and sellers agree on quality. These systems typically measure aspects like aroma, color, size, and moisture content—as well as the concentrations of chemical compounds that contribute to each. The grading system is critical as it influences buying decisions and price. Knowing more about them can help you distinguish genuine top-tier spices from lesser ones. Here are some examples:
- Saffron: Graded primarily by color strength (crocin), aroma (safranal), and flavor (picrocrocin). The ISO 3632 system divides saffron into categories (I, II, III), with Category I being the most potent. Look for deep red stigma "threads" or "strands" with little to no yellow style attached.
- Vanilla: Graded by length, moisture, and appearance. “Grade A” beans are gourmet (30% moisture); plump, oily, and highly aromatic—ideal for desserts, or when seeing the bean itself is important (topping a crème brûlée). “Grade B,” or “extract” beans (20% moisture) are drier and less pretty, but perfect for infusions and extracts.
- Cardamom: Often sorted by size, color, and density. Premium cardamom pods (true cardamom, not black or red cardamom, which come from different plants) are plump, green, and filled with sticky black seeds. Lower grades may look bleached, with lighter seeds and weaker aroma.
- Others: Nutmeg, mace, Ceylon cinnamon, and other prized spices are also often graded, though less formally. Even black pepper has informal grades, with "Tellicherry" peppercorns prized for their large size and bold flavor.
Understanding grading systems doesn’t mean you must buy only the highest grade every time. Sometimes “lower” grades offer excellent value for cooking where visual beauty isn’t critical (like saffron powder or vanilla extract). But when you want to showcase a spice’s true character—saffron rice, vanilla custard, or cardamom-infused coffee—top grades make a difference.
4. How to Buy: Smart Strategies for Lasting Flavor
Freshness Is Still Important
Spices are living products. Despite being dried with long shelf lives relative to other ingredients, they continue to change over time. That vibrant paprika you bought last year? If its color has dulled and its scent is faint, its essential oils have already faded. The cumin that once smelled like warm earth may now only be a ghost of its full aroma.
This is why spice freshness matters so much, often even more than brand or cost. Freshness is quality. The best saffron in the world won’t taste like much if it’s been sitting on a warm, bright shelf for three years. Professional chefs often buy in small quantities, turning over stock quickly. It’s a practice worth adopting at home: let your spice collection breathe and evolve, but never let it go stale.
Buy in quantities you can realistically use—3 to 6 months for ground spices, up to 2 years for most whole spices (although you should really replace your whole spices at least annually for maximum flavor). For delicate herbs like basil, dill, cilantro, and parsley, it's best to buy fresh over dried. They typically last around a week if stored properly. Hardy herbs like oregano, rosemary, and thyme do well dried and can last 1-2 years in your spice cabinet.
The Romance of the Whole Spice
Whenever possible, buy whole spices and grind them yourself just before use. This is the single biggest upgrade you can make to your spice game. Whole spices hold their flavor far longer than their ground counterparts because their volatile oils are locked away under the surface. Once you grind them, those oils—and the culinary and medicinal magic they contain—start to escape quickly. That’s why freshly ground coriander or black pepper tastes electric compared to the bland pre-ground powders.
There’s also a quiet, meditative pleasure in doing the grinding yourself. Hearing the first crack, smelling the aromatics bloom. Mortar and pestles thus offer the most satisfying experience of this phenomenon, but a simple electric coffee grinder (dedicated to spices) can make working with whole spices much more convenient (and make much finer powders). A simple taste or smell test pitting a freshly ground spice against its pre-ground counterpart will make this point instantly and abundantly clear. It will open the door to flavors you didn’t even know you were missing.
With that said, certain spices are too difficult to grind on your own, requiring industrial-level processing (turmeric is an example). And most spice blends require pre-grinding to properly mix the various flavors. The proportions of each were meticulously selected. So we don't want to give the impression that pre-ground powders are always a bad thing.
It's also nice to keep them on hand for whenever you have less time or patience. Having the option gives you peace of mind. A good strategy is to keep all your favorite spices in both whole and ground form, so you can choose greatness or speed, depending on the meal. For max potency, buy pre-ground powders from a trusted source, use them frequently, and replenish them frequently. Powdered cardamom nestled in the corner of your spice rack for years will not show up well in your dish.
Bringing It Home
When you bring home a new spice or receive one on your doorstep, smell it—the aroma should be clear and strong. Taste it—even raw (vs. toasted, tempered, steeped, etc.), the flavor should be immediately distinguishable. Try it in a small test (sprinkled on chickpeas, steeped in a broth) to experience its effects. Here's a good practice: keep a notebook or spreadsheet to compare your thoughts on different shops' spices over time. That way, you'll know when it's time to find another source for a particular spice, or just keep reordering from the same supplier since they consistently deliver top quality.
As you gain more experience, cooking increasingly delicious meals, you'll also be improving your system for managing and expanding your spice repertoire.
The Story in Every Spice
Buying spices and herbs is part science, part art. The science lies in understanding essential oils, harvest timing, and preservation methods. The art comes from knowing which flavors will inspire you, enrich your cooking, and connect you to culture and tradition.
When you choose with intention, source from trusted origins, select with your senses, and buy in a way that maintains quality, you're connecting to thousands of years of agricultural skill and culinary artistry, as well as evolution itself. You're honoring the spice's history. It brings great joy knowing every meal you make carries the full depth, complexity, and beauty of that story.
