Substitutes

The good stuff

I know I often have specific ingredients in the recipes, but they aren’t, not really. Cooking is no exact science, no matter what the experts say. If you treat it as science, you will end up with the exact same every single time, which will lead to boredom at some point. Also, it takes the fun out of it, so if you read something about the ingredients you see here and think, “That is way too much” or “That is way too little”, try it once (the measurements are after all Samaya’s Back to Basics, and who knows you might like that) and if you don’t like it enough, leave something out, or add something the next time. Experiment! This is as much about learning about new stuff as it is about nutrition. Have fun! That is what I do every time I try something new…also, as the blog progresses, I will occasionally start adding stats of certain ingredients that I use often so that you will actually learn the kind of nutrition you’re getting into your system.

Mostly this list is because I know that not everyone has the same ingredients in their fridge and cupboards, so if you don’t have a particular ingredient, you can go through this list to see if maybe you can substitute it with something else. This list goes either way, really, and if you find some way to add to it, let me know and I’ll add it.

Cream:

Milk, soy milk, butter milk (careful this will make your meal sourer) coconut milk, almond milk…with the last two be careful, they have a taste on themselves that might change the meal. Also they are sweeter.

Egg:

Cream, Cheese, Coconut butter, Yogurt.

Oil:

Olive oil, sunflower seed oil, sesame seed oil, peanut oil, butter.

Yogurt:

Cream, milk, butter milk, coconut milk, soy milk, soy yogurt, soy pudding, kefir, cream cheese, fresh cheese.

Yeast:

Baking soda, barley vinegar, cider vinegar, egg, yogurt, whole milk, butter milk.

Vinegar:

Cider vinegar, barley vinegar, lemon juice.

Spinach:

Chard, arugula (rukola) Chinese cabbage, lettuce romano, white endive.

 

Apricot jam:

Peach Jam, plum jam, apple compote, mango chutney, mango juice, peach juice, tropical juice, honey…for the latter, half the amount because honey has a lot of taste.

Sweet chili sauce:

Ketjap manis (sweet soy sauce), sweet&sour sauce, tomato chutney, apricot jam, plum jam, mango chutney.

Cane Sugar:

Sugar, brown sugar (half the amount, it has a strong taste) honey, fructose, agave syrup, maple syrup, palm sugar…increase the amounts by ¼ to ½ since these are less sweet. Stevia…as in the actual plant leaves. It alters the taste of your dish, though, so be careful.

Rice:

Lentils, chickpeas, buckwheat, potatoes, quinoa, millet, barley, brown rice, wild rice, cauliflower, sweet potato, pumpkin…in some cases you can substitute it with Asian noodles, or even pasta, but it will depend on your veggies and sauce.

Onion:

Shallots, leek, chives, garlic…if opting for garlic, use 1-2 cloves per onion.

Flour:

Whole wheat, buckwheat flour, chickpea flower (they have a strong taste, so be prepared) almond flour, rice flour, corn flour, Maizena.

Potato:

Sweet potato, plantain, yucca, cauliflower, pumpkin.

Herbs:

If you do not have the individual dry herbs that I often use, or just don’t feel like filling up your cupboards with the whole mess of little pots, mostly any basic Italian or Sicilian herbal mix will do the trick. If not, leave them out altogether and bake your meal with a shallot or two, once done just sprinkle some parsley or chives on your meal and you’re done.

If you’ve got green fingers, and the space to grow them, go for individual fresh herbs, they are the best. Just remember to triple the amounts when transferring the measurements from dry to fresh.

Spices:

I basically have a selection of turmeric, cumin, coriander, paprika, cardamom, pepper, nutmeg, cinnamon, ginger, and cayenne, if you don’t, get a mild or spicy (depending on your taste) curry mix and garam massala mix and you should be able to make most of the meals that will come by on this blog.

If you’re also planning on doing desserts (yes, I will get around to some at some point) also make sure you have nutmeg, and cinnamon besides your curry and garam massala.

Bell pepper:

All colors are interchangeable or mixable. If you hate bell peppers, add some celery, zucchini, or cucumber instead (a ¼ of the indicated amount, no more) and add some sugar.

As for vegetables, most you can just leave out or replace with one that has similar taste and/or structure. This is more about common sense than anything. If the recipe calls for cauliflower, you can most likely replace it with carrot, sweet potato, pumpkin and in some cases not in mixes, but as a separate veggie for sure. Same goes for the other way around.

Well, that’s it for now. As I come upon different combinations and interchangeable ingredients, I will post them in this blog, so check in every now and then to see.