The Yemenite Jews are known for their health and longevity. Many attribute the Yemenites’ health to their unique spice blends and spicy sauces, which are said to purify the blood. Hawayej is a spice blend commonly used in Yemenite cooking. It’s a flavorful, healthful and anti-inflammatory blend that can be used in meats, soups and stews.
The Hawayej blend is a major ingredient in Yemenite Soup. I recommend grinding whole toasted spices for optimal flavor, however ground spices can be used in a pinch. Substitution ratio provided below.
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Hawayej Spice Blend
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons cumin seeds
- 1 tablespoon caraway seeds
- 1 tablespoon coriander seeds
- 1 1/2 tablespoons ground turmeric
- 1 1/2 tablespoons black peppercorns
- 2 teaspoons cardamom seeds removed from their pods about 30 pods
- 6 whole cloves or 1/4 tsp ground cloves
NOTES
Instructions
- Lightly toast the cumin, caraway and coriander seeds in a skillet over medium heat for 1-2 minutes until fragrant. Be careful not to let them burn!
- Pour the toasted seeds into a cool bowl. Place the toasted cumin, caraway and coriander seeds in a coffee or spice grinder along with the turmeric, peppercorns, cardamom seeds and cloves.
- Pulse the grinder in long, slow pulses to grind the seeds into a powdery spice mix, stirring inside the grinder periodically to evenly distribute the seeds. It may take a few minutes for the spices to reach the desired powdery texture. Store spice blend in an airtight container in a cool, dry pantry.
- Toasting and grinding the whole spices provides a fresher flavor than using pre-ground spices. However, if you already have ground spices and you don't want to spend more money on whole spices, you may substitute 1/3 the amount of ground spice to 1 whole seed spice. If, for instance, you would like to use ground cumin, you may substitute 2 tsp ground cumin for 2 tbsp cumin seeds.
Nutrition
Which of the spices are responsible for 35 grams of carbohydrates per serving? Which are responsible for 6 grams of fat? Could this nutrition data be for the soup? It doesn’t make sense.
Hi Laura, my nutrition software was glitching on this recipe. Just recalculated and it looks more accurate now. 🙂
Hello Tori
Do you have any particular recipes where you would use this spice.
kind regards
Sharon
Yes! Here: https://toriavey.com/toris-kitchen/yemenite-soup/
Nice recipe. I lived in Israel for several years and grew to love many Yemeni foods Hawayej for soup gives many savory dishes a good kick.
Hawayej for coffee is also delicious, it is a totally different recipe, when used to brighten up Turkish coffee it is amazing. If you are a coffee drinker this stuff will give you a whole new outlook on coffee.
Sorry,
I should have spelt Tori.
Bye for now
Hi there,
I put a very small amount in soups, potages, bouillons, roasts, chicken, veal, fish, stews, meatballs, veggies…you name it!
As Torey suggests..a very small amount does go a long way, as it is quite potent.
I wanted to know if this would work in a vegetable soup? I don’t each meat and I’m getting my Pasach menu together. Thanks.
Hi Chana– yes, it will be lovely. Just add slowly, it can be very potent so stir in and taste bit by bit until the flavor is right. Enjoy!
I heard of this spice from an Israeli cousin of mine who buys it freshly made from a Jewish Yemenite grocer.
Decided to make it at home as Montreal has no Yemenite Grocer.
Absolutely DELISH to the max. Add a pinch or two to EVERYTHING!
Thanks so much!
Fabulous Edna! So pleased you enjoyed it. 🙂
Hi, can this spice blend be made with all the ingredients grounded already or must they be in seed form? Thank You
Hi Jennifer– yes, if you read the last paragraph of the recipe there are instructions for substituting ground spices.
Do you have a recipe for Yemenite chicken soup? Would love to try it.
Hi Ilse! Here you go:
https://toriavey.com/toris-kitchen/2014/10/yemenite-soup/