Ingredient: Difference between revisions

{{about|ingredients in general|the documentary film|Ingredients (film){{!}}''Ingredients'' (film)|other uses|The Main Ingredient (disambiguation)}}

{{one source|date=March 2008}}

[[File:Galbi-tang ingredients.jpg|thumb|Ingredients for [[short rib soup]]]]

In a general sense, an '''ingredient''' is a substance which forms part of a [[mixture]]. In [[cooking]], [[recipe]]s specify which ingredients are used to prepare a dish. Many commercial products contain [[secret ingredient]]s purported to make them better than competing products. In the pharmaceutical industry, an [[active ingredient]] is the ingredient in a [[Pharmaceutical formulation|formulation]] which invokes [[biological activity]].

[[File:Euroshopper canned marrowfat peas ingredient list.jpg|thumb|The ingredient list on a can of [[marrowfat peas]]. Besides peas, the product also contains [[water]], [[salt]], and the [[antioxidant]] [[Ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid|E385]]]]

National laws usually require prepared food products to display a list of ingredients and specifically require that certain [[food additive|additives]] be listed. Law typically requires that ingredients be listed according to their relative weight within the product.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.fda.gov/Food/GuidanceRegulation/GuidanceDocumentsRegulatoryInformation/LabelingNutrition/ucm2006828.htm|title=Guidance for Industry: A Food Labeling Guide|publisher=[[Food and Drug Administration]]|date=April 2008|access-date=17 June 2015}}</ref>

==Etymology==

From [[Middle French]] ingredient, from Latin ingredientem, present participle of ingredior (“to go or enter into or onto”).

An '''artificial ingredient''' usually refers to an ingredient which is [[wikt:artificial|artificial]] or human-made, such as:

* [[Artificial flavor|Artificial flavour]]

* [[Food additive]]

* [[Food coloring|Food colouring]]

* [[Preservative]]

* [[Active ingredient]]

* [[Secret ingredient]]