Muscovado sugar is moist, partially refined brown sugar with fine crystals. What is called muscovado sugar in the United Kingdom is called Barbados sugar or moist sugar in North America.
Mushroom is a general term for any of various fleshy fungi including the toadstools, puffballs, coral fungi, morels, etc. and covers all edible (and inedible). fungi, especially those with a cap atop a stem. In the UK this will most often mean the white, cultivated (and relatively flavourless) mushroom available year round. In Italy it might refer more readily to the porcino (cep or boletus) mushroom.
George Watkin's Mushroom Ketchup tastes half way between Worcestershire Sauce and soy sauce with 'subtle hints' of mushroom. The original ketchups were carefully brewed condiments, but are now all but superseded by convenient modern equivalents such as Bisto. Originally mushrooms were packed, caps, stalks and all, into earthenware jars, salted and placed on the back of the stove until they flowed with dark liquid. Next the jars were set in the oven and boiled, the sauce strained through muslin, and finally spiced with black pepper, nutmeg and mace. George Watkin's, established in 1830, is the most common brand around and, despite the olde worlde label, is made from mushroom powder. It is used to add flavour to gravy and to highlight the flavour of beef and game.
A dish made with bright green marrowfat peas, which have been soaked overnight and then boiled and finally lightly mashed, most common in Northern England. A traditional accompaniment to fish and chips (US: fries).
A variety of hardneck garlic, suitable for growing in countries such as Scotland and Canada. It is lifted in July and will survive until Christmas if it is dried.
Muskellunge, with this and other spellings, comes from the Ojibwa. The muskellunge or muskie is a large, freshwater relative of the pike from North America. It is quite uncommon.
Calamondon of calamansi lime. A citrus fruit found in the Philippines though it is actually a hybrid and not found in the wild. Sour, small and round, it is often described as a cross between a tangerine or mandarin orange and a kumquat. It looks rather like a tangerine and is used to flavor foods and drinks
Mussels (US: blue mussels) are oval, blue-black marine bivalves with orange to yello-coloured meats. They grow in coastal waters and are seen in colonies on rocks from the Arctic right down to the Mediterranean. Most that are provided for human consumption are farmed, a process to which they respond well. Farming is relatively easy, and the farmed crops can be protected from the blooms of red alga, known as 'red tides' which occasionally afflict marine environments. The presence of these algae can lead to poisoning, making farmed mussels a preferred option. They are also like to be plump and well cleaned for use. The may be grown by seeding mussels in shallow waters and then dredged, which may dammage the sea bed. Alternatively and traditionally in many places in France they may be grown on wooden beams or poles, called bouchots or,elsewhere in Europe and very successfully, on ropes.
A variety of leek which can be ready with short, thick-stemmed leeks which will stand in good condition for several months from December.
Mustard means different things in different places. In the Middle East, Indian Subcontinent and Africa it is likely to mean mustard greens, the sharp green leaves of various plants of the mustard family. It could also refer to the mustard seed, a spice used in cooking. In the West it is more likely to refer to a hot condiment made by crushing mustard seeds and mixing it with any of a number of herbs and vinegar. English mustard is bright yellow, smooth and very hot, while French mustard is inclined to use the whole grains, with complex flavours and be much cooler.
