The large, wrinkled pods of Himalayan and Chinese ginger-family plants, dried over fire. Black cardamom tastes smoky, resinous and cool, and suits slow-cooked meat, dal and broths.
What it isยถ
Black cardamom is the dried fruit of plants related to, but distinct from, green cardamom. The pods are much larger, 2โ4 cm long, dark brown and deeply ridged, and contain a mass of sticky seeds. They are dried over open fires, which gives them their smoky flavour and dark colour.
There are two main kinds:
- Nepal or greater cardamom (Amomum subulatum), called badi elaichi ("big cardamom") in Hindi. Grown in the eastern Himalaya and used across the Indian subcontinent.
- Chinese black cardamom or cao guo (Lanxangia tsao-ko, still often labelled Amomum tsao-ko), a larger, rounder pod used in Chinese and Vietnamese cooking, where it is called thแบฃo quแบฃ.
Origins and historyยถ
Black cardamom has long been grown in the forested hills of the eastern Himalaya, traditionally in the shade of alder trees on terraced slopes. Sikkim was historically the centre of production; Nepal is now the largest producer, and the crop is an important cash income for hill farmers. Its drying over wood fires is part of the tradition, though improved drying houses are increasingly used to produce a cleaner, more controlled flavour.
In China, cao guo has been used in cooking and traditional medicine for centuries, and it is a customary spice in the broths of Yunnan, Sichuan and northern Vietnam.
Flavour and aromaยถ
Black cardamom tastes nothing like green. The seeds are cool and camphorous (it shares 1,8-cineole with eucalyptus and green cardamom), resinous and a little like tar, while the husk carries a strong smoky, almost bacon-like character from drying. It is robust rather than delicate and survives long cooking. Used generously, it can dominate a dish; used carefully, it gives depth and a savoury smokiness.
In the kitchenยถ
Black cardamom is almost always used in savoury, slow-cooked dishes.
- Whole: crack a pod with the back of a knife and add it to the oil at the start, or to the pot of a stew, dal or rice. One or two pods is plenty for a dish for four. Remove before serving.
- Ground: for garam masala (especially Punjabi versions), break open the pods, use the seeds and some or all of the husk, and grind. Black cardamom's husk is fibrous and grinds poorly.
- Indian dishes: dal makhani, rajma, rogan josh, biryani, nihari and many North Indian meat curries.
- Chinese and Vietnamese cooking: cao guo goes into red-braised meat, Sichuan hotpot broths and pho, usually toasted or charred with star anise, cinnamon or cassia and cloves.
- Unexpected uses: a single pod in a pot of chilli, in barbecue sauce, or in braised beans adds a smoky backbone.
โ ๏ธ Not for sweets
Black cardamom is not interchangeable with green in desserts, chai or baking. Its smokiness and camphor will be most unwelcome in a cardamom bun.
Buying and storingยถ
Whole pods keep for two to three years in an airtight container; their robust flavour fades slowly. Look for large, plump, intact pods with a clean smoky smell. Ground black cardamom loses its aroma within months. See storing spices.
Substitutesยถ
- Green cardamom with a pinch of smoked paprika, or a small piece of smoked bacon, to suggest the smokiness.
- In pho or Chinese braises, extra star anise and cassia will carry the dish without it.
- There is no exact substitute; if in doubt, leave it out rather than using too much green cardamom.
Pairs well withยถ
Lamb, beef, goat, kidney beans, lentils, rice and rich tomato sauces; cumin, cinnamon, cassia, cloves, bay leaf, star anise, black pepper, ginger and garlic.
Did you knowยถ
The fibrous husk of black cardamom is less aromatic than the seeds but carries most of the smoke. For a cleaner, cooler flavour, some cooks use only the seeds; for a smokier one, they keep the whole pod. Some Himalayan growers are moving from open fires to indirect-heat drying houses, which produces pods with less smoke and more of the plant's own aroma.
