All Ingredients

These egg and wheat flour noodles are used to make chow mein, in which the cooked noodles are formed into a pancake and fried on both sides.

These are black-eyed peas that have been skinned and split. Look for them in Indian markets.

This is a general term in Chinese for the tender inner stalks and flowers of green vegetables. White choy sum usually refers to bok choy, while green choy sum refers to yau choy.

These taste a bit like chestnuts when cooked.

This Asian potherb is used to flavor salads, soups, sukiyaki and other dishes. The leaves are usually blanched briefly to soften them and deepen their color, but young leaves can be served raw. Add them to cooked dishes at the last minute, as they become bitter if overcooked. Some people may have an alergic reaction to chrysanthemum leaves.

These are popular in Spain and Latin America, where they're used to make horchata. They aren't really nuts, but starchy tubers that taste like chestnuts.

These are Japanese ramen noodles that are dyed yellow and usually lower in fat.

Ciabatta ("slipper" in Italian) is a rustic bread with a heavy crust and a dense crumb.

These crisp, finger-length Italian cookies are flavored with anise. They're often stuffed with fruit or other fillings.

This ring-shaped cake is lightly sweetened and flavored with lemon zest and dried fruit. Romans like to serve it for breakfast at Easter.

This fern-like herb has a strong anise flavor. It's not well known in the United States, but it's popular in Scandinavia, where it's often used to flavor desserts.

Made from fermented apples, this fruity vinegar is inexpensive and tangy. While it's not the best choice for vinaigrettes or delicate sauces, it works well in chutneys, hearty stews, and marinades. It's also used to make pickles, though it will darken light-colored fruits and vegetables.

Cilantro leaves are used throughout the world as a fragrant herb. Hispanic cooks use it in salsas, Asians in stir-fries, and Indians in curries. The seeds (called coriander seeds), stems, and roots of the plant are also used. Cilantro doesn't cook very well, so always add it to hot dishes at the last minute. Don't confuse cilantro with Italian parsley, which looks just like it but isn't nearly as fragrant

With its warm, sweet flavor, cinnamon is one of the biggest workhorses on the spice shelf. Cooks often use it to flavor baked goods and drinks, but cinnamon also works wonders in stews and sauces. The best cinnamon is Ceylon cinnamon = canela = Sri Lanka cinnamon = true cinnamon. Indonesian cinnamon has a similar taste, but larger quills. Much of the cinnamon sold in the United States is cassia cinnamon, which isn't as well regarded.

Cinnamon cap mushrooms have a firm texture and an earthy flavor.

This is sometimes used as a home remedy for toothaches, but cooks also use it to make hard candies and cinnamon apples.

These round, flat Italian onions are about one to two inches in diameter. They're available in the fall.

A specialty of the Umbrian region of Italy, this is a ribbon of pasta that's been twisted and stretched until it's a long, thin rod, roughly twice the diameter of spaghetti.

This resembles a large, bumpy lemon. Its thick rind is used to make marmalade, and its zest is a close substitute to lemon zest.

This is a Mexican orange liqueur.

This is America's most popular ham, the kind that's pink, moist, and sweet. Fresh hams are soaked in brine (or injected with it) and then boiled or lightly smoked. Boneless hams = boned hams are easier to carve, but they're not as flavorful or attractive as bone-in hams. A good compromise is to buy a bone-in spiral-sliced ham, which combines good flavor and convenience, or a ham steak (pictured at right). City hams usually come fully cooked (check the label), but most people reheat them before serving.

See also pismo clam, soft-shell clam, razor clam, Manila clam, hard-shell clam, bar clam, and geoduck clam. Storage: Unopened canned clams can be stored for up to a year in a dry, cool place. Once opened, it will keep for up to two days if you wrap it well and refrigerate it.

Varieties include the brown clamshell mushroom (left). This mushroom goes well with seafood or meats. Cook them before eating.

This is butter without the milk solids, so it doesn't go rancid or smoke when heated to a high temperature. Look for jars of it in Indian markets.

This modified cornstarch is the secret ingredient that many commercial bakers use in their fruit pie fillings. Unlike ordinary cornstarch, ClearJel® works well with acidic ingredients, tolerates high temperatures, and doesn't cause pie fillings to weep" during storage. ClearJel® is an especially good choice if you're canning homemade pie fillings, since it doesn't begin thickening until the liquid begins to cool. This allows the heat the be more evenly distributed within the jar during processing. This is such an important safety advantage that ClearJel® is the only thickener the USDA recommends for home canning. You can also use ClearJel® to thicken sauces, stews, and the like, though it's a rather expensive all-purpose thickener. One downside is that products thickened with ClearJel® tend to break down if they're frozen and thawed. If you plan to freeze what you're making, use Instant ClearJel®, arrowroot, or tapioca starch. ClearJel® is available either as pearls or powder from mail-order suppliers, but it's not yet available in grocery stores.

See the Making Your Own Devonshire or Clotted Cream or Mock Devonshire Clotted Cream postings on RecipeSource.com.

It's hard to find these fresh, but dried cloud ears are an excellent substitute. Reconstitute them by soaking or simmering them in lots of water for a few hours.

Both the color and flavor of these Scandinavian berries pale in comparison to the raspberry.

These preserves are sweet and somewhat mild. Look for them in Scandinavian markets.

Cloves are nail-shaped dried flower buds that have a sweet, penetrating flavor. They can be ground and used to flavor baked goods or sauces, or left whole and poked into roasted hams or pork. Use cloves sparingly--a little goes a long way.

Most recipes calling for salt intend for you to use finely ground salt, though coarse salt is better for certain things, like making beds for oysters and salt crusts on meat or fish, or for lining baking dishes or the rims of margarita glasses. Many professional chefs like to cook with it because they can measure it more easily with their fingers. Kosher salt and sea salt often come coarsely ground.

Time-challenged cooks toss chicken pieces or pork chops into bags filled with this seasoned crumb mix, then place them on a pan and bake them. Shake 'N Bake® is a popular brand.

This is for mixing cocktails.

These are used to shake and strain cocktails.

These are smaller than hot dogs, but larger than Vienna sausages.