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The stringy red spice is actually the dried stigma of a saffron flower. "It's exotic, it's expensive," says The New York Times columnist and cookbook author, but "it should be used."

Have a food that has you stumped? Submit a photo and we'll ask chefs about our favorites.

NPR listener Laurel Ruma picked up some odd ingredients during her travels. London-based chef Yotam Ottolenghi helps her concoct recipes with them for Morning Edition's Cook Your Cupboard series.

Morning Edition's new project, Cook Your Cupboard, invites cooks to send in photos of food items they aren't sure how to use. In our first installment, NPR listener Marcy Misner has beans, vinegar and almond milk, and food writer Nigella Lawson gives her some guidance on where to go from there.

Adventurous food shopping get you in trouble? Get help from creative cooks through the Cook Your Cupboard project.