Every cuisine has its distinctive flavor; that taste you can’t quite put your finger on but is easily identified as tasting of a certain regional style. Strongly flavored foods like garlic, onions and ginger contribute to this, as well as sauces like fish sauce, soy sauce or vinegar.

But the sneakiest (and at the same time most influential) flavoring is dried spice and herb mixes. Almost every cuisine has its base mixture of herbs and spices used in small amounts to give it that distinctive flavor.

The flavor of herbs and spices changes when they are dried, and the drying process also allows them to be crushed up so they can be mixed into food more seamlessly. Many herb and spice mixtures were traditionally made with a mortar and pestle, a stone bowl and rod-like grinding tool that was used to crush the mixture. Now a coffee grinder can be used, or the mix can be purchased pre-crushed.

In addition to being ground up, herbs and spices are sometimes toasted to bring out their flavor, or add another dimension of “toasty” flavor to them. Spices like sesame seeds have a very different flavor toasted from untoasted.

Although most cultures have names for their herb blends, the ingredients generally vary from recipe to recipe. Usually a few basic flavors that dominate the mix will be the same, while a number of other herbs with complementary flavors are interchangeable.

Among Asian herb and spice blends there are some common ingredients. Cinnamon is a very common ingredient; it lends a pungent, earthy, spicy flavor that goes well with many other herbs and spices.

In European blends, parsley and thyme are found commonly. European flavorings tend to be based more on herbs than spices. Spices play a more important role in desserts, such as nutmeg, cinnamon and dried ginger.

In France, a bouquet garni, which means garnished bouquet, is a basic herb mix. Like most herb mixes, the ingredients vary, but it usually includes things like parsley, thyme and bay leaves, with the addition of several other herbs. A similar French herb mix is herbes de Provence, which is more strongly flavored with herbs like rosemary and basil.

In North Africa, ras el-hanout is a common seasoning made from nutmeg, mace, chili peppers and cardamom. It can also include such exotic and potentially poisonous ingredients as belladonna and Spanish fly.

Although it’s something of a misnomer, five-spice powder is an important Chinese spice blend. It can actually contain twice as many ingredients. The “five” refers to five flavors — sweet, sour, bitter, salty and pungent. It generally includes anise, ginger and Szechwan peppercorns, which are not peppercorns but a tiny dried fruit, which has the strange sensation of numbing the tongue.

Indian cuisine is known for its heavily spiced curries and stews, so there are many different mixes. One of the most common is garam masala, which usually includes cumin, nutmeg and cardamom.

Even America has its unique flavorings, the most common of which are commercially-made seasoning and flavoring mixes. Many of them contain salt or MSG as a primary ingredient, along with a variety of other seasonings. Many combine herbs and spices characteristic of both Eastern and Western cuisines to create a unique blend of flavors.

— Jeremy Konick

arts@thedaily.washington.edu