Introduction to Basic Cooking Ingredients - to be cont'd

Garlic (Bawang Putih) - one of the most basic ingredients in almost all cuisines. It is widely used in many forms of cooking for its strong flavor, which is considered to enhance many other flavors. Depending on the form of cooking and the desired result, the flavor is either mellow or intense. It is often paired with onion, ginger, etc.

Shallots - Unlike onions where each plant normally forms a single bulb, shallots form clusters of offsets, much like garlic. When used in cooking, shallots give a more "intense" flavour than onions.

Dried red chillies - are sometimes used for the smoky flavour they give to cooked dishes. It is one of the basic ingredients to make sambal in Malay cooking.

Chinese parsley (Daun Sup) - are from the same family as Coriander. Chopped Chinese parsley are used as garnishing for soup dishes. The leaves do not keep well and should be eaten quickly, as they lose their aroma when dried or frozen.

Spring onion (Daun Bawang) - also known as Scallion or green onion in some parts of the world. It has a milder taste than other onions and are typically used in soup, noodle and sauce in eastern dishes.

Candlenutes (Buah Keras) - waxy, cream-coloured nuts that are usually grinded to add flavour and texture to various Malay and Indonesian dishes.

Coriander seeds (Ketumbar) - The dry fruits from the Coriander plant are known as coriander seeds. The seeds have a lemony citrus flavour when crushed. When grinding at home, it can be roasted or heated on a dry pan briefly to enhance the aroma before grinding it in an electric grinder or with a mortar and pestle. Ground coriander seeds lose their flavour quickly in storage and are best only ground as needed. For optimum flavour, whole coriander seed should be used within six months, or stored for no more than a year in a tightly sealed container away from sunlight and heat.

Yellow Onion - a variety of onion with a strong onion flavor and layers of papery skin, which has a yellow-brown color. It provides a rich onion taste and good choice for food dishes requiring a strong onion flavor, like French onion soup. I like to use loads of it in omelettes.

*Some information are obtained from Wikipedia.