Questions tagged [culinary-uses]

Questions about the culinary uses of products that are normally discarded or used in non-culinary applications. DO NOT use for everyday ingredients, leftovers, etc - this is off topic.

This tag is used for questions about the culinary applications of edible items which:

  • Would be considered waste (e.g. stale bread or apple peel);
  • Are edible but primarily used for non-culinary applications (e.g. hops or lavender).
  • Are extremely rare and difficult to find recipes for (e.g. sumac). At a minimum, items in this category should be unavailable in typical supermarkets.

Questions about leftovers or common ingredients are not an appropriate use of this tag and will likely be closed as they are equivalent to recipe requests. When using this tag, please make sure the question fits one of the above criteria in order to avoid having it closed.

Tip for answerers: try to answer with classes of use (e.g. nutritional yeast is a flavor enhancer for soup, starter dough can be used for quickbreads) and also explain why the ingredient is effective in that class. Favorite recipes are not useful answers.

149 questions
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(How) can I store and cook leftover rice so it isn't soggy?

My wife and I like Asian meals (Curry, Niku Jaga, et cetera) and without fail we tend to make more rice than we need. I would encourage her to cook less rice, but a preferable solution would be to use the rice with the meal - since we tend to have…
Zibbobz
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What can I do with 2 lbs. of pecans?

I just bought 2 pounds of pecans from a friend who received them from a fresh source. I know of all kinds of regular things to do with pecans, but short of making more or bigger dishes that happen to have some pecans in them, what are good things to…
jessykate
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What can I do with a large amount of dried cilantro?

My husband came home from America and proudly Presented me with about 4 cups worth of dried cilantro he bought from pensey's spices. I do love pensey's, but I don't see how coming from pensey's can save this stuff from it's existential crisis. What…
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Is there any way to use oversized okra?

I accidentally let some of my okra grow much too large. It's about six inches long, and I've heard that it's inedible at this size--per this video it should be 2 1/2" to 3". Is there any way to cook these or are they really best sent to the…
Jeff Axelrod
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What to do with italian soda type syrups?

I go to an Italian grocery store near my house that has an aisle filled with different flavors of syrup. I know you can make Italian soda by mixing it with carbonated water but I was wondering what other things you can make with them?
Kyra
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What can a half-ripe jackfruit be used for?

We got a (fresh) jackfruit that was not so ripe... somewhat bland, not very tender and not enjoyable. My question is: What should I cook with it? I cooked it like I would a green jackfruit, but since it is somewhat ripe I figure I should treat it…
5space
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Uses for fondue broth?

I had meat fondue last night: beef, chicken, and shrimp cooked in a simple vegetable broth at the table. When we were finished eating, the broth was thrown away. I could only help but wonder: are there any typical dishes made with the used broth?
Mike Sherov
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What are some alternative uses for bread heels?

I often buy bread loaves at the store and use them for sandwiches, french toast, etc. I don't particularly like using the heels for those purposes though, because of the texture and taste - heels don't make for a good sandwich, they can't absorb the…
nhinkle
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What can I do with Pork Butt Trimmings?

I bought about 6 lbs of pork butt, cooked that up and made awesome chili. Now I have about 1 lb or so of pork trimmings, the fat, mostly white in color. What can I do with this?
keith
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Uses for juicer pulp

What do you do with juicer pulp? Does it still contain any flavor to make something out of it? How about vitamins?
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What kind of dishes use fresh coriander fruits

I grew some cilantro in my garden and allowed some of it to go to seed. Most commonly, I've seen the seed pods dried and ground. Where I live at least, the fresh leaves are referred to as cilantro and the dried seeds are sold as coriander. What I…
NeedTungsten
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How can I make use of an underripe mango

I bought a mango this morning that seemed to be ripe; at least it was the ripest of the bunch. I'm somewhat acquainted with picking out red/green mangoes, but this was my first exposure to yellow mangoes, and I apparently chose poorly. After slicing…
Ray
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Is methyl cellulose edible?

I blend methyl cellulose for cosmetic products (I use the fine powder). Is methyl cellulose edible? I want to make an edible gel without sugar; just stevia and fruit flavours.
Carol
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Culinary uses for juniper extract?

I bought some juniper extract for making bath stuff, and it doesn't seem to be very effective for this purpose. I have used juniper berries before, so I thought I might be able to use the extract for cooking or baking. I have not been able to find…
Manako
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Uses for brewers/nutritional yeast?

I grew up putting this stuff on my popcorn and absolutely love it. I recently found out that you can also put it on salads that have a vinaigrette dressing and it's also delicious. Are there other common applications that I am not aware of? FYI -…
Brh
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