© Yankee Harvest, LLC
Emergency Cooking Ingredient Substitutions
For best cooking results, use the ingredients as specified in your recipe.
But when you are in a bind, as we sometimes find ourselves in,
this helpful chart can help you find a emergency substitute ingredient for your recipe.
| Dairy Products | Baking Products | Seasoning Products | Liquid Products | Ethnic Foods |
| Ingredient | Emergency Substitution |
| Buttermilk, 1 cup | 1 tablespoon vinegar or lemon plus enough milk to make 1 cup. Let mixture stand for 5 minutes before using. |
| Sour Cream, 1 cup | 1 cup plain yogurt |
| Half-and-Half, 1 cup | 7/8 cup milk plus 3 tablespoons butter |
| Yogurt (plain), 1 cup | 1 cup sour cream or buttermilk |
| Eggs, 2 large | 3 small eggs |
| Whole Milk, 1 cup | 1/2 cup evaporated milk plus 1/2 cup water |
| Asiago | Parmesan cheese |
| Ricotta | Cottage cheese |
| Light Cream, 1 cup | 2 tablespoons butter, plus 1 cup minus 2 tablespoons milk |
| Cottage cheese - pureed, 1 cup | 1 cup Sour Cream |
| Mayonnaise (for salad dressings), 1 cup | 1/2 cup plain yogurt and 1/2 cup mayonnaise -OR- 1 cup sour cream -OR- 1 cup cottage cheese, pureed |
"Baking Products"
| Ingredient | |
| Active Dry Yeast, 1 package | 2 1/2 teaspoons dry or 1/3 cake yeast, crumbled |
| Baking powder, 1 teaspoon | 1/4 teaspoon baking soda plus 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar |
| Cake flour, 1 cup | 1 cup minus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour |
| Cornstarch, 1 tablespoon | 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour - Simmer about 3 minutes AFTER it has thickened |
| Flour, 1 tablespoon (for thickening) | 1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch |
| Honey, 1 cup | 1 1/4 cups sugar plus 1/4 cup liquid |
| Self Rising Flour (1 cup) | 1 cup all-purpose flour plus 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder plus 1/2 teaspoons salt |
| Semisweet Chocolate, 1 ounce | 1 ounce unsweetened chocolate plus 1 tablespoon sugar |
| Semisweet Chocolate chips, 1/2 cup | 3 ounces semisweet chocolate |
| Unsweetened Chocolate, 1 ounce | 3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa plus 1 tablespoon margarine |
| Powdered Sugar, 1 cup | 1 cup sugar plus 1 tablespoon cornstarch processed in food processor |
| Tapioca, 1 tablespoon | 1 1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour |
| Cream of Tartar, 1 teaspoon | 3 teaspoons of lemon juice -OR- 3 teaspoons of vinegar |
| Gelatin, 1 sheet | one 1/4 ounce envelope unflavored powdered gelatin |
| Maple Syrup, 1 tablespoon | 2 teaspoons of maple sugar -AND- 1 teaspoon of water |
| Baking Soda | There is NO substitute for baking soda |
| Butter, 1 cup | 1 cup margarine -OR- 1 cup vegetable shortening (for baking only) |
| Flour - Cake, 1 cup | 1 cup minus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour - sifted |
| Shortening, 1 cup | 1 cup softened butter OR 1 cup margarine minus 1/2 teaspoon salt from the recipe. |
| Marshmallows, Mini, 1 cup | 8 to 10 regular marshmallows |
"Seasoning Products"
| Ingredient | Emergency Substitution |
| Lemon Peel (Zest), 1 teaspoon | 1/2 teaspoon lemon extract |
| Mustard, dry, 1 teaspoon | 1 tablespoon prepared mustard |
| Fresh Herbs, 1 tablespoon | 1 teaspoon dried herbs |
| Garlic, 1 clove | 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder or minced dried garlic |
| Fresh Gingerroot, 1 tablespoon | 1/8 teaspoon ground ginger |
| Vanilla Bean, 1 inch | 1 teaspoon vanilla extract |
| Allspice, 1 teaspoon ground | 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon plus 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves |
| Apple Pie Spice, 1 teaspoon | 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon plus 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg plus 1/8 teaspoon ground cardamom |
| Pumpkin Pie Spice | 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon plus 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger plus 1/8 teaspoon ground allspice plus 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg |
| Fish sauce | Worcestershire sauce or light soy sauce with salt |
| Saffron , 1/8 teaspoon | 1/2 teaspoon turmeric |
| Asian Basil | equal amount any fresh basil variety |
| Tomato Sauce, 2 cups | 3/4 cup tomato paste plus 1 cup water |
| Tomato Juice, 1 cup | 1/2 cup tomato sauce plus 1/2 cup water |
| Onion, 1 small | 1 teaspoon onion powder or 1 tablespoon minced dried onion, rehydrated |
| Chili Sauce, 1 cup | 1 cup tomato sauce, 1/8 cup brown sugar, 2 tablespoons vinegar (White or Apple), 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon, dash of allspice and a dash of fresh ground cloves |
| Worcestershire Sauce | Bottled Steak Sauce |
| Spearmint, Dried, 1 tablespoon | 1/4 cup fresh chopped mint |
"Liquid Products"
| Ingredient | Emergency Substitution |
| Lemon, 1 medium (fresh juice) | 2 to 3 tablespoons bottled lemon juice |
| Orange, 1 medium (fresh juice) | 1/4 to 1/3 cup orange juice |
| Amaretto, 2 tablespoons | 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon almond extract |
| Sherry, 2 tablespoons | 1 to 2 teaspoons vanilla extract |
| Marsala, 1/4 cup | 1/4 cup dry wine plus 1 teaspoon brandy |
| White Wine | Bottled White Grape Juice or Apple Juice |
| Red wine, 1/4 cup | 1 tablespoon balsamic or red wine vinegar |
| Tomato Juice, 1 cup | 1/2 cup tomato sauce plus 1/2 cup water |
| Maple Syrup, 1 tablespoon | 2 teaspoons of maple sugar -AND- 1 teaspoon of water |
| Red Wine - Sweet | Bottled Grape Juice or Cranberry Juice |
| Worcestershire Sauce, 1 tablespoon | 1 tablespoon bottled steak sauce |
"Ethnic Foods"
| Fish sauce | Worcestershire sauce or light soy sauce with salt |
| Asian Basil | equal amount any fresh basil variety |
| Banana Leaves (as wrappers) | foil, fresh corn husks, ti leaves, or parchment paper |
| Chinese or Thai Bean Sauce | Vietnamese soybean sauce |
| Candlenuts | raw Brazil or macadamia nuts |
| Thai Chiles | bottled chile sauce, ground dried chile, or dried chile flakes |
| Galanga | Fresh Ginger |
| Jasmine Essence | banana essence or rose or orange flower water or extract |
| Kaffir Lime Leaves | Domestic lime or lemon leaves or equal amount of grated lemon zest moistened with a bit of fresh lemon juice |
| Lemon Grass | Equal amount of grated lemon zest moistened with a bit of fresh lemon juice |
| Palm Sugar | Maple sugar or brown sugar blended with a little maple syrup to moisten |
| Pandan Essence | Screwpine Leaves |
| Rice Paper Wrappers | Freshly made thin crepes |
| Screwpine Leaves | Pandan Essence (use very sparingly) |
| Shallots, 1/2 dozen | Red Spanish Onion or 1 tablespoon minced dried onion, rehydrated |
| Shrimp Paste | Anchovy Paste |
| Sweet Soy Sauce | 1 part soy sauce to 2 parts palm sugar boiled until syrupy, then cooled |
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