Sometimes we all run out of an ingredient and it is important to just understand a little bit more about them in order to possibly replace when needed. Allspice and nutmeg are both super useful spices, but we just wanted to share a bit more about each of them.
Allspice is the dried berry of the pimenta tree, Native to the Caribbean and pungent in flavor. Nutmeg is the seed from within the fruit of the myristica genus of tree, sweet and warming in flavor.
So one is a berry that is unripe and one is a dried seed from a tree. But both offer differences in recipes.
Allspice Vs Nutmeg In Cooking
Can we replace allspice with nutmeg or vice versa, can we replace them altogether with different spices?
Allspice is pungent and tastes like cloves, nutmeg and cinnamon all rolled into one. Nutmeg does have similar notes therefore to allspice, but it is sweeter and warming in flavor.
So if we replace allspice with nutmeg we will have a sweeter flavor, but replacing nutmeg with allspice may need a slightly lighter touch to mitigate the flavor of cloves.
You will do well to buy Whole Nutmeg, check availability here, as it will keep fresh longer and you can use it easily enough by grating as you need. You can also buy whole allspice, check availability here to keep it fresh for longer as well. This is always the best way to buy spices.
Health Benefits Of Allspice Vs Nutmeg
The below chart is taken from Nutritiondata.com and shows the main key health benefits for 1 teaspoon of each spice. I think this is a reasonable portion size as we tend to use a little on porridge or cake toppings and not really more than 1 teaspoon ever.
| Vitamin / Mineral | Allspice – weight / %DV | Nutmeg – weight / % DV |
| Vitamin C | 0.7mg 1% | 0.1mg |
| Folate | – | 1.5mcg |
| Calcium | 11.6mg 1% | 3.7mg |
| Iron | 0.1mg 1% | 0.1mg |
| Magnesium | 2.4mg 1% | 3.7mg 1% |
| Potassium | 18.3mg 1% | 7mg |
| Manganese | 0.1mg 3% | 0.1mg 3% |
| Sodium | 1.3mg | 0.3mg |
We can see that allspice has a much higher potassium, sodium, calcium and vitamin C content than nutmeg. However both have their valuable content and are well worth using more in our cooking. From sprinkling on cereals to using in crumbles!
Basically use more spice in your life.
What Next & Further Reading
You can keep spices in your cupboard for around a year with no real loss of flavor. To keep your spices fresher longer make sure to keep in airtight containers and keep away from direct sunlight. With nutmeg and allspice you can keep them whole. This will really increase their shelf life.
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