Strips of the inner bark are dried until they curl into rolls known as cinnamon sticks or quills. These can then be ground into powder or made into an extract. The unique properties of this spice come from its essential oils and compounds, particularly cinnamaldehyde 1. This compound gives cinnamon its flavor and aroma, and is also responsible for many of its health benefits. Cinnamon is made from the inner bark of the Cinnamomum tree. Its unique properties come from its essential oils, such as cinnamaldehyde.
Cassia cinnamon comes from the Cinnamomum cassia tree, also called Cinnamomum aromaticum. However, there are several subspecies now widely grown across Eastern and Southern Asia 2. Cassia tends to be a dark brown-red color with thicker sticks and a rougher texture than Ceylon cinnamon. Cassia cinnamon is considered lower quality. It is very cheap and is the type most commonly consumed around the world.
Almost all cinnamon found in supermarkets is the cassia variety. Cassia has long been used in cooking and in traditional Chinese medicine. Cassia cinnamon is the most common variety.
Ceylon is tan-brown in color and contains many tight sticks with soft layers. These features provide a highly desirable quality and texture. Ceylon cinnamon is less common and has long been prized as a cooking spice. It is quite expensive compared to the more common cassia variety.
This explains its milder aroma and flavor 3. Ceylon cinnamon is a high-quality, highly prized spice. A review of 16 previous studies on diabetes treatment found promising results for Ceylon powder that was used as a supplement 4. Animal and lab studies show it may reduce blood sugar spikes, increase insulin sensitivity and improve metabolic markers associated with insulin resistance 4.
On the other hand, cassia has been used in several studies of humans with and without type 2 diabetes. Ancient Egyptians used cinnamon as part of their embalming rituals. Physicians from the middle ages used cinnamon to help treat cold and throat ailments such as coughing, hoarseness and sore throats. Arab traders brought the spice through trade routes into Egypt, where it was bought by Venetian traders from Italy who held a monopoly on the spice trade in Europe.
At the beginning of the 16 th century, Portuguese traders arrived in Ceylon Sri-Lanka where this spice was growing and was the largest producer of cinnamon at the time. They took control of the area and started their own monopoly on the spice. They established a fort on the island in and protected their control over this valuable commodity for over a hundred years.
During the 17th century, the Dutch took control of the island of Ceylon and the monopoly of the trade. When they later learned that cinnamon trees existed along the coast of India, they made certain this was destroyed in order to preserve their high profits on this spice.
Eventually, the Dutch monopoly over cinnamon disappeared because the world found they could grow it successfully in other locations. Culinary Uses The spicy aroma of cinnamon enhances both sweet and savory foods. You will find cinnamon in cuisines from around the world and its bold and distinctive flavor adds depth to many dishes.
Because, even though cinnamon is such a complex and rich product, consisting of hundreds of different molecules , it is completely natural.
In fact, often nature is able to create more complex products than we humans are! The powder started out as part of a tree, most likely growing in an Asian country such as Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India or Vietnam. Only after careful harvesting, stripping, drying and milling can it end up in your spice cabinet.
Cinnamon comes from a group of trees a genus with the latin name Cinnamomum. There are several hundred trees that belong to this group with just a few that make up the majority of the cinnamon available worldwide. The other major type of cinnamon is the cassia cinnamon, which can be Cinnamomum cassia , or C. Whether or not this type is called cinnamon or cassia, depends on the country you live in. Regulations and customs differ between Europe, America and Asia. Only, when it is mentioned explicitly will you have the other variety, simply because it is the more expensive of the two.
If you look closely at a stick of cinnamon you will notice that it is curled up. Cinnamon is the bark of the tree Cinnamomum. In the countries where cinnamon grows well the trees are left to grow for about 2 years, until the shoots of bark are suitable for harvest.
In China, cinnamon is grown in large scale in the provinces of Guangdong, Guanxi, Yunnan, and Fujian. Vietnam produces mainly the Saigon cinnamon. Saigon cinnamon is closely related to cassia.
Cinnamon is produced in Vietnam both for domestic use and export. Cinnamon is produced in the areas around the central and Central Highlands regions of Vietnam, especially Quang Ngai Province. Cinnamon is grown in large scale with total land area ranging between 50, and , hectares. Cinnamon spice is an important ingredient in making a noodle soup known as pho. Sri Lanka boasts of the best quality of cinnamon in the world. Cinnamon cultivation is mainly concentrated along the coastal belt from Kaluthara to Mathara.
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