giving all the ingredients or your special secret ingredient in a recipe?

I asked for a frineds recipe and she wrote it out, but I know she didnt give all the ingredients because it is definately NOT the same it is so very noticable in the taste.

When I asked her she just laughed and said I dont give away all my secrets.

Well thats fine by me she can just keep her secrets.

Guilty!!!

I'm always "experimenting" with recipes & when I find something I really like that I have done different, I won't give out my secret.

One thing our servesafe instructor stressed was that you should never hide the fact you have a secret ingredient in a dish or dessert. It could lead to an allergic reaction.

And if you were ever asked you had to let people know what it is, not devluge the recipe but a "secret ingredient".

I just plain say i cant give it!..I don like recipes of mine that makes me look bad!
Edna

I can understand the need to divulge in case of allergic reaction. However, if someone is just wanting to know your recipe so they can duplicate it, then if you choose not to share, that is YOUR business!

I don't mind telling people what I put in my baked goods, but, then again, I don't do this for a living. If I did....I'd probably be a little more "selfish" with my recipes.

Beth

My view of this type of thing is pretty black & white:

If you don't want to share the WHOLE recipe, then don't share ANY of it.


It's just a cruel, thoughtless, passive-aggressive, small minded, immature thing to give an incomplete recipe!

Have the courtesy (and guts) to say, "Sorry, I don't give out my recipes." and be done with it.

Don't set someone up to waste time and money on ingredients only to have a failed result! There's no humor in that--it's just crass.

I don't give out my recipes and I very rarely ask for the recipes of others. If I do, I generally begin by saying, "I'd love to have the recipe for your XXXX, but if you'd prefer not to give it out, I'll understand." I think that provides a gracious way out.

I swear, if I asked for a recipe only to find out that I was deliberately given a version lacking key ingredients--"she just laughed and said I dont give away all my secrets.", she'd be WEARING whatever food I had in my hand at the moment--SHEESH!

Just my honest .02
Rae

My personal opinion is if I don't want to tell you what my secret is, then I'm not going to give the recipe out at all. I don't like when people do that. If you would rather keep your recipe to yourself then do so. I think we all have that special recipe that we don't want to give out. Just be honest instead of dishonest about it. I have more respect for that.

I TOTALLY agree with BlakesCakes. I'd be po'd if I bought ingredients to make something only to have it turn out odd b/c the person didn't completely share. I don't have a problem being told "no, I'd rather not." (I haven't had to tell anyone that b/c I'm no experimenter so nothing I've done is original )