clove powder
2.3 oz $ 4.99
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whole cloves
1.6 oz $ 4.99
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Cloves are the rich, brown, unopened flower buds of Syzygium
aromaticum, an evergreen tree in the myrtle family. The
name comes from the French "clou" meaning nail which dried clove
buds resemble.
Cloves are native to the Molucca Islands in Indonesia.
Natives of those islands planted a clove tree for each child born
and believed that the fate of the tree was linked to the fate of
that child.
Cloves have been used for thousands of years. One of the
earliest references reveals that the ancient Chinese, in order
to approach the emperor, had to have a few cloves in their mouths
to sweeten the breath.
Clove is the strongest of all the aromatic spices. As a
result, it is used at fairly low levels, but in an extremely
wide range of products. In the United States, cloves are
the most visible in baked ham and certain sweet pickles.
However, they have an important supporting function in countless
spice and seasoning combinations for sweet baked goods, sausages,
luncheon meats and spreads, soups, salad dressings, relishes and
casserole dishes from baked beans to pot roast.
Indonesia is still a major producer, but it is also the largest
customer for cloves, because of the national penchant for clove
flavored cigarettes. Called kreteks (because they
crackle when lighted), these cigarettes are two parts tobacco
and one part cloves. Production now amounts to about 36
billion cigarettes a year, requiring approximately half of the
world clove production and dictating today's prices for cloves.
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