Suya is a spicy meat kebab popular as a street food throughout West Africa. Our Suya Spice is based on a Nigerian recipe, balancing the heat of cayenne and crushed chiles with the mild, nutty flavor of almonds and fragrant spices like coriander, cloves, and cinnamon.

All about Suya, Spice Blend

What it’s like, and how to make it

HeatMild
CuisineAfrican
Best forGrill bbq, marinades rubs
Goes inRoasted vegetables, grills roasts
WithBeef, chicken, lamb
What’s in itcoriander, long pepper, nutmeg, cinnamon, almonds, paprika, roasted napa cabbage, sea salt, onion, garlic, lemon powder

How to use it

West Africa's street food spice. In Lagos, this goes on skewered beef grilled over charcoal — that's suya. Mix two tablespoons with oil and coat beef, chicken, or lamb before grilling. The roasted almonds and cabbage give it a nutty depth that's unlike anything else in the shop. Also great on roasted sweet potatoes, mixed into grain bowls, or dusted on grilled fish. Gentle heat with warm cinnamon underneath.

Weeknight ideas

  • wings
  • Suya spice, shown over a chalk-and-watercolour illustration
  • Illustration: Suya with a Lagos street corner after dark
  • Illustration: Kilishi, made with Suya
  • Illustration: Grilled Tilapia, made with Suya
  • Illustration of Suya in The Tea & Spice Shoppe bag and jar, with a Lagos street corner after dark
  • Suya African Blend - The Tea & Spice Shoppe
  • A new twist using trending Suya Spice blend in a traditional style lamb stew.

What’s in it

Every herb in the blend, and where to read about it on its own.

  • Spice · Caffeine-free

    Coriander

    Coriandrum sativum

    The round, ridged seed of the same plant whose leaf is cilantro — and it tastes nothing like it. Where the leaf is green and divisive, the seed is warm, citrusy and floral, closer to orange peel than to anything herbal. That is why plenty...

    Warm, citrusy and floral, a little sweet — orange peel and pepper together

    Learn more Sold on its own

  • Spice · Caffeine-free

    Nutmeg

    Myristica fragrans

    The seed of a fruit that also gives us mace — mace is the red lace wrapped around the shell. Nutmeg is warm, sweet and distinctly pungent, and it is one of the few spices where grating it fresh makes an unmistakable difference: whole nutmeg...

    Warm, sweet and pungent; noticeably brighter grated fresh than pre-ground

    Learn more Sold on its own

  • Spice · Caffeine-free

    Cinnamon

    Cinnamomum verum, C. burmannii, C. loureiroi

    The inner bark of a laurel tree, peeled, dried and curled into quills. Three different trees are sold under the one name, and the shop carries all three: Ceylon (Cinnamomum verum), the soft, papery, floral one from Sri Lanka; Korintje (C. burmannii) from the Kerinci...

    Sweet, woody, warm — Ceylon floral and citrusy, Korintje smooth and familiar, Saigon bold and fiery-sweet

    Learn more Sold on its own

  • Spice · Caffeine-free

    Paprika

    Capsicum annuum

    Dried sweet red peppers, ground. It is in twenty-eight products here mostly for colour and body — paprika gives a rub or a stew its red without adding heat, and it carries a soft, sweet pepper flavour that fills in the gaps between louder spices....

    Sweet red pepper, no heat, vivid colour; the smoked one adds deep oak smoke

    Learn more Sold on its own

  • Salt · Caffeine-free

    Sea Salt

    Sodium chloride

    Seawater, evaporated. It is in twenty-five products here, which understates it — salt is the ingredient that makes every other ingredient taste like itself. Fine sea salt dissolves on contact and is the everyday cooking salt: a teaspoon in a soup pot, half a teaspoon...

    Clean salinity with nothing else in the way

    Learn more Sold on its own

  • Spice · Caffeine-free

    Onion

    Allium cepa

    Dried onion, in three grinds: granulated blooms in oil, minced rehydrates into pieces you can see, and powder disappears into a dip or a rub. Twenty-seven products carry it. Drying takes 96 per cent of the water out and, with it, the sulfur compounds that...

    Toasty, sweet and savoury; none of raw onion's sharpness

    Learn more Sold on its own

  • Spice · Caffeine-free

    Garlic

    Allium sativum

    A bulb, dried and broken down to three different coarsenesses, and the single most common ingredient in this catalogue — forty-three products carry it. Granulated is coarse and blooms slowly in hot oil; minced is visible pieces that plump up in a sauce; powder disappears...

    Sweet, toasty and savoury; deeper and rounder than fresh garlic, without the raw bite

    Learn more Sold on its own

  • Nut & seed · Caffeine-free

    Almond

    Prunus amygdalus

    Sliced or chopped almond pieces — thirteen products carry them, always in the dessert direction. In a tea blend almond brings a marzipan sweetness and a real richness that reads as creamy even in a cup with no milk in it, which is why it...

    Marzipan sweetness with a soft, buttery richness; reads as creamy even without milk

    Learn more

  • Fruit · Caffeine-free

    Lemon

    Citrus × limon

    Dried lemon — the fruit, the powder and the dried juice, as distinct from the dried peel sold separately as a spice. The difference is real: peel is aroma with no acid, while dried lemon and lemon powder bring the sourness too, which is what...

    Sharp, clean sourness with bright citrus aroma; the acid is what distinguishes it from lemon peel

    Learn more

  • Spice · Caffeine-free

    Long Pepper

    Piper longum

    A real pepper — the same genus as black pepper — that lost. It is a catkin-like spike rather than a round corn, and it tastes similar to black pepper but sweeter and more pungent, with the same piperine behind the heat. One product carries...

    Like black pepper but sweeter and more pungent, with a floral, almost cinnamon-like warmth behind it

    Learn more

  • Other · Caffeine-free

    Napa Cabbage

    Brassica rapa subsp. pekinensis

    Roasted and dried, in a West African spice blend — which is an unexpected place to find it, and worth noticing. Napa cabbage is the cabbage of East Asia, sweeter and more tender than the European kind, and roasting it dry concentrates it into something...

    Savoury and faintly sweet when roasted, with a mild brassica depth

    Learn more

Every ingredient in the shop →

What it goes with

The roasted almonds and cabbage in Suya produce the same toasted compounds as our Hojicha — same molecules, completely different traditions. Brew a cup alongside grilled suya skewers. For a warm-spice match, our Darjeeling picks up the coriander and cinnamon beautifully.

Reviews

What the time-travelers say

206 of the shop’s 213 reviews are five stars — left by people who actually bought the tea

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If you have had it, you would be the first to say so — and the shop reads every one.

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Great products and great service

I had a slight mix up on my order, they were quick to reply and correct my order with no issues. Amazing service and great…

I had a slight mix up on my order, they were quick to reply and correct my order with no issues. Amazing service and great products.

— Nick C. Verified

Great tea

A lovely, delicate tea. The peach is strong without being overwhelming or cloying, and the calendula is a nice addition. Very…

A lovely, delicate tea. The peach is strong without being overwhelming or cloying, and the calendula is a nice addition. Very tasty!

— Zoe R. Verified

Maple Peach

The maple peach is delicious. What a beautiful combination. I will most definitely order it again, and a higher quantity of it.

— Gerda S. Verified

Always handy

I use dillweed often. This dill is fresh and has a nice aroma. I use it in marinades, salad dressings, and on fish. Good stuff.

— Jennifer D. Verified

Great stuff

This has helped my household a lot with circulation and alertness when we had it everyday. Will be ordering again soon. Thanks

— Dave G. Verified

Love this tea. Hands down my fav rooibos. This store is our one-stop-shop for tea and spice. Great service, top notch product.…

Love this tea. Hands down my fav rooibos. This store is our one-stop-shop for tea and spice. Great service, top notch product. 10/10!!

— Erin Poeta P. Verified

Delicious

I love this black tea, it has a really nice smooth flavour and love how it’s Swiss water method decaf. Will be buying again!

— Jessica A. Verified

Great flavorful tea

Toffee Ole is one of our favorite teas to share with friends in the evening, when we want something non-caffeinated but quite…

Toffee Ole is one of our favorite teas to share with friends in the evening, when we want something non-caffeinated but quite flavorful.

— Joel R. Verified

Another full bodied ‘real tea’ . ie It is not a flavoured tea. However, we do very much enjoy the Cafe Latte tea which is a…

Another full bodied ‘real tea’ . ie It is not a flavoured tea. However, we do very much enjoy the Cafe Latte tea which is a flavoured tea!!!

— Ted H. Verified

teas

love , love, love and they shipping is very fast. the headache tea works great, the throat coat tea works great as well

— Miranda A. Verified

4 stars

It worked beautifully; perhaps if I add a little more honey, it would make it better… It is a wellness tea, after all!

— Merrilee B. Verified

Bancha with a splash of lemon

A wonderful Green Tea. Smooth in taste. Also suitable as a summer tea with a splash of lemon. A second infusion makes an…

A wonderful Green Tea. Smooth in taste. Also suitable as a summer tea with a splash of lemon. A second infusion makes an enjoyable second cup!

— Monika F. Verified

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