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Juniper

by Gillian Polack

Today I feel you need to meet one of my favourite spices for cooking with game and other strongly flavoured meat. Juniper (juniperus communis) - German wacholder, French ginèvre, Italian ginepro - the spice used in gin.

Gin and tonic may be a fashionable cocktail today, but gin was the despair of the alcoholic classes in England (cheap, strong and readily available) during the industrial revolution. This notwithstanding, gin makes a good base for liqueured fruit.

It’s also got a far longer history than gin and tonic suggests. The plant is native to Europe and Asia and is still wild-harvested in some countries, mostly Nordic.

You can find some rather nice pictures and more information here.

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