How to Use Achiote

Achiote spice, like tumeric, is best known for its color. It can enrich the look of sauces and stews beyond the rust color of its seeds. More than a dye for cheese and meat, its golden oil can enliven your cooking!

Difficulty:

Easy

Instructions

1. Achiote spice comes from seeds that look like small stones. Also called annatto seeds, they are harvested from the inedible, spiny fruit of a small tropical shrub nicknamed "the Lipstick tree." Grown mostly in Peru and Brazil, achiote is sold whole, ground or as a paste. It is also a common ingredient in Mexican, Jamaican, South American and Filipino cuisine.

2. In the Yucatan peninsula of Mexico, achiote seeds are ground together with chiles, garlic, bitter orange and other spices to make a rub for whole suckling pig. The pig is then wrapped in banana leaves and slowly cooked in a stone-lined pit.

3. In the Philippines, achiote is used in soups and stews, or as a meat marinade. Try adding it to your favorite recipes to give them a richer color!

4. Sometimes called "poor man's saffron," achiote can be substituted for saffron in dishes prized for their bright, yellow color like paella.

5. Look for achiote or annatto in Latin American markets or in the spice section of your gourmet food store.