# The secret ingredient is... **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 8, 2013, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-secret-ingredient-is/668332 "2013-09-08T16:04:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Spud](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spud/32/347_2.png) [@Spud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spud)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2013, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-secret-ingredient-is/668332/1 "2013-09-08T16:04:13Z")
I finally realized… the secret ingredient in most things is… Italian Dressing. I was watching the news and they had someone from a local pork festival talking about the marinated pork chops they feature… Marinated in vinegar, seasoned salt, and (looks around sheepishly) Italian Dressing. My Dad had a recipe for Blue Cheese dressing that he got from LBJ’s personal chef. One of the ingredients was “the last 1/4 inch from a bottle of Italian Dressing” or a packet of Hidden Valley Italian Dressing. We had a cook out yesterday and the two dishes that got the most complements and mentions were the petite gold potatoes quartered and seasoned with seasoning salt, pepper, Italian dressing, and Parmesan Cheese then baked, and the grilled vegies, marinated in… oh, you get it by now. ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2013, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-secret-ingredient-is/668332/2 "2013-09-08T16:48:29Z")
And Italian dressing is basically vinegar & oil, so… ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2013, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-secret-ingredient-is/668332/3 "2013-09-08T19:24:03Z")
Well, Italian dressing is oil and vinegar and spices. Salt, pepper, garlic, and oregano feature prominently, though you can add different spices according to taste. Other common spices include basil and parsley, and a lot of people put some sort of sweetener in it, too. ---
**Author:** ![boozilu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4da419/32.png) [@boozilu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/boozilu)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2013, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-secret-ingredient-is/668332/4 "2013-09-08T19:38:09Z")
I thought the secret ingredient was love! ---
**Author:** ![Nancarrow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c37758/32.png) [@Nancarrow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nancarrow)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2013, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-secret-ingredient-is/668332/5 "2013-09-08T19:47:03Z")
Huh, I thought it was PEOPLE! :eek: ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2013, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-secret-ingredient-is/668332/6 "2013-09-08T19:53:27Z")
,nothing. “To make something special you just have to believe it’s special.” _Mr Ping_ From _[Kung Fu Panda](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0441773/quotes?ref_=tt_ql_trv_4)_ ---
**Author:** ![jnglmassiv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f07891/32.png) [@jnglmassiv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jnglmassiv)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2013, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-secret-ingredient-is/668332/7 "2013-09-08T22:04:49Z")
Commercial mass market Italian dressing is so loaded with sugar/HFCS, I’d rather eat my salad dry. It is not too bad in a marinade but since I don’t have it around for salads, it is easier and often tastier to make it from scratch. I’d think the thickeners in Wishbone and the like would work against the marinading action, too. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2013, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-secret-ingredient-is/668332/8 "2013-09-09T04:15:45Z")
\*Good lord! According to the spetrolyzer, Spragel’s secret ingredient was… water! Ordinary water! \ Yes, ordinary water, laced with nothing more than a few spoonfuls of LSD. \* ---
**Author:** ![sisu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@sisu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sisu)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2013, 5:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-secret-ingredient-is/668332/9 "2013-09-09T05:29:12Z")
> [@jnglmassiv](#): > > Commercial mass market Italian dressing is so loaded with sugar/HFCS, I’d rather eat my salad dry. It is not too bad in a marinade but since I don’t have it around for salads, it is easier and often tastier to make it from scratch. I’d think the thickeners in Wishbone and the like would work against the marinading action, too. This is why I steer away from low fat dressings or make my own. ---
**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2013, 5:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-secret-ingredient-is/668332/10 "2013-09-09T05:41:10Z")
Garlic! Garlic! The best of all the cries! It is the noblest physic, 'gainst all of paradise! It is my chiefest wealth, this garlic for to cry! So if you love your health, my garlic then come buy! ---
**Author:** ![lost4life](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c4cdca/32.png) [@lost4life](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lost4life)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2013, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-secret-ingredient-is/668332/11 "2013-09-09T14:25:50Z")
[Marge Simpson] You might say the secret ingredient is…salt. [/Marge Simpson] ---
**Author:** ![Prof.Pepperwinkle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/prof.pepperwinkle/32/13627_2.png) [@Prof.Pepperwinkle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Prof.Pepperwinkle)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2013, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-secret-ingredient-is/668332/12 "2013-09-09T14:31:53Z")
For my entire life whenever someone has asked me to guess the secret ingredient, I’ve always said Oregano. I’ve been right about two-thirds of the time. YMMV. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2013, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-secret-ingredient-is/668332/13 "2013-09-09T16:58:41Z")
Try an experiment: For the next two years, alternate “oregano” with “nutmeg,” and see if your average goes up or down. ---
**Author:** ![Prof.Pepperwinkle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/prof.pepperwinkle/32/13627_2.png) [@Prof.Pepperwinkle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Prof.Pepperwinkle)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2013, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-secret-ingredient-is/668332/14 "2013-09-09T17:21:00Z")
Yeah, nutmeg was most of the other third. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2013, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-secret-ingredient-is/668332/15 "2013-09-09T17:33:59Z")
There’s generally not much overlap between dishes where you’d expect to find oregano and dishes where you’d expect to find nutmeg. And it’s also really hard to add nutmeg to a dish in quantities large enough that it could be relevant, but also small enough that you can’t immediately recognize it. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2013, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-secret-ingredient-is/668332/16 "2013-09-09T17:57:10Z")
I’d have thought the secret ingredient would be soy sauce. ---
**Author:** ![Sigmagirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c89c15/32.png) [@Sigmagirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sigmagirl)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2013, 12:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-secret-ingredient-is/668332/17 "2013-09-10T00:10:39Z")
My secret ingredient is horseradish. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2013, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-secret-ingredient-is/668332/18 "2013-09-10T00:19:18Z")
To the extent that I have a single secret ingredient, it’s probably crushed black olives. They add a pleasant zing to all sorts of things. ---
**Author:** ![Digital\_is\_the\_new\_Analog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a88e4f/32.png) [@Digital\_is\_the\_new\_Analog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Digital_is_the_new_Analog)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2013, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-secret-ingredient-is/668332/19 "2013-09-10T01:07:46Z")
Mine is lemon juice. Occasionally lime juice. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2013, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-secret-ingredient-is/668332/20 "2013-09-10T02:04:59Z")
I think we’ve done this a few times before, but, as far as “secret ingredients” go (which I really don’t believe in), for me it tends to be one of the following: fish sauce, vinegar or other acidic element (could be lemon or lime), a fragrant spice (like cloves, nutmeg, or allspice), an herb that isn’t used typically in day-to-day cooking (like tarragon or chervil or even lovage), or straight up MSG. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-secret-ingredient-is/668332.md?page=2)