Caraway is grown extensively all over Europe, North Africa, and Asia Minor. This biennial, herbaceous plant blooms once in every two years to creamy flowers in umbels. It grows to about 2 feet in height and bears small feathery leaves. The seeds which appear like cumin, are crescent in shape and dark brown with up to five vertical ribs.
The seeds are harvested during early hours of the day to avoid spilling on the ground. The cut plants are then staked until they dry, and the seeds are threshed.
Caraway seeds are available year around in the markets either in the form of seeds or in ground form. In the store, buy whole caraway seeds instead of powder since, oftentimes it may contain adulterated spicy powders.
Once at home, the seeds can be stored in cool, dry, dark place in air sealed containers for many months and can be milled using hand mill whenever required. Ground and powdered caraway should be stored in the refrigerator in airtight containers and should be used as early as possible since it loses its flavor rather quickly.