Black cardamom

Smoke and cineole against mutton fat; the pod does what a grill would.

One pod in the pot and the whole steam smells of a fire that is not there.

Long braise: the tar note reads as browning the meat never actually got.

Fried dark with the pod in, smoke and sugar end up the same flavour.

Sweet bark softens a pod that is otherwise all bonfire and raw cineole.

Tannin plus woodsmoke; it makes an ordinary leaf taste lapsang-adjacent.

Earthy starch takes smoke without needing any pork in the pot to explain it.

Smoke in a pod. It gives paneer the tandoor note without a tandoor.

Smoke under perfume. It is the only way to make mandarin taste like dinner.

Both smoked and resinous; the fungus supplies the umami the pod implies.

Cocoa takes woodsmoke better than chilli, and the cineole lengthens it.

Peated malt already tastes of this pod. Pour it over the braise, not beside.

Dark stone fruit under campfire; the skin bitterness picks up the tar note.

Smoked pod resin sits under the dried fruit and makes it read as mulled.

Smoke-dried pod against burnt sugar; the drink turns savoury without any salt.