Can You Fill In the Missing Ingredient to These Basic Recipes?

By: Beth Hendricks
Estimated Completion Time
5 min
Can You Fill In the Missing Ingredient to These Basic Recipes?
Image: PeopleImages / E+ / Getty Images

About This Quiz

There's no time to make a shopping list, so you grab the recipes for your impromptu dinner party and run out the door. It's not until you get to the grocery store that you realize you grabbed incomplete recipes. The first recipe only printed part of the ingredient list, and the other is smudged, making the ingredients unreadable. Now what? There's no time for Googling as you're standing in the pasta aisle, but there's plenty of time for panic. Guests will be arriving shortly, but your recipes are incomplete! Luckily, you're a pretty savvy cook, and you think you can navigate your way through the missing pieces of your recipe puzzle.

Now, let's see if you can put your chef smarts to the test in our missing ingredients quiz! Here, you'll find 40 pretty simple recipes that need one extra thing to take them from good to great. What would you add to a basic pizza dough when you already have flour, water and oil in your cart? Can you guess what's missing from a macaroni and cheese recipe that indicates only pasta and milk? Don your thinking cap (or your chef's hat) and finalize the recipes for these tasty dishes. Bon appétit and let's go!




Mashed potatoes
Lewis Mulatero / Moment Mobile / Getty Images
A shepherd's pie is a mixture of meat and vegetables topped with what?
Rice
Mashed potatoes
Macaroni
Cauliflower florets
Breadcrumbs
GMVozd / E+ / Getty Images
Ground beef, an egg and some onion would make a good meatball, but this missing ingredient takes it from "good" to "great." What is it?
Chili paste
Breadcrumbs
Yogurt
Baking powder
Butter2
LauriPatterson / E+ / Getty Images
You have bread and cheese for your grilled cheese sandwich, but what else do you need?
Apples
Cilantro
Pickles
Butter

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Chocolate
mphillips007 / E+ / Getty Images
The classic campfire treat, s'mores, wouldn't be the same without which of these ingredients to accompany marshmallow and graham crackers?
Corn chips
Cherry pie filling
Chocolate
Apples
Kidney beans
DNY59 / E+ / Getty Images
There are lots of variations of chili, but most have ground beef, tomatoes, onion, chili powder and which of the following ingredients?
Bell peppers
Carrots
Kidney beans
Peas
Ricotta cheese
Steven Krug / Corbis / Getty Images
A typical lasagna recipe includes meat, lasagna noodles, pasta sauce and which of these?
Pepperoni
BBQ sauce
Broccoli
Ricotta cheese

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Tomatoes
Shannon M. Lutman / Moment / Getty Images
Salsa is one of the easiest recipes you can attempt on your own. All you need is cilantro, onion, jalapeño, and which of these?
Edamame
Carrots
Cucumbers
Tomatoes
Eggs
Caziopeia / E+ / Getty Images
Our quiche recipe is torn! We have pie crust, spinach, cheese and milk, but we can't see the final ingredient. What is it?
Eggs
Ham
Buttermilk
Sour cream
Mayonnaise
Cathy Scola / Moment / Getty Images
Deviled eggs are a staple at church potlucks and family reunions. If you have eggs, mustard and paprika, what else could you add?
Soy sauce
Mayonnaise
Ranch dressing
Cocktail sauce

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Cheese2
LauriPatterson / E+ / Getty Images
Serving cheeseburgers at your next cookout? You'll need ground beef, buns, lettuce and which of these?
Tahini
Cheese
Avocado
Eggs
Cornmeal
kcline / E+ / Getty Images
Flour, sugar, milk, butter and eggs are combined with which of these ingredients to make cornbread?
Brown sugar
Corn nuts
Cornmeal
Creamed corn
Tortillas
Karl Tapales / Moment / Getty Images
We have chicken and cheese already. What's missing from our quesadilla recipe?
Tomatillos
Fish sauce
Tortillas
Queso

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Almonds
wsmahar / E+ / Getty Images
You have green beans, butter and garlic. What else do you need for green beans almondine?
Dates
Mozzarella cheese
Almonds
Grenadine
Flour
© eleonora galli / Moment / Getty Images
You've got the eggs, baking soda, baking powder and buttermilk. What else do you need for basic pancakes?
Pecans
Flour
Sugar
Corn syrup
Cinnamon
Jennifer_Sharp / E+ / Getty Images
Which ingredient complements this cinnamon roll recipe: yeast, flour, sugar and butter?
Baking soda
Cinnamon
Pecans
Corn syrup

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Old-fashioned oats
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Overnight oats are all the rage right now. What do you need in addition to fruit, milk or yogurt and sweetener?
Old-fashioned oats
Ritz crackers
Pancake syrup
Cottage cheese
Cheese
Diana Miller / Cultura / Getty Images
Potatoes au gratin may sound fancy, but all it takes is potatoes, flour, buttermilk and which of these?
Sour cream
Cheese
Buttermilk
Half and half
Yeast
alle12 / E+ / Getty Images
Making pizza dough? You'll need flour, water, oil and which one of these?
Baking soda
Yeast
Sugar
Butter

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Carrots
Sergio Amiti / Moment / Getty Images
What's missing from this carrot cake recipe: flour, spices, sugar, eggs, chopped nuts ... and which of these?
Carrots
Raisins
Pineapple
Espresso
Milk
Diana Miller / Cultura / Getty Images
You've decided to get fancy and try your hand at a bread pudding. You have bread, eggs, butter, vanilla and raisins. What else do you need?
Caramel
Milk
Pancake syrup
Water
Tuna
LauriPatterson / E+ / Getty Images
Egg noodles, cream of mushroom soup and sometimes frozen peas and carrots will make a delicious tuna noodle casserole, with which necessary addition?
Sugar
Tuna
Shrimp
Buttermilk

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Chocolate chips
CowlickCreative / E+ / Getty Images
Chocolate chip cookies always hit the spot. You have flour, sugar, butter, eggs and vanilla, but something's missing. What is it?
Baking powder
Brown sugar
Salt
Chocolate chips
Pasta
BURCU ATALAY TANKUT / Moment / Getty Images
Nothing says "comfort food" like macaroni and cheese. What do you need in addition to butter, cheese and milk?
Garlic
Pasta
Parsley
Bacon
Celery
Jena Ardell / Moment / Getty Images
A pot of chicken noodle soup wouldn't be complete without chicken, noodles, carrots and which of these?
Tomato sauce
Nutmeg
Celery
Salami

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Vodka
GMVozd / E+ / Getty Images
Let's end this quiz with a toast! What is missing from this Bloody Mary: tomato juice, hot sauce and horseradish?
Water
Club soda
Almond milk
Vodka
Cream cheese
pjohnson1 / E+ / Getty Images
Making a homemade cheesecake? You'll need graham crackers, butter, sugar and which of these?
Cheddar cheese
Heavy cream
Sour cream
Cream cheese
Bell peppers
LauriPatterson / E+ / Getty Images
What's missing from this fabulous fajitas recipe that includes chicken, onions and flour tortillas?
Mandarin oranges
Plantains
Bell peppers
Spinach

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Avocado
Juanmonino / E+ / Getty Images
You're craving guacamole, so you gather onions, tomatoes, cilantro, lime and which of these missing ingredients?
Artichoke
Asparagus
Avocado
Edamame
Puff pastry
LauriPatterson / E+ / Getty Images
Want to make a killer chicken pot pie? Then, you'll need chicken, milk, vegetables and one of these. Which is it?
Worcestershire sauce
Puff pastry
Baking soda
Vinegar
Chickpeas
Claudia Totir / Moment / Getty Images
If you're making hummus, you're going to need tahini, olive oil, lemon juice and which of these?
Potatoes
Chickpeas
Pinto beans
Carrots

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Ham
Wiki Commons by TheCulinaryGeek
Chicken cordon bleu sounds fancy, but it's really just a combo of breaded chicken, cheese and which of these?
Cream cheese
Beef tenderloin
Pepperoni
Ham
Peppers
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You have sirloin strips, onions, beef broth and cornstarch for pepper steak. What else do you need?
Croutons
Hot dogs
Peppers
Snow peas
Flour2
rudisill / E+ / Getty Images
There's nothing quite like grandma's chicken and dumplings. What did she forget in this list of ingredients: chicken, vegetables, broth and poultry seasoning?
Tortillas
Sugar
Flour
Cornstarch

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Breadcrumbs2
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Craving chicken parm? You'll need chicken, parmesan cheese, tomato sauce and which of these?
Rice
Breadcrumbs
Raisins
Ravioli
Ground beef
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What's missing from this spaghetti bolognese sauce: tomato sauce, tomato paste, spices and red wine?
Prosciutto
Ham
Ground beef
Sugar
Butter
Krit of Studio OMG / Moment / Getty Images
Cheesy garlic bread wouldn't be complete without which of these missing ingredients?
Chives
Butter
Buttermilk
Eggs

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Water
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On a quest to make the perfect onion rings? Which of these ingredients do you need in addition to onions, flour and eggs?
Hot sauce
Sugar
Water
Cottage cheese
Arborio rice
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We have cheese, chicken stock and white wine. What's missing from this risotto recipe?
Cornmeal
Quinoa
Polenta
Arborio rice
Anchovies
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You can make a simple Caesar salad dressing with garlic, egg, oil, cheese and which of these ingredients?
Red wine vinegar
Breadcrumbs
Anchovies
Gelatin

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Sugar
Dougal Waters / DigitalVision / Getty Images
You need whipped cream for a dinner party dessert, but you only have heavy whipping cream. Unfortunately, you still need one other ingredient. What is it?
Vanilla
Cream of tartar
Sugar
Baking soda