The competitors on Top Chef seem to endlessly complain when they have to work with an ingredient that they didn't make from scratch, repeating ad nauseum that they feel such things - namely, processed foods - are far beneath them. But using commercial ingredients isn't beneath all chefs, not even ones like Jean-Georges Vongerichten and David Bouley. Vongerichten serves his Two-Flavored Stir-Fried Shrimp in a sauce of Hellmann's Mayo and condensed milk. Bouley uses Heinz Ketchup in several sauces, including the one served with his Braised Hawaiian Yellowtail appetizer. Other secret ingredients in chefs' pantries include Gravy Master, Kraft Singles, canned creamed corn and Dr. Pepper.

How are high-end, starred chefs getting away with using ingredients that you could find at a convenience store? The answer is that they don't advertise it the same way that they highlight grass-fed beef and organic tomatoes on their menus.

Here is yet another concoction to add to our ever-growing list of things that bacon is not normally found in, yet contain bacon anyway: bacon martinis. Unlike some of our previous finds, however, a bacon martini doesn't even really sound appetizing. It is made with the following method: "Lightly mist martini glass with vermouth, and rim the edge with bacon grease. In a cocktail shaker, mix 3oz vodka, one dash Tabasco, and one dash olive juice. Shake well and strain into cocktail glass. Skim excess bacon grease from surface of cocktail. Garnish with one slice of bacon." It's hard to say whether the recipe was intended to be a joke because there are definitely bacon lovers out there who would give this a try at least once. Perhaps the question we should be asking is what to serve such a cocktail with. It might be too salty if served with nuts or other classic bar food, and there is no way that it would pair well with a dessert. It might add a bit of bacon flavor to an otherwise plain steak, but the only other viable option is with an egg dish at breakfast. After all, if you're willing to toss back some bacon martinis in the first place, you probably won't have a problem doing it in the morning.

After busily cleaning out the pantry, I discovered two open, but only partially used, containers that I didn't know I had. One was baking powder and one was baking soda. It's always useful to have extra on hand in case of a baking emergency, but I figured that it would be a good idea to test them to see if they still worked, since chemical leaveners can lose their potency over time for various reasons, including poor storage conditions.

The procedure for testing these two products is simple. Get out two small glasses or bowls and fill one with 3-4 tablespoons of white vinegar and fill the other with 3-4 tablespoons of room temperature water. Add about 1/2 teaspoon baking soda to the bowl containing the vinegar and the same amount of baking powder to the water bowl. Each mixture should fizz up, with the soda/vinegar producing a bigger reaction. If they both work, mark the containers with the date and check them again in 6-12 months (if you haven't used them up by then) to make sure they're still active. And if they don't fizz up, you better stop by the store before the next time you want to whip up a batch of cookies.

One of the best features of Trader Joe's is that they have a large display promoting their new products. They ususally introduce a few products at a time at intervals of three to four weeks, a small number that would disappear unnoticed into the regular shelves. But thanks to the displays, a regular shopper can tell at a glance if there are any new things that need to be added to the shopping list. This Crushed Ginger is one of their newest products and it only took a second before I decided to put it in my cart.

Typically, when a recipe calls for fresh ginger, it asks for a teaspoon or a tablespoon of minced ginger. With this pre-crushed ginger, I can just measure out exactly how much I need and continue with the recipe, without bothering to peel, mince (with my microplane grater) and then store the leftover portion of a piece of fresh ginger. The jarred stuff will keep for at least several weeks in the fridge once it has been opened.

A pluot is a relatively new fruit, developed in the late 20th century by Floyd Zaiger, a hybrid between a plum and an apricot that is touted by growers as having all of the good properties of both fruits, and none of the drawbacks. They have a very high sugar content, are smooth-skinned and do not have the tartness that is often associated with plum skins. Their flesh is a little bit firmer than that of plums, similar in firmness to the flesh of a ripe nectarine, so they hold up better to being eaten out-of-hand or sliced up than plums do.

When it came out that Ben & Jerry's, the socially aware ice cream company owned by Unilever, was purchasing eggs from a facility that was accused of mistreating its chickens by the Humane Society, which released a report that revealed the supplier had dead and dying chickens with living ones and that all were kept in small cages. Consumers were not pleased. They expected more from the activist ice cream producers. But Ben & Jerry listened to those concerns, as well as the concerns from the Humane Society, and has dropped the egg producer in question from its list of suppliers, though the CEO would not commit to switching to cage-free eggs for its US operation, though they use free range eggs in Europe.

Now we will just have to wait and see if this move affects either sales or production, given that Sarah noted the ice cream maker purchased over 30 million eggs each year from the egg company and that consumers might want the company to source its ingredients more responsibly in the future.

While the name gets thrown around a lot, especially with the ever-increasing discussion of shopping at local farmers markets and avoiding conventionally grown, mass produced produce, many consumers still wonder what heirloom tomatoes really are.

While some feel that a set, defined time limit of 50 or 100 years must be included in the definition of an heirloom plant, the short definition of an heirloom tomato is that it is an open-pollinated tomato plant, meaning that it is naturally pollinated by exposure to birds, insects and animals. Hybrid plants, the commercially grown tomatoes, do not always produce reliable, viable seeds due to the fact that some (if not most) of the crosses used to generate the plants were done artificially.

The more traditional tomatoes, those that are often seen in supermarkets and the majority of restaurants, have been bred to enhance certain characteristics besides flavor. For example, many have been selected for disease resistance or for having a slightly thicker skin, which makes them hold up better during shipping. Most of these conventional tomatoes are close to spherical and very red in color. Their flavor is ordinary, with little "wow" factor.

There are three types of yeast you can use in baking; but if you can find fresh yeast anywhere for sale in the UK you are a better man than me!

1. Fresh Yeast - limited shelf life, impossible to find although apparenlty some health food shops stock it. Should be wrapped and stored in a cool place but used as soon as possible after purchase. Can be frozen but defrost for 30 minutes before using.
2. Granular Dried - this is the stuff that needs activating before use; lukewarm milk or water is commonly used. Must be used within use by date or the bread won't rise.
3. Easy Blend Yeast - the little packeted stuff does not need activating before use and can be added directly to the flour. Again will not work if it becomes stale.

Dried yeast is twice as potent as fresh, so use 15g (½ oz) dried to approximatly 26g (1oz) fresh. Two level tespoons is approximatly 15g (½ oz) dried yeast.

Diners who frequent higher end restaurants may have no problem accepting a chef's use of unusual or artificial flavoring agents when they are used to bring out unusual sensations in the food, like the menthol crystals used by Wylie Dufresne in some dishes at wd-50. The same cannot be said when artificial flavorings are used instead of readily available ingredients.

Leading French chefs Joel Robuchon and Alain Passard have denounced the growing trend among French cooks for using non-natural ingredients in their cooking, like saffron perfume, truffle essence or powdered wine sauce. The objective, unlike the use of similar things in the conceptual molecular gastronomy model, is to be able to achieve cheap, quick results. French cooks who use them use the "ingredients" secretly, for fear of being accused of cheating by others in their profession. A supplier stands by the products, saying "An increased range [of flavors] should logically be tolerated and accepted by everyone in the end," while Passard said "I don't know what to call the people who use these chemicals, but they are not cooks."

Basil is an herb in the mint family. It is often regarded as the "king of herbs" due not only to the fact that its name comes from the Greek word for "king," but due to its versatility. It is thought to have originated in India before being brought to the Mediterranean regions of Europe, where it is a staple in regional cuisine. It is also hugely popular in Thai cooking. Dark green, large leafed plants, known as sweet basil or Italian basil, are among the most widely used, but there are many other types of basil as well. These other varieties can range in color from purple to varying shades of green

It tastes slightly sweet and slightly peppery, with a hint of clove flavor. It pairs well with most meats, eggs and vegetables. A meat stuffing might include basil, as well as stir-fried vegetables. It can also simply be crushed into olive oil for a lovely dip for bread. The plant is highly aromatic, so beyond cooked uses, it can be added to potpourris or to a dish of hot water (even to a bath) to create a soothing, slightly minty aroma.