Ingredient: Allspice
Category: Herbs, Spices & Seasoning
Season: All
Allspice (also known as Jamaica pepper, Myrtle pepper, pimento, or newspice) is a Carribean spice, discovered by Christopher Columbus during his second voyage of 1493–1496 CE.
The spice itself is the dried unripe fruit of the Pimenta dioica plant which is a small shrubby tree, quite similar to the bay laurel in size and form and a member of the Myrtaceae (Myrtle) family.
It grows readily in the tropics and adapts well to container growth where it can be kept as a houseplant.
The English name 'allspice' is derived from the English belief that this spice combined the flavour of several spices: most notable cloves, pepper, cinnamon and nutmeg (in essence all the economically important spices of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries.
It is an aromatic spice with a taste similar to a combination of cinnamon and cloves, but hotter and more peppery.
Culinary Uses
Allspice is an important ingredient of Carribean cuisine where it is an important component of Jerk seasoning and also works as an additive when smoking meat.
It s also an ingredient in commercial sausage preparations and in many curry powders and barbecue sauces.
It is also a common ingredient of British cooking where it is often used to lift the flavour of many dishes (especially cakes).
This looks like a smooth peppercorn but larger, and it is so called because it is supposed to resemble in flavour a mixture of cloves, nutmeg and cinnamon. It is not really like any one of them, it has a unique flavour of its own.
It is used in marinades and pickles, you'll see the whole berries used in jars of commercial pickled herrings.
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