Welcome to the summary page for FabulousFusionFood's Cook's Guide entry for Capers along with all the recipes employing Capers presented on this site, with 104 recipes in total.

This is a continuation of an entire series of pages that will, I hope, allow my visitors to better navigate this site. As well as displaying recipes by name, country and region of origin I am now planning a whole series of pages where recipes can be located by meal type and main ingredient. This page gives a listing of all the Capers recipes added to this site.

These recipes, all contain Capers as a major wild food ingredient.

Capers are the pickled flower buds of Capparis spinosa a biennial spiny shrub (a member of the Capparaceae, or caper family) that is native to the Mediterranean. The pickled and salted caper flower bud (also called caper) is often used as a seasoning or garnish. Capers are a common ingredient in Mediterranean cuisine. The grown fruit of the caper shrub is also used, and prepared similarly to the buds to be used as caper berries.

Capers are categorized and sold by their size, defined as follows, with the smallest sizes being the most desirable: Non-pareil (0-7 mm), surfines (7-8 mm), capucines (8-9 mm), capotes (9-11 mm), fines (11-13 mm), and grusas (14+ mm). To prepare, fresh capers are picked and immediately preserved in brine or wine vinegar, or are packed in salt (these should be rinsed before use to remove any excess salt). Their tangy, bitter flavour adds piquancy to many sauces and condiments, such as tartare sauce, and they're a good match for fish. They can be used as a garnish for meat and vegetable dishes and in tapenade.

The term 'caper' can also apply to the pickled flower buds of other species as well, such as dandelions, nasturtiums and daisies.