It's the time of year, just before the first frost, for digging up ginger from a corner of the garden. As the temperature drops, we reach more often for warm teas and slow braises. Cloves go into these dishes a few at a time, and three or four in a pot of broth can change its aroma completely. What you pair them with changes the flavor, too.
Dried Buds, Picked Before They Bloom
Cloves are the flower buds of the clove tree, picked before they open and then dried. Both the Korean name, jeonghyang, and the English word "clove" come from the buds' nail-like shape. The buds are picked by hand once they've turned red but before they open, then dried in the sun until they turn brown. Buds that have already bloomed aren't used as a spice.
Their aroma comes from a phenolic compound called eugenol. Analyses have repeatedly found that eugenol makes up most of clove essential oil, the oil that carries the scent. Other analyses show that the amount varies with where the cloves were grown, which part of the plant is used, and how thoroughly they were dried.
The clove tree is a tropical species that grows best at 22–30°C. It thrives on coastlines and volcanic islands where temperatures rarely dip below 20°C at any time of year and at least 1,500 mm of rain falls evenly over the year. It can't survive frost, and young trees die below 10°C, so it's hard to grow outdoors anywhere with cold winters. Trees need 6–8 years after planting before the first buds can be harvested. Indonesia and Madagascar are the leading producers, and cloves are also grown widely in Tanzania, the Comoros, Sri Lanka, and India.
With Cinnamon and Ginger — Sujeonggwa
In Korea, cloves go into sujeonggwa, a spiced punch of cinnamon and ginger steeped in water and served with dried persimmons and pine nuts floating on top. Steep the cinnamon and the ginger separately, combine the two liquids, and add just a couple of cloves.
Cloves turn noticeably bitter when they simmer too long. Instead of adding them at the start, drop them in for the last 10 minutes or so, then fish them out. That way the clove scent layers over the cinnamon and ginger, and very little bitterness comes through. If you have ginger fresh from the garden, slice it thin and steep that. You'll find when to harvest ginger in the Ginger entry of our plant guide.
With Pears — Baesuk
Baesuk is a Korean dessert of pears simmered in ginger water. Peel and slice the pear, press a whole clove into each piece, and simmer. The studded cloves infuse the fruit with their scent and are easy to pick out once it's cooked. Remove them before ladling the pears into bowls.
For Simmered Meats and Pickles
When you're making suyuk (boiled, sliced pork or beef) or jangjorim (meat braised in soy sauce), add a few whole cloves to the cooking water to tame any gamy smell. Western kitchens use cloves much the same way: whole cloves are studded over a ham before it goes into the oven, and they're a standard part of pickling spice. Whatever the dish, fish them out before eating.
Historical Notes and Storage
The Donguibogam, a medical encyclopedia compiled in Joseon-era Korea in the early 17th century, lists clove (丁香) in its section on trees (木部). It describes clove as warm in nature, pungent in taste, and nontoxic, and notes that male cloves are small while female cloves are large. Cloves as plump as the fruit of the cornelian cherry (Cornus officinalis) were commonly called mojeonghyang (母丁香), or "mother clove," and were said to have a finer gimi (氣味), meaning their energetic quality and taste. These entries come from a historical medical text and don't reflect modern medical understanding.
Even dried buds can grow mold if they're exposed to moisture, so store them in a jar with a tight-fitting lid. Don't open the jar over a steaming pot. Shake out only as many as you need.
Today, try slicing a pear, pressing a clove into each piece, and simmering it in ginger water.
Source: Donguibogam, Tree Section (木部), Clove (丁香)
