Cloves and their remarkable qualities — why we love this spice
Cloves are a favourite addition to tea, especially in autumn and winter. They complement warming tea, mulled wine and fragrant gingerbread. Their bold aroma may be their best-known attraction, but cloves also have many valued properties and a long history in herbal traditions. Let us take a closer look.
What exactly are cloves?
Cloves are the dried flower buds of the clove tree, picked before opening and processed by drying and, traditionally, smoking. This gives them their brown colour.
They have a distinctive, intense aroma and a spicy, bitter taste. Much of that character comes from eugenol, a compound associated with antiseptic and local-anaesthetic effects and central to cloves' traditional medicinal reputation.
Available in almost every grocery shop, cloves are a staple warming spice. They appear in baked goods, compotes, preserves and marinades. A winter evening's spiced tea or fragrant mulled red wine would hardly be the same without them.
Traditional uses since antiquity
Before becoming a kitchen staple, cloves were used in medicine, particularly Chinese and Indian traditions. They were valued for toothache and digestive complaints. Their presence in Polish Christmas Eve compote is also associated with helping digestion after a rich meal.
Ancient uses included cleansing and antiseptic purposes. Cloves reached Europe in the Middle Ages and have retained their appeal through both flavour and their many attributed qualities.
Why do people turn to cloves today?
Their taste and aroma are distinctive: people often love them or dislike them. Even if the flavour is not your favourite, their range of traditional uses is interesting.
In autumn, winter and early spring, cloves are valued during colds and flu for their anti-inflammatory properties. Their compounds have also been studied for analgesic, antibacterial, antiparasitic and antifungal effects. Traditional uses mention respiratory discomfort such as a runny nose, sore throat and cough, as well as certain parasitic infections, including giardiasis.
Because of their pain-relieving and numbing associations, cloves have long been used for toothache and insect-bite discomfort.
Their polyphenols provide antioxidant activity, countering free radicals linked with premature cellular ageing and investigated in cancer research.
Cloves are also used to produce clove essential oil, valued in aromatherapy for a calming, mood-lifting atmosphere and used in appropriate inhalation or massage preparations.
How to make warming clove tea
When cold wind, rain or snow make staying indoors appealing, few drinks feel cosier than aromatic spiced tea.
- Brew loose-leaf black tea: use one teaspoon of leaves, water at 100°C and an infusion time of two or three minutes.
- Meanwhile, prepare 4–6 cloves, two slices of ginger, one slice of orange or lemon, and one teaspoon of honey or raspberry juice.
- Remove the tea leaves and add the prepared ingredients.
Cloves can be used whole or ground. Buy them whole to preserve their aromatic qualities, then grind in a spice grinder when needed.