Alongside spices like black peppercorns, cloves, cinnamon, cumin and nutmeg, cardamom and coriander are considered to be among some of the warmest spices. When added to foods or sometimes drinks e.g. tea they not only add great flavor, but also have a touch of heat that can warm you from the inside.
Coriander and cardamom can be found in all kinds of cuisine but are prominent in Indian, Middle Eastern, Mediterranean, South and South East Asian, Mexican, Latin American, Chinese, and African cuisines.
While these two spices are not similar, some people still find it hard to figure out the cardamom – coriander difference and often wonder ‘is cardamom the same as coriander?’. If you fall into this group, then you are in the right place.
In today’s article we shall be taking on the cardamom vs coriander debate. Here, you shall be learning how to properly differentiate these two spices, what they can be used for individually, substitutes for them (if available) and much more.
No. Coriander is not similar to cardamom. While they can be used as substitutes of each other in some dishes, the two come from very different plants.
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To better understand the distinction in cardamom vs coriander, we need to dive deeper into the history and physical descriptions of each spice.
Also known as cardamon or by its scientific name Elettaria cardamomum, it is a herbaceous plant from the Zingiberaceae (ginger) plant family. Cardamom is usually included in South Asian curry dishes and can also be found in Scandinavian pastries.
This plant’s origins can be traced back to South Indian forests where its fruits can be collected from wild plants in the forests still today. In the West, this spice was introduced in Europe in the mid-16th century. Today, most of the world’s cardamom comes from India, Sri Lanka, and Guatemala.
In terms of physical appearance, the cardamom plant can grow anywhere between 5 to 20 feet and bears greenish petals and a purple-veined white lip. The cardamom fruit – a green three-sided oval capsule containing 15 to 20 dark, reddish brown to brownish black, hard, angular seeds – comes from these flowers.
You can find this spice as either whole or ground dried fruits or seeds (4). Two cool random trivia facts to know include
The most common use for this spice is as a flavoring for multiple dishes such as curries, desserts, and as well as a variety of meat dishes. Cardamom is also often added to beverages such as coffee and tea. If you happen to have run out of this spice and a recipe calls for it, you can easily substitute cardamom with either nutmeg, cinnamon, coriander seeds, or allspice.
Aside from its use as a flavoring spice, ccardamon can also be taken for its potential health benefits. Over the years, several studies done on both human being and animals have shown that this spice may have some incredible health benefits namely
A double blind study done on overweight or obese patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease found that patients who took green cardamom supplements had improvements in their liver health markers as compared to those who only took a placebo.
Researchers found that green cardamom significantly increased serum Sirtuin-1 (Sirt1) and decreased tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), high sensitive c-reactive protein (hs-CRP), interleukin-6 (IL-6), and alanine transaminase (ALT) (13).
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While cardamom is part of the ginger family, coriander (also known as cilantro in some parts of the world) is a feathery annual plant of the Apiaceae (parsley) family. Coriander plants are pretty short and low to the ground as they only grow to about 1 to 1.25 inches high.
Coriander, native to both the Mediterranean and Middle Eastern regions produces small pink or white-ish flowers which later form into a small oval shaped yellow-brown fruit that has about 2 seeds inside. The seeds are said to have a mild fragrance and a taste that is similar to a combination of lemon peel and sage (7).
Fun facts about coriander include:
The uses of this herb can be traced as far back as 5000 BCE and the Romans are known to have used it as both an aromatic and a carminative – a drug to prevent flatulence. Today, this plant is mostly used just to flavor food.
In middle Eastern cooking, it is often used alongside other spices like cumin and cinnamon. It should be noted that the seeds are usually too tough to chew so to make them more palatable, you are advised to first toast and grind them before adding them to your stew or curry dishes or baked goods. Or simply buy ground coriander.
If a recipe calls for herb but you do not have it some coriander substitutes you can use include
This spice also has come potential health benefits that include:
In the 8-week study, patients who took 30 drops of a coriander-containing herbal medication plus either loperamide or psyllium taken three times a day reported a decrease in abdominal pain, bloating, and discomfort (15).
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Recipes call for anywhere between 1 to 4 cardamom pods (crushed and ground) for 1 cup of coffee. If you’ve never had cardamom coffee before, we suggest starting with 1 crushed pod before adding more.
The following table shows the major differences between these two seeds:
| Coriander | Cardamom | |
|---|---|---|
| Plant Family | Apiaceae aka parsley family | Zingiberaceae aka ginger family |
| Fruit | Seeds come in a single, smooth, nearly globular (sometimes oval )fruit that’s around 0.2 inches (0.5 cm) in diameter. Each fruit has 2 small seeds inside | Has a much larger oval fruit that’s about 0.8 to 1.5 cm. Each fruit usually has 15 to 20 seeds inside |
| Seed Appearance | Very small and yellowish brown in color | Brownish black and angular |
Ground cardamom comes from grinding whole green cardamom seeds. In short, green cardamom is the whole version of ground cardamom.
Both cardamom and coriander essential oils come from the seed of the respective plant. Coriander seeds have way less oil (only 0.1 to 1 percent) and the primary component of the oil is coriandrol (7).
On the other hand, cardamom seeds being bigger have more oil per seed (anywhere between (2 to 10 percent) and the primary components of it are cineole and α-terpinyl acetate (4).
If you’ve been confused about cardamom vs coriander, it is important to note that these spices are not the same. They may be used as substitutes of each other but they absolutely do not come from the same plant nor do they look alike. We hope this article helps you out the next time you are confused on what is what.
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