It is a perfectly cromulent secret ingredient and I don’t know why people think otherwise
A hearty dash of tarragon livens up just about any savory cream-based soup or sauce. I’ve only used dried, but I’d assume that fresh is even better.
I add green Tabasco sauce to my smoked salmon pate and to deviled eggs. Everyone loves it.
Try baking an apple pie using half apples and half pears. Yumm!
Awesome.
I’m totally splashing fish sauce, cumin, and brown sugar in my next batch of meatballs.
Oh, I just thought of another one. I’m quite fond of allspice for stews, soups, sausages, dry rubs, etc. I grew up with it a lot in Polish cooking, although it tends to be associated with the Caribbean. It marries well with a lot of flavors, both savory and sweet.
I actually came in here to say that I use it in spaghetti sauce.
I was going to say the same thing actually… even down to the Squid part.
A not so secret ingredient, but one that really does make a huge difference is checking the acidity of your food. Most people check the salt level, and some tweak the savoriness with fish sauce, worcestershire or soy sauce, but not too many actually tweak the acidity level with lemon juice or vinegar (or whatever you have).
It makes a huge difference if done judiciously.
When I make homemade egg rolls, I toss in some slivered almonds… they really make the egg roll.
Add a little salt to the crust of sausage rolls. 
That’s a good one too.
When I bake bread I often hit the top with olive oil or butter and a sprinkle of sea salt or sesame seed.
I thicken chili with a slurry of masa corn flour. It adds a wonderful flavor to the chili and is a smooth, velvety thickener.
When rolling out pie dough, I’ll quickly spread a thin layer of soft butter over the dough and fold the dough over on itself like a business letter. Then I put it back in the fridge for the soft butter to firm up and the dough to relax. It’s like the first step of making puff pastry, and it results in a flaky layered pie crust. Not as flaky as puff pastry, but very nice.
I make a blond roux in the microwave, and it works extremely well. A little pyrex dish, equal parts of butter or oil and flour, and 30 seconds of microwaving. I have even made brown roux, which takes careful watching.
If we’re on the subject of pie crusts, after you’ve sealed it up, dab a little milk all over the top and then add a generous sprinkling of sugar over that before you bake it. It turns into a thin layer of golden crispiness.
I agree - it works in anything that’s a bit on the liquid side. Chili, soups, stews, etc. Not much is needed, and it somehow makes the other flavors blend together better.
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Yes, a pinch of allspice in my roundsteak recipe. Pound slices, dip in seasoned flour, saute in oil. Put in a baking dish and cover with tomato sauce, garlic, onions, green peppers, bay leaf, and a pinch of allspice mixed in (I usually puree everything in the blender). cover and bake 300 degrees till tender, 2-3 hours. The allspice gives it a nice little lift. Not too much, though.
Clove also works well in this application (as well as the allspice that I like so much.) But, yeah, be very careful with how much you add. A single clove or two is enough for a whole four-quart pot of stew.
And now that I’m thinking about it more, another one I like is mace if you’re going for that “Christmas” band of flavors – cloves, nutmeg, allspice, cinnamon, etc. It’s quite a lovely accent to more earthy, herbal flavors like marjoram, oregano, or savory. But you also have to be very careful with how much you add. A little goes a long way.
Cornstarch in cookies, especially chocolate chip. You’ll want to find an exact recipe, of course, since guessing will probably leave you with some very nasty baked goods. Done right, it results in really thick, fluffy cookies. Mmm . . .
Oh, and instead of obsessing over how much water to use with rice so that it evaporates at the perfect time, just use too much, and then strain the rice, like pasta.
ETA: Forgot to add - rosemary! It’s a fantastic spice on pretty much anything savory, especially baked chicken and canola potatoes.
Mud, dandruff, and saliva makes a great trench coffee. Use enough saliva and you get cappacino!
[courtesy the Blackadder thread]
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I just discovered that yesterday when concocting my hamburger seasoning mix. I use cayenne, salt, pepper, chili powder, garlic, onion and from now on cumin.
Isn’t that just about the opposite of a secret ingredient though? EVERYONE thickens chili with masa harina, or so I thought. What else would you use?
I was going to comment on that, too, but refrained. But, yeah, that’s pretty much the go-to thickener for chili, if you’re going to use a thickener. (I personally don’t generally use a thickener, though.)