$3.99
If there is one spice that crosses every cultural boundary, speaks every culinary language, and manages to feel simultaneously ancient and completely at home in a modern kitchen, it is cinnamon. Whole cinnamon quills are the bark of the cinnamon tree, carefully harvested, dried, and rolled into the elegant, fragrant cylinders that have been traded, treasured, and cooked with across Asia, the Middle East, Europe, Africa, and the Americas for thousands of years. Grandma kept cinnamon quills in her pantry not just for baking but for everything, because she understood that this is a spice that belongs on both sides of the sweet and savoury divide and performs beautifully on each.
Flavour Profile: Whole cinnamon quills have a warm, sweet, woody aroma with a depth and complexity that ground cinnamon approaches but never quite replicates, because the essential oils responsible for that character are best preserved inside the intact bark rather than in a pre-ground powder. The flavour is gently sweet and warmly spiced with a soft, lingering heat and a subtle floral quality that reveals itself slowly during long cooking. When infused into a liquid, a whole quill releases its flavour gradually and consistently, producing a more rounded and nuanced result than a spoonful of ground spice added all at once.
How to Use It: Whole cinnamon quills are at their best in applications where they have time to infuse into a liquid or a sauce, giving up their flavour gradually over heat rather than being added for immediate impact. Drop a quill directly into rice while it cooks, into a slow braise or tagine from the beginning, into mulled wine or spiced cider as it warms, or into a pot of chai as it simmers. For poaching fruit, a quill added to the poaching liquid alongside star anise and vanilla produces a fragrant, lightly spiced syrup that improves everything it touches. A quill placed in a jar of sugar and left for a week creates a subtly cinnamon-scented sugar that is worth having on hand for baking and coffee. To use a quill as ground cinnamon, toast it dry in a pan for two to three minutes until fragrant, allow it to cool completely, then grind in a spice grinder or high-powered blender for a freshly ground powder that is noticeably more aromatic and flavourful than anything pre-packaged. Quills can be reused once or twice if rinsed and dried thoroughly between uses, though their flavour diminishes with each subsequent use.
Recipes Where Cinnamon Quills Shine: A slow-cooked Moroccan lamb or chicken tagine with preserved lemon, olives, and a whole cinnamon quill added to the pot from the beginning is one of the most deeply aromatic and satisfying dishes in the entire repertoire of spiced cooking, and the quill contributes a warmth and complexity that ground cinnamon simply does not deliver in the same way. Persian rice, or chelow, cooked with a cinnamon quill, cardamom pods, and a pinch of saffron produces a fragrant, beautifully spiced base that transforms an everyday grain into something ceremonial. Mulled wine or mulled apple juice simmered with cinnamon quills, cloves, star anise, and orange peel is the kind of thing that makes an entire house smell like an occasion is happening. Homemade chai tea brewed with a broken cinnamon quill, cardamom, ginger, black pepper, and cloves produces a cup that is so far removed from a commercial chai bag that the comparison barely seems fair. Poached pears in a spiced red wine syrup with a cinnamon quill, vanilla, and a little sugar is one of those elegant, quietly impressive desserts that requires almost no skill to execute and consistently produces a result that looks and tastes far more considered than the effort involved.
Good to Know: Whole cinnamon quills are naturally gluten free, dairy free, and vegan. They contain no additives, fillers, or anti-caking agents in their pure form. It is worth noting that there are two main types of cinnamon commercially available: Ceylon cinnamon, sometimes called true cinnamon, which is lighter in colour, more delicate in flavour, and has thinner, more tightly rolled quills; and Cassia cinnamon, which is darker, more robustly flavoured, and the variety most commonly found in supermarkets and spice shops. Please check the specific product label for the variety stocked. Those who consume cinnamon in large amounts regularly should be aware that Cassia cinnamon contains higher levels of coumarin than Ceylon cinnamon, which can be a consideration for some individuals. As always, if you are managing a severe allergy or coeliac disease, please check the specific product label for facility and cross-contamination information.
Ingredients: Whole Cinnamon Quills.
Store in an airtight container in a cool, dry place, away from direct sunlight. Large amounts may need to be ordered in. Allow 14 business days for it to arrive at GPO.
