Alum’s primary culinary use is as a food preservative/crisping agent for pickles. It is used as a soak, so you will have to wash the pickled items before using them. The next most significant culinary use for it is in baking powder. In either case, there are reasons that you …
Ssamjang means “wrap sauce” in Korean. It has the name because it is traditionally used on Korean wraps (called ssam) that are usually consumed as street food. You will need it if you plan to make ssam yourself or any of the other dishes that ssamjang can improve. If you …
Pickling salt is used to provide flavor, but it serves an even more practical function in that it helps to kill bacteria that can make you sick. The latter function means that you have to take your substitutes seriously since pickling comes with the danger of botulism. Not every salt or salt-like …
Winter savory is a valuable herb for bean dishes and you can use it to season a variety of different meats, poultry in particular. Its main downside is that unless you plan to grow it yourself, you will probably have a hard time finding it. If you want some good …
Wasabi is the quintessential Japanese spice and is necessary if you decide to make your own homemade sashimi or wasabi peas. The problem is that real wasabi is hard to find and when you can find it, it tends to be expensive. That’s where wasabi substitutes come in. With the …
Creole seasoning provides the flavors of Creole cuisine, which you will need if you are making Creole favorites like etouffee or Jambalaya. It is one of Louisiana’s two main seasoning blends and something you should keep in your spice cabinet if food from that part of the world appeals to …
Cassia buds are not as commonly used as other parts of the cassia tree, but they are still useful for providing a novel twist on the cinnamon flavor. However, that cassia buds are not a well-known spice means that you may have a hard time hunting them down. If you …
Epazote is a Mexican herb with a long history of use by both Aztecs and Mayans. In both food cultures, it was primarily a medicinal herb. Today, you may see it as one of the ingredients in some Mexican recipes; in particular, recipes from Yucatan. It is rarely used outside …