great flavor—fast

Keep these flavor-boosting ingredients on hand for quick, delicious meals.

VINEGARS 

Think beyond salad dressings when using flavor-enhancing vinegars. Slightly sweet balsamic vinegar is delicious in sauces and gravies, sprinkled over roasted meats, or drizzled on strawberries. Tart white-wine vinegar perks up the flavor of cantaloupe or honeydew, fresh vegetable salsas, and marinades. Fruity raspberry vinegar is great for cooked veggies or in marinades for grilled chicken or shrimp.

FRESH HERBS 

Hands down, fresh herbs are the quickest, easiest way to add flavor to almost any dish. Here, we’ve included our picks for the top herbs with intense flavor. Try one of these ideas and you’ll see why:

• Basil: Toss whole leaves into green salad, stir it into vegetable soup just before serving, add it to sautéed vegetables, or toss it with roasted red bell peppers.

• Chervil: Whisk into salad dressing, sprinkle it over steamed vegetables, or fold it into a cheese omelette.

• Chives: Sprinkle over pasta salad or egg salad, stir into vegetable dips, or use as a peppery garnish for soups.

• Lavender: Add fresh lavender to a spice rub for meat or poultry, toss it with roasted potatoes, or stir it into a fruit compote.

• Mint: Use in cucumber salad, chilled soups, or fresh tomato sauce; sprinkle over roasted beets or steamed peas; or toss it with fresh fruit.

• Rosemary: Try in meat and poultry marinades, sprinkled on lamb before roasting or grilling, or in potato salad.

• Thyme: Incorporate into marinades for meats or chicken, tuck small sprigs under the skin of chicken before roasting, add it to beef barley soup or minestrone, or sprinkle it over roasted pears.

If you’re looking for more foods with a big flavor payoff, consider the following:

FRESH FENNEL 

Use chopped fennel bulb to add anise flavor and crispy crunch to tuna, egg, or pasta salads; grill or roast the bulb to serve as a side dish; add the chopped feathery green fronds to egg dishes, salad dressings, or marinades for seafood or chicken.

FRESH HORSERADISH 

Peel this slender root, then finely grate it and swirl it into sauces or dressings, mix it into potato salad or coleslaw, or stir it into fat-free sour cream and drizzle over a baked potato.

LEMON ZEST 

Grate the outermost skin layer of a lemon to remove the zest to add flavor to broiled fish fillets, sautéed shrimp, steamed veggies, cooked rice or pasta, or fruit salads.

LEMONGRASS 

Remove the tough outer leaves from the cream-colored base and finely chop to add flavor to stir-fries, chicken soup, seafood marinades, or shrimp salad.

OLIVES 

Add bold-flavored olives to pasta sauces, salads, or vegetable dips, sprinkle them into a cheese sandwich, or stir them into a rice pilaf just before serving.

PARMIGIANO-REGGIANO 

A kitchen essential, this handmade cheese from the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy adds complex flavor to pasta, risotto, polenta, vegetable soup, or Caesar salad.

PROSCIUTTO 

Pair this salt-cured Italian ham with sweet cantaloupe or peaches, sprinkle thin strips over a cheese pizza before baking, add chopped prosciutto to omelettes, or wrap it around thin breadsticks for a chic and easy hors d’oeuvre.