Cloves

cengkeh (Indonesian); clove

Flavor and role: Dried nail-shaped flower buds with a strong, pungent, numbing aroma. Too many make a dish bitter and medicinal, so 2-3 are enough.
Typical dishes and uses: Pho broth, biryani, garam masala, glazed ham, mulled wine, pickles. In this book: pho bo broth.
Substitutes: 3 whole cloves = ¼ tsp ground cloves. If you have none, use the same amount of allspice or leave them out.
Storage: In an airtight container at cool room temperature, away from direct sunlight and moisture. For best aroma, use ground spices within 6 months to 1 year and whole spices within 2-3 years.
Main countries: Indonesia · MG
Used in this book: Pho Bo (Vietnamese Beef Noodle Soup)Chicken Biryani Ayam Masak Merah Birria Tacos with Consomé Chicken Machboos (Emirati Spiced Chicken and Rice)Chicken Kabsa Kelewele Kenyan Beef Pilau Lebkuchen (German Christmas Spice Cookies)Mandi Chicken in Mole Poblano Pastitsio Picarones Pumpkin Pie Rogan Josh Saleeg Sauerbraten Speculoos Sri Lankan Chicken Curry (Kukul Mas Curry)Tourtière (Québec Meat Pie)Kenduri-Style Ayam Masak Merah, Double-Fried with Coconut Finish Chai-Spiced Bircher with Pear and Pistachio (Swiss × Indian)Short Rib and Shank Quesabirria Tacos Birria Ramen with Soy-Marinated Egg Birria Grilled Cheese with Consomé Dip Durban Lamb Bunny with Fresh-Ground Masala Burmese Chicken Curry with Shallot Oil, Lemongrass and Crispy Shallots Tandoor-Style Murgh Makhani Chai-Spiced Jaggery Butter Tarts (Canadian × Indian)Slow-Baked Cassoulet with Pork-Rind Bean Stock and Garlic-Parsley Crust Twice-Cooked Lamb Ceebu Yapp with Mustard-Caramelised Onions Pindi Chole Hyderabadi Chicken Dum Biryani Royal Chicken Machboos with Saffron Rice, Daqoos and Crispy Onions Charcoal-Skewered Chicken Tikka Masala Amritsari Chole with Paneer-Stuffed Bhature Restaurant-Style Egg Masala with Cashew Tomato Gravy Three-Chile Enchiladas Gratinadas Overnight Rib-Stock Erwtensoep with Katenspek Rye Galbi Pho (Vietnamese Pho × Galbitang)Germknödel with Homemade Rum-Plum Filling, Vanilla Sauce and Brown Butter Shahi Haleem with Bone-In Shank and Ghee Baghar Masala Chai Hot Cross Buns Lamb Kabsa with Toasted Spices and Daqqus Oven-Baked Kaiserschmarrn with Homemade Zwetschkenröster Toasted-Spice Kelewele with Roasted Groundnuts and Lime Chilli Salt Ghee-Seared Beef Pilau with Crispy Onions Hand-Chopped Tenderloin Kitfo with Homemade Niter Kibbeh Chicken Kottu with Handmade Godamba Roti Lasagne Verdi with Homemade Spinach Pasta Nuremberg Elisenlebkuchen with Dark Chocolate Masala Chai Lebkuchen with Jaggery and Pistachio (German × Indian)Lebkuchen Cheesecake Bars Gruyère and Aged Cheddar Mac with Crispy Panko Shahi Malai Kofta in Saffron-Cashew Gravy Slow-Roasted Lamb Mandi with Lamb-Juice Basmati Chai Melktert (South African × Indian)Three-Chile Mole Poblano with Plantain and Tomatillo Nalli Nihari with Homemade Spice Blend Pastitsio with Slow-Simmered Beef and Pork Ragù and Bay-Infused Béchamel Mumbai Tawa Butter Pav Bhaji Phở Đặc Biệt with 4-Hour Oxtail Broth Phở French Dip Sandwich Pisco Picarones with Fig-Leaf Chancaca Syrup Pozole Rojo Especial (Bone-In Broth and Chile de Árbol Salsa)Roasted Butternut Brown-Butter Pumpkin Pie Dhaba-Style Rajma Masala with Ghee Jeera Rice Padang-style dry rendang Slow-Braised Lamb Shank Rogan Josh Rogan Josh Birria-Style Tacos Roti Jala with Fresh Rempah Chicken Curry Saffron Saleeg with Ghee-Basted Chicken and Crispy Onions Five-Day Oven Sauerbraten with Red Wine Gingerbread Sauce Sauerbraten Galbi-Jjim (German × Korean)Sauerbraten Pulled Beef Sliders with Apple-Red Cabbage Slaw Konditorei Black Forest Cake with Chocolate Shortcrust and Kirsch Syrup Tihar Ghee Sel Roti with Aloo Achar Charcoal Shish Tawook with Sumac Onions Sopaipillas Pasadas in Spiced Chancaca Syrup Overnight Speculoos with Fresh-Ground Spices Sri Lankan Black Chicken Curry with Toasted Coconut Charcoal Suya with Hand-Toasted Yaji and Tomato Relish Tacos al Pastor Tafelspitz Pho (Austrian × Vietnamese)Ancho-Guajillo Braised Pork Tamales Charcoal-Smoked Tandoori Chicken with Mint Chutney Slow-Braised Pork and Beef Tourtière Tourtière Korokke with Maple Tonkatsu Sauce (Québécois × Japanese)Tourtière Sausage Rolls with Maple-Mustard Dip Vol-au-vent with Homemade Puff Shells and Egg-Yolk Velouté

Updated 2026-10-10