Top 4 Mace Substitutes for Sauces, Meat and Baking
Mace and nutmeg come from the same fruit, and nutmeg at a smaller amount is the best swap.
Nutmeg is the best mace substitute, at three quarters of a teaspoon for each teaspoon of mace, or half in a pale sauce. Allspice at half the amount suits dark meat and fruit. For baking, half a teaspoon of cinnamon with a quarter teaspoon of ground ginger also works.
What is mace, and how does it differ from nutmeg?
Mace is the lacy red coating that wraps around the nutmeg seed, dried until it turns orange or tan. Ground mace tastes lighter, more floral and slightly peppery. Nutmeg is rounder, sweeter and darker.
Ground mace is pale, so it seasons cream sauces without dark specks. It comes as whole blades for infusing milk or stock and as a powder for everything else. Cooks use it in white sauce, potatoes, creamed spinach, sausage, pound cake and doughnuts.
- Red coating: dries into mace blades.
- Dark seed: becomes nutmeg.
- Pale powder: ground mace.
Because they grow together, nutmeg is the obvious first swap. It is still a little heavier, so use less of it than the mace the recipe asks for.
Which spices replace ground mace?
Nutmeg is the best by a long way, and the other three suit darker food or baking.
| Substitute | Amount | Best for | What changes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nutmeg | 3/4 tsp, or 1/2 tsp in pale food | White sauce, potatoes, custard, cake, sausage | Sweeter and heavier, with darker specks |
| Allspice | 1/2 tsp | Dark meat, stewed fruit, rich gravy, dark cake | A clove-like edge |
| Cinnamon with ground ginger | 1/2 tsp cinnamon plus 1/4 tsp ginger | Pound cake, fruit filling, cookies | Sweeter, with no nutmeg note |
| Pumpkin pie spice | 1/2 tsp | Cakes, pies and sweet breads | Brings cinnamon and clove too |
- Grater: grate onto a spoon, not the pan.
- Pale sauce: specks show too much.
- Small measure: start below the mace amount.
Measure level spoonfuls. Warm spices taste stronger after baking or after a meat mixture rests overnight, so start low.
How do you use nutmeg in place of mace?
At three quarters of the amount, or half in a pale or lightly seasoned dish.
Whole nutmeg is strongest just after grating. Grate it onto a measuring spoon rather than over the pan, since one extra stroke can double a small dose.
In white sauce, mashed potato or creamed spinach, stir in the smaller amount and wait a minute for the smell to rise. For sausage or meat filling, cook a small spoonful and taste it first, since raw meat hides spice.
Why does white sauce need less than fruitcake?
Pale food shows every speck and clove note, while dark food hides them.
Nutmeg at half the amount
Nutmeg at half the amount
Nutmeg at three quarters
Nutmeg, or allspice where the recipe is dark and rich
Allspice at half the amount
Nutmeg, a small pinch only
- Half measure: keeps the clove note back.
- Browned filling: enough depth for allspice.
- Plum compote: dark fruit suits it.
Ground allspice is a single berry, not a mix of other spices. Keep it out of white sauce, mild fish and pale chicken dishes, where its clove note stands out.
Which swaps suit doughnuts, pound cake and fruit filling?
Nutmeg first, then cinnamon with ginger or pumpkin pie spice when the recipe already leans toward warm spices.
- Pound cakeNutmeg, or cinnamon with ginger at the amounts in the table
- DoughnutsNutmeg at three quarters of the mace amount
- Apple, pear or plum fillingCinnamon with ginger, or pumpkin pie spice
- Enriched breadCinnamon with ginger, cutting any cinnamon the recipe already lists
- CustardNutmeg only, since cinnamon darkens the color
- Larger spoon: cinnamon.
- Smaller spoon: ginger.
- Pale batter: shows the color change.
Pumpkin pie spice works in cakes and pies at half the mace amount. Keep it out of gravy, sausage and potatoes. Its sweet spices clash with savory food.
What replaces a whole mace blade?
Broad shavings of whole nutmeg in a small cloth bag, so they can come out like the blade would.
- Shave the nutmegCut two or three thin, broad pieces from a whole nutmeg with a peeler or knife
- Tie them upWrap the shavings in a small piece of muslin or put them in a tea infuser
- Heat gentlyAdd the bag to milk, stock or sauce below a hard boil
- Smell as it warmsLift out the bag once a warm nutmeg smell rises above the liquid
- Taste at the endCheck again after the salt and cream are in before infusing any longer
- Whole seed: broad shavings release slowly.
- Muslin bag: keeps specks out of pale milk.
- Gentle heat: easier to control.
Milk and cream pull out spice flavor quickly, so check early. For a brown stock or dark gravy where specks do not matter, a pinch of ground nutmeg is simpler.
When should you leave mace out?
When it is only a small background note and every substitute you have would stand out more.
A lightly seasoned fish sauce loses less from missing a pinch of mace than from an obvious cinnamon or clove taste. The same goes for delicate sausage and chicken fillings.
Do not add extra black pepper to cover the gap. Mace's pepper note comes with a floral smell, and plain pepper only adds heat.
What if the sauce tastes of nutmeg or clove?
A heavy grate of nutmeg cannot be removed, so more sauce, potato or batter is the only way to soften it.
- Too much nutmegAdd more of the plain base and a pinch of salt
- Clove-likeAllspice took over, which more base and a little salt soften
- Too sweet in a savory dishCinnamon or pumpkin pie spice clashed, so dilute with more base
- Dark specksGround nutmeg in a pale sauce, so strain it or use a bag next time
- FaintOld powder smells of cardboard, so use a fresh jar or freshly grated nutmeg
Ground mace and nutmeg lose their smell within months. A small fresh jar gives more flavor than a large faded one.
For the closest swap in the other direction, the allspice substitutes cover warm spices that stand in for allspice.