How to Substitute Ingredients

Food and Nutrition Education Resources

By: Jaz Popa, 1/27/2023

Have you ever wanted to try a new recipe but were discouraged when an ingredient was expensive, hard to find, one that you don’t enjoy eating, or you just didn’t want to buy another spice to crowd your cupboard? Maybe you thought about swapping out that ingredient for something that you already had but didn’t want to risk it, so you just decided not to make it. It can be daunting to change a recipe. What if it doesn’t come out right? You don’t want to waste precious food dollars on something that might not taste good.

Don’t let a recipe stop you from trying something new! Instead of skipping over that recipe, try substituting ingredients. Many ingredients have similar flavors and textures and can be used in place of one another. Substitutions are a great way to make new or different recipes accessible to you. When it comes to cooking, it’s all about making recipes work for you, so use what you have and make a delicious meal with ingredients you like. Below you will learn about comparable fruit, veggie, and spice substitutions to make sure your recipe will still turn out amazing despite the changes you made.

Fruit Substitutions

What the Recipe Calls For:	If the Recipe Calls for Raw, Try:	If the Recipe Calls for Cooked, Try:
Apples	Stone fruit, pears	Stone fruit, pears
Bananas	Berries	Berries
Berries (blueberries, blackberries, strawberries, and raspberries)	Cherries, bananas, grapes, stone fruit	Cherries, grapes, stone fruit
Grapefruit	Oranges	Oranges
Grapes	Cherries, berries, bananas	Cherries, berries
Lemons	Limes, oranges, grapefruit	Limes, oranges, grapefruit
Limes	Lemons, oranges, grapefruit	Lemons, oranges, grapefruit
Oranges	Grapefruit	Grapefruit
Pears	Stone fruit, apples	Stone fruit, apples
Stone fruit (peaches, plums, nectarines, and apricots)	Bananas, berries	Grapes, apples, pears

Vegetable Substitutions

What the Recipe Calls For:	If the Recipe Calls for Raw, Try:	If the Recipe Calls for Cooked, Try:
Broccoli	Cauliflower	Cauliflower, spinach, dark leafy greens
Carrots	Beets, celery root, summer squash, celery	Root vegetables, summer squash, celery
Celery	Carrots, celery root, fennel	Carrots, celery root, fennel
Dark leafy greens (kale, chard, collards, turnip, beet, and mustard greens)	Spinach, lettuce, cabbage	Spinach, broccoli, cabbage
Edamame (soy beans)	Peas, cooked beans	Peas, cooked beans
Eggplant	–	Zucchini, yellow squash, sweet peppers
Green onions	Chives, Onions, sweet peppers	Chives, Onions, sweet peppers
Hot peppers	Sweet peppers, crushed red chili peppers (to taste)	Sweet peppers, crushed red chili peppers (to taste)
Mushrooms	Summer squash	Snow peas, sugar snap peas, summer squash
Onions	Sweet peppers, green onions	Sweet peppers, green onions
Potatoes	–	Sweet potato, root vegetables, carrots, winter squash
Root vegetables (turnips, beets, rutabaga, celery root)	Sweet potatoes, carrots	Sweet potatoes, winter squash, carrots, parsnips
Spinach	Lettuce, dark leafy greens	Dark leafy greens, broccoli, cabbage
Summer squash (zucchini, yellow squash)	Sweet peppers, carrots	Eggplant, sweet peppers, mushrooms
Sweet peppers	Tomatoes	Tomatoes
Sweet potatoes	Cabbage, root vegetables, carrots	Root vegetables, carrots, winter squash, parsnips
Tomatoes	Sweet peppers	Sweet peppers
Winter squash	–	Sweet potatoes, root vegetables, carrots, parsnips

Herbs and Spice Substitutions

If the Recipe Calls For:	Try this Substitution:
Allspice (1 tsp)	½ tsp cinnamon + ¼ teaspoon ground cloves + ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
Any fresh herb (1 Tbsp)	The same herb, dried (1 tsp)
Basil	Oregano or thyme
Cardamom	Ginger or cinnamon
Chervil	Parsley or dill
Cilantro	Parsley
Cinnamon (1 tsp)	¼ tsp ground nutmeg or allspice
Cloves	Allspice, cinnamon, or nutmeg
Cumin	Chili powder
Ginger, fresh (1 Tbsp)	Ginger, ground (1/8 tsp)
Marjoram	Basil or thyme
Nutmeg	Cinnamon
Oregano	Thyme, basil, or marjoram
Rosemary	Thyme or tarragon
Sage	Marjoram or rosemary
Thyme	Basil, marjoram, or oregano

Click the images below for printable flyers that you can hang in your kitchen!

Sources:

Cooking Matters – Making Recipes Work for You

NPR – Next Time You’re Missing an Ingredient, Try Substitution Instead of Shopping

Food and Nutrition Education Resources