Nutmeg is known by many names, such Myristica fragrans, mace, magic, muscdier, muskatbaum, myristica, noz moscada, nuez moscada, and nux moschata. Nutmeg.

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History in brief:Nutmeg.

Semen Myristicae Extract INCI Name Myristica Fragrans Extract CAS 84082-68-8 EINECS ELINCS No 282-013-3 Nutmeg extract Myristica fragrans Houtt Extract photo picture image Nutmeg and mace became known in Europe comparatively late because of the very limited geographical distribution of the nutmeg tree. Only in the 11.th century it was introduced to European markets by Arab traders; it was first used chiefly for flavouring beer (see gale). The spice was thought to originate from India.

 Although nutmeg was available in Europe since the 13.th century, significant trade started not before the 16.th century, when Portuguese ships sailed to India and further, to the famed Spice Islands (Moluccas), today the Maluku province in Eastern Indonesia. During the 17.th century, the Dutch succeeded in monopolizing the nutmeg trade, as they did with cloves. Keeping the monopoly was easy as the Banda islands, the only place where nutmeg grows naturally, were so tiny and isolated.

 The natives, unwilling to cooperate with the Dutch colonial regime and its governor Jan Pieterszoon Coen, were nearly exterminated: Only a few hundred of former 15000 Bandanese survived the 1621 war and fled to the more Southern Tanimbar archipelago. Arab traders and Chinese workers came to fill up population, working force was cheap because of slavery, and thus nutmeg production brought enormous profits despite the expensive wars. This was simply because the demand for nutmeg in Europe was constantly high during the whole 17.th century and the Dutch East-India Company (Vereenigde Oostindische Compagnie, VOC) could dictate the prices at will. This situation changed only in the 18.th century, when the French succeeded in smuggling nutmeg trees from the Bandas and thereby broke the Dutch monopoly.

 To any visitor of the beautiful Banda islands, nutmeg's history is still present: An ethnically divers population, a Chinese temple side-to-side to the mosque, European-style streetlights with their bases shaped like a ripe nutmeg, beautiful colonial houses now inhabited by locals, a dominating Dutch fort (benteng belgica) and a city museum showing both greatly decorated colonial living rooms and paintings of the cruel wars,all these are witnesses from a time when the Bandas were the center of Dutch power and interest, and not just a romantic and quiet archipelago, far away from economical or political importance.

 Today, nutmeg's popularity has shrunken and the spice is less used, still most in Arab countries, Iran and Northern India, where both nutmeg and mace appear in delicately-flavoured meat dishes. The Northern Indian spice mixture garam masala (see cumin) also may contain nutmeg or mace, as well as compositions of Morocco (ras el hanout, see cubeb pepper), neighbouring Tunisia (galat dagga, see grains of paradise) and Saudi Arabia (baharat, see paprika).

 There is a large trade in wild nutmegs, which are known in commerce under the names of long, female, Macassar, Papua, Guinea, or Norse nutmegs. All these varieties have been traced to Myristica argentea of New Guinea, from whence they enter commerce as Macassar nutmegs.

 There is much adulteration and fraud in the nutmeg trade. The essential oil has often been extracted before they are marketed - a fraud which can be detected by the light weight. This renders them more subject to attacks by insects.

 Concrete oil of nutmeg, often erroneously termed 'oil of mace' or 'nutmeg butter,' is made by bruising the nuts and treating them with steam. The best nutmeg butter is imported from the East Indies in stone jars, or in blocks wrapped in palm leaves - it should be softly solid, unctuous to touch, orange yellow colour and mottled, with the taste and smell of nutmeg.

 Holland prepares an inferior kind of oil sometimes offered for sale - it is said to be derived from nutmegs that have been deprived of their volatile oil by distillation. It is found in hard shining square cakes, light coloured and with less taste and smell than the East Indies oil. Ucuhula nut is the round or oval seed of M. surinamensis. It is distinguished by very large albuminous crystalloids, the seeds containing over 70 per cent solid yellow fat. The Brazilian M. officinalis resembles the nutmeg in form and structure, it contains crystals like the preceding one, though less large; has a black shell covered with broad furrows and yields a fat or bicuhyba balsam very like the ordinary nutmeg, with a sharp sour taste, and a peculiar fatty acid, bicuhybastearic acid. From M. otoba otoba fat is procured. Almost colourless with a fresh smell of nutmeg, it contains myristin, olein, and otobite. The fruit of virola or M. sebifera also gives a fatty substance termed ocuba wax. The following are erroneously called nutmegs:

 Californian Nutmeg: The seed of a coniferous tree, Sorreya Californica - its odour and taste terebinthinate.

 Jamaica or Clabach Nutmeg: Obtained from Monodora myristica.

 New Holland or Plume Nutmeg: Obtained from the Atherosperma moschata.

 Clove Nutmeg:  Obtained from Agathophyllum aromaticum.

 Insects that attack nutmegs only extract the fat oil. They do not interfere in any way with the essential oil.

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citations1.Nutmeg is known by many names, such Myristica fragrans, mace, magic, muscdier, muskatbaum, myristica, noz moscada, nuez moscada, and nux moschata. Nutmeg.

last edit date:3rd,July.2009.