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Chinese Five Spice
Chinese Five Spice
A collection of various spice jars and containers, each with different labels and colors, arranged on a wooden board.
a close up of three bags of coffee on a table
Handcrafted Blend

Chinese Five Spice

WarmSweetTingly
Chinese Five Spice reflects the artistry of traditional Chinese cooking, balancing sweet, sour, salty, bitter, and umami. Add it to stir-fries, or rub on chicken, pork, or beef with a pinch of sea salt before roasting for complex, aromatic flavor.
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Why World Spice?

  • Vegan, gluten-free, and filler-free
  • Love it or we'll replace it
  • Orders over $59 ship free
  • Blended in small batches, shortly before shipping
Filler-FreeVeganGluten-FreeEstablished 1995Small Batch

Spice 101

Chinese Five Spice is a salt-free blend that harmoniously brings together fennel, star anise, cloves, Indonesian cinnamon, black pepper, and Szechuan pepper. This combination not only promises a full-bodied taste but also a journey through the sweet, spicy, and warm notes, making it a versatile ally in the kitchen.

Chinese Five Spice is a testament to the culinary wizardry of ancient Chinese cooks who aimed to balance the fundamental taste elements: sweet, sour, salty, bitter, and umami. This blend likely originated during the Tang Dynasty (618-907 AD). The spices chosen are thought to balance the body and are used in various traditional dishes to promote health and well-being according to Chinese medicine.

Chinese Five Spice engages our senses with just a pinch. It's our go-to for transforming simple meat rubs into aromatic masterpieces and for adding a mysterious depth to baked goods.

Did you know that despite its strong association with Chinese cuisine, Chinese Five Spice is a hit in the world of fusion cooking? A sprinkle over roasted Brussels sprouts or mixed into your morning pancake batter can offer a delicious, aromatic twist.

Customer Reviews

Overall rating: 4.9 / 5 from 24 reviews.

Customer photo review of Chinese Five Spice

I like to play with spices. It so changes the flavor of food. I also drink a lot of water, but I don't like tap water. Too boring. So I cut up some fresh ginger, sprinkled Chinese Five Spice on it, threw it in a teapot, added boiling water, waited 15 minutes or so, & poured it over ice. Refreshing!

Chinese Five Spice

Store owner replied: Thank you for sharing your creative spice adventure! Your ginger and Chinese Five Spice tea sounds both refreshing and intriguing—what a fantastic way to add excitement to your water routine. I’m inspired by your idea and might just experiment with a Chinese Five Spice tea myself. Keep playing with those flavors! 🍵✨

Customer photo review of Chinese Five Spice

Chinese Five Spice goes on just about everything in this house, including apples, peanut butter, & maybe just right off the spoon with a little honey

Chinese Five Spice

Store owner replied: Sounds like you've discovered the magic of Chinese Five Spice! Thanks for sharing your creative ways of enjoying this delicious spice blend!

Customer photo review of Chinese Five Spice

The *real* stuff, with actual Szechuan peppercorns ground in with the other spices. It's the flavor of my childhood, and I use just this and salt to roast chicken thighs as well as put it into all kinds of dishes. I love sprinkling some into my roux for these scallion flavored Zhua Bing, with the salt and a touch of sesame oil to keep the layers flaky and flavorful. This stuff is fragrant, flavorful, and I use it in a lot.

Chinese Five Spice

Perfect spice for just about everything you could make Chinese! Great flavor!

Chinese Five Spice

Store owner replied: We do love it for sweet or savory dishes, both Chinese and not. We honestly keep finding new ways to use it, too.

Just what I needed

Chinese Five Spice

Store owner replied: It's definitely a necessity for many Chinese dishes, but it's also delicious for non-Chinese recipes, as well. And it pairs well with apples, pears and even chocolate, too.

I love the packaging, and the aroma

Chinese Five Spice

Store owner replied: Our Chinese Five Spice is so fragrant and flavorful, and we love our new packaging, too! Since the tins stack, our spice cabinets look so much neater now, and we love using this blend in both sweet and savory dishes. It's just so versatile.

Great company. The flavor wasn't what I was expecting.

Chinese Five Spice

Store owner replied: Thank you! I hope you enjoyed the Chinese Five Spice. We love how it's tasty in both sweet and savory dishes, and have some good recipes on this site, too.

Very tasty.

Chinese Five Spice

Store owner replied: It's so tasty for both sweet and savory, too! It's always nice to have something like that in the spice cupboard to play with.

Very fragrant and inspiring Five Spice. Highly recommended!

Chinese Five Spice

The spice is still waiting in the drawer for a duck - Whole Foods is out. But we had it at my son’s house for Thanksgiving because he already had some of your spice - it was wonderful!

Chinese Five Spice

Excellent spice and spice blends, terrible shipping

Chinese Five Spice

Store owner replied: Thank you for your feedback! We’re thrilled you’re loving the Chinese Five Spice and blends, but we’re sorry to hear the shipping didn’t meet your expectations. We’re always working to improve and appreciate you letting us know. 🌟✨

I use this spice mix for congee and ginger chicken. A little goes a long way, highly recommend.

Chinese Five Spice

Store owner replied: Megan, using Chinese Five Spice in congee and ginger chicken? Yes! 🙌 The perfect way to add that deep, aromatic flavor. 🌿🍲 And you're right—a little truly does go a long way!

Deep and complex

Chinese Five Spice

Store owner replied: One of the best spice blends ever!

Well packaged and great product!

Chinese Five Spice

Super fragrant , ordered mine whole so I could grind it fresh . Amazing

Chinese Five Spice

Excellent! It has a much deeper and richer flavor than cheaper store bought five spice. Well worth it!

Chinese Five Spice

A great mixture I use this on roast chicken and grilled fish. Always get fabulous results. Highly recommended

Chinese Five Spice

Excellent! Fresh spices, flavor is so superior to store bought spices. Thank you for being there!

Chinese Five Spice

Nicely balanced This 5-spice blend is nicely balanced and works well in many Chinese dishes (I especially love The Vegan Chinese Kitchen by Hannah Che) and to make a quick pho-type broth.

Chinese Five Spice

Highly recommended! Nice flavor, smells great. I rubbed on some pork ribs and then glazed. Nice depth of flavor and balanced, not too much star anise.

Chinese Five Spice

Delicious! I get all my spices from World Spice. They don't add salt, preservatives or fillers. The spices are all very fresh and add great flavor to everything I'm making. I used the Five Spice to make homemade beef jerky.

Chinese Five Spice

Excellent! Great mix of flavors

Chinese Five Spice

Great I have only used it once but it was good. I made noodle soup, next time I think I will add some ginger. As well.

Chinese Five Spice

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Recipes with Chinese Five Spice

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Spice tips

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Over 250 spices, blends, and teas

The world's most versatile spice library

Since 1995 we've sourced and blended the finest flavors we can find. Nearly all of our spices are available whole or ground, and we grind in small batches shortly before shipping.

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