Cinnamon
SIN-uh-mun
Cinnamomum verum
Warm, sweet, delicate, gently woody.
What it is
Cinnamon is the dried inner bark of Cinnamomum verum, a small evergreen tree native to Sri Lanka. The bark is harvested, peeled, and rolled into fragile quills that grind to a pale, soft powder. True or Ceylon cinnamon tastes warm, sweet, and delicate, with a light woody perfume and little of the hot bite that cassia carries. It moves easily between sweet and savory, from baked apples and rice pudding to Moroccan tagines and Mexican mole. Most supermarket cinnamon is actually cassia, a related bark that is bolder and cheaper, which is why labels and flavor can differ so much.
Similar but different
Easy to mix up, different enough that swapping changes the dish.
- Cassiawarm, hot, sweet, boldly spicy.
Compare head to head
What it pairs with
Goes wrong with: briny seafood.
Common in Indian, Moroccan, Mexican, Middle Eastern cooking.
Whole vs ground
True cinnamon quills are soft and crumbly and grind to a fine, pale powder. Sticks are best for steeping in liquids; ground is best for baking, where it disperses evenly.
How to handle it
Add sticks early to braises, tagines, and rice so the warmth has time to infuse. Stir ground cinnamon in near the end of cooking to keep its aroma.
Storage
Airtight and dark. Quills hold their aroma for a year or more; ground fades within six months.
Buying note
If the label says Ceylon or Cinnamomum verum, you have true cinnamon. Soft, layered quills mean Ceylon; a single thick hard curl usually means cassia.
Classic dishes
apple pie, cinnamon rolls, Moroccan lamb tagine, rice pudding.
Out of cinnamon? Substitutes
No substitute is exact. These are the closest by flavor behavior, with the ratio to start from and how the result will differ.
| Use instead | Ratio | How it differs |
|---|---|---|
| Cassia cinnamon | 1:1, use a touch less | bolder, hotter, less floral and delicate |
| nutmeg plus a pinch of allspice | use a quarter as much | warm but more woody-nutty, not the same sweetness |
One odd thing
Ancient traders guarded cinnamon's source with tall tales, including a story that giant birds carried the sticks to their nests, partly to justify its very high price.