Editing Caper (section)

=== Culinary ===
{{Cookbook|Caper}}
[[File:Capers jar.jpg|thumb|upright=0.5|Pickled capers in a&nbsp;jar]]

The [[Salting (food)|salted]] and [[pickling|pickled]] caper bud (simply called a "caper") is used as an ingredient, [[seasoning]], or [[Garnish (food)|garnish]]. Capers are a common ingredient in [[Mediterranean cuisine]], especially [[Cypriot cuisine|Cypriot]], [[Italian cuisine|Italian]], [[Greek cuisine|Aeolian Greek]], and [[Maltese cuisine|Maltese]] food. The immature [[fruit]] of the caper [[shrub]] are prepared similarly and marketed as "caper berries". Fully mature fruit are not preferred, as they contain many hard seeds.{{Citation needed|date=November 2020}}

The buds, when ready to pick, are a dark [[Olive (color)|olive green]] and range in size from under {{Convert|7|mm|abbr=on|frac=8}} to more than {{Convert|14|mm|abbr=on|frac=8}}. They are picked, then pickled in [[salt]] or a salt and vinegar solution, and drained. Intense flavour, sometimes described as being similar to black pepper or mustard, is developed as glucocapparin, a [[glycoside]] organosulfur molecule, is released from each caper bud.<ref name=":0" /> This [[enzymatic reaction]] leads to the formation of [[rutin]], often seen as crystallized white spots on the surfaces of individual caper buds.{{Citation needed|date=February 2021}}

Capers are a distinctive ingredient in Italian cuisine, especially in [[Sicily|Sicilian]], [[Aeolian Islands|Aeolian]] and southern Italian cooking. They are commonly used in [[salad]]s, [[pasta salad]]s, meat dishes, and [[pasta]] [[sauces]]. Examples of uses in Italian cuisine are [[piccata]] dishes, [[vitello tonnato]] and ''[[spaghetti alla puttanesca]]''.{{Citation needed|date=November 2020}}

Capers are sometimes an ingredient in [[tartar sauce]]. They are often served with [[smoking (food)|cold smoked]] salmon or [[cured salmon]] dishes, especially [[lox]] and cream cheese. Capers and caper berries are sometimes substituted for olives to garnish a [[martini (cocktail)|martini]].{{Citation needed|date=November 2020}}

Capers are categorized and sold by their size, defined as follows, with the smallest sizes being the most desirable: non-pareil (up to 7&nbsp;mm), surfines (7–8&nbsp;mm), capucines (8–9&nbsp;mm), capotes (9–11&nbsp;mm), fines (11–13&nbsp;mm), and grusas (14+&nbsp;mm). If the caper bud is not picked, it flowers and produces a caper berry. The fruit can be pickled and then served as a Greek ''[[mezze]]''.{{Citation needed|date=November 2020}}

Caper leaves, which are hard to find outside of [[Greece]] or [[Cyprus]], are used particularly in salads and fish dishes. They are pickled or boiled and preserved in jars with brine—like caper buds.{{Citation needed|date=November 2020}}

Dried caper leaves are also used as a substitute for [[rennet]] in manufacturing high-quality cheese.<ref>Mike, Tad, "Capers: The Flower Inside", ''Epikouria Magazine'', Fall/Winter 2006</ref>