«Oriole» - Organic Nigella Sativa Seeds

Heirloom Nigella «Oriole» / Nigella Sativa

Organic nigella seeds are black seeds and have a nutty and slightly smoky, peppery flavour, together with a crunchy texture.  Organic nigella is popular in Indian cooking (often as an ingredient of garam masala) and on Jewish rye bread in New York.  

Nigella comes from the annual plant, Nigella sativa.  Nigella grows to 30-60 cm high (12-24 inches), and has wispy, gray-green leaves.  Nigella flowers consist of five blue or white petals that are about 25 mm (1 inch) in diameter.  Later, nigella produces spiky capsules a little like poppy seed heads, within which there are five seed-bearing compartments that are crowned by vertical, prominent spikes.

When the seeds are ripe, they shatter and disperse many tiny, jet-black seeds; the nigella seeds are angular, tear-shaped seeds of 3mm in length (1/8 inch) with a cream-coloured centre.  To harvest the seeds, the seed capsules are harvested prior to ripening, then when dried they are threshed to remove the seeds.  Nigella seeds do not have a strong smell, although a newly opened sack as a definite nutty and oily aroma.  The flavour of nigella seeds is similarly nutty, but also a mild peppery and metallic flavour.