I use an inexpensive coffee grinder (reserved just for spices). I just tried it on black cardamom (which, thanks to you, I just happen to have LOL) and I had ground cardamom in about 4 seconds :-) Smells great!

Here is a link that might be useful: I have an older version of this one

I use a coffee grinder and then clean it by grinding a tablespoon or two of dry white rice.

I have a capresso spice grinder and it works great. I wasn't looking for one when it jumped into my arms from the discount shelf. (my old college coffee grinder had been my spice grinder for years when i upgraded the coffee grinding). It died. I think it was a Braun but looked just like the Krups that gets good Amazon reviews.

The Capresso has a slightly bigger container and i use it for grinding seed for mustards, grains for crackers, spice mixes for grilling, etc. I've had it about a year now.
You will use it. Seed spices are so much fresher ground when needed. Andy you can lightly toast them first before grinding. We still buy bag flour for bread baking, but i can quickly add a 1/2 cup of other healthy grains/seeds to the mix.

Still use our mortar/pestle for certain things. Best for grinding fresh herbs with garlic, salt and oils...

The elec grinders are not for liquids, but many seeds release their oils when ground and, like mentioned, a bit of rice will clean that out.

Here is a link that might be useful: krups spice grinder

I like KRUPS coffee/spice mills. I've tried a couple other brands over the decades, but I keep coming back to KRUPS. I mill seemingly "tons" of flax and chia seeds in it week after week - along with so many other things. You just need to be careful using them. Some things can scratch the cup/cover.

My next choice is a Porkert (Poppy) Seed Mill, made in the Czech Republic, because not only will it mill spices, peppercorns and seeds, but it's what I use to mill small grains and seeds into flour - amaranth, teff, poppy seeds, chia, flax, as well as coffee and nuts.

It has to be clamped to a solid surface (I have a wood-topped milling cart I use for other things that need clamped down - meat grinder, wheatgrass juicer, other grain mills, flaker mill, etc.) and is hand-powered. Amazon.com occasionally carries them and the link below has one available at Lehman's.

-Grainlady

Here is a link that might be useful: Lehman's

Oh good, thanks graingoddess, lol.
I was going to ask about hand mills.
Ordering that. We suffered storm Igor.
Stranded. I was grinding, (smashing), coffee in a kitchen towel, with a rock and hammer. No power for 10 days.
(We have a back-up generator in NY.)

Here is a link that might be useful: storm igor

sleevendog, have I got a recipe for you! But first, I have a Vortex hand-crank blender and a hand-crank mini-food processor. Nothing like living through long periods of time without gas and electricity.....

WHOLE BEAN COFFEE (no grinding necessary)
Place 2 T. whole beans per 6-oz. boiling water in a Thermos. Lay on side (to distribute the mixture) for 1-hour. The resulting coffee is lighter in color and won't have the bitterness associated with brewed coffee.

-Grainlady

This post was edited by grainlady on Fri, Dec 6, 13 at 11:11

Thanks, everyone.
I just ordered the Krups 203-42 spice grinder Sleevendog linked to and Grainlady recommended. $16.49 + free shipping on Amazon Prime.

Lizbeth-gardener, I didn't know the ground-rice-for-cleaning trick. Thanks. I will definitely use it.

Malna--I seriously considered the one you linked to. It is pretty. But decided the slightly better reviews on the krups were worth the few extra bucks. I AM curious to know what you think of black cardamom.

Sleevendog--I opened your link to storm Igor. Wow!! I followed it in the news when it was happening, but hadn't thought of it recently.

As I probably told you before, I have VERY fond memories of circumnavigating (by car) Newfoundland. Lovely people, super great seafood. Our days at Tickle Inn are memory jewels in my mental treasure chest. I hope we can do it again. And I WILL go over to Labrador next time.

Grainlady
We live in a very wooded area where big limbs bring down power lines every year or two. Sometimes we go days without power if the storm is widespread. I will remember your boiling water and whole beans coffee recipe! The gas range still works when power is out, but the generator doesn't power any of the kitchen outlets.

I am looking forward to using the spice grinder.

Sandra

Warning: Don't grind whole cloves. They scratched the heck out of the plastic lid and it was a PITA to clean (I did rice, baking soda, more rice, etc...took a while to get the clove oil out of all the crooks and nannies :-) Other than that, I've done allspice, cinnamon sticks, coriander, peppercorns, mustard seeds...gosh, just all kinds of whole spices - cloves (so far) were the only ones that gave me fits.

I've found a couple of recipes for the black cardamom that I'll tinker with and see what happens. I'll let you know.

Another source we probably all have and don't really think about is a pepper or salt mill, and those plastic spice grinders that have prepared spice mixtures in can be recycled once empty (Aldi carries a brand - Stonemill Essentials - that unscrew, but look carefully, some brands have tops that are glued on and not removable).

I reuse these small plastic grinders and keep some filled with, nigella, whole cloves, whole allspice, caraway seeds, and you can make your own mixtures -- lemon pepper is one you can easily make yourself with dried lemon zest and/or peel and peppercorns - add some coarse salt if you like a salted version, or leave it out for salt-free.

For whole nutmeg I use a microplane. I have a handy-dandy nutmeg mill, but the grind looks more like fine wood shavings and not worth the investment.

You should also break large things into small bits before milling in a spice mill. Freeze them first, place in a small paper bag, and whack with a hammer, or even better, the bottom of an iron skillet. Large spices and peppercorns shatter more if you freeze them and whack them while they are still frozen.

-Grainlady

Malna - You mean something like this? The result of grinding whole cloves, once, in my mini-chopper.

Yep, I have that same "frosted" look (grin).

"WHOLE BEAN COFFEE (no grinding necessary)
Place 2 T. whole beans per 6-oz. boiling water in a Thermos. Lay on side (to distribute the mixture) for 1-hour. The resulting coffee is lighter in color and won't have the bitterness associated with brewed coffee."

Haha, oh my. Coffee broth? I suppose i could chew a few beans with it. (kidding). I should try it anywho. I'm snowed in right now and tops on my storm list is GRIND COFFEE. The hammer works if caught off guard.
I don't expect to loose power with just 4inches. I just need to shovel our long driveway when it lets up...

-I should point out that 10 days without power is NOTHING compared to those still suffering after recent storms. It is tragic. It is the unexpected and the unknown that being a bit prepared is worth noting. I have a list that we refer to now. We lost contact and were tending to elderly neighbors and i got sick from a spider bite and dehydration...supplies could not reach us. But we fished from kayaks to save boat fuel and i lanced the spider bite that had me in fever one night. A neighbor up the hill has a good water well....so we were fine. But it was 24/7 survival mode.

Lehman's is a good source. They sell our wood cook stove. And they have a hand grinder that fits a ball jar as well.
The other seems more multi-use if needed i think.

Grainlady,
Thank you for the reminder to break large spices into smaller chunks before grinding. I might have tried just poking in the end of a cinnamon stick and started grinding!

How DOES one grind cloves, by the way? In a separate minigrinder? After freezing and pre-breaking them into chunks and then into the Krups?

Seriously, I need to read up on which spices should be seeded before grinding and which ones are ground whole. I am not at all sure of black cardamom, for instance.

Sleevendog
When we were at Tickle Inn in Newfoundland, I asked the owner what his LEAST favorite season was, certain he would say Winter. Nope, Spring--because it was muddy with thaw and travel was impossible. His favorite? Winter, because he could anywhere he wanted (with his snowmobile and snowshoes.) I was really amused at how different our realities were.

Thank you for reminding me of Lehman's. I really like the coffee grinder that fits on a mason jar. I think it was you or grainlady who suggested I look at their site when I was looking for a meat grinder. I spent quite a while browsing there. And I am very pleased with the LEM grinder I bought (from Amazon, not Lehman's)--and so are the cat and dog!

Glad you are not without power this time--and that you have a check list for when it happens again.

Bellsmom, I agree, a mortar and pestle doesn't always work. Tried doing cloves in one the other day, and ended up bringing out the coffee grinder.

I had a coffee grinder that was so old it was held together with duct tape, but it did the job. Then I was in a store and saw a coffee grinder on for 15.00 or less and bought it. I only use it for spices. There are manual ones or electric, but I prefer the electric as I find I can get a finer grind.

You can also get a coffee grinder used for probably really cheap.

But I do think it is a useful gadget to have.

I just made achiote paste. The capresso grinder is stainless all the way up the bowl. Just the overcap is plastic, so no 'dusting' scratches.
I'm guessing the krups is the same from what i remember.

How to grind whole cloves.... It is my understanding you snap off the clove head and only grind the stem/stick portion. Otherwise the powder is too strong. FYI - clove oil (from grinding whole cloves) can damage plastic parts.

I also remember when I was a kid, my mother needed ground cloves for a recipe and all she had was whole cloves. She snapped off the softer "buds" at the top and crushed them in a tiny paper bag with a rolling pin (that was before plastic sandwich and storage bags were common). Somewhat noteworthy since we usually don't need ground cloves in large quantities, and it might save damaging a coffee/spice mill.

-Grainlady