Cassia, Cinnamon

These two spices, sold whole, as quills of bark, or in powdered form, are used in Moghul cooking and to flavor sweets. Cassia (Cinnamomum cassia) grows wild in northern India and is related to cinnamon, but it has a punchier, less delicate flavor. The Sanskrit name is tvak; in Bengal, we heard it called taysbatta. Cassia leaves are used in some parts of the Subcontinent as an aromatic; bay laurel leaves are a substitute. The cinnamon tree (Cinnamomum zeylanicum) grows wild in South India; the best-quality cinnamon is cultivated in Sri Lanka. Its Sanskrit name, dar-chini, means “Chinese bark.” Much of the powdered cinnamon sold in North America is in fact cassia. True cinnamon is tanner in color, whereas cassia is reddish brown. Though their flavors are not identical, you can substitute one for the other.