and garlic prepared as a garnish
persimmon * a succulent super-sweet fruit, also known as the kaki
petersilie * “rock celery,” as parsley was first known in early English
phaselles * kidney beans
phyllo * filo pastry, a very thin unleavened confectioner’s dough
physalis * an exotic winter cherry from Peru, both sweet and sour to the taste
picholine * a French cocktail olive of medium size
pignolia * the edible seed of certain pine tree cones
pimento * a sweet red pepper offering mild heat, often used as a stuffing or relish
pinder * the humble peanut
pippin * a term for any apple cultivated from seed
pisang * either banana or plantain, as featured in South Asian cuisine
pistace * the pistachio nut, in its earliest anglicized form
pitahaya * the dragon fruit, an edible exotic originally from Mexico
pitanga * the Surinam cherry, a spicy red berry fruit used as a base for conserves
pitomba * a palatable fruit abundant in the Amazonas, usually eaten fresh
plantain * a cooking banana
plumcot * a natural fruit cross blending elements of the plum and the apricot
pokeweed * a plant traditionally eaten in the Appalachians though toxic if uncooked
polypores * a genus of bracket fungi including the “chicken of the woods” mushroom
pomato * a plant chimaera produced by grafting tomato scions onto potato roots; cherry tomatoes appear on the vine while potatoes grow underground
pomegranate * literally “seedy apple”; a juicy berry fruit with a long culinary history
pomodoro * the plum tomato, as used extensively in Italian cookery
pompion * an older name given to the pumpkin or any large melon
poppyseeds * tiny seeds used as topping, filling, or flavouring for baked goods
porcelana * a highly coveted cocoa bean, produces the most expensive chocolates
porcini * ceps, or flavoursome wild boletus mushrooms, in culinary parlance
portobello * a “meadow mushroom” that has matured past its bonnet or button stage
praty * an old vernacular term used in Ireland for the potato
pregnada * a type of “pregnant” lemon, one enclosing a similar smaller fruit within it
prewyn * an archaic variant spelling of prune, being a dried plum
prickpear * the Indian fig, from a cactus with the same title bearing edible fruits
puffballs * a group of edible wild mushrooms requiring to be picked with care
pulasan * an ultra-tropical fruit and sweeter close cousin to the rambutan
purslane * a peppery leaf vegetable and commonplace ingredient in medieval sallets
quandong * the Australian “wild peach,” a staple food of the indigenous population
quarrenden * an ancient English dessert apple, best eaten straight off the tree
quassia * an aromatic bark eaten as an aid to digestion and stimulant to the appetite
quatre-épices * the classic four-spice blend of pepper, cloves, nutmeg, and ginger
querdling * any hard, elongated cooking apple, most usefully roasted over the fire
quibibz * the spice berries of the cubeb pepper shrub, long used as a condiment
quickening * leaven or yeast; a ferment added to dough causing bread to rise
quinoa * a traditional Andean edible seed staple, now faddish modern health food
radicchio * a chicory cultivar with variegated leaves consumed raw as a salad green
raffinade * top-quality refined sugar
rambutan * a subacid tropical berry fruit known informally as the hairy lychee
rampion * the bellflower consumed as a vegetable, with leaf and root good for salads
ramsons * the wild garlic, a plant with a bulbous root eaten as a relish
rapadura * low-grade unrefined whole cane sugar
rapeseed * an alternative vegetable oil growing in popularity with health-conscious modern consumers
ras el hanout * Moroccan spice mix
redcurrants * small sweet berries often jellied as a condiment to complement lamb
rocambole * a loose cover name for a range of full-flavoured gourmet garlics
romaine * the North American cos lettuce, the classic choice for Caesar salad
romanesco * a visually striking variety of cauliflower with fractal-like conical florets
rosmarine * an older name for rosemary, a time-honoured culinary herb
russet * any of various dessert apples with a distinctive rough, reddish-brown skin
rutabaga * the cruciferous vegetable known outside of North America as the swede
ryfart * old Scots horseradish, a corruption of the original French
safflower * a cooking and salad oil also useful for making soft margarines
sago * a primary food product prepared from the pith of tropical palm stems
salep * a starchy powdered foodstuff obtained from dried orchid tubers
saligot * the water-chestnut, a plant cultivated for millennia for its edible seeds
salsify * the “oyster plant,” a tasty dandelion taproot eaten as a vegetable
samphire * “poor man’s asparagus,” a sea herb also known as papwort or pickleweed
sapodilla * the edible fruit of a tropical tree which also yields chicle, or chewing gum
sargassum * a genus of harvested edible microalgae
saskatoons * a.k.a. juneberries, a North American fruit species similar to the blueberry
sassafras * filé powder, a spicy herb serving as a base for Louisiana Creole gumbos
satsuma
