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Almond Oil
A pale, lightly nutty oil pressed from almonds — used both as a delicate finishing oil in Mediterranean cooking and as a skin-moisturizing carrier oil in cosmetics.
Below are foods that contain the letter M anywhere in the name. Each of the 88 foods below opens to a full profile.
Table of contents
List of Foods That Contain M
2
Almonds
The seed of a small Mediterranean tree related to peaches and apricots, eaten raw, roasted, in baking, and processed into milk, flour, oil, and the famous Sicilian marzipan.
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Amaranth
An ancient pseudocereal seed that was a staple of the Aztec Empire, packed with complete protein and gluten-free, popped like popcorn or simmered into porridge.
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Amchur Powder
Indian dried green-mango powder — a tangy, slightly sweet souring agent used in chaat, samosa fillings, and dry-spice blends where lemon juice would water down the texture.
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Apple Crumble
Britain's most beloved home-baked dessert — sharp cooking apples underneath a buttery, sandy rubble of flour, butter, and sugar, baked until the fruit is soft and bubbling and the topping is golden and crisp; simple, forgiving, and deeply satisfying; endlessly variable in fruit filling, and nearly always served with custard, cream, or vanilla ice cream.
6
Banh Mi
A Vietnamese baguette sandwich filled with pickled vegetables, fresh herbs, and a protein — a direct product of French colonial influence on Vietnamese street food.
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Bibimbap
Korea's iconic mixed rice bowl — a colourful arrangement of seasoned vegetables, a fried or raw egg, and gochujang chilli paste served over steamed white rice.
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Calamari
Squid prepared as food, most often coated in batter and deep-fried into golden rings — a Mediterranean fishmonger's mainstay that has gone global as a bar appetizer.
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Camembert
A small, soft, bloomy-rind cow's-milk cheese from Normandy with a velvety white crust and an oozing pale-yellow interior — younger and earthier than Brie but the same cheese family.
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Camomile
A gentle herbal infusion brewed from the dried flowers of the chamomile plant, prized for centuries as a calming bedtime tea and a mild digestive remedy.
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Canned Salmon
Wild-caught Pacific salmon preserved in cans — a convenient, shelf-stable source of complete protein, omega-3 fatty acids, and calcium-rich edible bones, long a staple of budget-conscious and health-aware households.
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Carambola
A glossy yellow tropical fruit that produces five-pointed star slices when cut crosswise — Southeast Asian in origin, sweet-tart, and the source of the alternate name "star fruit."
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Christmas Pudding
The great British festive dessert — a dense, dark steamed pudding made months in advance with dried fruit, suet, black treacle, spices, and stout or brandy; served flaming with brandy on Christmas Day; traditionally made on Stir-up Sunday (the last Sunday before Advent) and steamed for hours until almost black; often contains hidden silver coins for good luck.
14
Clotted Cream
The richest cream in the British repertoire — thick, pale gold, slightly granular, with a minimum 55% fat content; made by heating unpasteurised or pasteurised cream in wide shallow pans until the surface forms a characteristic golden crust; associated above all with Devon and Cornwall, where it is the essential accompaniment to scones in a cream tea; clotted cream from Devon has Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) status.
15
Crème Brûlée
The classic French custard dessert with a burnt caramel top — a rich, silky vanilla-infused cream set to a barely trembling consistency, covered with a thin layer of caster sugar that is caramelised under a grill or with a blowtorch to form a brittle, shattering golden disc; the moment of cracking the caramel top with a spoon is one of the small pleasures of restaurant dining.
16
Croque-Monsieur
France's definitive hot sandwich — a grilled ham and cheese toastie topped with béchamel sauce and more cheese, then gratinéed until golden; add a fried egg on top and it becomes a croque-madame; a staple of French café menus since the early 20th century.
17
Crumpet
A uniquely British yeasted bread product — a thick, spongy disc riddled with hundreds of small holes that form during cooking on a griddle; the holes make crumpets perfect for absorbing butter, which melts through the holes from the top surface; a winter breakfast comfort food inseparable from British tea culture.
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Dim Sum
A Cantonese tradition of small steamed and fried bites served from rolling carts at brunch — dumplings, buns, rolls, and savory plates picked piece by piece with tea.
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Dumpling
A pocket of dough wrapped around a filling — boiled, steamed, fried, or baked — found in nearly every cuisine on Earth.
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Edamame
Young green soybeans boiled or steamed in their fuzzy pods and salted — a Japanese drinking snack (*otsumami*) and now a globally popular bar food and protein-rich starter.
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Empanada
A baked or fried turnover of pastry dough wrapped around a savory or sweet filling, found across Spain, Latin America, and the Philippines.
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Eton Mess
Britain's most gloriously chaotic dessert — crushed meringue, whipped cream, and fresh strawberries tumbled together in a mess that is supposed to look accidental; traditionally served at Eton College's annual cricket match against Harrow, it is now a staple of British summer tables and garden parties.
23
Garam Masala
A North Indian blend of warming whole spices toasted and ground together — added at the end of cooking to crown a dish with aromatic depth, with each family making its own distinct mix.
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Goat's Milk
Milk from domestic goats — slightly tangier than cow's milk, naturally homogenized by smaller fat globules, and the second-most-consumed milk worldwide.
25
Guacamole
Mexico's most famous condiment — a simple, fresh dip of mashed avocado with lime juice, coriander, onion, and chilli; invented by the Aztec people using the same basic technique still used today; the quality depends entirely on ripe avocados, and fresh guacamole must be made and eaten immediately before it discolours.
26
Gumbo
Louisiana's most beloved dish — a thick, deeply flavoured stew built on a dark roux and the "holy trinity" of onion, celery, and bell pepper, thickened with okra or filé powder and loaded with seafood, chicken, and andouille sausage; as much a cultural institution as it is a meal.
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Halloumi
A semi-hard Cypriot brined cheese with the unique property of holding its shape under high heat — sliced and grilled directly without melting, producing a salty-rubbery-juicy bite beloved across the Eastern Mediterranean.
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Hamburger
A ground beef patty served in a sliced bun, an American icon with deep German roots, now globally pervasive.
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Hummus
A creamy Middle Eastern dip of mashed chickpeas, tahini, lemon juice, garlic, and olive oil — eaten with bread, vegetables, or as a base for fuller plates.
30
Ice Cream
A frozen dairy dessert of cream, sugar, and flavorings churned into a soft, smooth, semi-frozen state — the most-eaten dessert in the world.
31
Jam
Crushed or pureed fruit cooked with sugar to a thick, spreadable preserve — one of the oldest methods of preserving the harvest before refrigeration.
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Jambalaya
A Louisiana one-pot rice dish blending Spanish paella, French country cooking, and West African influences — meat, sausage, vegetables, and rice cooked together in stock.
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Kimchi
A foundational Korean fermented vegetable, most often napa cabbage with chili, garlic, ginger, and fish sauce — eaten at every meal in Korea and now worldwide.
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Lahmacun
Turkish and Armenian thin-crust flatbread topped with spiced minced meat — described as "Turkish pizza" though older and simpler, rolled up with fresh herbs, lemon, and raw onion and eaten as a street food.
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Lemon Curd
A smooth, intensely tangy preserve made from eggs, butter, sugar, and fresh lemon juice — thicker and richer than jam, with a vivid yellow colour and a clean, bright flavour; used as a spread on toast and scones, a filling for tarts and cakes, and a swirl in cheesecakes and ice cream; requires careful making — the eggs curdle if overheated — but keeps for weeks refrigerated.
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Lemonade
A sweetened lemon juice drink — one of the world's most widely consumed beverages, with a fundamental divide between the cloudy fresh-squeezed Western style and the clear Asian and Middle Eastern variants.
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Lo Mein
A Chinese-American stir-fried noodle dish — soft egg noodles tossed with vegetables, protein, and a soy-oyster sauce — one of the most ordered dishes in Chinese-American restaurants.
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Lumpia
Filipino spring rolls — thin rice-paper or wheat-flour wrappers filled with ground pork and vegetables, deep-fried until crispy; the definitive party food of Filipino gatherings worldwide.
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Macadamia Nut
A buttery, exceptionally rich nut from an Australian rainforest tree — the only commercial food crop native to Australia, with the hardest shell of any commonly eaten nut.
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Macadamia Oil
A buttery, mild oil pressed from macadamia nuts — naturally high in monounsaturated fat, with a distinctively soft nut flavor and a high smoke point.
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Macaron
A delicate French sandwich cookie of almond meringue shells with a smooth filling — visually iconic, technically demanding.
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Macaroni and Cheese
The most beloved American comfort food — elbow macaroni in a thick, creamy cheese sauce; made from scratch with a béchamel base, or from the iconic bright-orange powdered cheese packet that defined American childhoods.
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Mace
The lacy red aril surrounding a nutmeg seed — a more delicate, less sweet, more complex spice than its sibling nutmeg, used in fine baking, charcuterie, and traditional British and French cuisine.
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Mackerel
A small oily fish with rich savory flavor — heavily eaten across North Atlantic and Pacific cuisines, prized for its omega-3 content, abundance, and traditional preservation methods like smoking and salting.
45
Madeleine
A small, shell-shaped French sponge cake from the Lorraine region — light, buttery, and flavoured with lemon zest, baked in a distinctive shell-shaped mould; the madeleine owes its extraordinary cultural fame to Marcel Proust, whose narrator in In Search of Lost Time triggers a rush of involuntary memory upon tasting one dipped in tea, making it the literary symbol of nostalgia and sensory memory.
46
Mahi-Mahi
A vivid blue-green-and-gold tropical game fish, also called dolphinfish or dorado — fast-growing, mild-flavored, firm-fleshed, and a staple of Hawaiian and Caribbean fish tacos.
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Mahlab
An aromatic spice made from the cherry-pit-like seeds inside Saint Lucie cherry stones — a defining flavor of Greek, Turkish, Lebanese, and Egyptian Easter and holiday breads.
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Malt Vinegar
A dark vinegar made from fermented malted barley — the signature condiment for British fish and chips, with distinctive caramel-malty flavor that distinguishes it from grape, rice, or apple-based vinegars.
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Maple Syrup
The boiled-down sap of North American sugar maple trees — concentrated to 60+ times its volume into a sticky golden-amber syrup that's the definitive pancake topping and a Quebecois cultural icon.
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Margarine
An emulsion of vegetable oils and water designed as a butter substitute — invented in 19th-century France for naval rations and now a global pantry staple.
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Marigold
An edible flower (specifically Calendula officinalis or Tagetes species) used historically as "poor man's saffron" for color, with a slight peppery flavor — featuring in salads, garnishes, soups, and Mexican Day of the Dead celebrations.
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Marjoram
A Mediterranean herb closely related to oregano but milder and sweeter — central to French herbes de Provence, Italian sausage seasonings, German bratwurst, and ancient Greek aphrodisiac traditions.
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Marmalade
The bittersweet British breakfast preserve — a citrus jelly made from bitter Seville oranges, with shreds of peel suspended throughout; distinguished from jam by its bitter edge, its orange peel texture, and its exclusive association with citrus; Dundee in Scotland became the global capital of marmalade production, and Keiller's Dundee marmalade has been made since the 1790s; Paddington Bear's devotion to it is the most famous brand association in British food.
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Mayonnaise
An emulsion of oil, egg yolk, and acid — invented in 18th-century France, now the foundation of countless dressings, dips, and sandwich spreads worldwide, with strong cultural variations in preferred formulations.
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Meringue
A confection of whipped egg whites and sugar — baked low and slow to produce crisp shells, piled on lemon tart, or swirled into soft peaks on pavlova and baked Alaska; three distinct types with different ratios and techniques.
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Milk
A nutritious liquid from mammals — primarily cow, goat, sheep, buffalo — consumed worldwide as both fluid drink and base for cheese, yogurt, butter, and countless other dairy products.
57
Mince Pies
Small, enclosed pastry tarts filled with mincemeat — a sweet mixture of dried fruit, suet, spices, and brandy or spirits — eaten throughout the Christmas season in Britain; traditionally containing actual minced meat in medieval times, today the filling is entirely fruit-based; served warm or cold, dusted with icing sugar, and considered obligatory at Christmas parties and carol services.
58
Minestrone
Italy's great peasant vegetable soup — a thick, hearty broth with seasonal vegetables, beans, and pasta or rice; every Italian region has a version, and there is no single authoritative recipe.
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Miso
A fermented Japanese paste of soybeans, salt, and koji mold — central to Japanese cuisine, with hundreds of regional varieties ranging from sweet white *shiro* to deep-aged red *aka*.
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Mochi
Japanese rice cakes pounded from sticky rice into a chewy, glutinous mass — eaten as snack, soup ingredient, or stuffed sweet across many traditions.
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Moussaka
The definitive dish of Greek cuisine — layers of fried eggplant, spiced ground lamb or beef, and tomato sauce, topped with a thick béchamel and baked until golden; related versions exist across the Balkans and Middle East.
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Mousse
A light, airy dessert or savoury preparation made by folding whipped cream or beaten egg whites into a flavoured base — chocolate mousse is the most celebrated version, with its intense dark chocolate flavour suspended in a barely-set, cloud-like texture; salmon mousse is the classic savoury counterpart.
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Muffin
Two completely different foods share this name — the American muffin is a quick-bread cake baked in a cup mould, sweet and domed, sold in coffee shops worldwide; the English muffin is a flat, yeast-leavened bread cooked on a griddle, split and toasted, and used for Eggs Benedict; they are unrelated.
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Mulled Wine
Warm spiced red wine — the definitive drink of European Christmas markets and winter celebrations, made by simmering wine with cinnamon, cloves, star anise, orange peel, and sugar until fragrant and warming; known as Glühwein in Germany, vin chaud in France, and glogg in Scandinavia.
65
Mushy Peas
A British comfort staple of dried marrowfat peas soaked and simmered until broken down into a thick, vivid green purée — served alongside fish and chips as an essential side dish, with pie and mash in London pie shops, and at chip shops throughout the North of England; the colour comes from mint or a small amount of food dye.
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Mustard
A sharp condiment made from ground mustard seeds, vinegar, and water — one of the world's oldest cultivated spices, with regional traditions ranging from yellow American hot dog mustard to coarse French moutarde to fiery English variants.
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Okonomiyaki
Japan's beloved savoury pancake — a thick batter of flour, egg, shredded cabbage, and toppings griddled on a hotplate and finished with mayonnaise, sweet sauce, bonito flakes, and aonori.
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Omelette
A folded preparation of beaten eggs cooked in a pan, often with fillings — simple in form, technically exacting at the highest level, and a global breakfast staple.
69
Packham Pear
A bumpy, green-skinned Australian pear variety with sweet, buttery white flesh — one of the most commercially important pear cultivars grown in the Southern Hemisphere and a familiar supermarket staple worldwide.
70
Parmesan Cheese
An aged, hard cow's-milk cheese made for centuries in northern Italy — the most-imitated cheese in the world, with the genuine *Parmigiano-Reggiano* protected by EU law.
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Pumpkin Pie
America's Thanksgiving dessert — a spiced custard of pumpkin purée, eggs, cream, and warming spices baked in a shortcrust shell; the pumpkin spice flavour profile is among the most commercially influential in American food.
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Ramen
A Japanese wheat-noodle soup with a savory broth, toppings, and infinite regional variations — an obsession in Japan and a global phenomenon.
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Salmon
A pink-fleshed migratory fish — the most-eaten fish in many Western markets, eaten raw as sushi, smoked into lox, grilled, baked, and central to Norwegian, Japanese, and Pacific Northwest cooking.
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Semolina
A coarse flour ground from durum wheat — the foundation of dried Italian pasta, North African couscous, Indian semolina cakes (rava), and many other grain traditions across Mediterranean and South Asian cuisine.
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Sesame Oil
An aromatic oil pressed from sesame seeds — fundamental to East Asian cuisine, with roasted (toasted) and unroasted versions serving very different culinary purposes.
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Sesame Seeds
Tiny oil-rich seeds from one of the world's oldest oilseed crops — toasted, sprinkled, ground into tahini, pressed for oil, or scattered across breads and sweets globally.
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Sheep's Milk Yoghurt
A thick, rich yoghurt made from sheep's milk with more protein, fat, and calcium than cow's milk yoghurt — a staple of Balkan, Greek, and Middle Eastern food cultures with a distinctively creamy, tangy character.
78
Tamale
Mesoamerica's ancient wrapped food — masa dough (nixtamalised corn) spread on a corn husk or banana leaf, filled with seasoned meat, chilli, cheese, or beans, then wrapped and steamed; eaten at Christmas and celebrations throughout Mexico and Central America.
79
Tamari
A Japanese soy sauce made with little or no wheat — richer, less salty, and naturally gluten-free, with a more concentrated soybean flavor than its more famous Chinese-influenced soy sauce cousin.
80
Tempeh
An Indonesian fermented soybean cake bound together by white mycelium — meatier and more textured than tofu, with a nutty, mushroomy flavor that improves with cooking.
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Tempura
A Japanese technique of dipping seafood and vegetables in a light flour-water-egg batter and frying them quickly in hot oil to a crisp lacy crust.
82
Threadfin Bream
A small pinkish reef fish from Indo-Pacific waters — the workhorse of Southeast Asian fish balls and surimi, with sweet, delicate white flesh.
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Thyme
A small, tough, woody-stemmed Mediterranean herb with intense aromatic oil — the backbone of French *bouquet garni*, slow-cooked stews, roast chicken, and almost every French savory dish.
84
Tinned Mackerel
Atlantic or Pacific mackerel canned in oil, brine, or tomato sauce — a deeply nutritious pantry staple with high omega-3 content at a fraction of the cost of fresh fish.
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Tiramisu
An Italian dessert layering espresso-soaked ladyfingers, mascarpone cream, and cocoa — invented relatively recently but now globally iconic.
86
Tom Yum
Thailand's most internationally recognised soup — a hot and sour broth fragrant with lemongrass, galangal, kaffir lime leaf, and chilli, typically made with prawns (tom yum goong) and balanced to be simultaneously spicy, sour, and aromatic.
87
Upma
A South Indian savoury semolina porridge — a quick breakfast of roasted semolina cooked with a mustard-curry-leaf tarka and vegetables, one of the most widely eaten morning foods across the Deccan.
88
Vermicelli Noodles
Thin noodles found in Italian pasta, Asian rice and mung-bean varieties, and South Asian wheat versions — the same name covering very different products.
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