"Mark Zanger" > wrote in message
. ..
> Can't take the hint right away -- I have an interesting Latin American
> dictionary downstairs I'll get at one of these days. I will say that in
> Puerto Rico "recao" is *not* cilantro, it's recao, a long leafed native
> plant. Also there is someplace where cilantro is "cilantrillo" and the
> other plant of that flavor is "culantro."
>
> I have an ethnobotanical dictionary by some druggy botanist from Harvard
> down there, too.
>
> Cumin, the actual subject here, is not real common anywhere in Latin
> America that I can think of, except maybe Argentina.
>
Cominos is quite common in the cuisine of Northern Mexico, and is a
consistent and substantial ingredient in the classic San Antonio (and
descendant "TexMex") versions of chili con carne, a dish apparently owing
something to the Cape Verdean Islanders who were the city's fist civilians.
I can't imagine cooking the style of Mexican foods most common without
comino seeds in the spice rack (toasted and ground fresh optimally).