World pantry

The World Pantry: Spices and Staples by Region

A small shelf of the right jars can take your kitchen almost anywhere. This guide covers the blends, pastes and sauces that do the heavy lifting in our recipes, grouped by region.

Each entry says what the ingredient tastes like and offers a swap for nights when the shop is out. Swaps are our own kitchen suggestions, so expect a close cousin, not a twin.

Chicken tagine with preserved lemon slices, olives and herbs in a golden sauce

Chicken tagine with preserved lemon and olives: Foodista, CC BY 2.0

Africa

Used in our Moroccan chicken tagine and Ethiopian doro wat.
Ingredient	Where it is used	Tastes like	Swap in a pinch
Ras el hanout	Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia	Warm and floral; the name means head of the shop, and every seller has a personal mix of a dozen or more spices	Cumin, coriander, cinnamon, ginger and turmeric, mixed in equal parts
Preserved lemon	Morocco	Soft, salty and intensely lemony, without sharp acidity	Lemon zest plus a little juice and salt, added late
Berbere	Ethiopia and Eritrea	Deep chile heat with ginger, garlic, coriander and fenugreek	Paprika, cayenne and a pinch each of ginger, coriander and fenugreek

Asia

Garam masala belongs in our chicken biryani, fish sauce in our pho, dashi-style stock in ramen.
Ingredient	Where it is used	Tastes like	Swap in a pinch
Garam masala	India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh	Warm and aromatic: cardamom, cinnamon, clove, cumin, coriander and pepper; recipes vary by region and family	A pinch each of ground cinnamon, clove, cumin and cardamom
Fish sauce (nuoc mam, nam pla)	Vietnam, Thailand and beyond	Salty and deeply savory; fish fermented with salt, often for many months	Light soy sauce with a pinch of sugar
Dashi	Japan	Gentle, savory umami from kombu kelp and katsuobushi (dried skipjack tuna)	Light chicken stock with a little soy sauce, or kombu and dried shiitake for a vegetarian version
Gochujang	Korea	Savory, sweet and spicy fermented paste of chile, glutinous rice, fermented soybean and salt	Red miso mixed with chile flakes and a little honey

Europe and the Middle East

Pimentón turns up in Spanish rice dishes and chorizo; sumac is lovely over grilled meat and salads.
Ingredient	Where it is used	Tastes like	Swap in a pinch
Pimentón de la Vera	Spain	Smoky paprika dried over oak smoke, sold sweet (dulce), bittersweet (agridulce) or hot (picante)	Sweet paprika plus a tiny pinch of chipotle powder
Sumac	Levant, Turkey, Iran, Iraq	Tart and lemony with a deep red color; a key part of the za'atar blend	Lemon zest with a pinch of salt

The Americas

Ají amarillo powers our papa a la huancaína; filé is an optional finish for gumbo.
Ingredient	Where it is used	Tastes like	Swap in a pinch
Ají amarillo	Peru	Fruity chile heat, often compared to mango and passion fruit; ripens to golden orange	Roasted yellow bell pepper blended with a little fresh hot chile
Achiote (annatto)	Mexico, especially Yucatán, and across Latin America	Mild, earthy and slightly peppery, with a strong red-orange color	Sweet paprika with a pinch of turmeric for color
Filé powder	Louisiana	Earthy, herbal and slightly woody; ground sassafras leaves first used by the Choctaw	Leave it out and thicken gumbo with okra or a darker roux

Oceania

Try a pinch of dried lemon myrtle in the cream on top of a pavlova.
Ingredient	Where it is used	Tastes like	Swap in a pinch
Lemon myrtle	Australia (native to Queensland rainforests)	Very strong lemon aroma without the acidity, so it works in creamy desserts	Lemon zest, or a little lemongrass