How to Use Cassia
The Global Cinnamon
Sweet · Warm · Pungent · Bitter
Cassia cinnamon is comfort with a kick. Spicier and more intense than its cousin from Ceylon, it’s the backbone of spiced desserts and savory marinades across Asia and the Americas.
FORMS
- Whole: Since whole sticks are so hard and fibrous, they're best used to infuse stews, biryanis, or braises like bay leaf, and then removed before serving.
- Ground: Freshly ground cassia is noticeably more vibrant and aromatic than store-bought powders, delivering a bold, spicy sweetness with a hint of heat. Ground cassia is a staple ingredient for cinnamon sugar, baking blends, hot beverages, BBQ rubs, and slow-cooked sauces and chutneys. It's also great in spiced rice, preserves, infused syrups, and even ice cream, where it holds up against freezing.
- Flower Buds: Cassia flower buds can be ground for pickling blends or bold spice mixes, much like cloves.
STORAGE
- Whole: Since flavor compounds quickly dissipate once ground, it's best to buy and store whole cassia sticks. In an airtight container in a cool, dry, dark place, they will maintain their potency for up to 2–3 years. Look for firm bark with a reddish-brown hue and a strong scent.
- Ground: Grind only what you need just before use, as cassia loses its punch rather quickly. Use it within a month at least to capture its full character.
- Cinnamon Sugar: To get even more shelf-life, you can top off cassia sugar blends as you store them like sourdough starters. Add more cassia, sugar, and leftover baking spices to deepen the mix over time.
PREPARATION
- Grinding: Cassia bark is very tough, so it's best to grind it in a high-powered, heavy-duty electric grinder. You shouldn't just toss the sticks in whole because they can jam the blades and strain the motor. Break them into smaller pieces by taping them with a pestle or smacking them with a rolling pin wrapped in a cloth (depending on the thickness).
- Grating: Unlike Ceylon, which is too soft and brittle, you can use a microplane to grate the dense cassia sticks. This shaves the spice into a fine, fluffy powder that blends instantly with your other ingredients. This is ideal when you only need a small amount, like a teaspoon for baking or a pinch to finish a drink.
- Toasting: Like many spices, most of cassia’s flavor compounds—even the all-important cinnamaldehyde (90%+ of its essential oil)—don’t dissolve well in water and can have a hard time breaking out of the tough bark. To release the aroma, toast cassia briefly in a dry pan or sauté in fat or oil.
COOKING
- Steaming: Since the flavor isn't very water-soluble, for water-based dishes, you can steam them in a lidded pot to help disperse cinnamaldehyde throughout the dish, mitigating the issue a bit. Alcohol is another effective carrier. Think mulled wine and bitters.
- Baking: Cassia’s bold, spicy-sweet flavor stands up to heat, making it a cornerstone of baking around the world. It brings depth and warmth to cookies, cakes, breads, and pastries, especially when paired with chocolate, nuts, apples, or other fruits. Its higher oil content helps the aroma linger long after baking, giving desserts that cozy, signature cinnamon scent.
- Long Cooking: Essential to many Southeast Asian, Middle Eastern, and Latin American dishes, cassia’s potent aromatics shine in long cooking. It's much more intense than Ceylon cinnamon, so it plays well in bold dishes like curries, moles, chili pastes, BBQ rubs, and spice-forward desserts like gingerbread.
Cinnamon Rolls