Kitchen & Bar

Kitchen & Bar · First run

Three moves. Then cook.

No setup marathon. The point is to get one credible answer first, then let the shelf get smarter as you use it.

01 · Tonight

Start with the meal, not the database.

Tell Kitchen & Bar what kind of answer you need tonight. You can begin with only the ingredients you know you have; a perfect inventory is not required.

On this phone

The bar across the top scrolls sideways. These are the same stops, with the job of each one written out.

Small bowls of prepared ingredients on a work surface

Substitutions

You are out of one thing. Here is what that costs you.

192 ingredients, each judged by the job it was doing rather than by what looks similar on a shelf. Every replacement says what it gets you and what it does not, and every page ends with the dishes in this library that already treat the ingredient as optional — because in those, the right substitution is nothing.

Small bowls of prepared ingredients on a work surface

Searches both ways: type what you are missing, or type the tub in the fridge to see what it can stand in for.

Out of lemon

303

Start with lime. 59 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of onion

301

Start with shallot. 10 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of garlic

247

Start with garlic powder. 23 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of eggs

207

Start with ground flaxseed in water. 21 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of butter

202

Start with olive oil. 39 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of lime

199

Start with lemon. 42 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of olive oil

194

Start with any neutral oil — canola. 38 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of tomato

148

Start with canned whole tomatoes. 5 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of chili flakes

128

Start with cayenne. 65 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of scallion

126

Start with chives. 53 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of soy sauce

125

Start with tamari. 11 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of honey

118

Start with maple syrup. 25 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of chicken

113

Start with turkey breast or thigh. 2 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of rice

112

Start with couscous. 16 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of cumin

110

Start with coriander seed. 17 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of sugar

101

Start with honey or maple syrup. 14 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of soda

96

Start with tonic water. 17 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of bread

95

Start with any other bread you actually have. 12 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of ginger

91

Start with ground ginger. 25 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of stock

90

Start with water plus salt and something savory. 6 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of pasta

89

Start with a different pasta shape. 5 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of potato

81

Start with sweet potato. 9 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of parmesan

79

Start with pecorino romano. 32 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of orange

77

Start with a mandarin. 39 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of parsley

75

Start with cilantro. 47 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of yogurt

71

Start with sour cream. 27 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of beef

66

Start with pork shoulder for braises. 1 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of mint

64

Start with basil. 36 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of cinnamon

63

Start with allspice. 25 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of thyme

62

Start with oregano. 32 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of sesame oil

60

Start with toasted sesame seeds ground into neutral oil. 22 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of cheddar

59

Start with gruyere. 17 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of carrot

58

Start with parsnip. 8 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of flour

57

Start with cornstarch. 3 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of pork

57

Start with chicken thighs. 2 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of milk

56

Start with any unsweetened plant milk — oat. 5 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of coconut milk

49

Start with heavy cream. 3 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of dijon

49

Start with whole grain mustard. 17 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of dill

47

Start with fennel fronds. 22 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of cream

46

Start with full fat coconut milk. 8 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of cucumber

46

Start with zucchini. 8 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of feta

46

Start with ricotta salata or a dry goat cheese. 23 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of gin

43

Start with vodka plus a drop of whatever is botanical on the shelf. Every dish here that names it needs it.

Out of shrimp

42

Start with scallops. 5 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of cilantro

41

Start with flat leaf parsley. 30 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of cabbage

39

Start with napa cabbage or bok choy. 5 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of angostura

38

Start with any other aromatic bitters. 7 of those dishes call it optional.

Out of hot sauce

38

Start with chili flakes bloomed in a little vinegar. 23 of those dishes call it optional.

The rest of the shelf · 144

Why these are not a chart

A substitution chart answers a chemistry question. The question people are actually holding is a dinner question, and it has a different answer depending on what the ingredient was doing — lemon replaced in a dressing and lemon replaced in a lemon tart are not the same problem. So each page states the job first and judges every replacement against it, and the dish lists at the bottom are read out of the same written library the ranking uses. Of the 192 ingredients here, 66 are never listed as optional by any dish that names them — for those, there is no leaving it out and the swap has to do the work.