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Spices & seasonings · Whole spices

Black cardamom

Large, wrinkled brown pods with a smoky, camphor-like flavour for savoury Indian and Chinese dishes.

Also called: badi elaichi, kali elaichi, brown cardamom

A kind of spices

11 recipes with it

Read the full spice guide: flavour, history and how to use it

What it is

Black (brown) cardamom pods are much larger than green ones, dark brown and wrinkled, because they are dried over fire. They taste smoky, resinous and camphor-like, not sweet or floral, and are used only in savoury dishes. They come from a different plant to green cardamom and are not a substitute for it in sweets.

Amomum subulatum

How it’s used

  • Whole in biryani, pulao and rajma
  • Garam masala and chole masala
  • Slow-cooked meat curries such as nihari
  • Chinese red-braised dishes and Vietnamese pho

Characteristics

Taste
Smoky, camphor-like, earthy.
When cooked
Use one or two pods, lightly cracked; remove before serving.
Sold as
whole, ground
Cooking uses
Used for tempering (tadka), Mainly a seasoning, Commonly cooked

Storage

Cool, dry and dark. Airtight jar away from light; whole pods keep a long time.

Diet, allergens and safety

No major allergens in typical versions.

  • Vegetarian
  • Vegan
  • Dairy-free
  • Egg-free
  • Gluten-free
  • Nut-free
  • Soy-free
  • Caffeine-free

Nutrition per 100 g

Energy
311 kcal
Protein
10.76 g
Carbohydrate
68.47 g
Fat
6.7 g
Fibre
28 g
Sugars
— g

USDA FoodData Central: Spices, cardamom (a close stand-in).

Substitutes

Optional — what works if you don’t have it, and how it changes the dish.

  • Cardamom — Green cardamom with a pinch of smoked paprika gives some of the effect; noticeably sweeter.

Related ingredients

Recipes with black cardamom

More whole spices