Ever looked at a recipe from another country and felt totally lost? You’re not alone. It’s not that the dish sounds hard; it’s the unfamiliar measurements, the ingredients you’ve never heard of, and the way the recipe just assumes you’ll know what to do with them.

Global cooking doesn’t have to feel like decoding a secret language. Once you understand how to handle the common challenges, like converting measurements, sourcing ingredients, and adjusting for taste, the whole world of food opens up.

1. Use a Unit Converter Every Time

If you’re trying to make a French cake and the flour is listed in grams but your measuring cups only show cups and tablespoons, you’re going to get stuck pretty fast. Precision matters a lot more than people think, especially in baking. Start by keeping a reliable unit converter open whenever you’re cooking from an international recipe. You can easily switch between:

• Grams ↔ Ounces
• Millilitres ↔ Fluid ounces
• Celsius ↔ Fahrenheit
• Litres ↔ Cups

Here’s a quick example:
A recipe calls for 200 grams of flour. That’s about 1.6 cups. Eyeballing that without converting? You’re already gambling with texture and taste.

One mistake people make is guessing. And when you’re working with spices or unfamiliar ingredients, even a small error can completely throw off the balance of a dish. So don’t wing it. Convert it.

2. Don’t Substitute Too Early, Learn the Ingredient First

Substituting is fine if you have experience. But when you’re trying something new, especially from a different country, don’t jump straight to swapping ingredients just because they’re easier to find.

For example, “fish sauce” and “soy sauce” might both be liquid and salty, but they are absolutely not interchangeable in most dishes. The same goes for using ground cinnamon in place of a cinnamon stick in a complex broth, which has a totally different result.

Before reaching for what you think is a good substitute, look up:

• What the ingredient actually does in the recipe
• Whether it’s used for flavour, texture, or balance
• How it reacts to heat, oil, or acidity

In other words, get to know the ingredient before trying to replace it.

3. Translate the Technique, Not Just the Words

You’ve got your ingredients. You’ve converted the measurements. But then you read something like “cook until fragrant” or “bring to the crackling stage.” And now you’re back to guessing.

This is where technique translation comes in. Recipes often assume cultural context — they’re written for people already familiar with local methods. If a recipe says “temper the spices” or “sweat the onions,” that means something specific in different cuisines.

The key here is to watch how those steps are done. Search for a quick video of that technique being used in the context of the dish you’re making. See the colour, the timing, the change in sound or smell. That’ll give you much more clarity than just reading.

Don’t treat recipes like instruction manuals. Treat them like hints. Then find the visual clues to connect the dots.

4. Taste as You Go But Know What You’re Looking For

“Season to taste” only works if you know what it’s supposed to taste like. That’s where people new to international cooking often struggle. It’s not that you don’t have the palate. It’s just that you don’t have the reference point yet.

When you’re working with unfamiliar spices or sauces — think tamarind paste, gochujang, fenugreek — take a tiny taste of them individually before you start cooking. Let your brain file that away. Then, when you taste the dish later, you’ll have something to compare it to.

Also, some ingredients intensify as they cook. A curry that tastes too mild at the start can punch you in the face after simmering for 20 minutes. So yes, taste as you go, but also wait and taste again. Let the ingredients show their full flavour before you adjust.

5. Get Comfortable with the Idea of Layers

One thing many international cuisines do better than most Western cooking is layering. The flavours don’t all go in at once. They build. Spice first, then onions, then tomatoes, then broth. Each layer is cooked until it changes in texture, colour, or smell before moving on.

This isn’t just about complexity. It’s about control.

Let’s say you’re making a North African tagine. If you just throw everything in a pot and boil it, you’ll technically still get dinner, but it won’t taste like it should. Each step adds depth. That’s why the same ingredient, cumin, for example, can be nutty, smoky, or bitter depending on how and when it’s added.

Next time you follow a recipe and it seems to be dragging out the steps, pay attention to what’s changing at each one. It’s teaching you something, even if the recipe doesn’t say it out loud.

6. Understand the Role of Acidity, Fat, and Heat

This is where things often click. Once you understand how a dish balances these three — acidity, fat, and heat — you can start to fix mistakes and make adjustments confidently.

Say your Thai curry feels heavy. A squeeze of lime cuts through it perfectly. Your spicy Mexican salsa tastes harsh? A splash of oil might smooth it out. Your rich pasta sauce feels flat? Maybe it needs a bit of heat, not just spice, but actual warmth from red pepper flakes or a dash of vinegar.

That’s the kind of knowledge that grows with experience. But once you start noticing it, you won’t unsee it.

7. Use Scent and Texture, Not Just Time

The most common trap with international recipes is sticking to time limits. Five minutes for sautéing, ten minutes for simmering — but what if your stove runs hotter? What if your ingredients are fresher or drier?

Focus on what’s happening in the pan. Are the onions translucent? Is the sauce thick enough to coat the back of the spoon? Has the spice smell mellowed or deepened?

Timers are helpful, but they don’t know your kitchen. You do.

8. Cooking Internationally Is a Mindset, Not a Skill Level

You don’t have to master ten cuisines to get good at this. You just need to shift your thinking. Cooking with global ingredients isn’t about getting everything perfect. It’s about staying curious, paying attention, and not being afraid to make a few mistakes.

The goal isn’t to become a textbook expert. The goal is to build enough confidence that the next time you come across a recipe from across the world, you don’t skip it. You read it. You try it. You make it yours.

Keep Your Curiosity on the Stove

If there’s one thing to take with you, it’s this: recipes from around the world aren’t out of reach. They’re just written in a language you’re still learning. Once you understand the rhythm, the conversions, the techniques, and the instincts, they become a whole lot less intimidating.