✔ Updated · 40 black foods: fruits, vegetables, grains, spices, seafood
Black is one of the most striking colors on a plate, and more foods are naturally black than most people expect. Some, like blackberries and black rice, get their color from anthocyanin pigments so concentrated they read as black.
The best-known black foods are blackberries, blackcurrants, black grapes, black olives, black beans, beluga lentils, black rice, wild rice, black sesame seeds, nigella seeds and black peppercorns. Black garlic, black truffles, squid ink, caviar, black licorice and black pudding are popular black foods too. Most get their color from dark anthocyanin pigments, aging, drying or curing.
- Most common: black beans, blackberries, black olives and black peppercorns.
- Truest jet black: squid ink, black cocoa powder and black sesame seeds.
- Black by process: black garlic, dried black limes, century eggs and black pudding.
Others turn black through drying, aging or curing, such as black garlic, dried limes and black pudding. This list gathers 40 foods that are black, grouped into fruits, vegetables, mushrooms, grains and seeds, spices, seafood and pantry foods, with how each one tastes and how to use it.
Black Fruits and Berries
Black fruits are packed with anthocyanins, the same pigments found in blueberries and red cabbage. At high concentrations they look so dark purple that the fruit appears black.
1. Blackberries
Juicy, sweet-tart bramble berries that turn glossy black when ripe; eaten fresh or baked into cobblers, pies and jam.
2. Black Raspberries
A North American raspberry that ripens to purple-black, with a deeper, more floral flavor than red raspberries and a hollow center.
3. Black Mulberries
Soft, very juicy dark berries from the Morus nigra tree with a rich sweet-tart taste; they stain everything, so handle gently.
4. Blackcurrants
Small, intensely tart and aromatic berries, rarely eaten raw but loved in jam, cordials, syrups and desserts.
5. Aronia (Black Chokeberries)
Shiny black berries so astringent they make your mouth pucker raw; sweetened in juice, jam, syrup and baked goods.
6. Black Elderberries
Tiny dark berries cooked into syrup, jam and pies. Always cook ripe berries and remove stems, since raw elderberries can cause nausea.
7. Black Grapes
Dark-skinned table grapes such as Black Seedless and Black Muscat, sweet and crisp, for snacking, cheese boards and roasting.
8. Black Mission Figs
Figs with purple-black skin and jammy pink flesh, eaten fresh or dried, and great with cheese, honey or prosciutto.
9. Black Sapote
A tropical persimmon relative nicknamed the chocolate pudding fruit: green skin with soft, dark brown-black flesh when fully ripe.
10. Black Olives
Ripe olives such as Nicoise and oil-cured olives; canned California black olives are darkened by oxidation during curing.
11. Prunes
Dried plums with wrinkled, near-black skin and a deep, sweet flavor, good for snacking, baking and slow-cooked meat dishes.
Black Vegetables
Most black vegetables are heirloom or specialty varieties of familiar crops, with skins or flesh deep enough in pigment to look black.
12. Black Garlic
Whole garlic bulbs aged in warm, humid conditions for weeks until the cloves turn black, soft and sweet with a balsamic-like taste.
13. Black Radish
A winter radish with rough black skin and crisp, white, sharply peppery flesh; slice it thin for salads or roast it.
14. Black Carrots
Deep purple-black carrots from Turkey and Central Asia, sweeter than orange carrots and used to make Turkish salgam juice.
15. Black Beauty Eggplant
The classic large, glossy purple-black eggplant, ideal for eggplant parmesan, grilling, roasting and baba ghanoush.
16. Black Salsify
A long root with thin black skin and white flesh that tastes mildly nutty; peel and drop it into lemon water so it stays pale.
Black Mushrooms and Truffles
Several prized fungi are naturally black. Only eat wild mushrooms identified by an expert, or buy them from a trusted supplier.
17. Black Truffles
Prized underground fungi, especially the Perigord truffle, with dark warty skin and an earthy aroma; shaved over pasta, eggs and risotto.
18. Black Trumpet Mushrooms
Thin, trumpet-shaped wild mushrooms with a smoky, fruity flavor; saute them in butter or dry them for sauces.
19. Wood Ear Mushrooms
A black, ear-shaped fungus usually sold dried; soak it and add to hot and sour soup and stir-fries for a crunchy bite.
Black Grains, Beans and Seeds
Black-skinned beans, lentils, grains and seeds are the easiest black foods to find and cook with, and most keep for months in the pantry. Black beans are a staple in my pantry.
20. Black Beans
Small, glossy turtle beans with a creamy texture, a staple of Latin American cooking in soups, burritos, rice dishes and dips.
Get the recipe →21. Beluga Lentils
Tiny, shiny black lentils named for their resemblance to caviar; they hold their shape when cooked, so they suit salads.
22. Whole Urad (Black Gram)
Black-skinned Indian lentils with white insides, slow-cooked with butter and cream in the rich North Indian dish dal makhani.
23. Black Soybeans
Black-skinned soybeans with a mild, nutty taste; in Japan they are simmered sweet as kuromame for New Year.
24. Black Rice
Also called forbidden rice, it cooks to a deep purple-black with a nutty flavor; Thai black sticky rice is used for desserts.
25. Wild Rice
The long, dark brown-to-black seed of a North American aquatic grass, not true rice, with a chewy, earthy bite.
26. Black Quinoa
Black seeds with a slightly earthier, crunchier bite than white quinoa; they keep their color and shape in salads.
27. Black Sesame Seeds
Unhulled sesame seeds with a deeper, nuttier flavor; ground into paste for Asian sweets like tang yuan and black sesame soup.
28. Chia Seeds
Tiny black and gray speckled seeds that swell into a gel when soaked, used for chia pudding, smoothies and baking.
29. Nigella Seeds
Small, matte black seeds, also sold as kalonji, with an oniony, peppery flavor; sprinkled on naan, breads and pickles.
Black Spices
These spices turn black as they dry, and they add heat, smoke or sourness to a dish. I keep a grinder of black peppercorns right by the stove.
30. Black Peppercorns
The dried, wrinkled berries of the pepper vine, picked unripe and dried until black; the most-used spice in the world.
Get the recipe →31. Black Cardamom
Large, wrinkled pods dried over fire, with a smoky, camphor-like flavor used in savory Indian and Chinese dishes rather than sweets.
32. Dried Black Limes
Also called loomi, limes boiled in brine and sun-dried until black and hollow; they add a sour, smoky depth to Persian and Gulf stews.
Black Seafood and Sea Vegetables
From ink to roe to seaweed, the sea supplies some of the darkest foods in the kitchen. I made squid ink pasta once for a dinner party, and I loved the drama.
33. Squid Ink
Inky black sepia, usually from cuttlefish, with a mild briny flavor; it colors pasta, Venetian risotto al nero and Spanish arroz negro.
34. Caviar
Salt-cured sturgeon roe in shades from dark gray to glossy black, served cold in small spoonfuls on blini or with creme fraiche.
35. Nori
Roasted sheets of laver seaweed so dark green they look black, used to wrap sushi and onigiri or crumbled over rice.
Black Pantry and Prepared Foods
These foods become black through curing, alkalizing, fermenting or cooking with dark ingredients.
36. Black Pudding
A blood sausage of pork blood, fat and oats or barley, sliced and fried as part of a traditional Irish or British breakfast.
37. Century Eggs
Chinese preserved duck eggs cured in an alkaline mix for weeks, turning the white into dark amber jelly and the yolk creamy gray-green.
38. Black Licorice
Chewy anise-flavored candy made with licorice root extract. The FDA advises adults over 40 not to eat 2 ounces a day for two weeks or more.
39. Black Cocoa Powder
Heavily alkalized cocoa that is almost black, with a mellow, cookie-like flavor; mix it with regular cocoa for very dark cakes.
40. Fermented Black Beans
Salted, fermented black soybeans (douchi) with a pungent, savory taste; the base of Chinese black bean sauce for stir-fries.
Why Are Some Foods Black?
Most naturally black plant foods, such as blackberries, black rice, black beans and black carrots, contain very high levels of anthocyanins. These pigments look red, purple or blue on their own, but packed densely into a skin or grain they appear black.
Other foods turn black through a process. Black garlic darkens through slow browning reactions as it ages in warm, humid conditions, peppercorns and limes blacken as they dry, black cocoa is darkened by alkalizing, and squid ink gets its color from melanin, the same type of pigment found in skin and hair.
Black Foods for Halloween and Parties
- Squid ink pasta or black rice: a dramatic black base for a Halloween dinner, topped with shrimp or roasted vegetables.
- Black cocoa cake or cookies: use black cocoa powder for near-black layers and frosting without food coloring.
- Blackberry and black grape platter: pair dark fruit with black olives, figs and cheese for a moody grazing board.
- Black sesame desserts: black sesame ice cream, tang yuan or cookies give a nutty flavor and a gray-black color.
- Black bean dip: a quick party dip of mashed black beans, lime, garlic and cumin with tortilla chips.
More Foods by Color
Planning a rainbow menu? See our lists of foods that are blue and foods that are red, or browse foods that are sweet. For the opposite end of the spectrum, see our foods that are white.
Frequently Asked Questions
What foods are naturally black?
Naturally black foods include blackberries, black raspberries, blackcurrants, black grapes, black olives, black beans, beluga lentils, black rice, wild rice, black sesame seeds, nigella seeds, black peppercorns, black truffles, black trumpet mushrooms, squid ink and caviar. Most get their color from very dark anthocyanin pigments.
What fruits are black?
Black fruits include blackberries, black raspberries, black mulberries, blackcurrants, aronia berries, black elderberries, black grapes, Black Mission figs, black sapote, black olives and prunes. Many are really very deep purple, but they contain so much pigment that they look black.
Are there any black vegetables?
Yes. Black radish, black carrots, Black Beauty eggplant and black salsify are black or near-black vegetables. Black garlic is also popular, but it is regular garlic that turns black as it ages. Black beans and black lentils are often used like vegetables in cooking.
Why are some foods black?
Plant foods like blackberries, black rice and black beans are black because they contain very high levels of anthocyanin pigments. Other foods become black through processing: garlic darkens as it ages, peppercorns and limes as they dry, cocoa when alkalized, and squid ink is colored by melanin.
What black foods are good for Halloween?
Squid ink pasta, black rice, black bean dip, black olives, blackberries and black grapes all look dramatic on a Halloween table. For desserts, black cocoa powder makes nearly black cakes and cookies, and black sesame gives desserts a dark gray color without artificial food coloring.
