“Jerk” refers to both the seasoning, and the style of cooking over pimento wood. Pimento is unique to the region, and Jamaica remains the largest producer, which is why it has become so deeply tied to the island’s culinary identity. The global popularity of jerk cooking has led to the excessive harvesting of pimento wood, significantly reducing its availability.
Sofrito: This aromatic mixture is the heart of many traditional Puerto Rican dishes. Use as a base for rice, beans, stews, or marinades to add authentic Puerto Rican flavor.
Green seasoning is one of the most important building blocks in Caribbean cooking. Almost every island has its own version, and it is the first layer of flavor in countless dishes. At its heart, it is a blend of fresh herbs, garlic, onions, peppers, and citrus, pounded or blended into a paste. Some cooks lean heavily on culantro (chadon beni), while others use more parsley or thyme, and the balance of heat depends on what peppers are at hand. Green seasoning is more than just a marinade—it’s memory and instinct in a bottle. You season your chicken with it before it ever touches a pot, rub it into fish before frying, stir it into stews, or even fold a spoonful into rice for depth. Every cook has a jar tucked into the fridge, and every family swears by their version. To understand Caribbean food culture is to understand that seasoning begins here.
This is Chef Yia Vang’s essential marinade for grilled meats. He calls the combination of ginger, lemongrass, shallots and garlic the Hmong version of sofrito. It’s especially good on pork and beef.
Sazón is the go-to spice blend in many Latin American home kitchens. While it is available in the international aisle at most supermarkets, it is easy to assemble at home.
Plain salt is boring! I want more flavor when I season something. When I cooked in high-end French restaurants, I was taught to be restrained in my seasoning. But once I started making my own food, I realized that I didn’t have to follow that rule, and I didn’t have to use plain salt when I could make something with more flavor. This robustly flavored salt is an essential component of how we season food at our restaurants. It helps us build those subtle flavors that you can’t quite identify but know are what make the food so tasty.
Salted herbs are popular in Québec, where they can be found in just about every grocery store. They are easy to make, pack a lot of flavor, and can be used in a variety of ways: as a marinade, as a seasoning in soups and stews, or as a garnish.
Use this rub whenever you want to add a little kick to something. It works great on vegetables and meat alike.
Za’atar is an aromatic eastern Mediterranean spice blend that is used as both a seasoning and a condiment.
Once difficult to find in the United States, pomegranate molasses is now more readily available at specialty shops and supermarkets. Or you can make it at home with this simple recipe. Pomegranate molasses has many uses in traditional Mediterranean cuisine, but you'll find many new uses for it once you start experimenting with it: add a teaspoon of it to a vinaigrette, add a couple tablespoons to finish a lamb stew, use it as a glaze for chicken or other fowl like in this America's Test Kitchen recipe for Pomegranate-Glazed Roasted Quail.
One of the staples of my pantry is a classic herb salt fragrant with rosemary, sage, and garlic that is used all over Northern Italy. I learned the recipe - or I should say approach - years ago while traveling in Tuscany and have never grown tired of it. It is good on just about anything.
We're big fans of chicken thighs because they're very tasty and easy to prepare, and they have just enough fat to stay moist on the grill. This is a deliciously sweet, sticky, old-school treatment most often used with wings, but we like it even better with thighs. These are not only great hot off the grill, but when they're cold, too, making them perfect for picnics.