What's the difference between cassia and cinnamon and can you substitute the purple-hued fragrant garlic for regular garlic?

These are some of the questions answered in The Straits Times' new e-book - Cheat Sheet: How To Navigate The Food World Like A Pro.

The e-book is free to download from today with The Straits Times Star E-Books app.

The content may be familiar to regular readers of The Straits Times, as it is distilled from The Sunday Times Cheat Sheet columns.

Appearing in The Sunday Times Lifestyle food pages since May 2012, the fortnightly columns are a guide to the booming range of foodstuff available here, and the finer points of prepping and storing ingredients.

The more than 140 columns written by food consultant and author Chris Tan offer snippets of information about everything you may find in your kitchen larder - from pantry staples such as salt and eggs, to equipment like thermometers and whisks.

Sixty of the best are featured in the new e-book.

Enhanced with animation and organised into seven categories, the e-book is a handy guide for all home cooks and foodies.

Here is a taste of what you can find in the book.

Yes, fragrant garlic can be used in dishes that call for regular garlic. It is more heavily scented than regular garlic but not as sharp and biting as old garlic.

You may also be surprised to find out that what is very often sold as cinnamon is really cassia.

True Ceylon cinnamon is very thin and rolled up in tight scrolls, while cassia is thick, hard and reddish brown. It has a stronger, more forceful aroma.

For more, download Cheat Sheet: How To Navigate The Food World Like A Pro.

Here's how:

•Go to the Apple App Store or Google Play store on your device.

•Search for "The Straits Times Star" and download The Straits Times Star E-books app.

• Go to "I'm just browsing".

• You will find all of The Straits Times' e-books there.

Due to its size, it is best downloaded over Wi-Fi.

Chew Hui Min