Common Ingredient Substitutions

I know I’m not alone here. At least I hope not.

Have you ever started preparing a recipe only to realize halfway through that you’re missing a key ingredient? Then you think, “There has to be a substitution for that.”

Now you’ll know.

Check out this great list of common ingredient substitutions to help you when you’re stuck in a bind. I found some of them quite surprising!

Ingredient	Amount	Substitution
Allspice	1 tsp	1/2 tsp cinnamon plus 1/4 tsp ginger plus 1/4 tsp cloves
Baking mix	1 c	1 c pancake mix
Baking powder	1 tsp	1/4 tsp baking soda plus 1/2 tsp cream of tartar
Beer	1 c	1 c chicken broth
Bread crumbs	1 c	1 c cracker crumbs
Broth (chicken or beef)	1 c	1 bouillon cube dissolved in 1 c boiling water
Butter (salted)	1 c	1 c margarine OR 1 c shortening plus 1/2 tsp salt OR 7/8 c vegetable oil plus 1/2 tsp salt OR 7/8 c lard plus 1/2 tsp salt
Butter (unsalted)	1 c	1 c shortening OR 7/8 c vegetable oil OR 7/8 c lard
Buttermilk	1 c	1 c yogurt OR 1 T lemon juice or vinegar plus enough milk to make 1 c
Chervil	1 T	1 T parsley
Chocolate (semisweet)	1 oz	1 (1 oz) square of unsweetened chocolate plus 4 tsp sugar OR 1 oz semisweet chocolate chips plus 1 tsp shortening
Chocolate (unsweetened)	1 oz	3 T unsweetened cocoa plus 1 T shortening or vegetable oil
Cocoa	1/4 c	1 (1 oz) square unsweetened chocolate
Condensed cream of mushroom soup	1 can	1 can condensed cream of celery, cream of chicken, OR golden mushroom soup
Corn syrup	1 c	1 1/4 c white sugar plus 1/3 c water OR 1 c honey
Cottage cheese	1 c	1 c ricotta cheese
Cracker crumbs	1 c	1 c bread crumbs
Cream (half and half)	1 c	7/8 c milk plus 1 T butter
Cream (heavy)	1 c	1 c evaporated milk OR 3/4 c milk plus 1/3 c butter
Cream (light)	1 c	1 c evaporated milk OR 3/4 c milk plus 3 T butter
Cream (whipped)	1 c	1 c frozen whipped topping, thawed
Cream cheese	1 c	1 c pureed cottage cheese OR 1 c plain yogurt, strained overnight in a cheesecloth
Cream of tartar	1 tsp	2 tsp lemon juice or vinegar
Egg	1 whole	2-1/2 T of powdered egg substitute plus 2-1/2 T water OR 1/4 c liquid egg substitute OR 1/4 c silken tofu pureed OR 3 Ts mayonnaise OR half a banana mashed with 1/2 tsp baking powder
Evaporated milk	1 c	1 c light cream
Flour (bread)	1 c	1 c all-purpose flour plus 1 tsp wheat gluten
Flour (cake)	1 c	1 c all-purpose flour minus 2 T
Flour (self-rising)	1 c	7/8 c all-purpose flour plus 1-1/2 tsp baking powder and 1/2 tsp of salt
Garlic	1 clove	1/8 tsp garlic powder OR 1/2 tsp granulated garlic OR 1/2 tsp garlic salt (reduce salt in recipe)
Ginger (dry)	1 tsp	2 tsp chopped fresh ginger
Ginger (fresh)	1 tsp	1/2 tsp ground dried ginger
Green onion	1/2 c	1/2 c chopped onion OR 1/2 c chopped leek OR 1/2 c chopped shallots
Hazelnuts	1 c	1 c macadamia nuts OR 1 c almonds
Herbs (fresh)	1 T	1 tsp dried herbs
Herring	8 oz	8 oz sardines
Honey	1 c	1 1/4 c white sugar plus 1/3 c water OR 1 c corn syrup
Hot sauce	1 tsp	3/4 tsp cayenne pepper plus 1 tsp vinegar
Ketchup	1 c	1 c tomato sauce plus 1 tsp vinegar plus 1 T sugar
Lard	1 c	1 c shortening OR 7/8 c vegetable oil OR 1 c butter
Lemon grass	2 stalks	1 T lemon zest
Lemon juice	1 tsp	1/2 tsp vinegar OR 1 tsp white wine OR 1 tsp lime juice
Lemon zest	1 tsp	1/2 tsp lemon extract OR 2 Ts lemon juice
Lime juice	1 tsp	1 tsp vinegar OR 1 tsp white wine OR 1 tsp lemon juice
Lime zest	1 tsp	1 tsp lemon zest
Macadamia nuts	1 c	1 c almonds OR 1 c hazelnuts
Mace	1 tsp	1 tsp nutmeg
Margarine	1 c	1 c shortening plus 1/2 tsp salt OR 1 c butter OR 7/8 c vegetable oil plus 1/2 tsp salt OR 7/8 c lard plus 1/2 tsp salt
Mayonnaise	1 c	1 c sour cream OR 1 c plain yogurt
Milk (whole)	1 c	1 c soy milk OR 1 c rice milk OR 1 c water or juice OR 1/4 c dry milk powder plus 1 c water OR 2/3 c evaporated milk plus 1/3 c water
Mint (fresh)	1/4 c	1 T dried mint leaves
Molasses	1 c	3/4 c brown sugar plus 1 tsp cream of tartar
Mustard (prepared)	1 T	1 T dried mustard plus 1 tsp water plus 1 tsp vinegar plus 1 tsp sugar
Onion	1 c	1 c green onions OR 1 c shallots OR 1 c leeks OR 1/4 c dried minced onion OR 1/4 c onion powder
Orange juice	1 T	1 T other citrus juice
Orange zest	1 T	1/2 tsp orange extract OR 1 tsp lemon juice
Parmesan cheese	1/2 c	1/2 c Asiago cheese OR 1/2 c Romano cheese
Parsley(fresh)	1 T	1 T fresh chervil OR 1 tsp dried parsley
Pepperoni	1 oz	1 oz salami
Raisin	1 c	1 c dried currants OR 1 c dried cranberries OR 1 c chopped pitted prunes
Rice (white)	1 c	1 c barley OR 1 c bulgur OR 1 c brown or wild rice
Ricotta	1 c	1 c dry cottage cheese OR 1 c silken tofu
Rum	1 T	1/2 tsp rum extract plus enough water to make 1 T
Saffron	1/4 tsp	1/4 tsp turmeric
Salami	1 oz	1 oz pepperoni
Chocolate chips (semisweet)	1 c	1 c chocolate candies OR 1 c other flavored chips OR 1 c chopped nuts OR 1 c chopped dried fruit
Shallots (chopped)	1/2 c	1/2 c chopped onion OR 1/2 c chopped leek OR 1/2 c chopped green onion
Shortening	1 c	1 c butter OR 1 c margarine minus 1/2 tsp salt from recipe
Sour cream	1 c	1 c plain yogurt OR 1 T lemon juice or vinegar plus enough cream to make 1 c OR 3/4 c buttermilk mixed with 1/3 c butter
Sour milk	1 c	1 T vinegar or lemon juice plus enough milk to make 1 c (let stand 5 minutes to thicken)
Soy sauce	1/2 c	4 T Worcestershire sauce plus 1 T water
Stock (chicken or beef)	1 c	1 bouillon cube dissolved in 1 c boiling water
Sweetened condensed milk	1 can	3/4 c white sugar mixed with 1/2 c water plus 1-1/8 c dry powdered milk (boil and cook, stirring frequently, until thickened, about 20 minutes)
Vegetable oil (for baking)	1 c	1 c applesauce OR 1 c fruit puree
Vegetable oil (for frying)	1 c	1 c lard OR 1 c vegetable shortening
Vinegar	1 tsp	1 tsp lemon or lime juice OR 2 tsp white wine
White sugar	1 c	1 c brown sugar OR 1-1/4 c confectioners sugar OR 3/4 c honey OR 3/4 c corn syrup
Wine	1 c	1 c chicken or beef broth OR 1 c fruit juice plus 2 tsp vinegar OR 1 c water
Yeast (active dry)	1 pkg	1 cake compressed yeast OR 2-1/2 tsp active dry yeast OR 2-1/2 tsp rapid rise yeast
Yogurt	1 c	1 c sour cream OR 1 c buttermilk OR 1 c sour milk