Ajwain and Epazote – 2 Spices We Can’t Be Without!
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Ajwain and epazote are two spices that our bean-loving family couldn't live without.
I've highlighted both of them in my post on How to De-Gas Beans, but here is more detail about them.
Ajwain is one of the spices mentioned in my post on Savory Hummus. It, along with epazote, helps with the digestion of beans.
Recently there has been a lot of attention paid to other cultures and their native ways of cooking. Just like there are some old wives' tales that actually are true, there are a lot of cultural traditions surrounding foods that had better nutrition at the root of their existence.
I was introduced to ajwain a few years ago by a friend who is a master of all things spice and was the manager of a spice store at the time. I mentioned to her that we were eating a lot (emphasis on “lot”) of beans and that this was sometimes a source of digestive distress for our family. We were already soaking, draining, and rinsing our beans before cooking, but we were still having some undesirable effects of the high bean diet :-).
Ah yes, brings back memories of that old rhyme, “Beans, beans, the magical fruit…”
My friend said to try ajwain and epazote when cooking beans, adding them to the bean water after soaking and draining the beans.
What a difference! And you don't need to use very much of either spice:
Ajwain
Use 1/4 teaspoon ajwain per 2 cups of cooked beans to the pot (1 cup dried beans yields approx 3 cups cooked).
I count the number of dried beans that I am using, multiply by 3 and then count off how many 1/4 teaspoon I need.
For example, if I am cooking 4 cups of dried beans, that will yield about 12 cups of cooked beans. So I will need 1/4 teaspoon x 6 or 1 1/2 teaspoons ajwain. To make it easy without calculating, I think, “OK. I am cooking 12 cups of beans so I count off 1/4 teaspoon of ajwain while dumping it into the pot and counting by 2 for each 1/4 teaspoon. For 12 cups that means I would add six quarter teaspoons of ajwain.
Epazote
For epazote, add approximately 1 tablespoon per 3 cups cooked beans or 1 cup dried beans.
You use more epazote in volume per pot of beans, but it weighs considerably less than the ajwain so the cost equals out a bit.
I tried to find out which spice works best for which kind of beans and I was not able to get consistent answers on this topic. I do find that epazote is more typically used in Mexican and Hispanic dishes and its flavor complements black, pinto, cranberry beans, and the like. Ajwain works well with, and its taste is well-suited to garbanzos (chickpeas), split peas, and lentils.
At first when we started to use these, we noticed a slight change in the flavor of the dish, but it truly is not strong at all.
Here are some photos of both for “illustrative purposes” :-):
Here is ajwain seed:
And here is epazote:
As for where to buy these, and for the answer to my reader's question, they are available at many international groceries. Epazote is available at Starwest Botanicals. You can buy ajwain on Amazon. They have a wonderful selection of organic and herbal products. Penzeys is another purveyor of spices that carries both items, but I prefer the organic option.
More on spice resources in another posting…
Until then, enjoy the magical fruit without the toot — and Happy New Year!
Have you ever heard of ajwain or epazote?
Do you how it works?
What is the spice chemically doing to the beans to cause them to liberate their gas?
I don’t know but one source said epazote contains compounds which actually act as an anti-gas agent (referred to as a carminative, which means it reduces gas) when cooked with beans. That’s from Gourmet Sleuth. I couldn’t find anything about ajwain except that it is itself considered to be a “natural drug” to reduce gas.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carminative This has a list; apparently there are several herbs with this property, though some might be more effective than others.
Thanks!
We sell epazote at our garden center, I wasn’t sure if I should buy it. My bf has gout and we need to cut beans. However I make a lot of bean and split pea soups for church meals. Would you use fresh epazote or dried?
I use dried b/c it’s hard to keep enough fresh herbs around. 🙂
After soaking overnight, then draining, I cook the beans with just a pinch of Ginger to avoid gas problems from beans. My mom used to always do that.
Thanks – great tip!
My family is mainly vegetarian and so we eat a lot of beans (although less recently). We’ve had great success in decreasing the ability of the “magical fruit” to torment us after dinner by using Kombu.
Kombu is a dried sea vegetable and comes in either packaged form or sometimes bulk depending on the store.
To use: Break off approx 3 inch strip of Kombu and rinse in water to rinse off excess salt. Add to beans in cooking water and cook along with beans. When beans are done, remove the Kombu strip (sometimes it shreds and I pick it out but you can eat it.)
We notice a huge difference in digestive issues when we use Kombu- it’s great!
Adrienne, love your blog! Also, to clarify the amount of ajwain, etc to add to beans, why not leave off the “cooked” bean amount and just give directions for how much to use for dry beans- it will shorten the recipe, be easier to figure out- because we all start with dry beans! Thanks!
Good point! I’ll go change it now!
Might it still work if I grind the Ajwain seeds? I have trouble with some small seeds.
I would think so – never tried it :).
IN Brazil, we always use Bay leaves while cooking the beans. It’s believed to reduce the gas. Now, I noticed that after I went wheat free I rarely have any gas/ bloating problems even when I eat beans. The exception being if I eat sugar. 🙁
I was going to ask you what nationality these spices are usually found in, as far as types of foods. So I can find them in local international stores. 🙂
I think Indian would work. I believe I saw the Ajwain in one about 6 mos ago 🙂
I’ve never heard of these spices, thanks! I’m wondering how much they affect flavor? I like to use beans a lot in baking (cakes, brownies, etc), so I don’t want much flavor added to them. Would you adjust the amount you use?
Hi Nikki. The ajwain affects the taste very little. I use that when I am making a sweet w/ beans. Also, the epazote that I most recently purchased wasn’t as good quality as what I was used to and has bigger “stick like” parts in it so I will probably purchase elsewhere when it is done. I wouldn’t change the amount at all. Try the ajwain and let me know how it goes. It is better suited to some beans, but I have found it helps w/ the gassiness of every type. 🙂
Hi, I was wondering if I could use thyme instead of ajwain as i was reading they have a similar taste?
Hanna, I don’t think so as the issue isn’t taste – it’s the digestibility effect that the spice has on the beans.
I was able to get both ajwain & epizote at our local natural foods grocery store, which carries the Spicely line of herbs and spices. I have tried the epizote with black beans and pinto beans so far and it seems to really help with digestibility. However, it’s a bit tricky to pick out all the pieces of epizote from the beans after cooking. It’s like dried pieces of grass stalk. Am I doing something wrong or is there an easier way to remove the epizote? I’m cooking garbanzo beans and will see how the ajwain seeds work.
Kate,
It is the quality of your epazote. Here is a good source to try: . Hopefully that works for you and to save what you’ve bought, you could put it in a small piece of muslin tied in the pot and then dump it out when you’re done cooking. Hope that helps!