Cinnamon vs Cassia — Bark Thickness and Cooking Use (दालचीनी)

Cassia bark use in Indian cooking predates the Portuguese introduction of Ceylon cinnamon; Chinese cassia was a trade item across the ancient Silk Road; Indian domestic Cinnamomum cultivars are closer to cassia than to Ceylon cinnamon

Indian cooking uses cassia (Cinnamomum cassia, C. aromaticum, or C. verum bark sold under various names) rather than Ceylon cinnamon in most applications — a distinction that significantly affects flavour intensity. True Ceylon cinnamon (Sri Lanka, C. verum) has thin, multi-layered quills with a delicate, sweet, nuanced flavour. Cassia (primarily Cinnamomum cassia from China, Vietnam, or Cinnamomum zeylanicum from India) has a thicker, harder bark with a stronger, more assertive, slightly pungent character that survives long Indian braising and biryani cooking. Commercial Indian cinnamon (दालचीनी, dalchini) sold in Indian markets is almost always cassia, not Ceylon cinnamon.

Cassia's robust, slightly spicy-pungent cinnamon character is a backbone note in biryani masala and garam masala — it provides warmth and spice depth in the background of complex spice blends where Ceylon cinnamon would be overwhelmed by other components.