The tonka bean has a sweet and noble bitter aroma and tastes like vanilla. The sweet and noble bitter beans can also be used as a bitter almond substitute and for chocolate desserts. The tonka bean also goes well with desserts based on poppy seeds and coconut, or with biscuits and cakes. The tonka bean is always added in very small quantities to the dough or filling. The tonka bean is best used with other sweet spices such as cinnamon, saffron or vanilla. They are ideal for typical vanilla desserts such as crème brûlée, panna cotta, puddings or vanilla ice cream.

The hard beans are best rubbed with a nutmeg or cheese grater and added to the food. 1-2 tonka beans can also be heated in a liter of milk for about 10 minutes, so that their fine sweet aroma is then released into the milk overnight.

1-2 tonka beans are enough to make 1liter of sweet food. The flavoring power of the tonka beans is so strong that the beans can be boiled up to ten times. Always wash thoroughly with cold water and dry before storage.