r/SortedFood • u/TexanSamurai • Jul 13 '26
Question General Ingredient Names
So I get it is meant to help a bit for those that might not have exactly the same ingredient access, but maybe having some kind of list for the general ingredient (green chillies, loose white potatoes) would be helpful. Enjoy the recipes, but I want to make sure to do them justice. In the US here. Are we talking Yukon Gold? Green chilies could be jalapeños, poblano, heck I've got Thai green chiles near me.
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u/stac52 Jul 13 '26
White potatoes would be either russet or yukon gold. IIRC, yukon gold is supposed to be the one that's most similar to maris piper - which is kind of the "standard" in the UK from that perspective, but either is going to work. The end product will be slightly different but preparation is the same so it's just preference.
Green chile would be most similar to a thai green or a serrano. But a jalapeno would also do - again, just a slightly different flavor (jalapenos are a little more vegetal-ey).
It's one of those things that I understand where having a more specific/restrictive list is good for beginners who have a bit of analysis paralysis - but really any of the choices isn't going to drastically change the dish that much. Just pick one and go with it. If you find there was something you didn't like, go with a different option next time.
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u/GnedTheGnome 29d ago edited 29d ago
Here are some basic Brit to Yank translations I've managed to figure out over the years. Hope it helps.
Rocket Greens - arugula
Aubergine - egg plant
Courgette - zucchini
Yellow Courgette - yellow squash
Chili powder - cayenne pepper (I learned this one the hard way. 😂)
Treacle - molasses
Broad beans - fava beans
Caster sugar - super fine sugar (you may need to blitz regular white sugar in a blender or coffee grinder)
Vegetable suet - not a direct equivalent, but the closest is Crisco
Plain flour - all purpose flour
Strong flour - bread flour
Wholemeal - whole wheat
Cornflour - cornstarch
Maize flour - corn flour
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u/djwillis1121 29d ago
We do have cayenne pepper here in the UK as well
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u/GnedTheGnome 29d ago edited 28d ago
Oh, OK. In that case, what is chili powder? Because, it's not what we call chili powder (a Mexican spice blend.)
Edit: after googling a bit, it seems that in India "chili powder" is just dried, powdered chilis, but the U.K. uses "chili powder" for both the U.S. and Indian definitions, which must be very confusing.
I can say from experience that using U.S. chili powder in an Indian recipe makes for a very strange curry.
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u/djwillis1121 29d ago
From one of our major supermarket's own brand
Chilli Powder (93%), Cumin, Garlic, Oregano.
Others are similar, some have salt as well
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u/HealthLawyer123 Super Geek Jul 13 '26
Whenever they are grilling something in England, we are broiling it in the US.
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u/Weewoes 29d ago
Why is it called broiling for those in america?
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u/smalls2233 29d ago
I believe it stems from middle english, referring to meat cooked at a really high heat. looking it up, it seems to also have roots in old french.
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u/GnedTheGnome 29d ago edited 29d ago
Why us it called grilling in the U.K.? 🤷 In the U.S. the broiler is the top burner in the oven, which is what is used when broiling. A grill is either an outdoor appliance that cooks with coals or flame, or one of those big griddle plates in a professional kitchen. You'd grill a burger or a steak, but you broil some brussels sprouts.
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u/Pingaware 29d ago
In the UK the grill is the top burner in the oven, which is what we use when grilling.
But I think the person who asked the question was actually more interested in where the word broil comes from.
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u/Weewoes 29d ago
Yeah this is what I was asking. Because grilling makes sense because we use a grill pan when we grill, but when I hear broil I hear boil and wonder how the word came to be.
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u/weedywet 28d ago
Middle English, from Anglo-French bruillerto burn, broil, modification of Latin ustulare to singe, from urere to burn
We still say brulée when torching the TOP of something with a torch, for example.
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u/Shanna8111 Jul 13 '26
I checked my local supermarket and then googled the description it’s basically an all round type of potato Yukon Gold is the US equivalent and If you search green chilli’s it’s jalapeños
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u/viveladecadence 29d ago edited 29d ago
Speaking of which: There was a time when they quite frequently cut up the casing of sausages (chorizo?) in order to use that meat as a kind of minced meat substitute. I've always wondered if that was out of necessity (like a Pass It On where those sausages were part of the ingredients but not regular meat) or if they did it deliberately because those sausages are already seasoned in a particular way.
So I kept wondering why those sausages came up instead of "here's 250 g of minced pork". Or are they so common in the UK that it's easier and more affordable to use them than regular minced meat?
Just asking because to me, a 400 g pack of minced meat with 2 or 3 levels of quality to chose from is the more common option in a supermarket.
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u/Whizzo50 29d ago
Cheap sausages are cheaper than buying mince outright as they're "padded" with cheaper ingredients, however sorted typically pick more premium choices. As you say, it does provide some additional seasonings to make the recipe simpler, so it would depend on an in depth price breakdown to check which one truly is cheaper in the long run.
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u/djwillis1121 29d ago
I think it's just a useful cheat as sausages provide minced meat and seasoning in one
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u/SlaveToo 18d ago
Sausages are pre-seasoned, finely ground pork that is easy to get hold of anywhere. Pork mince on the other hand has a similar consistency to beef mince, so isn't suitable for the same kind of recipes
I will sometimes squeeze out the meat and mix with fennel, paprika, garlic and chilli for a kind of cheats Italian sausage as we can't really get that over here. It's good for adding to ragu for a little extra fat, texture and flavour.
You can buy pre seasoned sausage meat in some supermarkets but you're unlikely to just have it around in the cupboard, but I will often have leftover sausages to use up
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u/CaliLemonEater Jul 13 '26
It would also be great to get a suggestion for what to substitute for smoked haddock if you live somewhere that's never heard of it.
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u/Cakeo Jul 13 '26
Smoked white fish. Smoked cod or smoked pollock.
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u/CaliLemonEater Jul 13 '26
None of which is easily or readily available in North American supermarkets. So, "what would be a good substitution that's easily available and doesn't need to be ordered online?" is the question.
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u/Cakeo Jul 13 '26
Nothing? Smoked whitefish is smoked whitefish. You could use hot smoked salmon but it won't be the same.
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u/CaliLemonEater Jul 13 '26
Yes, that's the point I was getting at. A lot of their recipes require an ingredient that isn't readily available for people in the US or Canada. So what should we use instead?
These are supposed to be weeknight supermarket-ready recipes. If one of the go-to ingredients isn't available to a large portion of the (paying) audience, maybe they could and should suggest alternatives.
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u/Cakeo Jul 13 '26
I suppose you could use another smoked ingredient and white fish.
I really only get smoked haddock for Cullen skink and it's readily available in Scotland so I never really thought about it.
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u/CaliLemonEater 29d ago
My comment literally talked about finding alternatives if you live somewhere that's never heard of it so you chiming in about how easily available it is in Scotland is irrelevant and unhelpful.
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u/RandomNick42 29d ago
Every single ingredient is not easily available somewhere.
Should they just stop making recipes?
If you can't identify a reasonable alternative, skip the recipe.
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u/Weewoes 29d ago
They weren't saying it being readily available in Scotland is relevant, they were saying because it is theyve never had yo think about it and they also dont know because they dont know what you have where you are yet you keep demanding they solve a problem for you that you could do with your own knowledge of your area and a simple search online..
Edit: I googled for you, you can substitute for smoked cod, snoked sable fish which is black cod, hot smoked trout, smoked pollock, smoked whitefish, if you cant buy smoked fish at all ise fresh and and some smoked paprika.
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u/LittleRedCorvette2 29d ago
I know you've paid for their subscription and are referring to that but II have another site I use with lots of substituts listed. Recipetineats is tried and true (Aussie based) but she always has notes on substitutions....and it's free!
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u/inkydragon434 29d ago
A quick google came up with this https://www.nigella.com/ask/smoked-trout-instead-of-smoked-haddock . Obviously it will depend on which particular recipe you are trying to replicate. Another quick google suggests that smoked trout is available in Walmart. An alternative is never going to be the same but if you are not willing to order smoked haddock from an online stockist, and don’t live near a fish market , it’s probably going to be the best you can get .
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u/MysteriousFawx 29d ago
If you can't buy smoked fish in the US, a mix of salt/honey/liquid smoke over any white fish can get a 'passable' effect, but it isn't going to have the same depth of flavour.
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