p.s. A Family Tree of Plant-Derived Ingredients (Nº 41)

my big, (formerly) secret chart

P.S. With all my talk in my last email about how citrus fruits, curry leaves, and Sichuan peppercorns are related, I forgot that I’d wanted to share a chart that I’ve been compiling for at least five years.

I wanted a (somewhat) visual representation of the taxonomic relationships among the myriad plant-derived ingredients I use or would like to try; I find these relationships fascinating in their own right and also inspiring for potential ingredient combinations. Such a chart may exist elsewhere, but I was unable to find it, so I began building it myself and have frequently added to it over the years. There are now somewhere around 150 ingredients on it: grains, herbs and spices, fruits and vegetables, syrups and sugars, and much more. Here’s a peek at what it looks like:

A preview of my “ingredients family tree” chart. Link below (in the paid section).

I’ve enabled comments on the spreadsheet, so if there are any missing items you’d like me to add, or if you’re a taxonomist or botanist with a suggestion, please feel free.

A link to the chart is below, for paid subscribers. (This took a lot of work and I’ve resisted sharing it with anyone until now!)

Talk to you soon,

Brian

Here’s the link: