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Substitutions that turned out better than the "real thing?"

11 years ago

Hi, all. The other day I wanted one of my "go-to" dishes (I should have put it in the favorite meals thread, come to think of it); seared rapini with gnocchi, olive oil, and harissa. I was very bummed out when I arrived at the grocery store that I can always count on to have rapini and was told they quit carrying it! Mind you, I'm pregnant, so I want to eat what I want to eat, darn it, and this almost qualified as a crisis LOL. So I thought I'd try to substitute broccoli and turnip or dandelion greens, but then I saw that they were carrying something new called "Chinese broccoli" which, long story short, was amazing! Very similar flavor to the rapini, but slightly milder and had a nicer texture after searing. Always nice when a minor disappointment turns into a blessing.

Anyone else have a substitute that ended up being a keeper?

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Comments (3)

dcarch7 d c f l a s h 7 @ y a h o o . c o m
11 years ago
First, to be on topic, this being the Cooking Forum,
congratulations to “ Bun in the oven”.

“Mind you, I'm pregnant, so I want to eat what I want to eat, darn it,
and this almost qualified as a crisis LOL.”

Sounds like you are going to have a
baby girl. LOL!

Having a few Asian stores around, I
can get Chinese broccoli regularly. Much better taste and much cheaper, $0.99 to $1.50 a lb, v.s.
raab, always $2,75 a lb.

I don’t remember when I didn’t substitute
something one way or another, not purposefully, mainly not having the time to
shop for all the ingredients called for in a recipe.

dcarch
kiwi_bird
Original Author
11 years ago
Ha, thanks! And you're right- it is a girl. :-)

I'm quite accustomed to making due with what I've got ingredients-wise, but ending up with a new favorite was a nice surprise!
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Lars/J. Robert Scott
11 years ago
I substitute all the time, but mainly because I like to omit or substitute for ingredients that I do not like or "upgrade" the ingredients. I always leave something out if I do not like it or substitute something better.

One substitution I made that was similar to yours was when I was making Crab Louis and did not have avocado, and so I substituted cooked asparagus, which I did happen to have at the time. It's not better, but it is a very good substitute in this salad. I make a lot of substitutions in Salad Niçoise, to the point that I probably should call it something else, but I do not like the original [authentic] recipe.

Lars

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