the library

Sumac

Spice & roots· spice

What it is

Sumac is the dried, ground berry of Rhus coriaria, a shrub grown across the Middle East and Mediterranean.

What it tastes like

On the nose: camphor, citrus. Among its measured molecules: thujone, precocene I, allyl p-methylbenzyl ether, isocaryophyllene, (Z,Z)-alpha-farnesene.

23 of 50 compounds on file carry a paper the library can cite.

• naphthalenearomahydrocarbonreads as aromatic (PubChem)Measured in 2 of 341 ingredients.cite

  0.00% in the Egyptian commercial sample, 15.88% (+/-4.18) in the Jordanian commercial sample -- the single largest named peak in the Jordanian accession per the paper's own abstract, and essentially unique to it. — Farag et al. 2018, PeerJ (Table 1, row 'Naphthalene' (Aromatics))
• 1,8-cineolearomaterpenoidreads as camphor (PubChem)Measured in 38 of 341 ingredients.cite

  7.27% (+/-2.98) Egypt, 3.25% (+/-0.81) Jordan. — Farag et al. 2018, PeerJ (Table 1, row 'Cineole' (Oxides))
• linaloolaromaalcoholreads as spicy, citrus taste (PubChem)Measured in 91 of 341 ingredients.cite

  3.38% (+/-1.17) Egypt, 1.84% (+/-1.60) Jordan. — Farag et al. 2018, PeerJ (Table 1, row 'β-Linalool' (Alcohols))
• alpha-pinenearomaterpenoidreads as turpentine (PubChem)Measured in 72 of 341 ingredients.cite

  4.05% (+/-1.55) Egypt, 1.98% (+/-0.15) Jordan. — Farag et al. 2018, PeerJ (Table 1, row 'α-Pinene' (Monoterpene hydrocarbon))
• furfuralaromafuranreads as almond (PubChem)Measured in 34 of 341 ingredients.cite

  0.32% (+/-0.34) Egypt, 3.73% (+/-3.26) Jordan in the dried, unroasted commercial samples. The paper's own text notes furfural rises sharply upon roasting (to 34.37% in the roasted Palestinian sample, a Maillard-type transformation) -- that roasted figure is not cited as its own row since it is measured on the fresh, not dried-commercial, accession. — Farag et al. 2018, PeerJ (Table 1, row 'Furfural' (Furan/aldehydes))
• γ‑terpinenearomaterpenoidMeasured in 44 of 341 ingredients.cite

  0.66% (+/-0.43) Egypt, 0.29% (+/-0.25) Jordan. — Farag et al. 2018, PeerJ (Table 1, row 'γ-Terpinene' (Monoterpene hydrocarbon))
• o-cymenearomaterpenoidMeasured in 11 of 341 ingredients.cite

  7.73% (+/-1.27) Egypt, 4.25% (+/-1.87) Jordan -- the single largest named peak in the Egyptian accession per the paper's own abstract. — Farag et al. 2018, PeerJ (Table 1, row 'O-Cymene' (Monoterpene hydrocarbon))
• thujonearomaterpenoidMeasured in 1 of 341 ingredients.cite

  0.93% (+/-0.59) Egypt, 0.89% (+/-0.77) Jordan. — Farag et al. 2018, PeerJ (Table 1, row '3-Thujanone' (Ketones))
• beta-pinenearomaterpenoidreads as terpene (PubChem)Measured in 55 of 341 ingredients.cite

  1.79% (+/-1.46) Egypt, 0.50% (+/-0.44) Jordan. — Farag et al. 2018, PeerJ (Table 1, row 'β-Pinene' (Monoterpene hydrocarbon))
• beta-ocimenearomaterpenoidMeasured in 8 of 341 ingredients.cite

  7.50% (+/-0.80) Egypt, 3.83% (+/-2.93) Jordan -- one of the three chief monoterpene components the paper's own text names for Egyptian sumac, alongside o-cymene and limonene. — Farag et al. 2018, PeerJ (Table 1, row 'β-Ocimene' (Monoterpene hydrocarbon))
• limonenearomaterpenoidreads as lemon (PubChem)Measured in 92 of 341 ingredients.cite

  7.36% (+/-3.63) Egypt, 3.36% (+/-0.73) Jordan. — Farag et al. 2018, PeerJ (Table 1, row 'Limonene' (Monoterpene hydrocarbon))
• precocene IaromaterpenoidMeasured in 1 of 341 ingredients.cite

  1.70% (+/-2.45) Egypt, 0.29% (+/-0.25) Jordan. — Farag et al. 2018, PeerJ (Table 1, row 'Precocene I' (Ethers))
• 1,3,8-p-MenthatrienearomaterpenoidMeasured in 4 of 341 ingredients.cite

  1.42% (+/-0.19) Egypt, 0.81% (+/-0.71) Jordan. — Farag et al. 2018, PeerJ (Table 1, row '1,3,8-p-Menthatriene' (Monoterpene hydrocarbon))
• allyl p-methylbenzyl etheraromaMeasured in 1 of 341 ingredients.cite

  4.46% (+/-1.37) Egypt, 0.89% (+/-0.29) Jordan -- a distinctive aromatic ether contributing a notable share of the ether class total. — Farag et al. 2018, PeerJ (Table 1, row 'Allyl p-methylbenzyl ether' (Ethers))
• longifolenearomaterpenoidMeasured in 3 of 341 ingredients.cite

  4.42% (+/-0.52) Egypt, 5.23% (+/-0.81) Jordan. — Farag et al. 2018, PeerJ (Table 1, row 'Longifolene' (Sesquiterpene hydrocarbon))
• caryophyllenearomaterpenoidMeasured in 50 of 341 ingredients.cite

  4.46% (+/-1.37) Egypt, 5.29% (+/-1.33) Jordan. — Farag et al. 2018, PeerJ (Table 1, row 'Caryophyllene' (Sesquiterpene hydrocarbon))
• β-farnesenearomaterpenoidMeasured in 12 of 341 ingredients.cite

  6.05% (+/-1.69) Egypt, 6.58% (+/-1.94) Jordan -- one of the largest sesquiterpene peaks in both commercial samples. — Farag et al. 2018, PeerJ (Table 1, row '(E)-β-Famesene' (Sesquiterpene hydrocarbon))
• humulenearomaterpenoidMeasured in 26 of 341 ingredients.cite

  0.93% (+/-0.50) Egypt, 1.48% (+/-0.40) Jordan. — Farag et al. 2018, PeerJ (Table 1, row 'α-Humulene' (Sesquiterpene hydrocarbon))
• isocaryophyllenearomaterpenoidMeasured in 1 of 341 ingredients.cite

  4.42% (+/-0.52) Egypt, 5.26% (+/-0.81) Jordan. — Farag et al. 2018, PeerJ (Table 1, row 'Isocaryophyllene' (Sesquiterpene hydrocarbon))
• (Z,Z)-alpha-farnesenearomaterpenoidMeasured in 1 of 341 ingredients.cite

  6.02% (+/-1.98) Egypt, 7.62% (+/-1.97) Jordan -- the largest single sesquiterpene by area percentage in the Jordanian commercial sample. — Farag et al. 2018, PeerJ (Table 1, row '(Z, Z)-α-Farnesene' (Sesquiterpene hydrocarbon))
• germacrene DaromaterpenoidMeasured in 18 of 341 ingredients.cite

  2.83% (+/-2.38) Egypt, 2.46% (+/-3.56) Jordan. — Farag et al. 2018, PeerJ (Table 1, row 'Germacrene D' (Sesquiterpene hydrocarbon))
• β-bisabolenearomaterpenoidMeasured in 10 of 341 ingredients.cite

  0.93% (+/-0.50) Egypt, 1.64% (+/-0.27) Jordan. — Farag et al. 2018, PeerJ (Table 1, row 'β-Bisabolene' (Sesquiterpene hydrocarbon))
• AromadendrenearomaterpenoidMeasured in 5 of 341 ingredients.cite

  2.15% (+/-3.04) Egypt, 3.70% (+/-5.72) Jordan. — Farag et al. 2018, PeerJ (Table 1, row 'Aromadendrene' (Sesquiterpene hydrocarbon))