All Ingredients

bammy, bammy bread, yucca cake
bammy
Jamaicans love to butter these cakes and eat them with fish. Bammies are made of grated cassava, and often soaked in coconut milk before being fried.
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banana, burro banana, Cavendish bananas, chunkey, chunky, red banana
banana
Most of the bananas you and I have eaten in our lifetimes are the yellow Cavendish bananas. The burro banana = chunkey = chunky is shorter than the Cavendish, and has an interesting lemony flavor. The manzano banana is smaller yet and a bit drier, but it fits nicely into lunch boxes. The red banana has a purple peel and is best used for baking. The plantain is larger than other banana varieties, and is usually fried, baked, or mashed before eating. Yellow bananas with a few dark spots are ripe and ready to eat, while green ones will ripen at room temperature in just a few days. Refrigerating ripe bananas will keep them from getting softy and mushy, though the peels will darken.
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banana blossom, banana flower
banana blossom
These are popular in Southeast Asia and India, where they're boiled in water or coconut milk, then eaten like artichokes
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banana catsup
Available in Asian food stores. This brownish sauce is often colored red to resemble tomato catsup.
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banana leaves
banana leaves
People in the tropics use these huge leaves to line cooking pits and to wrap everything from pigs to rice. The leaves impart a subtle anise fragrance to food and protect it while it's cooking. Frozen leaves--once thawed--work just fine. Boil the leaves before using them to keep them from cracking. Look for banana leaves among the frozen foods in Asian, Hispanic, or specialty markets.
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banana pepper , banana chile, sweet banana pepper, banana chili pepper
banana pepper
These sweet, mild peppers with a fruity flavor are easily confused with hotter yellow wax peppers. Sample before using.
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banana squash
banana squash
This variety is so large that grocers usually cut into smaller chunks before putting it out. It's tasty, but its biggest virtue is the beautiful golden color of its flesh.
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banger
banger
Bangers are a mild British pork sausage.
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Banyuls
This is a red dessert wine that's produced in France. It's one of the few wines that's good with chocolate.
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baobab leaves
baobab leaves
African cooks use leaves from the massive baobab tree to thicken their stews. Like okra, the leaves give the dish a slimy texture that's characteristic of West African stews.
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barbari bread, nan-e barbari, Persian flat bread
barbari bread
This flatbread hails from Iran.
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barbecue sauce, barbeque sauce, BBQ sauce
barbecue sauce
See the Kansas City BBQ Sauce recipe, Yet Another BBQ Sauce recipe, both posted by RecipeSource.com.
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barbecue tools
barbecue tools
These usually include a spatula, tongs and a fork.
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Barbera
Barbera
This is a hearty red wine that's usually blended into jug wines, but sometimes sold as an inexpensive varietal wine
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barhi date (fresh)
barhi dates (fresh)
These yellow barhi dates can be peeled and eaten fresh or dried.
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Barley
Barley
Barley's been feeding humans for millennia, though it fell out of favor during the last one as people came to see it as low-brow peasant fare. It's most often used in soups and stews, where it serves as both a puffy grain and a thickener, but it also makes a nice side dish or salad. At most markets, you'll have to choose between two types of barley. Hulled barley is the most nutritious, since only the tough outer hulls are polished off. Pearl barley is polished some more, so that the outer bran layer is also scrubbed off. It's less nutritious, but more popular since it's not as chewy as hulled barley and it cooks faster.
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barley flakes, flaked barley, rolled barley
barley flakes
To make this, barley kernels are sliced, then rolled flat into flakes. Like rolled oats, rolled barley is usually served as a hot cereal. It takes about 30 minutes to cook.
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barley flour
barley flour
other nonwheat flour Notes: To see how to substitute other flours for wheat flours when making yeast breads, see the listing under all-purpose flour.
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barley grits
barley grits
These are barley kernels that have been toasted, and then cracked into smaller pieces in order to speed up the cooking time. They're a bit hard to find.
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barley malt syrup, barley syrup, dark malt syrup, extract of malted barley
barley malt syrup
This tastes a bit like molasses, and it's not as sweet as sugar or honey. It's mostly used to make beer, but it's also used to make breads or other baked goods.
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barley miso, mugi miso
barley miso
Made from barley, it's reddish-brown in color and a bit sweeter than other dark misos.
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barquette
barquette
This is a small round or oval pastry shell that's usually topped with sweet or savory fillings.
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Bartlett pear, Williams' bon chrétien, Williams pear
Bartlett pear
These are very juicy and great for eating out of hand. They turn yellow when ripe.
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basa, basa catfish, bocourti, China sole, Mekong catfish, Pacific dory, panga
basa
The flesh is firm and white and milder than our catfish. This Vietnamese catfish relative has a mild flavor and firm texture.
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basa genep
See the Basa Genep posting on RecipeSource.com.
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basil, great basil, sweet basil
basil
Basil is widely used in Mediterranean countries, where it flavors everything from pasta sauces to pesto, and in Southeast Asia, where it's often stir-fried with other ingredients. There are numerous varieties, ranging from the more pungent Asian basils to the sweeter and milder European varieties. Use dried basil only in a pinch--it's not nearly as flavorful as fresh.
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basil seed, sweet basil seed
basil seed
Look for it in Southeast Asian markets.
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basmati rice
basmati rice
This aromatic, long-grain rice is grown in the foothills of the Himalayas and is especially popular in India. The cooked grains are dry and fluffy, so they make a nice bed for curries and sauces. Basmati is available as either white or brown rice. Brown basmati has more fiber and a stronger flavor, but it takes twice as long to cook. Aged basmati rice is better, but more expensive.
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basturma, basterma, bastirma, pasterma, pastirma
basturma
This Armenian specialty consists of beef that's marinated in spices and air-dried.
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Batavia arak
This is an aromatic rum that's produced in Java.
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Bauchant
Bauchant
This is an orange liqueur.
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bauerschinken
bauerschinken
The name means farmer's ham.
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bauerwurst, bauernwurst
bauerwurst
This is a chunky German farmer's sausage that's often grilled and served on a bun or cooked with sauerkraut.
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Bavarian blue
Bavarian blue
This is a mild and creamy cow's milk German blue cheese. It's good for crumbling on salads and snacking. Paladin Bavarian Blue is a popular brand.
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bavettine, mezze linguine
bavettine
These are long rods, narrower than linguine but wider than spaghetti. They're best with light, delicate sauces.
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bay leaf, bay laurel leaf, laurel leaf, sweet bay laurel leaf, Turkish bay
bay leaf
Bay leaves are a staple of Mediterranean cuisines, lending a woodsy flavor to sauces, stews, and grilled meats. It's best to add whole leaves, then remove them before serving the dish. The Turkish bay leaf is smaller and less potent than the California bay leaf, but more highly prized due to the complexity of its flavor. Dried leaves are a good substitute for fresh.
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bay scallops, Chinese scallops
bay scallops
Shopping hints: These are easier to find in the East than in the West. Frozen scallops are a good substitute for fresh.
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Bayonne ham, jambon Bayonne
Bayonne ham
This boneless French ham is similar to prosciutto.
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bean curd skin noodles
These Chinese noodles are made from yuba, the skin that forms on soy milk when it's heated. They're chewy and very nutritious.
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bean paste, miso
bean paste
This name is used for both bean sauce and miso.
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bean sauce, bean paste, brown bean paste, brown bean sauce, mo yuen shih
bean sauce
This salty brown sauce is made from fermented soybeans, and is available in cans or jars. If you buy it in a can, transfer it into a jar. It can then be stored indefinitely in the refrigerator. Chinese bean sauce isn't as salty as Thai bean sauce.
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bean stick, bamboo yuba, bean curd stick, Chinese yuba, dried bean curd stick
bean stick
This is made from the skin that forms on the top of heated soy milk. It's rich in protein, and used by Chinese and Japanese cooks in soups. Look for it in Asian food stores.
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bean threads, bai fun, bean thread vermicelli, bun tao, bun tau
bean threads
These slender, gelatinous noodles are widely used throughout China and Southeast Asia. They're made from mung beans and almost flavorless, though they readily absorb other flavors. They're commonly used in soups, stir-fries, salads, desserts, and even drinks. Before using, soak them in hot water until they're soft and transparent (about 15 minutes), then add them to boiling water and cook them for no more than a minute. Rinse them in cold water and drain. The dried noodles can also be deep fried to make a crunchy garnish or bed for sauces.
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bear
Compared with beef, bear is high in protein and low in fat and calories. Make sure you cook it thoroughly--it's possible to contract trichinosis from undercooked bear meat.
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bear's head mushroom, bearded tooth mushroom, satyr's beard mushroom
bear's head mushroom
These grow yellow and sour-tasting with age, so buy only white ones. They're best sautéed or gently boiled.
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