Ingredient > Cloves

Once used as a remedy for toothache and believed to ward off the plague, today this aromatic spice works its magic in many sweet and savoury dishes.

* The nail-shaped cloves you often find spiked in a Christmas ham are actually the dried unopened buds of a tropical evergreen tree (Syzygium aromaticum) native to Indonesia.
* Twice a year the tree produces clusters of buds that are picked just as the petals start to turn pink. When they?re dried in the sun, the cloves turn a reddish-brown/dark-brown colour and develop an antiseptic-type oil that?s responsible for their distinctive aroma.
* In his book, Spice Notes: A Cook?s Compendium of Herbs and Spices (Pan Macmillan, $40), Ian Hemphill says cloves were probably the world?s first breath freshener as Chinese courtiers held them in their mouths when addressing the emperor. During the Middle Ages, people carried pomanders (apples and oranges studded with cloves) to ward off the plague and, of course, chewing on a clove is a well-known remedy for toothache.

read on below advertisement


* Anything that can dull a toothache is bound to be strong, so use cloves sparingly. This spice has a pungent, medicinal aroma with a peppery warmth. Use whole cloves to flavour soups, drinks, pickles and chutneys. Ground cloves are great in cakes, biscuits and vegetable dishes.
* Whole cloves will keep for up to a year when stored in an airtight container in a cool, dry place. Ground cloves should be used within six months as they lose their aroma and flavour quite quickly.

 

« go back