Allspice substitutes
Allspice is one spice and not a blend: the dried unripe berry of the Pimenta dioica tree, sold whole or ground, which tastes like cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves at once because it shares its dominant aroma compound, eugenol, with cloves.
Cinnamon + Nutmeg + Cloves
½ + ¼ + ⅛ tsp
Per 1 tsp of ground allspice, use 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon plus 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg plus 1/8 tsp ground cloves. Not equal parts — cloves are far stronger than the other two and equal parts is why homemade allspice usually tastes medicinal. If you would rather open one jar, pumpkin pie spice works teaspoon for teaspoon in sweet baking, and about 6 whole allspice berries ground gives 1 tsp.
At a glance
| # | Substitute | Instead of allspice, use | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cinnamon + Nutmeg + Cloves | ½ + ¼ + ⅛ tsp | Needs a tweak |
| 2 | Pumpkin Pie Spice | 1 tsp per tsp | Needs a tweak |
| 3 | Mixed Spice | 1 tsp per tsp | Needs a tweak |
| 4 | Cinnamon + Cloves | ¾ tsp + ⅛ tsp | You'll taste it |
| 5 | Nutmeg + Cloves | ½ tsp + ⅛ tsp | You'll taste it |
| 6 | Ground Cloves | ¼ tsp per tsp | In a pinch |
| 7 | Garam Masala | ½ tsp per tsp | In a pinch |
Every allspice substitute
Substitutes for Allspice with ratios
1. Cinnamon + Nutmeg + Cloves
Needs a tweak½ + ¼ + ⅛ tsp
The three spices allspice tastes like, in the proportions allspice actually tastes of them: cinnamon-led, nutmeg behind it, and only a little clove.
What changes
Likely in your cupboardvegangluten-freedairy-free- Covers
- Aroma & flavour identity
2. Pumpkin Pie Spice
Needs a tweakUse 1 tsp for every tsp of allspice
Cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and cloves already mixed, which covers allspice well in anything sweet and brings a ginger note allspice does not have.
What changes
Likely in your cupboardvegangluten-freedairy-free- Covers
- Aroma & flavour identity
3. Mixed Spice
Needs a tweakUse 1 tsp for every tsp of allspice
The British blend, usually built on allspice itself with cinnamon, nutmeg and coriander seed, which makes it the closest single jar to allspice on any shelf.
What changes
Special tripvegangluten-freedairy-free- Covers
- Aroma & flavour identity
4. Cinnamon + Cloves
You'll taste it¾ tsp + ⅛ tsp
The blend above minus the nutmeg, for the very common case of owning cinnamon and cloves and nothing else.
What changes
Likely in your cupboardvegangluten-freedairy-free- Covers
- Aroma & flavour identity
5. Nutmeg + Cloves
You'll taste it½ tsp + ⅛ tsp
For the other common gap — no cinnamon — this keeps the clove and woody notes and loses the sweetness.
What changes
Likely in your cupboardvegangluten-freedairy-free- Covers
- Aroma & flavour identity
6. Ground Cloves
In a pinchUse ¼ tsp for every tsp of allspice
The single closest jar in the cupboard, because allspice and cloves share their dominant aroma compound — and also the easiest to overdo by a factor of four.
What changes
Likely in your cupboardvegangluten-freedairy-free- Covers
- Aroma & flavour identity
7. Garam Masala
In a pinchUse ½ tsp for every tsp of allspice
Warm and complex in the right general direction, but with cumin and coriander in it, so it works on meat and fails in a pie.
What changes
vegangluten-free- Covers
- Aroma & flavour identity
Which one for your recipe?
Sweet baking: pumpkin pie, spice cake, gingerbread, fruit cake, mincemeat, apple crumble.
Build the blend — 1/2 tsp cinnamon plus 1/4 tsp nutmeg plus 1/8 tsp cloves per 1 tsp of allspice — or use pumpkin pie spice teaspoon for teaspoon, which is close enough that most people would not spot the swap in a pie. There is more detail at complete guide.
A Caribbean or Middle Eastern savoury dish: jerk chicken or pork, Jamaican stews, meatballs, kofta, Cincinnati-style chili, a spiced sausage mix.
Do not reach for pumpkin pie spice here — its ginger and heavy cinnamon read as dessert on meat. Use the cinnamon, nutmeg and clove blend, or 1/2 tsp of garam masala per teaspoon if the dish is already savoury and heavily spiced. In jerk specifically, allspice is the defining flavour and a substitute will not pass.
A pickling brine, mulled wine, a poaching liquid, or anything where whole allspice berries go in and get strained out.
Whole berries are not interchangeable with ground by volume — reckon on about 6 berries per teaspoon of ground. Ground allspice in a clear brine clouds it and cannot be strained out, so use whole cloves and a cinnamon stick instead, or tie the ground spice in muslin.
You have whole allspice berries and the recipe wants ground.
Grind them. Six berries give roughly 1 tsp of ground allspice, and freshly ground is noticeably stronger than an old jar, so start with two thirds of the amount. Berries are hard; use a spice grinder or crush them in a mortar rather than trying to chop them.
Decide first whether the dish is sweet or savoury. For sweet baking, either mix 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1/4 tsp nutmeg and 1/8 tsp cloves per teaspoon, or use pumpkin pie spice teaspoon for teaspoon. For Caribbean and Middle Eastern savoury cooking, use the same blend but avoid any pre-made sweet blend, because their ginger reads as dessert on meat. For a brine or mulled drink, use whole spices you can strain out. And if you are making jerk, allspice is the dish rather than a seasoning in it.
Don’t substitute allspice here
Jamaican jerk chicken or pork, or any Caribbean dish where allspice is the named spice.
Jerk is built on allspice and scotch bonnet; allspice is the flavour, not a background warm note. Pumpkin pie spice in a jerk marinade tastes of ginger and dessert on grilled meat.
Mixing your own allspice from equal parts cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves.
Cloves are several times stronger than the other two. At a third of the blend they take the whole dish over and it tastes medicinal rather than warm.
A clear pickling brine, a consommé or a poaching syrup that says whole allspice berries.
Ground allspice clouds the liquid and settles as grit, and you cannot strain it back out. Whole berries are also not equal to ground by volume — a teaspoon of berries is not a teaspoon of powder.
Changing the vinegar, salt or water in a tested pickling or canning recipe while you swap the spices.
Whole allspice is a standard pickling spice and spices can be varied freely. The acid cannot: it is what keeps the jar safe.
What allspice does in a recipe
Allspice is aroma doing three spices' work at once — clove sharpness, cinnamon sweetness and nutmeg's woody note in one berry — which is why replacing it takes a blend, not a swap.
Tips for substituting allspice
- Allspice is a single berry, not a blend. That is worth knowing before you substitute it, because it means there is no jar that contains 'the same thing' — you are rebuilding a flavour from three spices.
- If you mix your own, use 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1/4 tsp nutmeg and 1/8 tsp cloves per teaspoon of allspice. Equal parts is the most repeated bad advice about this ingredient: cloves are several times stronger than cinnamon.
- About 6 whole berries grind down to 1 tsp of ground allspice, so a teaspoon of whole berries is not a teaspoon of ground. Grind first, then measure.
- Whole allspice berries are hard and will blunt a pepper mill. Use a spice grinder, or crush them under a heavy pan or in a mortar.
- Allspice works on savoury food as well as sweet — jerk seasoning, Middle Eastern meatballs, braised cabbage, sausage mixes — so a sweet substitute blend with ginger in it will feel wrong in those dishes.
- In a brine or a mulled drink, use whole berries so you can strain them out. Ground allspice clouds the liquid permanently.