All Ingredients

Varieties: By crystal size: Regular sugar = fine granulated sugar = table sugar = standard granulated sugar = extra-fine granulated sugar is the standard table sugar we're all familiar with. Superfine sugar = ultrafine sugar = bar sugar = instant dissolving sugar = berry sugar = castor sugar = caster sugar dissolves more quickly, and is recommended for sweetening beverages, and for making meringues, cakes, soufflés, and mousses. To make your own, grind standard granulated sugar in a food processor or blender for about a minute. Baker's special has a grain size between standard granulated and superfine. Bakers use it in cakes because the fine granules improve the texture. Sanding sugar has larger granules that sparkle when sprinkled on baked goods and candies. Coarse sugar has a larger grain size than regular granulated sugar. It tends not to change color or break down at high temperatures. It's similar to (and often mistaken for) sanding sugar. By source: Beet sugar is derived from sugar beets, while cane sugar is derived from sugar cane. Both beet and cane sugars are 99.95% sucrose, but many bakers claim that the remaining .05% of trace minerals and proteins makes a difference, and that cane sugar performs better. Some cane sugar is processed using a by-product of animal bones, so some vegetarians prefer beet sugar to cane. Some manufacturers don't specify whether their product is beet sugar or cane sugar.

These are fun to chew on. They're available in the produce section either peeled (left) or unpeeled.

This cross between an English pea and a snow pea is sweet and crisp, and is eaten whole, pod and all. Sugar snaps can be served raw, briefly stir-fried, pickled, or steamed as a side dish.

These are similar to potsticker wrappers, but they're intended to be used in soups. While assembling the dumplings, keep the stack of wrappers moist by covering them with a damp towel. Seal the dumplings with a "glue" made with cornstarch and water. Look for stacks of these wrappers in the refrigerator cases of Asian markets. Store them in the refrigerator or freezer, but let them come to room temperature before using.

This is a spicy Lebanese beef sausage. Look for it in Middle Eastern markets.

Sukkary dates are golden yellow, dry, soft and sweet. They are commonly grown in Saudi Arabia.

This is made from a mixture of calves' feet or pig snouts, eggs, and other meats that's been cooked and then allowed to gel. There's no need to cook it further; the cold slices are usually served as appetizers.

Look for this in Middle Eastern markets. Crushed dried sumac is called somagh.

This is a family of spicy, somewhat dry pork and/or beef sausages that are great for sandwiches. They don't need to be cooked. Varieties include landjaeger and thuringer.

Summer savory is milder than winter savory.

Unlike winter squash, summer squash can be eaten rind, seeds, and all. The different varieties vary in size, shape, and color, but they can be used interchangeably in recipes. Select summer squash that are small and firm.

Dried tomatoes have a richer, more concentrated flavor than ordinary tomatoes. They're great for snacking, or tossing in salads or sauces or on pizzas. Dried tomatoes usually come either dry or packed in oil. If they're hard and dry, steep them in boiling water for about five minutes before using them.

Like the Pink Lady apple, this is a a cross between a Golden Delicious and a Lady Williams. It's very good for eating out of hand.

Sunflower seeds are nutritious snacks. They're often sold in their shells, which you're supposed to crack open in your teeth and spit out after you've eaten the kernel within. Shelled sunflower seeds are also available for the more fastidious, and for cooks who want to add the seeds to breads, salads, casseroles, and trail mixes.

These are sweet and crunchy.

Imitation crab meat. It is normally made from processed fish meat.

These thin dark sheets are used to make sushi. They're usually a dark purplish-black, but they turn green and acquire a pleasant, nutty flavor when toasted. You can make your own toasted nori sheets by passing nori sheets over a flame a few times. Yaki means cooked in Japanese, so pretoasted nori sheets are labeled yaki-nori or yaki sushi nori. Look for toasted and untoasted sushi nori in the Asian foods section of large supermarkets. The name nori is also used for laver, the plant that sushi nori is made from. Unlike sushi nori, laver should be rehydrated before use. If you can't find sushi nori, one option is to make sushi without a wrapper. It helps to use plastic wrap to shape the roll.

This is a bitter French apéritif.

Svanetian salt is a spice blend that includes salt, coriander, garlic, fenugreek, caraway, pepper and chili.

These pretty brown beans are especially good in soups.

This has a pleasant anise flavor, and is the most commonly used basil in Thailand.

This is widely used throughout the Mediterranean region to make tomato sauces, pesto, and other dishes.

This brown sauce is made from sweetened fermented soybeans. Taiwanese cooks use it as a marinade or a condiment for meats.

These appear in the summer, with the popular and exquisite Bing cherries arriving in June and July. Other varieties have the virtue of arriving before or after the Bings, but they're often not nearly as tasty. Select cherries that are large, deeply colored, and firm.

This is similar to semi-sweet chocolate, only it has a bit more sugar. It can be used interchangeably with bittersweet and semi-sweet chocolate in most recipes. Baker's Chocolate calls its sweet chocolate German chocolate.

Sweet dumpling squash are fairly small, so you can cut them in half, bake them, and serve each half as an individual portion. The flesh is sweeter and drier than that of other winter squash, and the peel is soft enough to be eaten.

These are similar to gooseberries, but they have a red blush and are much sweeter.

These onions are mild and crisp, so they're the onions of choice for slicing raw on burgers and sandwiches. They can be lightly cooked, too, though they're not as pungent and flavorful as storage onions. There are several different varieties, often named after the region in which they're grown. The most popular include Vidalia, Walla Walla, Sweet Imperial, Texas Spring Sweet, Texas 1015Y, Carzalia Sweet, Oso Sweet, Arizona, Granex, and Maui. They're usually available from March through August, though some producers extend the season by storing them in a low-oxygen environment. Sweet onions are usually larger than storage onions. They also have a higher water content, so they don't keep as well.

In American supermarkets, sweet potatoes are displayed next to something called "yams," which are moister than sweet potatoes and have darker skins. But according to the rest of the world (and botanists), we have it all wrong. To them, our "yams" are just a variety of sweet potatoes. They use the word yam to describe a completely different vegetable, something we call a tropical yam. Sweet potatoes are quite versatile, but they're most often baked, candied, or made into pies. It's best not to boil them, as they'll lose much of their flavor.

Asian cooks like to dredge pork in this before frying it.