Cloves are a pungent spice found in savory dishes, desserts, and drinks. Ground or whole cloves flavor meat, sauces, and rice dishes. Cloves are often used along with cinnamon and nutmeg in sweet dishes, especially "pumpkin pie" flavored items for the autumn and winter holidays, and in drinks such as mulled wine, cider, or chai. Whole or ground cloves are used to flavor sauces, soups and rice dishes, notably a number of traditional Indian dishes. whole cloves have a very hard, woody texture that would be unpleasant to bite into.

Cloves are a pungent spice found in savory dishes, desserts, and drinks.