Field guide
Cooking with whole cloves: how to use them, and how not to
Clove is the most easily overdone spice in most kitchens. Used carefully it carries biryani, mulled wine and a Christmas ham. Used carelessly it tastes like a dentist. Here is the difference.
What you are actually holding
A clove is a flower bud that was picked before it opened and then dried. The round tip is the head, which is the unopened petals, and almost all of the aromatic oil is concentrated there. The tapering part below it is the bud stem, which carries far less.
This is why the proportion of intact heads in a batch matters more than what the bag weighs. A stem-heavy lot looks like the same quantity of clove and delivers noticeably less. Our own purchase specification sets a minimum of seventy percent heads for exactly this reason.
The fingernail test
Press a clove firmly with a thumbnail. A good one is faintly oily, leaves a mark, and releases scent immediately. A tired one snaps dryly, looks greyish rather than dark brown, and gives up almost nothing until you crush several at once. Whole cloves hold their character for a year or more in a sealed jar. Ground clove fades within a few months, which is the main argument for buying whole.
Five things worth doing with them
- Rice and biryani. Four or five cloves fried briefly in ghee with cardamom and a cinnamon quill before the rice goes in. Lift them out before serving if you can.
- Mulled wine and cider. Two or three per mug is plenty. Add a cinnamon quill, a strip of orange peel, and keep it below a simmer.
- Ham and roast glaze. The classic use: score the fat into diamonds and press a clove into each intersection. They come out with the rind.
- Pickling brine. Whole cloves survive long steeping better than almost any ground spice, so they belong in vinegar brines and preserved fruit.
- Chai. Crushed lightly with cardamom and ginger, simmered in milk. Two cloves for a pot, not more.
The mistake nearly everyone makes
Using too many. Clove does not blend politely into a dish, it takes the lead, and the compound responsible is also the one dentists have used for toothache for a century. If something you have cooked tastes faintly medicinal or numbing, the cause is almost always clove rather than whatever else is in the pot.
The second mistake is leaving them in. A whole clove bitten by accident overwhelms everything else on the plate. Stud an onion or a lemon with them so they lift out in one piece, or tie them into a square of muslin with the other whole spices.
Rule of thumb: start with half as many cloves as a recipe suggests, taste, and add more if it needs them. You can rescue an under-cloved dish. You cannot rescue an over-cloved one.
Whole or ground?
Whole cloves release their oil slowly, so they suit anything wet and slow: stocks, braises, brines, mulled drinks, rice. Ground clove releases everything at once and belongs in baking and in spice blends where it needs to disperse evenly. If you only keep one, keep whole, and grind a small amount when a recipe calls for it.
Common questions
What exactly is a clove?
It is a flower bud, picked before it opens and then dried. The plant is Syzygium aromaticum, an evergreen tree. The round tip is the head, which is the unopened petals, and the tapering part is the stem of the bud. Almost all of the aromatic oil sits in the head, which is why the proportion of intact heads in a batch matters more than the weight.
How can I tell if my cloves are still good?
Press one firmly with a fingernail. A fresh clove is faintly oily and leaves a mark, and the scent is immediate and sweet rather than dusty. Cloves that snap dryly, look grey rather than dark brown, or smell of little until you crush several are past their best. Whole cloves keep their character for a year or more in a sealed container; ground clove fades within months.
How many cloves should I use?
Fewer than you think. Clove is one of the most dominant spices in a kitchen and it does not retreat politely. Four or five whole cloves are enough to perfume a pot of rice for four people, and two or three are enough for a mug of mulled wine. If a dish tastes medicinal, the usual cause is clove.
Should I remove whole cloves before serving?
Yes, wherever you reasonably can. A whole clove bitten by accident is unpleasantly numbing and overwhelms whatever else is on the plate. Cooks often stud an onion or a lemon with the cloves so they can be lifted out in one piece, or tie them into a small square of muslin with the other whole spices.
What is the difference between whole and ground cloves?
Whole cloves release their oil slowly and are suited to anything wet and simmering: stocks, braises, mulled drinks, pickling brine, rice. Ground clove releases everything at once and belongs in baking and spice blends. Ground clove also loses its aroma far faster, which is the main argument for buying whole and grinding small amounts as needed.
Where do Wholesome North cloves come from?
Sri Lanka, hand-picked and specified at a minimum of seventy percent heads, then packed at origin in a resealable kraft pouch. Cheaper clove lots are often stem-heavy and dusty, which is why the head proportion is written into our purchase specification rather than left to chance.