Coaxing out the rounded, complex flavor of garlic is an essential part of the cooking process, but what if you don’t have time? Pre-prepped grocery store jarred garlics are typically raw—so they won’t speed up the process much—and often taste bitter and harsh, or lack flavor altogether. We searched for a garlic that was pre-prepped (to avoid painstaking slicing and grating), shelf-stable and already cooked and flavored so it could be used straight from the jar. We didn’t see any products on the market that fit the bill. That’s why we developed our own. Enter: Milk Street Premium Essentials Garlic Confit, which features more than a whole head of garlic in every jar. To make it, we simmered delicate slivers of garlic with herbs and spices in a creamy blend of extra-virgin olive oil and buttery Indian ghee. First, you taste the rich, rounded garlic—slow-cooked and tender. Then, the bright tinge of lemon followed by the aromatics steeped in the confit’s silky oil: warming, earthy bay leaf and fruity Aleppo pepper with a hint of heat. This complex mélange of flavors is bold enough to stand alone, but it also easily blends into all kinds of savory dishes and cuisines.

We created our sofrito to be the perfect building block to cook a wide variety of recipes in less time, based on the tradition of Italian and Spanish grandmothers who make this by the jar to simplify cooking and boost flavor. After much testing, we came up with an aromatic base of sautéed onions, carrots and celery, complemented by the bright tones of tomatoes, white wine and vinegar. For additional depth, it has earthy, umami notes from mushroom powder, aromatic notes of rosemary and thyme, and just a hint of heat from black pepper and Kashmiri chili powder. A few tablespoons of this jammy sofrito is all it takes to spread rich, concentrated power into soups, sauces, stews, braises and nearly anything else that needs a boost of big flavor.

The Milk Street Coffee Sugar Sampler 6-Pack includes all six of our flavors in regular, full-size pouches.
Milk Street's coffee and tea sugars are inspired by global coffee traditions and will transform your morning cup. This sampler pack includes 6 full-size pouches of our Milk Street Coffee Sugars. Flavorings range from the earthy, chili-spiked Mexican Mocha that we tasted in the markets of Oaxaca to a tropical Coconut Ginger Cream, Vietnamese-style Caramel Brûlée reminiscent of their sweet, malted coffee and, closer to home, an homage to New Orlean’s most famous cup of coffee, orange-cinnamon scented café Brulot. Our Original Cardamom Coffee Sugar, mates our favorite spice with vanilla and a touch of cocoa for a classic paring common in both the Middle East and Scandinavia, and our lighter, brighter Honey-Spice Tea Sugar blend, designed to enhance black tea, blends warm spices with granulated honey and a refreshing mint-lavender finish.

In our custom Mocha Mexican Coffee Sugar, earthy, aromatic cinnamon defines the chocolate’s flavor, coaxing out its fruitiness and tempering the bitterness without excessive sweetness. We use chipotle chili powder for its smoky depth, which pairs well with the spicy cinnamon and adds a subtle touch of heat.

Marinara Magic is an upgraded Italian seasoning blend that features fennel seed, oregano, chili flakes and Parmesan. It adds instant depth and flavor to not only pasta sauce but also soups, stews, pot roasts or beans. Likewise, use Rice Spice for any manner of grains; the savory, warming blend includes earthy turmeric, coriander seed, fennel and dill, with a touch of red miso for umami. Veggie Lift, a light and savory mix with caraway, coriander, fenugreek and garlic, adds a delicate complexity and aromatic boost to any vegetable. And our bright, zesty Poultry Power is reminiscent of Madras-style yellow curry and features abundant warm spices, chilies and piquant flavors like tart mango (amchoor) and citrus.

We like to think there are few dishes za’atar can’t improve. Our rendition of this Middle Eastern herb-and-sesame spice blend is punched up with Aleppo pepper, sumac and garlic for a complete one-stop seasoning. It’s also the perfect savory addition to your morning avocado toast, fried eggs or even a bagel smeared with cream cheese.

Milk Street’s Sichuan Salt tingles the tongue with prickly Sichuan peppercorns rounded out with warm five-spice powder, musky white pepper and a touch of sugar. Well rounded, it's an all-purpose seasoning that we dust over roast chicken, seared steaks, vegetable stir fries, chewy fried noodles and snacks like popcorn. It blends well with sesame oil to drizzle over sautéed greens or roasted sweet potatoes. Or blend with a little cornstarch and use as a coating for sautéed cutlets or cubed tofu.