Questions tagged [ingredient-selection]

Questions about selecting desirable ingredients (e.g. checking fruit ripeness). Please do not use for "which ingredient should I use in my dish" - this kind of question is subjective and will be closed.

The tag is for those looking to improve their "catch" when out picking ingredients, usually at the market. Questions about gauging the ripeness of a particular fruit or recognizing when a particular vegetable is still fresh are welcome topics in this tag.

This tag is not meant for general recipe-modification questions, i.e. "what can I add to X?" Those questions are likely to be closed, unless they focus on a very specific type of improvement. In that case you should a tag that describes the modification instead, e.g. or .

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What methods are appropriate for preparing a 'chow chow' (chayote)?

I saw this in a grocers in an area which is predominantly populated by Korean people. It reminded me of Audrey 2 from 'The Little Shop of Horrors'. Any ideas on how to use it?
Sarah Durston
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What is levure equivalant in America?

We have a chocolate cake (brownie) recipe from France and calls for a packet of levure. We have been putting in yeast but not sure if it is wrong or right. Yeast, baking powder, other?
blankip
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What am I doing wrong with my Kool-Aid pickles?

I'm trying to make Kool-Aid Pickles (koolickles). I've tried with quartered Ba-Tampte pickles and I seem to get it right, but I'm not seeing the results I expect with halved pickles. I want to go with halved because quartered seem to shrivel…
JoshDM
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"Rose Flavoured Water" vs "Rosewater"

I would like to try a few recipes which call for rosewater. I have made these in the past but it seems difficult to get rosewater here. Many places seem to sell "rose flavoured water". To me this sounds like one of those fudge words to suggest that…
Dannie
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Why add flour to grilled onions?

I enjoy a dirty rice recipe that has you sauté onions, celery and green peppers in sausage grease and then add a tablespoon of flour. What does the flour do?
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Does sugar give moisture?

I have seen a discussion regarding a replacement for sugar in brownies to give moisture. Does sugar give moisture when baking?
Terry
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What are the effects of using different types of ground mustard?

I made a cheese souffle recipe that called for 1 tsp of dry mustard. I used ground mustard that was 40% yellow and 60% black.(And it wasn't fine like powder) Everything went perfectly with the souffle but the taste wasn't all that amazing. In fact,…
Jeff
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What is the rationale behind mixing light and dark soy sauce?

It's common for recipes to call for both light and dark soy sauce mixed together. Is there a specific rationale for doing this, such as a specific interaction between these two ingredients when cooked together, or is this simply a method to dilute…
Aaargh Zombies
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How much star anise should I add to a stew?

I’m making a stew with about 700 grams of meat and it will have a lower rather than higher amount of water. I will be using star anise for first time and I hear a little bit can over power the whole stew so you should start small. I’m guessing…
James Wilson
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Difference between frozen and canned fruit paste

I want to make a recipe requiring strawberry fruit paste. I went on a web site of cooking supplies seller, and they have two options for fruit paste, simply "fruit paste" and "frozen fruit paste". The site says that the frozen paste is made from 90%…
SIMEL
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What flour for crepes should I use?

What type of flour should I use for crepes? What are the differences? I want to cook both sweet and savory, but not American style pancakes, just French thin ones.
Quora Feans
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What ingredients are used in peri peri Powder?

I have been looking for possible ingredients that are being used to make peri peri powder. Is there any significant difference between peri peri powder and peri peri sauce. Interms of ingredients?
The Hungry Dictator
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Where do you find gums, acids and glucose ingredients?

If I find a recipe that contains any of those, I just won't make it because I don't know where to find such ingredients but now there's a series of desserts I want to make that use most of them. I don't think you can find most or any of those at the…
Rob
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Why do we like some combinations of ingredients, and not others? Are there any general rules?

I would like to know how something will taste, before cooking and trying it. Is it possible? Sometimes ingredients are too expensive for experimenting.
OPTIMUS PRIME
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What natural ingredient besides honey and fats can I use to bind a mixture of powders together?

So I need to turn super food powders into something more tangible, like a stick form. Honey seems to not be that effective and has a lot of sugar and fats melt quite easily. Water obviously not a good option. What else could I try? Thanks so much…
Kasperi
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