Basically the title. I want to learn more about some ingredients or food items that you use frequently in your cooking and that aren’t super common where you live.
Example: Roasted sesame oil. Didn’t know there was such a thing until a year ago, and I never want to miss it again.
Brit.
HP Sauce. Marmite. Worcestershire Sauce.
I love sumac. The spice. I put it on everything. Amazing lemony taste with a beautiful red colour.
Also a big sumac fan. And zaatar, which contains lots.
Oh yes zaatar is so good
Smoked paprika
So amazing! Apparently there’s a lady at the grocery store that will literally buy out the entire stock when it comes in sometimes.
That lady is not me, because I’m a sad lady when it happens and I can’t buy any lol
Penzey’s has outstanding smoked paprika if you’re in the US! I’m not sure they ship elsewhere though.
Indeedy they do! They’re pricey though so I don’t order from them often. Mother will probably get me a gift card to them for the holidays so it’s just a matter of time!
Smoked paprika is what made me go vegetarian without missing meat. That definitely has become a staple.
I have a deep, torrid addiction to Sriracha (‘rooster’) sauce.
It’s awesome.
I use it instead of ketchup.
Dehydrated mushrooms.
They’re shelf stable, delicious, and healthy. They can be the focus of a meal like a stir-fry, or you can add them into anything savory (rehydrated or ground up) to give it more flavor depth— spaghetti sauce or chili are great examples. Throw some in ramen for an easy fancy-up.
They’re amazing.
This. I also pulverizer them into a powder to sprinkle into dishes.
My mother. Is on a very reduced salt diet. I introduced her to mushroom powder and she really likes the flavor it brings to everything.
Gochujang and Miso. They are very versatile ingredients.
Oh, I love Gochujang. Goes very well with the sesame oil, too!
Fresh mint, not ridiculously uncommon or anything but I never see people buying it and its rarely called for in recipes I encounter. I use it in a ton of soups, salads, and dressings. Also its like my favorite flavor ever.
I don’t love mint as a food ingredient, but it’s good to have on-hand because you never know when you’re gonna need an emergency mojito.
Maybe not very uncommon but very underrated!
I grow my own!
I hope you’re fencing that shit in, because every time I tried to grow mint, it took over the entire pot and the ones next to it.
I have an old wood box that overflows with mint.
Anything outside the box gets the weed wacker.
Works well enough.
Then again oregano made of easy in there and it’s like the Blood War in there now.
Sometimes the mint starts taking over, sometimes it’s the oregano.
Furikake.
Oh hey, I recently got some as a gift. Do you use it on just rice or what do you use it for?
Yep! You can also make onigiris and dip them in it
Mostly rice, but it’s pretty versatile and there are lots of flavor variations so it could work for all sorts of dishes.
Lemon pepper. It’s surprising what a little sweet kick can do for food. My personal favorite is to put lemon pepper on cream cheese on a bagel.
Hoisin Sauce - Umami bomb!
So here’s what you do…
Marinate chicken breast in soy sauce a good couple hours or overnight.
Chop it into cubes, put them on skewers and grill until done.
Take an onion bun, paint one side with peanut sauce, the other with hoisin sauce. Stack up the chicken, top off with a slaw mixture, green and purple cabbage, shredded carrots.
Top all that off with sweet chili sauce. Put the top bun on and enjoy!
Capers are more useful than one might think.
Canned chipotles in adobo are really good additions to anything savory. Add it to mayo or mac n cheese for a smoky & tangy depth of flavor. Plus where I live it’s like 70¢ a can, which is a great price for how much it upgrades the dish.
A good rice cooker.
I use my zojirushi all the time and it makes perfect or near perfect rice every time.
For some easy umami, dried porcini mushrooms are great
For some easy umami, dried porcini mushrooms are great
Why not just
I was thinking about getting a rice cooker. Do you have any recommendations?
I have a Zojirushi NS-ZCC10 that gets used 3-5 times a week since I got it 12 years ago. It’s an amazing kitchen tool and the rice comes out fantastic every time. Sometimes I’ll set it up to make steel cut oats so they are ready for me when I wake up in the morning.
We have a Zojirushi NP-HCC18, it’s a beast, you likely don’t need anything this crazy. Every Zojirushi that I’ve used has been great. ( the mildly smart ones, with buttons/menu options)
I make a veggie version which is just fresh lime juice, thinly sliced red onions, thinly sliced habaneros, and fresh cilantro. It can be used to make ceviche, which is a delicious cold-cooked fish dish (and Latino counterpart to sashimi), or just use it as a zesty side that can be added to just about anything non-sweet.
Simple to make, stores for weeks, low cal and super-healthy.
Mushroom bouillon for sure. Toss it into any rice and get an amazing flavor.
