The cupboard

Kitchen herbs & spices

Filter by element or search a plant. Traditional kitchen and folk use — four tastes, not a clinic monograph.

9 plants

Fire· bitterGenerally safe

Ginger

Zingiber officinale

The stillroom’s first answer to a cold belly or a coming chill.

Nausea · Indigestion · Chill & congestion

Warm, move, and stimulate

Earth· sweetGenerally safe

Fennel

Foeniculum vulgare

The after-dinner seed that lets wind leave quietly.

Bloating · Indigestion · Nausea

Ground, build, and settle

Earth· sweetGenerally safe

Cardamom

Elettaria cardamomum

A sweet, eucalyptus-green seed that finishes a heavy meal.

Indigestion · Bloating · Hollow energy

Ground, build, and settle

Air· sourGenerally safe

Peppermint

Mentha × piperita

The lift in the cupboard — head, belly, and a closed room.

Bloating · Indigestion · Headache

Brighten, circulate, and clear

Air· sourGenerally safe

Basil

Ocimum basilicum

The pesto leaf that also wakes a dull head and a cold meal.

Indigestion · Dull focus · Nausea

Brighten, circulate, and clear

Air· sourGenerally safe

Spearmint

Mentha spicata

The sweeter mint — kinder to children and to a tender stomach.

Bloating · Indigestion · Nausea

Brighten, circulate, and clear

Fire· bitterGenerally safe

Allspice

Pimenta dioica

The berry that tastes like cinnamon, clove, and nutmeg in one jar.

Bloating · Indigestion · Crampy cycle

Warm, move, and stimulate

Air· sourCaution

Peach leaf

Prunus persica

The orchard leaf for a queasy, heated middle.

Nausea · Indigestion · Feverish & flushed

Brighten, circulate, and clear

Air· sourGenerally safe

Dill

Anethum graveolens

The pickle seed — a bright, green ease for a windy belly.

Bloating · Indigestion · Nausea

Brighten, circulate, and clear