Mace vs Nutmeg: What’s the Difference?

Did you know that mace and nutmeg are from the same tree? They share the same botanical name, but culinary-wise they are different spices. What are all the differences between mace and nutmeg?

There are many differences between mace and nutmeg, but the main differences are their flavor, color, and cost.

We’ll explain the differences between mace vs. nutmeg – as well as their similarities – in this article!

What are mace and nutmeg?

Mace is a spice that comes from the fruit of the Myristica fragrans tree. Mace comes from the outer lacy covering (aril) of the seed of the fruit. The seed of the fruit is used as the spice nutmeg, which means that mace and nutmeg come from the same source, just different parts.

Both mace and nutmeg can be found whole and ground, but the ground versions are usually more popular for cooking and baking. Some people like to buy whole spices and grind them to ensure they have the freshest flavor, but recipes generally call for the ground versions.

Mace vs. nutmeg – main differences

Mace and nutmeg come from the same source (the pit of the fruit of the nutmeg tree), so what are their major differences? There are a few, which we’ll highlight next!

Flavor

Compared to each other, mace is considered the spicier spice between the two. Mace has flavors similar to cinnamon and pepper, while nutmeg’s flavor is described as warm, nutty, and slightly sweet.

Because mace is more intense in flavor, if you use it in place of nutmeg in a recipe you might need to use less, so start with a small amount and increase to a 1:1 ratio per your preference.

Appearance

Mace

When fresh, mace is a bright scarlet webbing surrounding the fruit’s pit used as nutmeg. Once dried, its color fades a bit to an orange-ish red color. When ground, mace looks similar to cumin and cinnamon with an orange-ish brown color.

While ground mace is usually the more common form of this spice, some people use whole mace when making things like soups and mulled wine. Similar to how you’d use a bay leaf, the whole piece of mace needs to be removed after cooking and before serving. A piece of whole mace is referred to as a “blade”.

Nutmeg

Whole nutmeg looks a little like walnuts in terms of their egg shape and brown color, but it’s a bit smaller (around one inch long and ½-¾ inch wide). Ground nutmeg (the most popular form) is a sandy brown color without the red undertones mace has.

If you get a whole nutmeg, how the heck do you use it?! First, you’ll need to crack the hard outer shell and then use a grater to grate the whole spice into a usable powder. You can buy a dedicated nutmeg grater for this or use a cheese grater.

Cost

Mace is usually more expensive compared to nutmeg. The price difference is due to the availability of mace compared to nutmeg – it takes around five pounds of nutmeg pits to get one pound of mace since there is a greater volume of nutmeg compared to mace.

The cost of nutmeg and mace will vary depending on the manufacturer and the form (whole vs. ground). We were surprised to see that Walmart’s Great Value brand’s nutmeg was more expensive than their mace, so the rule of mace costing more might not always be the case.

Uses

Mace

Mace is used in soups, curries, stews, and drinks like mulled wine and mulled cider. It’s popular in Indian dishes as well as other types of cuisine.

Nutmeg

Nutmeg has a milder, less spicy flavor so it tends to be a bit more common in recipes. It’s used in sweet and savory dishes from meats and vegetables to sweet treats like pumpkin pie (and pumpkin spice lattes) and eggnog. 

Are mace and nutmeg the same?

Mace and nutmeg come from the same source – the pit of the fruit of the nutmeg tree. They are different parts of the pit, though – mace is the outer lacy covering and nutmeg is the seed mace surrounds – so they are different spices culinary-wise.

There is another plant that serves double-duty but as an herb AND a spice, and that’s the coriander plant. The seeds are used as the spice coriander and the leaves of the plant are the herb cilantro.

Summary of similarities and differences between mace vs. nutmeg

	Mace	Nutmeg
Botanical name	Myristica fragrans	Myristica fragrans
Whole	Yes – referred to as a “blade”	Yes – whole kernels
Ground	Yes	Yes
Appearance	Reddish brown	Sandy brown
Flavor	Spicier, similar to cinnamon + black pepper	Milder compared to mace; nutty, warm, slightly sweet
Cost	Usually more expensive than nutmeg	Usually less expensive than mace

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