December Spice Club | Five-Spice Powder (五香粉)

Five-spice powder (五香粉), also known as Chinese five-spice, is a blend of five or more spices used in nearly all branches of Chinese cuisine. The most common mix contains star anise, cloves, Chinese cinnamon, Sichuan pepper, and fennel seeds. Other mixes may include anise seed, ginger root, turmeric, Amomum villosum pods, cardamom pods, licorice, and Mandarin orange peel. 

The ingredients of five-spice reflect the five flavors (sweet, bitter, sour, salty, and savory) and also the five traditional Chinese elements (wood, fire, earth, metal, and water). In fact, all five ingredients are used in Chinese traditional medicine to promote digestion. Together they have a sweet and earthy taste, which is spicy, yet cooling.

Five-spice may be used with fatty meats such as pork, duck, turkey, and goose, but it can add complexity to most sweet or savory dishes. Try adding it to pumpkin dishes, sweet potato fries, and even rice pudding!

RECIPES

Now that we are firmly in soup season, I wanted to share the recipe for Taiwanese Spicy Beef Noodle Soup. It is a hearty, filling soup full of udon noodles and beefy flavor.

I was skeptical of this recipe for five-spice gingerbread cookies, but I made them, and I promise you they are delicious! If you’re more of a “throw it in a pan” type of baker, then try this equally tasty five-spice ginger cake.

And the best part is, if you run out of five-spice, you can make your own!

SPICE CLUB NEWS

Have you registered for the Spice Club Potluck & Recipe Swap yet?! Visit our events calendar to learn more!

Today’s blog post was written by Caroline Shaltz Toplanaj, librarian at RHPL.