Foods that start with D include dates, dragon fruit, daikon, dill, duck, dumplings, dal, dosa, donuts, Dijon mustard, and dulce de leche. And D has some surprisingly good answers once you get past the obvious ones: ditalini is a tiny Italian pasta, dukkah is an Egyptian nut and spice mixture, and Dungeness crab takes its name from a fishing community in Washington State.
There are plenty of sweet options too, including Danish pastries, divinity, Dobos torte, devil’s food cake, and dulce de leche. Below are 50+ D foods divided into fruits, vegetables, dishes, meats, cheeses, condiments, desserts, and drinks, each with a short meaning.
Fruits That Start With D
D fruits range from familiar dried dates to tropical dragon fruit and a few varieties you may rarely encounter outside their native regions.
- Date – Sweet fruit of the date palm, commonly eaten fresh or dried.
- Dragon fruit – Tropical fruit with pink or yellow skin and speckled white or red flesh.
- Damson plum – Small, dark-purple plum with a tart flavor, popular in jams and preserves.
- Dewberry – Blackberry relative that produces dark, sweet-tart berries.
- Desert lime – Small Australian citrus fruit with a sharp, tangy flavor.
- Double coconut – Also called coco de mer, a rare Seychelles palm fruit famous for its enormous seed.
Vegetables That Start With D
There are fewer vegetables beginning with D, but daikon and delicata squash are two particularly easy examples to remember.
- Daikon – Long white radish with a crisp texture and mild peppery flavor.
- Delicata squash – Small winter squash with sweet flesh and thin edible skin.
- Dandelion greens – Edible dandelion leaves with a distinctively bitter flavor.
- Drumstick – Long edible pods of the moringa tree, commonly cooked in South Asian dishes.
Dishes and Meals That Start With D
Some of the best-known D dishes include dumplings, dal, dosa, dim sum, dolma, dirty rice, döner kebab, and duck confit:
- Dal (dahl) – South Asian dish made from split pulses such as lentils, peas, or beans.
- Dim sum – Broad category of small Chinese dishes traditionally enjoyed with tea.
- Dirty rice – Louisiana rice dish typically cooked with meat, vegetables, and Cajun or Creole seasonings.
- Dolma – Stuffed grape leaves or vegetables filled with combinations of rice, herbs, and sometimes meat.
- Doner kebab – Seasoned meat cooked on a vertical rotisserie and sliced thinly for serving.
- Dosa – Thin South Indian crepe traditionally made from fermented rice and lentil batter.
- Duck confit – French preparation in which duck is slowly cooked in fat.
- Dumplings – Pieces of dough that may be filled or unfilled, then boiled, steamed, fried, or baked.
- Deviled eggs – Hard-boiled egg halves filled with a seasoned mixture made from the yolks.
Meat and Seafood That Start With D
Duck is the most obvious meat beginning with D, while seafood adds Dover sole, Dungeness crab, and dogfish:
- Duck – Rich poultry eaten roasted, grilled, braised, smoked, or confited.
- Duck breast – Breast meat from duck, often pan-seared until the skin becomes crisp.
- Dover sole – Flatfish prized for its mild flavor and delicate texture.
- Dungeness crab – Large edible crab found along the Pacific coast of North America.
- Dogfish – Name used for several small shark species, some of which are eaten as seafood.
Pasta, Grains and Bread That Start With D
Pasta gives us one of the most recognizable D-shaped foods, while durum wheat forms the basis of many pasta varieties in the first place.
- Ditalini – Tiny tube-shaped Italian pasta often used in soups.
- Durum wheat – Hard wheat particularly suited to pasta and semolina production.
- Drop biscuit – Soft biscuit made from moist dough that is dropped onto a baking sheet rather than rolled and cut.
- Damper – Traditional Australian bread historically baked over campfire coals.
- Dark rye bread – Dense bread made partly or entirely with rye flour.
Cheese and Dairy Foods That Start With D
Several cheeses beginning with D come from Europe, particularly Britain and Denmark.
- Danbo – Semi-soft Danish cow’s-milk cheese with a mild flavor.
- Derby cheese – Traditional English cow’s-milk cheese with a smooth texture.
- Double Gloucester – Firm English cheese traditionally made from cow’s milk.
- Dolcelatte – Soft Italian blue cheese with a creamy texture and relatively mild flavor.
- Dahi – South Asian fermented milk product similar to yogurt.
Herbs, Seasonings and Condiments That Start With D
A few D ingredients can completely change the flavor of a dish, especially dill, Dijon mustard, and dukkah.
- Dill – Aromatic herb commonly paired with fish, potatoes, cucumbers, and pickles.
- Dijon mustard – Smooth mustard originating in Dijon, France, known for its sharp, tangy flavor.
- Dukkah – Egyptian mixture of nuts, seeds, herbs, and spices.
- Duck sauce – Sweet condiment commonly served with Chinese-American dishes.
- Dulse – Edible red seaweed eaten dried, fresh, or added to soups and other dishes.
- Demerara sugar – Coarse, golden-brown cane sugar with a subtle caramel flavor.
Desserts and Sweet Foods That Start With D
Donuts may be the obvious answer here, but D also gives us pastries, cakes, candy, and one of Latin America’s best-known sweet spreads.
- Donut (doughnut) – Fried or baked ring-shaped or filled pastry.
- Danish pastry – Flaky laminated pastry commonly filled with fruit, custard, or cheese.
- Danish butter cookies – Crisp butter-rich cookies often sold in their familiar round tins.
- Divinity – Soft confection traditionally made from sugar, egg whites, and corn syrup.
- Dobos torte – Hungarian layered sponge cake with chocolate buttercream and a caramel top.
- Dulce de leche – Thick caramel-like confection made by slowly heating sweetened milk.
- Devil’s food cake – Rich chocolate layer cake known for its deep cocoa flavor.
- Dacquoise – French dessert made with layers of nut meringue and cream or buttercream.
Drinks That Start With D
Some D drinks are alcoholic, while others belong at the breakfast table or make a caffeine-free alternative to coffee.
- Daiquiri – Cocktail traditionally made with rum, lime juice, and sugar.
- Dark roast coffee – Coffee made from beans roasted to a dark level, producing a deep roasted flavor.
- Dandelion tea – Herbal drink prepared from dandelion leaves or roasted roots.
- Decaf coffee – Coffee from which most of the caffeine has been removed.
- Dr Pepper – Carbonated soft drink known for its distinctive blend of flavors.
- Drinking chocolate – Rich chocolate beverage usually made with chocolate, milk, or water.
More Foods Beginning With D
A few foods fit awkwardly into the categories above but still deserve a place on the list.
- Doritos – Brand of flavored tortilla chips.
- Duxelles – Finely chopped mushroom mixture cooked with ingredients such as shallots, onions, herbs, and butter.
- Dried fruit – Fruit preserved by removing most of its water content.
- Dried mushrooms – Dehydrated mushrooms that are usually rehydrated before cooking.
- Dried seaweed – Edible seaweed sold dried as a snack or cooking ingredient.
- Dumpling wrappers – Thin rounds or squares of dough used to make dumplings.
- Dark chocolate – Chocolate containing cocoa solids and cocoa butter with relatively little or no milk solids.
