Two exotic-sounding ingredients have been making repeat performances on Bravo's Top Chef this season.

Ras el hanout has shown up in beet salad with goat cheese and in a foie gras mousse with peaches.

According to Larousse Gastronomique, ras el hanout is "a complex mixture of twenty or more ground spices, used mainly in Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia. The literal meaning is "head" or "top of the shop." Since the mixture was traditionally made from a market's superior spices, the name is fitting.

A call to Casablanca Restaurant in Arlington, Virginia, revealed what exactly is in the mix. Chef Nadir Elhajji, who is Moroccan, explained that the combination includes paprika, ginger, black and white pepper, curry, coriander, nutmeg, and cumin. Depending on the country, ras el hanout might also include garlic, rosemary, lavender, or saffron. It's available in some Middle Eastern stores and online, but chef Elhajji prefers to make his own from his battery of ground spices. He's not so sure about mixing ras el hanout with beets or peaches but does like it with lamb. He’ll combine four pounds of lamb chops, a sliced onion, and two teaspoons of ras el hanout in an ovenproof pot. Coat the meat, onions, and spice liberally with olive oil and cover the pot tightly. Cook for two to six hours in a 250-degree oven. Or, if you happen to be in Marrakesh, do what the locals do and place your pot in the smoldering fire used to heat the local Turkish bath.

The other unfamiliar guest ingredient is something called yuzu. This fun-to-pronounce fruit has been blended into a butter sauce for a chicken dish, tossed with fish, and—my favorite application—used to dress a "sexy banana salad."

Whole Foods' online citrus guide was helpful: "Quite popular in Japan where it is typically used in place of lemons, the bright yellow yuzu is occasionally found in ethnic markets in North America. In Japan, its highly acidic juice is used to flavor mushrooms and its zest is added to clear soups or atop fish or cooked vegetables. Whole yuzus wrapped in cheesecloth are placed in hot bathwater to celebrate the winter solstice, a highly aromatic and sensuous experience." Fresh ones are only available in the U.S. in winter; yuzu-enthusiasts can tide themselves over until then with bottled juice. At a Japanese grocery store in Virginia, seven ounces goes for $10. That’s a lot more than lemon juice! The grocer doesn't seem surprised by the cost of yuzu. "It has more flavor."

As for ras el hanout, Chef Elhajji, a fan of the show, isn’t that impressed: "I call ras el hanout the easy spice. It gets you all the flavor at once. Like having your coffee and sugar already mixed."

Perhaps its appeal is all in its unusual name. After all, bouquet garni is just a bunch of parsley and herbs. But top chefs love it.

-Catherine Barker

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