List of food pastes facts for kids

Korean doenjang, a fermented bean paste

Japanese miso, a type of fermented bean paste

A food paste is a thick, soft mixture of food ingredients. It can be smooth or have small pieces in it. People use food pastes in many ways, like cooking, baking, or spreading on bread. They are often full of flavor, sometimes spicy or aromatic. Many pastes are made ahead of time and can be stored for a long time.

Some common types of food pastes include curry pastes, fish pastes, fruit spreads, and pastes made from beans or nuts. A purée is a special kind of food paste made from ingredients that have been cooked, like a cauliflower purée, or raw, like an apple purée.

Types of Food Pastes
See also

Types of Food Pastes

Food pastes come in many forms, each with unique flavors and uses around the world.

Fish and Seafood Pastes

Lengkare shrimp paste in Lombok Island, Indonesia

A tub of uncured fish surimi ready for processing

These pastes are made from fish or seafood. They often get their strong flavor from a process called fermentation.

Fish paste – Made from parts of fish, often through fermentation.
- Anchovy paste – A salty paste made from anchovies.
  - Gentleman's Relish – A very old and famous anchovy paste from England.
- Muria – This was a very thick, salty paste made from garum, which was a fermented fish sauce from ancient times. It was rich in good nutrients.
- Jakoten – A Japanese fish paste.
- Ngapi – A strong-smelling fish or shrimp paste from Myanmar.
- Pissalat – A paste made from anchovies, often used in French cooking.
- Prahok – A salty, fermented fish paste from Cambodia.
Shrimp paste – Made by fermenting ground shrimp with salt. Sometimes oil, sugar, garlic, or chili are added for extra flavor.
- Saeu-jeot – A type of fermented shrimp paste from Korea.
Surimi – This is a paste made from fish or other meat. It's also the name for many Asian foods that use this paste as their main ingredient.
- Kamaboko – A Japanese fish cake made from surimi.

Fruit and Vegetable Pastes

Tomato paste

These pastes are made from fruits or vegetables and are used in many different dishes, from sweet fillings to savory sauces.

Baba ghanoush – A creamy paste made from roasted eggplant.
Date paste – A sweet paste made from dates, often used as a filling in pastries.
Funge de bombo – A paste made from manioc (a root vegetable), popular in Angola and other parts of Africa.
Guava paste – A sweet, thick paste made from guava fruit.
Hilbet – A paste from Ethiopia and Eritrea, made from legumes like lentils or faba beans, mixed with garlic, ginger, and spices.
Hummus – A popular paste made from chickpeas, tahini (sesame paste), olive oil, lemon juice, salt, and garlic.
Moretum – An ancient Roman herb and cheese paste.
Pesto – A green sauce from Italy, traditionally made with basil, pine nuts, garlic, Parmesan cheese, and olive oil.
Quince cheese – A firm, sweet paste made from quince fruit.
Ssamjang – A Korean paste made from sesame and beans, used as a dipping sauce for meat.
Tapenade – A savory paste from France, made from olives, anchovies, capers, spices, and olive oil.
Tomato paste – Made by boiling tomatoes until they become a thick, concentrated paste. It's used to add deep tomato flavor to soups, sauces, and stews.
Wasabi – A very spicy Japanese paste made from horseradish, often served with sushi.

Grain Pastes

These pastes are made from different types of grains and are important foods in many cultures.

Farina – A soft flour or meal made from cereal grains, often used to make a hot breakfast cereal.
Millet paste – A paste made from millet grain, eaten by the Fula people in Africa. It's a key ingredient in nyiiri, a common Fula dish.
Pamonha – A traditional Brazilian paste made from fresh corn and milk.
Polenta – A dish from Italy made from boiled cornmeal, often served as a thick paste.
Mealy pop or bogobe – A paste made from ground grain, usually maize or millet. It's often fermented before cooking.

Instant Soup Pastes

Erbswurst – A traditional German instant pea soup that comes in a condensed paste form. You just add hot water to make soup.

Legume Pastes

A pancake filled with red bean paste

These pastes are made from different kinds of beans and are used in both sweet and savory dishes.

Black bean paste – A savory paste made from black beans, common in Asian cooking.
Cheonggukjang – A Korean fermented soybean paste with a strong smell.
Doubanjiang – A spicy, salty paste made from fermented broad beans and chili peppers, used in Chinese cooking.
Doenjang – A traditional Korean fermented soybean paste.
Fermented bean paste – A general term for pastes made from ground soybeans that have been fermented.
Miso – A traditional Japanese seasoning made from fermented soybeans.
Mung bean paste – A sweet paste made from mung beans, often used in desserts.
Red bean paste – A sweet paste made from red adzuki beans, very popular in East Asian desserts.
Sweet bean paste – A general term for sweet pastes made from beans.
Tauco – A fermented soybean paste from Indonesia.
Tương – A Vietnamese fermented bean paste.
Yellow soybean paste – A fermented soybean paste, often used in Chinese cuisine.

Meat Pastes

Pâté spread atop bread

These pastes are made from finely prepared meat.

Chopped liver – A dish made from chopped chicken or beef liver, often served as a spread.
Pâté – A finely chopped, ground, or puréed meat mixture, often made from beef, pork, liver, or other animal organs. It's usually highly seasoned.
Pheasant paste – A paste made from pheasant meat.
Potted meat food product – A type of processed meat spread.

Nut and Seed Pastes

Tahini

These pastes are made by grinding nuts or seeds into a smooth mixture. They are used in many ways, from spreads to baking ingredients.

Almond butter – A spread made from ground almonds.
Almond paste – A sweet paste made from ground almonds and sugar, used in baking.
Cashew butter – A creamy spread made from ground cashews.
Lotus seed paste – A sweet paste made from dried lotus seeds, used in Chinese pastries.
Marzipan – A sweet, dough-like paste made from almonds, sugar, and sometimes egg whites. It's used as a filling for candies or shaped into decorations.
Peanut butter – A very popular spread made from ground roasted peanuts.
Peanut paste – A product made from peanuts, used as an ingredient in sauces, baked goods, and breakfast cereals.
Plumpy'nut – A special peanut-based paste used to help children who are very malnourished.
Satsivi – A Georgian (from the country Georgia) specialty made from walnuts. It can be used as a savory dip for bread or as a sweet filling in pastries.
Sunflower butter – A spread made from ground sunflower seeds, often used as an alternative to peanut butter.
Tahini – A paste made from ground sesame seeds, used in Middle Eastern and Mediterranean cooking.

Spices and Herb Pastes

These pastes are full of flavor and are used to add taste and sometimes heat to dishes.

Herb Pastes

Red kroeung paste

Kroeung – A fragrant herb and spice paste used in Cambodian cuisine.

Spicy Pastes

Phanaeng curry paste is fried with coconut cream to make the curry more creamy in flavor.

Biber salçası – A Turkish red pepper paste.
Chili pepper paste – A general term for pastes made from ground chili peppers, used to add heat to food.
Curry paste – A mixture of spices and herbs used to make curries.
Ginger garlic masala – A paste made from ginger and garlic, common in Indian cooking.
Gochujang – A savory, sweet, and spicy fermented chili paste from Korea.
Harissa – A hot chili pepper paste from North Africa.
Jeow bong – A sweet and spicy Lao chili paste.
Phanaeng curry paste – A type of Thai curry paste.
Recado rojo – A red seasoning paste from Mexico, made with annatto seeds.
Sambal – A chili sauce or paste, typically from Indonesia, Malaysia, and Sri Lanka.
Ssamjang – A Korean paste (also listed under fruit/vegetable) used as a sauce on meat.
Yuzukoshō – A Japanese spicy paste made from chili peppers, yuzu citrus peel, and salt.

Sweet Pastes

Cookie butter – A sweet spread made from ground speculoos cookies.
Fondant – A sweet, soft sugar paste used to make candies and icings for cakes.

Yeast Extracts

Marmite spread on toasted bread

Yeast extracts are usually dark brown food pastes made from yeast, often a byproduct of brewing beer. They have a strong, savory flavor.

AussieMite – An Australian yeast extract spread.
Cenovis – A Swiss yeast extract spread.
Guinness Yeast Extract – A yeast extract spread made from Guinness beer.
Marmite – A famous British yeast extract spread.
Marmite (New Zealand) – A different version of Marmite made in New Zealand.
Oxo – A brand of stock cubes and savory spreads.
Promite – An Australian yeast extract spread.
Vegemite – A very popular Australian yeast extract spread.
Vitam-R – A German yeast extract spread.