All Ingredients

These pasta shapes resemble torches, the better to scoop up chunky sauces.

These are circles of 2-inch diameter pasta that are stuffed and then folded over.

These are circles of pasta that are stuffed with a meat or cheese filling, and then folded into little hats. A larger version is called tortelloni.

These are circles of pasta that are stuffed with a meat or cheese filling, and then folded into little hats. A smaller version is called tortellini.

This is a tubular Italian pasta that's often served with chunky sauces or in casseroles.

These thin wraps are used to make countless Mexican dishes. Corn tortillas have little or no fat, and they're the preferred tortilla for making tacos and enchiladas. Flour tortillas are softer, higher in fat, and more pliable. They're traditionally used to make burritos, chimichangas, fajitas, flautas, and quesadillas, though some cooks use them to make everything from spring rolls to peanut butter sandwiches. Before filling tortillas, cook them briefly on a hot, dry frying pan or wrap them in damp paper towels and heat them in the microwave. Store uncooked tortillas in the refrigerator or freezer.

These are tortilla wedges that have been deep-fried or baked. They're often served with Southwestern-style dips, like salsa and guacamole.

This exquisite French sausage is usually made with pork, smoked bacon, wine, and garlic. It's a great sausage for a cassoulet. Cook it before serving.

This is a pork and beef soft salami ring.

Treacle is the British version of molasses, and it's a close substitute. Varieties include golden syrup=light treacle, which resemble light molasses, and dark treacle = black treacle, which is more similar to dark molasses.

Named for the three leaves that sprout from each stem, trefoil has a crunchy texture and aromatic flavor. It's great in salads or as a garnish in soups.

This is a type of Italian ribbon pasta that's thinner than fettuccine and linguine. It's traditionally served with a pesto sauce. Don't confuse it with trennette, a small rod with a triangular cross-section.

This Italian pasta is triangular, and cut into short lengths. It's good with chunky sauces or in casseroles.

This triangular Italian pasta is similar to trenne, only smaller. Don't confuse this with trenette, which is a long ribbon of pasta.

Tripe is the name given to the stomachs of various animals, but most recipes that call for it intend for you to use beef tripe. Cows have four stomachs, and the first three yield merchantable tripe. Blanket tripe = plain tripe = flat tripe = smooth tripe comes from the first stomach, honeycomb tripe (pictured at left) and pocket tripe from the second, and book tripe = bible tripe = leaf tripe from the third. Honeycomb tripe is meatier and more tender than the other kinds and considered to be the best, but all these kinds of tripe can be used interchangeably in recipes. Tripe is almost always sold bleached and partially cooked. This saves a lot of work, since unprocessed tripe would need to be cooked for many, many hours to make it tender enough to chew.

Even though the name means "triple dry," this is a relatively sweet orange-flavored liqueur.

These cheeses are the gelatos of the cheese word--incredibly creamy and decadent, thanks to a high butterfat content that comes from tripling the cream. They have roughly twice the fat as a typical Brie or Camembert, but they're much more buttery and rich. Some triple-crèmes are fresh, like mascarpone. Others are soft-ripened, like Boursault, Castello Blue, Brillat Savarin, and Explorateur.

Some pasta producers use the name tripolini to describe tiny bows which commemorate the Italian conquest of Tripoli. Some use it to describe long ribbons that are similar to fettuccine, but ruffled along one edge.

These crunchy crackers are made of woven strands of whole wheat. They're often used as a base for appetizers, though some devotees eat them straight. Reduced fat and low sodium versions are available.

Triticale is a wheat-rye cross that's higher in protein than either of its parents. It has a pleasant enough wheat-like flavor, but it's prized mostly for its hardiness and ability to grow in poor soils.

Triticale berries are similar to wheat berries, though they also have a subtle rye flavor.

You can use these like rolled oats to make a hot breakfast cereal. They cook up in about 15 minutes.

A Ligurian specialty, these are small, twisted bits of pasta. They're often served with pesto.

These firm, white-fleshed yams are widely used in tropical countries. They're somewhat bland and dry, so they're often served with spicy sauces.

This German heirloom bean is relatively sweet. It's especially good in soups and casseroles

These are great for making hors d'oeuvres.

This is a secret ingredient of many chefs, who use it to impart the earthy taste and aroma of truffles to their dishes. There are two varieties: the mild white truffle oil and the more pungent black truffle oil. Both are delicious sprinkled on pasta, but the black truffle oil is better suited to meats and heavy sauces while the white is the best choice for fish dishes, cream sauces, and vinaigrettes. If you're cooking with it, add it at the very end to prevent the flavor from dissipating. Truffle oil is expensive, but a little goes a long way.

This is an egg pasta that's flavored with truffles. It's normally served with a cheese sauce.

Truffles are one of the most expensive of the fungi (technically, they're not mushrooms), but they're packed with flavor. You can grate raw truffles into salads, or chop and sauté them and use them to flavor sauces. Their flavor is complex, so truffles work best in delicately flavored dishes like cream sauces. Truffles are highly perishable, so you should plan to use them within a few days after buying them. To preserve them, add slices of them to bourbon, then use the bourbon and truffle pieces to flavor sauces. Fresh truffles are often sold in containers filled with rice. Don't throw out the rice--it was put there to absorb some of the truffle's exquisite flavor.

This is a tasty, meaty mushroom.

This liqueur is flavored with vanilla and citrus.

These small pasta tubes work well in minestrone and other Italian soups. It's also one of the shapes used to make Spaghetti-Os.

This is a tiny version of tubetti ("little tubes"), a short, tubular Italian pasta shape. It's usually served in broths and light soups. It's also one of the shapes used to make Spaghetti-Os.

Tucapi is a yellow sauce extracted from manioc roots. It is used with rice and various meats like duck, fish and shrimp.

This large, tubular pasta is often stuffed and baked. It also goes well with hearty sauces.