Allspice, known by the Latin botanical name of Pimenta dioica, comes from the Pimenta tree and is the unripe fruit that are dried and crafted into different forms. Allspice is used primarily as a cooking spice. Most notably, it has earned its reputation as one of the most important ingredients of Caribbean cuisine. It is commonly used in jerk seasoning, pickling spices, curry powders, and can be found in desserts and cakes.
Allspice has a wide variety of uses in foods. It can be used in both sweet and savory recipes, and many different cultural cuisines apply it lavishly to dress their dishes. It can be added to gravy that is served alongside your holiday turkey or ham. Pork roasts benefit from a marinade that includes garlic and this spice, and Caribbean jerk recipes for beef and chicken often call for it. Spice cookies utilize it to give the sweets a bit of a kick, and it often makes its way into spiced nuts, along with sugar that caramelizes the spices around the nuts.
