Have you ever gone into the kitchen to make a recipe, only to find you’re out of a key ingredient? This can be so frustrating! Your recipe is probably not going to work if you try to make it without a critical ingredient and now you have to go to the store to pick up that one thing. Ingredient substitutions to the rescue! Believe it or not, there are hundreds of ingredients that have an acceptable substitute that will make the final product be just like (or super close to) the original recipe. This short list covers some of the most commonly used substitutes, but click here for a more detailed list that includes baking ingredients, too.
| Ingredient | Substitution |
| Apple cider vinegar (1 tablespoon) | White vinegar (1 tablespoon) |
| Balsamic vinegar (1 tablespoon) | Apple cider vinegar (1 tablespoon) |
| Beer (1 cup) | Beef, chicken or vegetable broth (1 cup) |
| Baking powder (1 teaspoon) | ¼ teaspoon baking soda + ½ cup buttermilk |
| Bread crumbs (1 cup) | Cracker crumbs, matzo meal or ground oats (1 cup) |
| Brown sugar | 1 cup white sugar + 2 tablespoons molasses |
| Buttermilk (1 cup) | Plain yogurt (1 cup) or
1 tablespoon lemon juice or vinegar + enough milk to make 1 cup |
| Corn syrup (1 cup) | Honey (1 cup) or 1 cup white sugar +¼ cup water |
| Cream cheese (1 cup) | Cottage cheese, beat until smooth (1 cup) |
| Cream of tartar (1 teaspoon) | Lemon juice or white vinegar (2 tablespoons) |
| Herbs, fresh (1 tablespoon) | Herbs, dried (1 teaspoon) |
| Mayonnaise (1 cup) | Sour cream or plain yogurt (1 cup) |
| Oil, vegetable (1 cup) | Applesauce (1 cup) |
| Wine, red (1 cup) | Beef broth, apple cider or tomato juice (1 cup) |
| Wine, white (1 cup) | White grape juice, apple juice or chicken broth (1 cup) |
Written by Adriene Worthington RDN, LDN
#ingredients, substitution