I’d always (wrongly) assumed “allspice” was called that because it contained a little bit of many spices.
Its festive flavour is reminiscent of cloves, nutmeg, cinnamon, and a little bit of pepper.
But, as with paprika, the flavour isn’t made how I thought it was at all.
In fact, allspice is an unripe berry from a plant known as pimenta diocia.
Also known as Jamaica pepper, myrtle pepper, pimenta, or pimento, allspice is very much one spice, rather than a blend of them. And its processing is pretty involved, too.
How does it get from the plant to our spice racks?
According to the food publication Bon Appetit, the unripe berry looks a bit like a peppercorn grown fruits are about the size of olives.
The tree it comes from is native to Central America, southern Mexico, and the West Indies.
It can be fermented after being picked and is then dried and ground into a powder.
Pastry chef and cookbook author Caroline Schiff told Bon Appetit that she sometimes uses it in place of pumpkin spice, explaining that “I think it adds some more complexity.”
By the way, I can at least console myself that my former understanding of allspice isn’t an uncommon one ― thinking pimento is a spice mix is “a common misconception,” Caroline Schiff shared.
Why does it taste like so many spices?
Spice experts at Curio Spice Co. write that it’s just a chemical coincidence.
The berry’s pungent oils are at their most flavourful just before the berry ripens, when pimento is picked.
Those oils include “eugenol, methyl eugenol, and beta-caryophyllene,” Curio Spice Co. says.
Eugenol is responsible for the clove-like taste, methyl eugenol is common in spices like anise, nutmeg, and mace, and beta-caryophyllene is to blame for pimento’s musky flavour. It’s also present in hops, cloves, oregano, chard, cinnamon, and rosemary.