Does a reasonable substitute for Chinese Five Spice powder exist? And if so, what would you recommend?

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7 Comments

healthierkitchen October 23, 2010
Penzey's has Sichuan peppercorns
 
pierino October 22, 2010
I'm with healthierkitchen on this, it does include Sichuan peppercorns, which of course can be as hard to find as Five Spice itself.
 
askann October 22, 2010
My boring supermarket stocks funny little tied bags of ground spices for pho broth in in their "ethnic" aisle. Comes in a little box not too far from the coconut milk. I think that might work for you.
 
healthierkitchen October 22, 2010
I think it's got ground Sichuan peppercorns rather than ginger. Also available at some Asian markets and spice shops!
 
Mr_Vittles October 22, 2010
I too have found allspice to be okay in a pinch. But be aware there are other five spice powders out there. Tunisian Five spice powder is also a great, if not exotic option.
 
thirschfeld October 22, 2010
aargersi is right but you might want to use star anise which is a little bit different from anise. Star anise is easily found at asian groceries.
 
aargersi October 22, 2010
it has cinnamon, anise, clove, ginger and fennel .... you could make your own or use a subset of those spices to your taste. You might also consider allspice and/or mace
 
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