Nutmeg Spice Has A Secret Story That Isn't So Nice : The Salt : NPR:
"Ah, nutmeg! Whether it's sprinkled on eggnog, baked into spice cake or blended into a latte, this pungent spice can evoke memories of holidays past. But a lot of blood has been shed over this little brown seed. "Nutmeg has been one of the saddest stories of history," says culinary historian Michael Krondl.
If you listen to my story, you'll hear the gruesome, grisly tale of how the Dutch tortured and massacred the people of the nutmeg-producing Banda Islands in Indonesia in an attempt to monopolize the nutmeg trade.
So, why was nutmeg so valuable? Well, Krondl likens it to the iPhone of the 1600s. It was fashionable among the wealthy. It was exotic and potent enough to induce hallucinations — or at least a nutmeg bender, as detailed in this account from The Atlantic.
Nutmeg was considered medicinal, according this 16th-century description: "Nutmegs be good for them the which have cold in their head, and doth comfort the sight and brain, & the mouth of the stomach & is good for the spleen."
Karen Castillo Farfán/NPR
"Nutmeg really does have chemical constituents that make you feel good," explains culinary historian Kathleen Wall of the Plimoth Plantation. And traditionally, we turn to nutmeg (along with cloves and cinnamon) this time of year because these spices — as the settlers to the colonies believed — can help warm us up and even help us fight off head colds and stomachaches.
And for foodies, nutmeg is an ideal spice for layering flavor."
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