Magickal Ingredients to Rediscover in the Kitchen

Salt, cinnamon, basil, rosemary: we love our magickal ingredients in the kitchen. But what about some lesser-known or under-used ingredients? Sometimes we have something utterly magickal right under our nose, but don’t think to use it that way. Take lemons: they’re so familiar that I forget about all the ways I can use them to infuse magick into a dish. So today, we’re exploring some less-common ingredients and a couple that you may have overlooked or – dare I say – have gotten bored with. May you see them in a new light after reading this post. 

Star Anise

Star anise is a beautiful ingredient that comes in the shape of an eight-pointed star. Its form is a naturally-occurring example of sacred geometry and may assist in psychic connection, protection, and luck spells. Star Anise – and anise seed – is a masculine ingredient, ruled by the planet Jupiter. 

It resonates with the air element and may help support the third eye. Use this powerful spice to bring a sense of calm to your day without putting you to sleep. You can also carry star anise with you for protection from the evil eye or use it as a pendulum in divination work. Adding star anise to your recipe may offer protection or insight into a difficult situation. It has a sweet licorice-like flavor and pairs well with cloves, cinnamon, peppercorns, and fennel.

Lemon

I’m sure you’ve heard about, or even started drinking lemon water in the morning. While this trend comes and goes in popularity throughout the years, lemon’s magickal properties might be something you’ve overlooked. Lemon peel can be added to your bath banish negativity or to your love potions for vitality in your love life. Lemon has long been used for uplifting the spirits and inspiring love and happiness. It’s also great for purification, and you may find it useful in aura cleansing rituals. 

Lemon is feminine and resonates with the moon. Its element is water and, perhaps unsurprisingly, resonates with the solar plexus chakra. Use lemon in your Litha celebrations or when working with the moon. Lemon-infused moon cookies sound amazing, don’t they?

Peppermint

Use bright green, fragrant peppermint in your prosperity and abundance spells and to add some good fortune to your meals. Mint pairs surprisingly well with watermelon, strawberries, and, if you eat meat, pork. Water infused with lemon and peppermint can help bring clarity to your mind – and will help you stay hydrated, because it’s delicious. 

Magickally, peppermint sharpens the senses and may help you tap into your psychic abilities. It resonates with the elements of fire and water, which makes sense because it can be both hot and cool at the same time. It’s a wonderful herb to work or cook with at the full moon. It also corresponds to The Fool, The Hermit, Justice, The Star, and The World tarot cards.

Paprika

I don’t know about you, but paprika is one of those spices that only comes out of my pantry when I make deviled eggs. But the sweet and smoky spice can help boost your spellwork, increase energy, and break hexes, so I think I need to use it more often! This masculine spice resonates with the element of fire and the planet Mars. 

On a more mundane note, paprika may help promote healthy digestion and, like black pepper, makes nutrients in food more available to the body for energy. Overall, this variety of red pepper seems to give everything a boost.

Coffee

We love coffee magick here, and there’s more that can be done with coffee than just drinking it. The bean itself is considered magickal. When humans first discovered coffee, it was viewed as a heaven-sent plant. Legend claimed the Archangel Gabriel taught that coffee could cure the plague and narcolepsy. (Please don’t drink coffee in the hopes of preventing any plague!) 

Coffee grounds can be used in place of tea leaves for divination through tasseography, and you can add coffee to our bath, where it may help reverse negative energy and will likely perk you up. Burning coffee like incense can help clear the space of negative energy, too. Coffee is masculine and resonates with the elements of fire, earth, and air. If you want to stimulate and support the root and sacral chakras, coffee is your ingredient!

Cilantro/Coriander

I know cilantro is a polarizing herb – it seems you either love it or hate it! But did you know that coriander is the seed form of cilantro? Cilantro is masculine in nature, resonates with the element of fire, and is aligned with the planet Mars. Its day of the week is Tuesday, so if you like eating it, consider adding it to your Taco Tuesday meals! 

Magickally, cilantro and coriander may help keep headaches at bay – consider coriander oil, diluted with a carrier oil, and applied topically for some headache relief. It also supports healing and may be helpful in “powering up” your love spells. Some witches swear by combining coriander with wine for some sexy lust magick. When crushed, coriander seeds have a lemon-like flavor, so even if you dislike cilantro, don’t count out coriander until you try it.

Eggs

Eggs are another powerful kitchen ingredient. You can use them in ovomancy, a divination method that involves dropping an egg white into boiling water. The shape that the egg white takes may be quite revealing. While this ingredient is a traditional inclusion in celebrations of Ostara, you can also cook and eat eggs for abundance and fertility. 

In many traditions, the egg takes an important place in death rituals. The Greeks and Romans left eggs near tombs as a symbol of the afterlife, for example. Hard-boiled eggs represent resilience and the cycle of life, and are sometimes used in funeral observances. For more ways to use eggs in your magickal practice, visit this post from Moody Moons.

*Disclaimer* We’re bringing you information about the magickal properties of these ingredients, but you bring the magick. Consult with your healthcare provider before consuming concentrated amounts of any herb to make sure it’s healthy for you. We’re witches, not doctors!

Sources:

https://brianadragon.com/magical-herb-of-the-week-cilantro/
https://www.alchemy-works.com/herb_coriander.html
https://greenbeanery.ca/blogs/news/can-you-use-coffee-for-magic
https://plentifulearth.com/magical-properties-of-coffee-coffee-materia-magicka/
https://moodymoons.com/2018/03/14/10-ways-to-use-eggs-in-witchcraft/
https://plentifulearth.com/magickal-correspondences-of-star-anise-star-anise-materia-magicka/
https://whitewitchparlour.wordpress.com/2014/10/21/magickal-correspondences-of-lemon-citrus-limon/
https://brianadragon.com/magical-herb-of-the-week-paprika/
http://www.wortsandcunning.com/blog/mercurial-wisdom-peppermint-plant-profile