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| Flower of pomegranate (ornamental breed with full flowers) |
If one wants to set up a “collection of biblical spices”, one must not forget that there are three millennia between the language of the Old Testament and ours; therefore, exact translations are sometimes impossible. The following quote (Isaiah 28,27) may illustrate the difficulties of translation:
Qetsach is not threshed with a sledge, nor is a cartwheel rolled over kammon; qetsach is beaten out with a rod, and kammon with a stick.
Because of the dialectic structure, we may infer that the two plants are
similar enough to allow for comparison, but differ in the way how the seeds
are harvested. The term kammon [כמן]
is related to Greek kyminon [κύμινον]
and English cumin, and obviously has the same
meaning, as similar forms with the meaning “cumin” appear in a multitude
of European languages (mostly originating from Greek via Latin);
but note that also the name “caraway” comes
from the same root.
Qetsach [קצח] is
more difficult to analyze. Probably it means nigella, sometimes also called black cumin, whose
seeds ripen in a closed capsule, which must first be opened.
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| The “goddess of Berlin” (7.th century BC, Attica) holding a pomegranate fruit in her hand |
Yet in translating the Bible, botanic accuracy is less an aim than general matters of style. “Black cumin” is less elegant than “cumin”, and “nigella” is not an English word at all. Therefore, English Bible translations render qetsach as dill, caraway or “fitches”, which is an old orthographic variety for vetch, a plant not edible at all (Vicia sativa). German translators, on the other hand, who don't have a traditional, elegant word for cumin, commonly translate kammon as caraway (which is almost certainly wrong), and have to resort to dill for qetsach.
Comparing different translations of the Old Testament, one finds some or all of the following (Hebrew terms are given in parenthesis): garlic (shuwm [שומים], usually rendered in archaic spelling “garlick”), onion (bətsel [בצל]), nigella (qetsach [קצח], also rendered as caraway or dill, quite obscure), cumin (kammon [כמן], usually rendered in archaic spelling “cummin” but also caraway), coriander (gad [גד]), caper (abiyownah [אביונה], also translated “desire”), cinnamon (qinnamown [קנמון]), cassia (qiddah [קדה] and qətsiy'ah [קציעה], also interpreted as a synonym of cinnamon or cassia buds), hyssop (ezowb [אזוב], frequent but very obscure), myrtle (hadas [הדס]), olive (shemen [שמן] “Olive oil” and zayith [זית] “olive berry; olive tree”; very frequent), juniper (bərowsh [ברוש], also given as “fir” or “pine”), almond (shaqed [שקד]), lemon (possibly citron but very uncertain, hadar [הדר], literally “highest of trees”), pomegranate (rimmown [רמון]), rose (chabatstseleth [חבצלת], very obscure) and saffron (karkom [כרכם]).
Similarly, the New Testament has not been translated by biologists – the latter would not have assumed that birds live in mustard plants (sinapi [σίναπι]). Other plant names from the New Testament include the following (original Greek given in parenthesis): mint (hedyosmon [ἡδύοσμον], this is not the common name of mint in Old Greek), cumin (kyminon [κύμινον], also translated caraway), anise (anethon [ἄνηθον], better rendered dill), lemon (thyinos [θύινος], possibly citron but uncertain), rue (peganon [πήγανον], probably a close relative is meant), cinnamon (kinnamomon [κιννάμωμον]), hyssop (hyssopos [ὕσσωπος], referring to the obscure word in the Old Testament) and olive (agrielaios [ἀγριέλαιος] “olive tree”, elaia [ἐλαία] “olive fruit” and elaion [ἔλαιον] “olive oil”). See also mugwort for linguistic notes on another plant mentioned in the New Testament, wormwood (apsinthos [ἄψινθος]).
Pomegranate seeds have, today, culinary importance as a spice only in Northern India, where they are dried and used as a flavouring. For this purpose, seeds of wild pomegranates are collected that are too sour to be eaten fresh. This spice features a subtle, sweet-sour and at the same time tart flavour which is most popular in the union states Punjab and Gujarat in India's Northwest. Pomegranate seeds are mostly used for vegetables and legumes; sometimes, they show up in Moghul-style non-vegetarian food.
Gujarat's cookery differs from all other regional cuisines of India by its marked preference for spicy and sweet combinations. Due to a sizable Jain minority and the influence of Mahatma Gandhi, who was born in the small city of Porbandar in central Gujarat, its inhabitants are generally strict vegetarians, stricter than in other North Indian states. Fiery vegetable curries with more than a simple hint of sweetness are often decorated with fresh pomegranate seeds as a contrasting garnish.
Grenadine, a reduced juice from fresh pomegranate seeds, is common in Northern India not only for desserts, but also to marinate meat; due to its content of proteolytic enzymes, it acts as a meat tenderizer. Either as fresh-extracted juice or in the more durable form of grenadine, pomegranates are a common souring agent in Western Asia and may be used, e.g., in the Turkish salad kısır made from precooked cracked wheat (bulgur), parsley and possibly raw vegetables.
Lastly, dried pomegranate seeds make an interesting alternative for raisins in
cakes and other European sweets.
