Can You Grind Cloves In A Coffee Grinder? -

This post contains affiliate links. Read the full disclosure here.

Contents

Grinding cloves at home becomes easy when you have the appropriate machine to use. A coffee grinder is a machine that can be used to grind coffee among many other things, but can it be used for cloves? Well, let’s find out.

Can you grind cloves in a coffee grinder? Yes, you can grind cloves in a coffee grinder but it is not advisable to grind whole cloves with a coffee grinder because it can damage the plastic.

If you are considering grinding cloves with a coffee grinder then I suggest that you get this – KRUPS F203 Electric Spice and Coffee Grinder with Stainless Steel Blades. This machine can handle grinding hard substances like coffee and cloves without its parts wearing out.

After a lot of reviews on this, I discovered that to grind a whole clove you have to make use of a motorized spice grinder (such as this Commercial High-speed Electric spice/Herb Grinder ) with a metal part. The whole cloves include the dried buds and the nail of the cloves.

How to grind cloves in a coffee grinder

To grind cloves in a coffee grinder, you need to follow a few processes. I’d direct you on how to grind your cloves in a coffee grinder below.

Step 1: Dry the cloves

Ensure you dry the cloves before breaking them into smaller pieces in a bowl. This step will make it a whole lot easier for the blades of your coffee grinder to drive through without much stress. You can use a dehydrator, or better still, sundry the cloves until you are certain all the cloves are out.

Step 2: Use a mesh to cover the cloves

When you use a mesh to cover the cloves when drying, it prevents dust from gaining access during the drying process. If you are using a dehydrator, however, this step wouldn’t be necessary since dehydrators come with their own covering.

Step 3: Connect your coffee grinder to electricity

Before proceeding to grind your cloves after drying, ensure you plug in your coffee grinder to a power source if it is the electric model – set up the manual coffee grinders for grinding purposes.

Step 4: Grind cloves

You can start putting the smaller pieces of cloves in your coffee grinder and start grinding by pressing the start button. Depending on how you want your cloves grounded, make sure you set your coffee grinder to the appropriate texture based on the recipe.

As the grounding continues, endeavour to check the texture to be sure you’re getting what you want.

Step 5: Sieve the grounded cloves

After grinding your cloves for the first time, sieve the powder into a bowl, then feel free to pour the coarse cloves into the coffee grinder and grind for a second time to get a good result. Continue this process until you get the required texture you want.

Once you are through, ensure you clean the coffee grinder especially if you still have to use it to grind coffee.

What else can you use to grind cloves?

Although using a coffee grinder is one of the preferred chef options when grinding cloves and other spices, other kitchen tools can also do a good job in that regard. Let’s take a look.

Mortar and pestle

Thanks to their weight, having a mortar and pestle (such as this Vertice Household Large Granite Mortar and Mortar) will definitely do an effective job in grinding your cloves and other spices you might have in mind. They are also very good at extracting oil from herbs and the likes.

Mortars and pestle are also very easy to clean, and unlike some other kitchen appliances like the coffee grinder that may require you to dismantle, the mortar and pestle only require a dishwasher and a sponge to be clean. They also have a shelve life of up to 20-years as well.

Food processor

Food processors will always be a must-have in a complete kitchen setup. Their versatility is top-notch when it comes to getting food prepared.

From smoothies to making soup, the list is endless. You can also grind your spices in a food processor including cloves and the likes, but unlike the mortar and pestle, you may not be able to extract oil from spices.

Cleaning a food processor doesn’t really require much as well, but just like the coffee grinder, you may require the use of the manual to dismantle the parts for effective cleaning.

Spice grinder

Obviously, a spice grinder should come to mind when it comes to grinding cloves, and I dare say there are good ones out there like this Commercial High-speed Electric spice/Herb Grinder

But one of the reasons I choose not to take spice grinder seriously is the limitation in its usage. Of all the kitchen appliances I have mentioned in this article, the spice grinder is the only kitchen appliance that has a one-dimensional function unlike the coffee grinder, the mortar and pestle, and the food processor.

Besides its limitation, using spice grinders to grind cloves can make consume your time when it comes to cleaning.

How to clean your coffee grinder after using it to grind cloves

The coffee grinder needs proper maintenance so the machine’s performance would not reduce. After using the coffee grinder to grind either your coffee bean, cloves, or spice, it is very necessary to clean it.

Just making use of a towel to clean the coffee grinder is not the right way to clean your coffee grinder, there are steps involved to clean it properly and I’d list them below. However, note that there are two types of coffee grinder, and their clean modes differ

Blade grinder
Burr grinder

Cleaning a blade grinder

Cleaning a blade coffee grinder requires the following apparatus or equipment:

Large bowl
Microfiber towel
Bottlebrush
Sponge
Uncooked rice (1/4 cup) or Cleaning tablets for coffee grinder

Step 1: Plugin your coffee grinder to a power source

Plugin your coffee grinder to a power source as soon as you have everything required to clean your blade coffee grinder.

Step 2: Pour your uncooked rice or cleaning tablets into the coffee grinder

Pour in ¼ cup of uncooked rice or the required amount of cleaning tablets in your coffee grinder. This will help absorb any form of moisture that might be present after grinding your cloves or any other item in your coffee grinder.

Step 3: Turn on your grinder

After pouring in the rice, turn on your coffee grinder and grind the content within until the rice or cleaning tablets are reduced to very fine powder – the smoother the rice, the more effective the result. You can continue this step if you didn’t get it right before turning off the grinder.

Step 4: Turn off the coffee grinder and remove the rice

Once you are certain of the powder texture of your rice, turn off your coffee grinder and remove the content. You can decide to do whatever you want with the grounded rice, but I prefer to throw mine into the trash can.

Don’t forget to unplug the coffee grinder from the power source, because the next step wouldn’t require any sort of electrical interference.

Step 5: Use your microfiber towel to clean

After turning off your coffee grinder from the power source, dampen your microfiber towel with water and clean inside the hopper.

While doing this, ensure you are mindful of the blade section to void any sort of injuries. Take time to also clean the exterior of your coffee grinder to remove lingering fingerprints and the likes.

Once you are done, your coffee grinder can be used to grind coffee again without having the fear of your coffee tastings like cloves or anything else you might have grounded with your meat grinder.

Cleaning a burr coffee grinder

Unlike the regular blade coffee grinders, burr coffee grinders are a tad complex when it comes to cleaning.

This is because burr coffee grinders can defer in design and size, and some might require a full dismantle before they can be cleaned properly.

It is advised that you consult the wisdom of your instruction manual before proceeding to clean your bur coffee grinder. However, here are the general steps involved in cleaning a regular burr coffee grinder;

Step 1: Empty the hopper of any coffee beans

Remove any coffee beans in the hopper section of your coffee grinder that might still be useful. Put them in any available container for storage because the hopper will have to be properly washed and clean.

Step 2: Remove the hopper and wash

Following the instructions of the user manual of your burr coffee grinder, remove the hopper and wash it thoroughly – this includes removable gaskets and lids.

Don’t use a dishwasher, instead, use your hand. You are advised to use hot soapy water for the cleaning process, and when you are done, rinse adequately with hot water, and also use a microfiber towel to dry.

Step 3: Turn on the grinder for a few seconds

By few seconds I mean less than a minute. Turning on your burr coffee grinder for the said duration will help pulverize any small amount of coffee beans hanging anywhere in the burr blades of your coffee grinder. As soon as the time elapses, switch of your coffee grinder, or better still, unplug it from the power outlet.

Step 4: Disassemble and wash the parts that come in contact with the coffee beans

Using your user manual. Carefully remove the parts that come in contact with the coffee beans apart from the bur.

These parts include the bin that comes in close contact and catches the ground coffee. Don’t use a dishwasher to wash these components, rather, use your hands and wash them in your kitchen sink or bowl containing hot soapy water.

After washing, rinse with clean hot water then use your microfiber towel to dry out these parts.

Step 5: Remove the burr from its position and clean

Depending on your coffee burr grinder, some models might require the use of a screwdriver to remove the bur disk.

Once removed, use a bottle brush to remove any coffee grounds around your coffee burr disk stuck on its surface. On completion, use a microfiber towel to clean off the remaining particles and also absorb any sort of oils.

Kindly note that you are advised not to wash the burr with soap and water like the other components as this could cause rusting.

Step 6: Reassemble the burr grinder when the removed parts are completely dried

As soon as the parts are dried, fix the burr disc in its position, as well as other components you removed when cleaning. Your coffee grinder should be ready to use once all the parts are in place.

Additional information

If you intend to use coffee grinder tablets rather than using your hands to clean, you are advised to strictly follow the dosage prescribed in the label for the best result.

After grinding these tablets pour out the powder and pour in about an ounce of coffee beans to the hopper and let it grind. After the coffee is grounded, pour it out and ensure you properly wash the bin to remove any lingering tablet content.

FAQs

Can you grind whole cloves in a coffee grinder?

Experts do not recommend that you grind whole cloves in a coffee grinder due to the damaging effects it can have on the plastic, however, using spice grinders like this one (click here for more details) will get the job done for you.

Can you use a coffee grinder to grind spices?

Yes, you can use a coffee grinder to grind spices. Expert chefs have even recommended the use of coffee grinders to grind hot spices due to the effect the blade of the coffee grinders has on the spices. Some have suggested having two coffee grinders, one for making coffee, and the other for making spices.

Are coffee grinders the same as a spice grinder?

No, they are not. Coffee grinders may be used to grind coffee and spices to maximum effects, but spice grinders can be used to grind only spices, although some persons grind their coffee using spice grinders – that’s a sight you hardly see unlike seeing coffee grinders being used to grind spices.

Are coffee grinders worth it?

As a coffee person, nothing can be more relaxing than having a cup of freshly brewed coffee from the confines of your kitchen. With a coffee grinder in your kitchen, you get to determine the strength and flavour of your kitchen compared to when you make the order for coffee from a coffee shop.