Cinnamon: There are two kinds of cinnamon. True or Ceylon cinnamon comes in thin, light brown, multiply curled quills, amazingly fragrant and complexly flavored. Cassia or Chinese cinnamon is what most Americans think is cinnamon, as it is what is in the cans and jars in supermarkets. It has thick, dark brown, singly curled quills with a simpler and coarser flavor than Ceylon cinnamon.

And there are two words for cinnamon in Arabic, dar sini, and qurfi / qirfa. In reading Arabic language and books about spices it seems that the terms are often used interchangeably. Dar sini means Chinese wood, referring to Chinese cinnamon, but i have found the term also applied to Ceylon cinnamon. And I have found the term qurfi / qirfa is also applied to both kinds. I must trust Perry's translation to differentiate between them.

NOTE: Will the real galangal please stand up?

Galangal/Galingale is a rhizome and a relative of ginger and turmeric, but tastes like neither. It is sold in Southeast Asian markets and is commonly used in Thai and Indonesian cooking.

There are a number of related rhizomes in Southeast Asia. Of these three are sometimes confused by non-Southeast Asians:
(1) Greater Galangale - Alpinia galanga L. - laos/ lengkuas (Malay, Indonesian); kha (Thai)
(2) Lesser Galangale - Kaempferia galanga L. - kentjoer/ kencur (Malay, Indonesian)
and
(3) Fingerroot - Kaempferia pandurata or Boesenbergia pandurata - temoe koentji / temu kunci (Malay, Indonesian); ka chai / krachai (Thai)

All three have a camphoraceous scent: Kaempferia galanga and Kaempferia pandurata both have a strongly camphoraceous taste, while Alpinia galanga is much milder. All three look different when fresh, both the shape of the rhizome and the color of the flesh, and they all taste different, fresh or dried. Only the first, Alpinia galanga, is commonly used in food, while the third, Kaempferia pandurata, is rarely used in food, being more often used medicinally.

In Indonesia, Alpinia galanga is the one most often used in cooking and is used on several islands, whereas Kaempferia pandurata is used primarily on Java (and less often than laos even there). When Kaempferia pandurata is used, it is intentionally the dominant flavor in the dish and its name often figures in the name of the dish.

I've researched which galangal was used in Medieval Europe, but i haven't found anything definitive. Andrew Dalby in Dangerous Tastes suggests that both Alpinia galanga, which is modernly the most commonly available galangal, and Kaempferia galanga were used interchangeably, depending on what was imported, Europeans not particularly distinguishing between them.

However, i have found nothing about which of the two was used in the Near and Middle East. Since Alpinia galanga is more readily available and cheaper than Kaempferia galanga, that is what i usually use.

Mustard comes in numerous species:
1. White Mustard: Sinapis alba / Brassica hirta (the seeds are actually yellow to light brown)
White mustard originated in the Mediterranean region, but various cultivars are grown in Northern, Central and Eastern Europe.

2. Black Mustard: Brassica nigra
Black mustard is endemic in the Southern Mediterranean region, where it has been cultivated for thousands of years.

3. Brown mustard:
a. Sarepta mustard or Romanian Brown Mustard (Brassica juncea) from Eastern Europe
b. Indian Brown Mustard (Brassica integrifolia or Brassica juncea, a fertile hybrid from Brassica nigra and Brassica campestris) from India and Central Asia

According to Gernot Katzer's web site, of the three species, black, Romanian brown, and Indian brown, the last is probably most commonly sold in the West (in the late 20th and early 21st centuries). He goes on to say: "Although the pungency of black mustard is slightly stronger than that of brown mustard, black mustard is hardly planted in Europe anymore, and brown mustard is the dominating quality on the European market. The reason is that brown mustard, unlike black mustard, can be harvested by machines which make production much cheaper in countries where working force is expensive."

Andrew Dalby in Dangerous Tastes: The Story of Spices speaks only of White Mustard. According to him, it was known in Greece 4000 years ago and was taken to India and China, where it was planted, even though there were indigenous mustards in those regions.

So, which mustard was used in Andalusia? It is likely to have been white and/or black mustard, rather than the now common brown mustard. In any case white mustard would be suitable, but if one has only access to brown mustard, that will do.

Long pepper is a relative of the small round pepper corns we use every day. For a time it was more popular than black pepper, but now it is difficult to find. It looks like a narrow cone about 3/4 of a inch long, medium grey, covered with tiny spheres.

Nigella (Nigella sativa L.) are VERY black, somewhat pyramidal seeds from a plant related to the common garden flower Love-in-a-Mist. While the name for this spice in some Indian languages is kalonji, they are sold in some Indian markets as "black cumin" or "black caraway", even though it isn't related to either cumin or caraway, doesn't taste like either, and doesn't even look in the slightest like them. Or as "black onion seed", because apparently they look somewhat like onion seeds. Nigella seeds are commonly used in Afghani bread.

Nutmeg and Mace come from the same tree. Nutmeg is not a nut, but the kernel of an apricot-like fruit. Mace is an aril, a thin leathery tissue between the stone and the pulp, bright red to purple when harvested, but changing to amber after drying. A jam is made of the fruit itself in Southeast Asia.

Soooo...
The basic spice box needs the items used in 10% or more of the recipes (high number means more parts, i.e., 5 means 5 parts):