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5.0 from 27 votes

Chinese five-spice substitute

Chinese five-spice is a fragrant spice blend with a warm cinnamon and liquorice-like anise flavour. Use this recipe for homemade five-spice powder, or see the full post for more substitutes. This blend is so good you'll never want shop-bought five-spice again!

Prep Time
5 mins
Total Time
5 mins
Servings: 4 tablespoons
Course: Condiments
Cuisine: Chinese

Ingredients

  • 6 whole star anise pods (5 grams), or 1 tablespoon of ground star anise
  • 1 cinnamon stick (5 grams), or 1 tablespoon of ground cinnamon
  • 1 tablespoon fennel seeds, or 1 tablespoon ground fennel
  • 2 teaspoons Szechuan peppercorns (optional)
  • ½ teaspoon whole cloves (about 8), or ½ teaspoon ground cloves

Instructions

    Cup of Yum
  1. Break the cinnamon bark into smaller pieces. Add it to a spice grinder (or coffee grinder) along with the rest of the whole spices, and blitz into a fine powder.
  2. Transfer the ground spices to an airtight container (or spice jar) and use it within a few months for the best flavour.

Notes

  • You can also toast your whole spices in a hot, dry pan before you grind them. It takes about three minutes.
  • If using the pre-ground spices, stir them together in a small bowl.
  • While the spice mix won't go off anytime soon, they start to lose their intensity as soon as they are ground. So, for the best flavour aim to use it within three months.