The top bar contains the five core kitchen stops. Open How to get around or search for every other tool and reference page.
Substitutions · 5 dishes here use it
Dry, funky cherry-pit liqueur that tastes nothing like a jarred cherry. A teaspoon is a flavor; an ounce takes over a drink completely.
Everything below is judged against that job. A swap that covers it is a swap; one that only looks similar is not.
Functional substitution system
For maraschino, the page's working definition is: Dry, funky cherry-pit liqueur that tastes nothing like a jarred cherry. A teaspoon is a flavor; an ounce takes over a drink completely. The swap cards below are judged against that job rather than visual resemblance.
Job → candidate → side effects → small test → correct.
1 · Job
What is the missing ingredient doing?
2 · Candidate
Choose the shelf item that replaces that function.
3 · Side effects
Check water, fat, salt, acid, sweetness, and texture.
4 · Small test
Change a spoonful or small portion first when possible.
5 · Correct
Taste again and move only the axis that is still wrong.
Instead · 1
three quarters ounce kirsch and a bar spoon of syrup per ounce
Instead · 2
one for one
Instead · 3
three quarters ounce, two dashes
These need it and are short enough that nothing hides: 4 required ingredients or fewer. Make the swap a decision rather than a repair.
The company maraschino keeps in this library, counted off required ingredients. A swap that argues with the top two is the wrong swap, whatever a chart says.