"Secret ingredients" thar make a good dish a great dish

[PrincessHoneysuckle]

I've discovered recently that very finely chopped cooked smoked bacon really is a game changer in lasagne.I add it to the ragu.Tastes Amazing.

Anyone else got any?

Fresh ginger in vegetable soup.

Marmite for beef stew

Mustard powder or paprika in macaroni cheese. Cinnamon in shepherd’s pie.

Google ‘umami’

Grated mozzarella on top of a good quality shop bought fresh lasagne

Gordon Ramsay recommended lemon juice in mushroom soup
It's surprisingly good

Miso paste in baked goods

I put grated mozzarella in my lasagne it's lovely

Tamarind in curries.

Pinch of sugar in recipes if tomatoes are too tart

Salt and vanilla essence in chocolate cake/chocolate buttercream

MSG 😆

butter at the start and middle of recipes & splash of lemon juice towards end in literally every dish

85% or higher square of dark chocolate in a spag bol or chilli

Dark chocolate in chilli con carne

I add lemon at the end of all my meat curries. And in dahl.

Toasted nuts and seeds on pretty much any savoury dish

Za'atar on eggs

Toasted sesame seeds on any noodle dish

Lime with avocado

I add a pinch of red pepper flakes to a lot of recipes - it is a real flavour enhancer.

I also keep the rinds of parmesan and add them into any slow cooked beef casseroles.

Not sure if it counts as a secret, but tomato based sauces and white sauce taste much nicer with a bay leaf or two.

Oh I must try that! I usually add them to ragu but I seem to have a load in the freezer to use and nothing to put them in

Worcestershire sauce of course

Another vote for MSG

A friend recently asked me how I make cheese sauce as mine is always nicer than hers and the only thing we do different is that I always add half a teaspoon of English mustard at the end. I didn't realise not everyone does that though - it's how my Mum taught me when I was a teenager and I thought it was the standard recipe. But it definitely makes a difference.
I didn't know about the chocolate in chilli. We're having it tomorrow so I will try that. I quite like chilli in chocolate but never tried chocolate in chilli before!

I do this with Parmesan rinds but in risotto. It’s so nice.

Mine is probably really obvious but sesame oil in egg fried rice. It’s the thing that makes it taste of egg fried rice. Love it.

Teaspoon of cocoa powder in chilli.
Harissa on poached eggs.
Fresh coriander in guacamole.
Cumin in chilli.
Splash of milk in spag bol.
When baking salmon in the oven, make a foil ‘bag’ and pour half a glass of white wine in and some fresh herbs, before scrunching the top together. The fish steams in the white wine and it makes its own sauce.
Cherry tomatoes pan fried with a splash of balsamic vinegar and a few basil leaves. Gorgeous on avocado toast.

In one of my Nigel Slater books he makes a leek and potato soup and adds a Parmesan rind in whilst cooking. I’ve tried it, it’s delicious!