Here at Milk Street we have rediscovered more flavorful pantry items including flours, vinegars, oils, and salts. At the top of our list, however, is sugar. This raw, unrefined sugar from Colombia packs a complex, earthy flavor that’s terrific in everything from tea, coffee and cocktails to oatmeal or grapefruit. The bittersweet flavor also does well in savory applications, like a pot of Mexican beans or tomato-based pasta sauces. It will become your sugar bowl standard.

This bright, yellow-orange hot sauce has a nice spice that isn’t too aggressive—a friendly heat. The main attraction is the passion fruit flavor—it’s so bright and fresh, you could be scooping a spoonful of the seeds right from the fruit itself. And the fruity flavors of the chili peppers mingle in behind the passion fruit as well. This is a really special sauce—a bit spicy but a celebration of passion fruit. Add a tropical twist to your hot sauce collection.

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Hot chocolate is already a winter mainstay, but these mugs make the experience even better. Verve Culture’s hot chocolate mugs are handmade in Mexico using local clay, traditional tools and classic techniques. Every material was chosen for a reason, from a glaze that helps mitigate condensation to the use of naturally insulating clay that keeps hot drinks hot and cold drinks cold (yes, you can put cold drinks in there too). And as an added bonus, each mug will vary slightly in shape, proportion and glaze to give each a one-of-a-kind feel. Comes in a set of two.

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The earthy, smoky-sweet scotch bonnet pepper is relatively difficult to find in the U.S. and this bright red sauce features the pepper’s flavor at the forefront. This classic Dominican extra-hot sauce isn’t for the faint of heart though—the heat is instant and lingering—but you’ll get that distinct vegetal-smokey, yet fruity scotch bonnet flavor. Scotch bonnets are used all over the Caribbean, and there really isn’t a satisfying sub for them. For those that want to be transported to the tropics, in search of the true flavors, this pepper is a big part of that. Jalapeños are incorporated here too to balance out the intensity, and make it much more palatable than many hyper-spicy hot sauces out there. Most are all about cramming in heat with no attention to flavor, while this one is complex and delicious.

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These Peruvian chili flakes are some of the brightest and freshest we've tried, with an aroma like a fresh Fresno chili. Along with a medium spice level and lingering heat, Limo Chili Flakes have a distinctly fruity flavor that borders on tropical or citrusy. If you don't have fresh chilies on hand, try a sprinkle of these vibrant chili flakes instead. Peruvian company Paqu Jaya is on a mission to share one-of-a-kind native chilies with the world, partnering with small farmers to support local Peruvian economies.

The chili flakes' fruitiness pairs well with fresh herbs such as cilantro; try Paqu Jaya Limo Chili Flakes as a finishing touch for our Spaghetti with Cilantro Yogurt in place of Aleppo pepper, or sprinkle some atop our Shanghai-Style Scallion Noodles. You can also substitute some for the fresh Fresno chili in Portuguese Shrimp Mozambique or Spicy Beef Salad with Mint and Cilantro (Larb Neua).

• Net Weight: 40 grams
• Ingredients: 100% dried limo chilies
• Place of Origin: Peru

This straightforward, use-everywhere hot sauce is a great example of how simplicity is often best. While many jalapeño-based hot sauces don’t taste fresh and lose their distinctive flavor, and also use preservatives that make them cloudy and bitter, this sauce’s jalapeno flavor is almost as bright as biting into a fresh pepper. It’s mellowed a bit, so the effect is more juicy and pickled. It has a really nice amount of heat, which won’t blow out your palate by any stretch, but it has a warming, slow creep of heat. The garlic isn’t overpowering, it just adds a good foundation to keep the vinegar and jalapeño grounded. Plus, the heat doesn’t stay around too long, so you can enjoy drizzling it on throughout the course of your whole meal.

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A natural flavor booster, Tucupi Preto is Brazil’s answer to soy sauce or Worcestershire—but without any added salt and completely vegetarian. Made from boiling down juice of the manioc, also known as cassava, this dark, rich sauce has a unique umami flavor, with subtle sweetness, acidity and smoke. It will add flavor and body to soups and stews, but will also make your beef taste beefier and give bean dishes a meatier flavor. We like to think of it as a gluten-free alternative to soy sauce, and it’s less pungent than other alternatives, like coconut aminos.

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Dozens of varieties of capsicum peppers are blended with a pinch of salt into a finely ground powder, full of intense heat, smoke and sweet notes of cocoa, molasses and coffee. The chiles are grown by the indigenous women of the Baniwa, who live in the rainforests on the borders of Brazil, Colombia and Venezuela. And while the chili powder has not yet been judged on the Scoville scale, we recommend using it sparingly when making beans, chilies or any other dish. You can always add more if extra heat is needed!

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Featuring whimsical pomegranate-shaped cups, this hand-thrown seder plate is made from enamel and stoneware by a pottery artisan in Chile. Alejandro Miranda gathers the clay he uses to make the dish from a local area in Chile before carefully handcrafting the traditional Jewish plate before it’s sent off to be cloaked in a natural, semi-glossy enamel coating. Calypso Chile Pottery has been partnering with independent artisans across the country since 1996, supporting the production of fair-trade handicrafts.

 

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