The crimson berry-like fruit is dried and ground into a lemony spice used often in Middle Eastern cuisine.
Sumac is a shrub whose crimson berry-like fruit is dried and ground into a spice used often in Middle Eastern cuisine. This spice gives a tangy lemony taste to salads, dressings, marinades or meat, and was often used to add tartness to dishes before lemons were introduced to the area. A different sumac species—poison sumac—is known to cause rashes, much like poison ivy, but sumac spice is not made from this shrub. In fact, the sumac spice used in cuisine has been found to have powerful antioxidants, among other health benefits. Sumac adds a splash of color and tartness to many foods and though it’s not commonly used in American cuisine, it has a lot of potential in a wide-variety of dishes.
Recipes with Sumac