Throughout history, herbs and spices have been recorded as costly and precious commodities. The Queen of Sheba brought camels loaded with spices as gifts to King Solomon: in 1271, Marco Polo set off for Mongolia in search of spices; and Christopher Columbus discovered allspice, capsicum and vanilla on his voyages in the New World. Even today, saffron is more expensive than gold dust, weight for weight. But how can herbs and spices be used Imaginatively in cooking? What value do they have in beauty preparations? How can they best be grown? Gail Duif, cookery writer, and Eric Sabatini of the Spice Information Bureau, join Sue MacGregor to answer your questions.
Produced by the Woman's Hour unit
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