Recipe Ingredient Substitutions List

The next time you’re missing an ingredient in a recipe, don’t panic.

The next time you’re missing an ingredient in a recipe, don’t panic. Many recipes are flexible and will still come out delicious when you improvise. Plus, many non-vegetarian recipes can be tweaked to create a new veg version. Use our chart below as a starting point, and start asking yourself questions such as: What do I really want this dish to taste like? What textures do I like? Why did the recipe developer put all of these ingredients in here, anyway? Here are some general guidelines about making substitutions in recipes: Try to keep ingredients within the same ethnic category. Ethnic flavor combinations have been developed over centuries and blend together naturally. If you are making over a Mexican dish without meat, use traditional Mexican proteins and starches such as pinto beans, black beans, and posole (hominy), not Asian mung beans or Indian lentils. Dissect the basic flavors of the dish. If you’re missing a certain flavoring, ask yourself if it is basically sweet, salty, sour, bitter, or spicy? Think of something from your cupboard in the same category. Substituting starches and proteins makes less of a difference in overall taste than spices and flavorings. Try the pantry approach to cooking: If you find yourself continually missing key ingredients, analyze your pantry and consider restocking it. Assemble complementary herbs, spices and flavoring in groupings in your pantry. That way, when you are experimenting with a dish—Italian, for example—your Italian seasonings such as basil, parsley, garlic, and oregano will be grouped together, and you can substitute accordingly. Keep staples such as flours, oils, beans, and grains on hand so you don’t have to run out to the store at the last minute.

MAKE IT MEATLESS Ingredient Substitute Meat Beans, cheese, seitan (wheat meat), tempeh (cultured soybeans), textured vegetable protein (TVP), tofu Meat/seafood stocks Vegetable stock, water in which beans, pasta, or vegetables have been cooked, vegetable bouillon cubes, miso (fermented soybean paste) diluted with water Seasoned or smoked meats Flavored soy meat substitutes, crumbled tofu seasoned with fennel, parsley, and garlic, canned chipotle chiles, roasted vegetables, toasted nuts, smoked tofu, smoked cheeses Gelatin  Agar-agar (powder or flakes), arrowroot (powder), guar gum (made from seeds), xanthan gum (made from corn), kudzu powder

MAKE IT VEGAN Ingredient Substitute Buttermilk Clabbered soymilk (1 cup soymilk mixed with 2 tsp. lemon juice or white vinegar) Cheese Soy- and nut-based cheeses Cheese or ricotta cheese Crumbled tofu Eggs Ener-G Egg Replacer, 1 mashed banana or 1/4 cup applesauce per egg (best for baked goods); 1 Tbs. agar flakes whisked into 1 Tbs. water and chilled for 5 minutes (for an egg white substitute), 1 Tbs. ground flaxseeds simmered in 3 Tbs. boiling water for 2 minutes Mayonnaise Soy-based mayonnaise Milk Nut milk, rice milk, soymilk

MAKE IT LOW-FAT Ingredient Substitute Creamy soups and sauces Nonfat strained yogurt, soymilk, puréed roasted vegetables, cooking rice in soup then puréeing it Oil in baked goods Applesauce, puréed bananas, puréed cooked prunes Oil for sautéing Vegetable stock, wine, vinegar Salad dressing Vinegar or citrus juice thickened with puréed roasted red peppers, carrots, onions, or garlic Sour cream Strained nonfat yogurt White sauce Puréed white beans

MAKE IT ALLERGEN-FREE Ingredient Substitute Butter Clarified butter (milk solids have been removed), olive oil, sesame oil Chocolate Carob Cows’ milk Goats’ milk, soymilk, rice milk, nut milk Cows’ milk cheese Goat cheese, sheep cheese, soy cheese, nut cheese Eggs Ener-G Egg Replacer, 1 mashed banana or 1/4 cup applesauce per egg (best for baked goods); 1 Tbs. agar flakes whisked into 1 Tbs. water and chilled for 5 minutes (for an egg white substitute), 1 Tbs. ground flaxseeds simmered in 3 Tbs. boiling water for 2 minutes Peanuts Almonds Wheat flour (for baking) Flours made from barley, buckwheat, corn, kamut, oats, rice, rye, spelt Wheat pasta Pasta made from corn, spelt, kamut, quinoa, rice

MAKE IT ETHNIC Origin Ingredient Substitute Americas Cactus pads (nopales) Green beans, okra Chayote squash  Yellow or green pattypan squash or zucchini Poblano or Anaheim chiles  Minced jalapeño chiles and green bell pepper Posole (dried hominy)  Canned white hominy Asian Bok choy (Chinese white cabbage) Beet greens, kale, Swiss chard   Chinese cooking wine Dry sherry   Chinese five-spice powder Mixture of anise seed or star anise, fennel seed, cinnamon, black peppercorns, and cloves   Galangal (Thai ginger) Fresh ginger   Lemongrass Lemon zest   Lotus root Jicama or water chestnuts   Mirin (Japanese rice wine) Sweet white wine   Nam pla (Thai fish sauce) Soy sauce and lime juice   Rice wine vinegar Cider vinegar, white wine vinegar   Sesame oil 1 Tbs. sesame seeds fried in 1/2 cup vegetable oil   Thai basil Italian basil   Water chestnuts Jicama Indian Atta (chapati flour) 1/2 cup all-purpose unbleached flour plus 1/2 cup sifted whole-wheat flour   Chana dal Split yellow peas   Curry powder Mixture of ground ginger, cumin, coriander, fenugreek, turmeric and fennel   Garam masala Mixture of 1 tsp. cardamom seeds, 1 Tbs. cumin seed, 1 Tbs. coriander seed, 2 tsp. black peppercorns, 1 tsp. cinnamon, 1 tsp. cloves, and 1 tsp. nutmeg   Jaggery (coarse palm sugar) Date sugar or brown sugar   Toor dal, urad dal, mung dal Red lentils Mediterranean Broccoli rabe Broccoli plus arugula or dandelion greens   Cannellini beans Great Northern beans, navy beans, red kidney beans   Fava beans Lima beans or butter beans   Fennel Celery plus some fennel or anise seeds   Parmesan cheese Any hard, aged grating cheese such as Asiago, Romano or aged Monterey Jack   Pine nuts Walnuts or a mixture of walnuts and almonds

MAKE IT ALCOHOL-FREE Ingredient Substitute Red wine Pomegranate juice or 1/2 cup water with 2 tsp. balsamic vinegar White wine Vegetable stock, apple juice, carrot juice Wine or beer Non-alcoholic wine or beer

Irish Colcannon and Irish Soda Bread

Happy St. Patrick's Day, everyone! Whether you're watching a parade, or simply enjoying a parade of delicious Irish treats, we hope you revel in the holiday. This traditional colcannon by Robin Robertson mixes the best of Irish culinary tradition: mashed potatoes and kale.

Serves 6

What You Need :

2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and diced 
1 tablespoon olive oil 
1 yellow onion, chopped 
1 leek (white part only), rinsed and chopped 
2 garlic cloves, minced 
3 cups kale, finely shredded 
3 cups green cabbage, finely shredded 
Salt and pepper to taste 
1/2 cup non-hydrogenated margarine 
3/4 cup hot soymilk 

What You Do:

1. Place the potatoes in a saucepan with enough cold water to cover. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low, salt the water, cover, and simmer until tender, 15 to 20 minutes.

2. While the potatoes are cooking, heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion, leek, and garlic, cover and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the kale and cabbage, season with salt and pepper, cover, and cook until tender, about 10 minutes.

3. When potatoes are cooked, drain and return to the pot. Add the margarine and soymilk, and mash with a potato masher. Stir in the kale and cabbage mixture, season again if necessary, and serve hot. 

Irish Soda Bread

Especially good served warm, rustic loaf this is best eaten the same day it’s made.

By Robin Robertson

Makes 1 loaf

What You Need:

• 1-1/4 cups soymilk
• 1 tablespoon white vinegar
• 1 tablespoon canola oil
• 3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup raisins

What You Do:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Combine the soymilk, vinegar, and oil in a bowl and set aside.
2. In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt until blended. Stir in the raisins. Add the soymilk mixture and mix well to make a stiff dough.
3. Shape dough into a round loaf and place on a lightly-oiled baking sheet. Pat the top down slightly, then use a sharp knife to cut an X shape on top. Bake until golden brown, about 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack.