40 Foods that Start with C

Are you wondering how many foods there are that start with C? We were also curious how many letter C foods are out there. So, we started to search, and we discovered lots of foods that begin with the letter C!

Some letter C foods were familiar, while others were quite exciting. You may be surprised by how many C foods you have never heard of.

Foods that Begin with the Letter C

Take a look at our extensive list of foods that begin with the letter C. There are sweet and savory dishes, snacks, and drinks on our list! Take a look.

1. Cream Cheese

Cream cheese is the first food on our list of foods that start with C. Cream cheese is a soft, mild-tasting cheese made from milk and heavy cream. Cream cheese often has stabilizers mixed in to make the cheese the perfect consistency.

2. Cantaloupe (An Orange Summer Fruit)

Cantaloupe is a delicious, orange summer fruit. It is actually part of the melon family. Cantaloupes have thick, tan skin and bright orange flesh. They are very juicy and sweet when ripe.

Cantaloupe, watermelon, and honeydew melon are all part of the same melon family and ripen mid-summer.

3. Caesar Salad (Perfect when paired with Parmesan Cheese)

Caesar salad is found on restaurant menus around the world. Crisp romaine lettuce, crispy croutons, and shredded parmesan cheese are the main ingredients in a caesar salad.

The dressing is made with lemon juice, olive oil, egg, anchovies, garlic, mustard, and parmesan. The creamy, flavorful salad is an incredible letter C food!

4. Coffee

Coffee is more than just a great letter C food. Coffee fuels people and economies. It is a part of life! Coffee is brewed using ground, roasted coffee beans, and hot water.

The flavor of coffee varies based on where the beans grew, the variety of coffee beans, and how they were roasted.

5. Carambola

Carambola is more popularly known as star fruit. The golden-yellow fruit looks like a star when sliced lengthwise. Carambola is sweet, crunchy, and a little bit acidic.

6. Carrot Cake

Carrot cake is pretty much exactly what it sounds like- a cake made from carrots! Most carrot cakes are iced in cream cheese frosting. Carrot cake often contains walnuts.

Tropical carrot cakes contain pineapple, too. Cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg add spice and depth to carrot cake.

7. Cherry Pie

Cherry pie has been around since Queen Elizabeth the first. The pie has a butter crust and a sweet, bright red cherry filling.

Tart cherries are usually used to make cherry pie filling. Sour cherries mixed with sugar give the pie an incredible flavor.

8. Chico Fruit

The chico fruit looks like a small pear. The brownish, edible fruit is also called sapodilla. It has a mild sweet taste with a malty texture. Chico grows to be about the size of an egg.

9. Crabs

Crabs are most often caught in the ocean then eaten right away. They taste best when steamed or cooked the day they are caught!

There are many kinds of crabs, from blue claw crabs to Alaskan king crabs. Each type has its own meaty flavor. Crab cakes are another popular dish.

10. Croissant

Croissants are a buttery, French, crescent-shaped roll. They are incredibly flakey and buttery. The dough for croissants is made using a soft yeast dough that is layered with butter. When the croissants bake, the buttery layers melt and make the dough flakey and soft.

11. Coconut

Coconut is a multipurpose food that starts with C. There is so much you can do with this tropical nut! The large, brown nut has white flesh and grows on the coconut palm tree. It can be used to make coconut milk, water, or just shredded.

You can cut chunks of fresh coconuts and eat them raw. Or, you can toast coconut to get an even richer flavor. It definitely needs to be on our list of foods that start with C!

12. Chaya

Chaya is often called tree spinach. Looking at the big, green leaves, we know why! Chaya does look very similar to spinach! However, chaya grows on a tree rather than as a low-lying vegetable.

Chaya leaves need to be cooked for about 5 minutes to remove any toxins from the leaves. The leaves should only be eaten fresh and never stored.

13. Chocolate

Chocolate absolutely must be on our list of foods that start with C. It is one of the most popular foods around the world!

Chocolate is made from cocoa beans. The dried, hulled beans are roasted, ground, and mixed with sugar, cream, and flavorings.

Dark chocolate, milk chocolate, and white chocolate are the three most common types of chocolate. They vary in color and flavor base on the amount of cream and sugar added to the mix.

14. Creme Brulee

Creme brulee is a classic French dessert. Creme brulee is a thick, baked custard topped with crisp, caramelized sugar.

Creme brulee only contains a few ingredients, but it can be a tricky dessert to make. It takes a true professional chef to make the perfect creme brulee. However, a good creme brulee is irresistible!

15. Cassava

Cassava is a root vegetable similar to a potato. Cassava trees grow in tropical regions. Cassava is also known as yuca.

This root veggie is very versatile, thanks to its subtle flavor. It can be used as a side dish, sliced and deep-fried into chips, or baked into bread. The nutty flavor tastes good with almost anything!

16. Cappuccino

If you like coffee, you may also love cappuccino. Cappuccino is made using a shot of strong espresso coffee and steamed milk. The steamed milk is frothed as it heats to give the warm drink a foamy top.

A true cappuccino will be about half espresso and half steamed milk.

17. Comte

Comte is a French cheese made from unpasteurized cow’s milk. Comte is considered a semi-hard cheese, and it is aged from 8 to 12 months. The tasty, sliceable cheese has a mild, tangy flavor that is great on crackers or melted into fondue.

18. Corn

Corn is a staple around the world. Corn is commonly served as a side dish. It can be steamed, baked, broiled, or grilled. The edible kernels of corn can be yellow, white, red, brown, or even orange.

Corn has even more uses than just a side dish. It is also a primary grain for feeding cattle, used to make sweet syrup, is great for grinding into flour, and is even used to make ethanol-gasoline!

Corn is an imperative part of our global economy and food system.

19. Chocolate Cake

Chocolate cake is the number one cake flavor in the world. Who can resist a great chocolate cake?! Chocolate cakes are usually made using unsweetened cocoa powder as the source of the chocolate taste. The fats in the cocoa help keep the cake moist and tender.

Chocolate cake is a traditional first dessert for babies. A baby’s face covered in chocolate cake is a picture worth a thousand words! If you love cake, there’s a good chance you love chocolate cake.

20. Cauliflower

Cauliflower is a pale, white vegetable. Cauliflower can be eaten raw or cooked as a side dish. It can even be made into low-carb rice!

Cauliflower tastes a little nutty and also a little sweet. It can have a powerful flavor, especially when eaten raw. Many people say that cauliflower is an acquired taste.

21. Cabbage

Cabbage is a leafy vegetable that comes in a wide variety of colors. Cabbage can be green, purple, or even white. Cabbage grows in tight, dense leaved heads. They can be eaten raw or steamed to soften the leaves.

Cabbage is quite healthy and has tons of nutritional benefits. Brussels sprouts, kale, and broccoli are all members of the cabbage family.

22. Capers

Capers are actually flower buds. How incredible is that? The unripened flowers of the caper bush are harvested and canned.

The tangy, salty flavor is what makes it hard to resist a caper. Capers can be used as a garnish for many entrees or eaten on their own.

23. Chicken

Chicken is the most popular meat in the United States. In fact, Americans consume about 8 billion chickens per year. That’s a lot of chicken!

Chicken is a very versatile meat. The mild flavor and juicy meat go well in numerous recipes. Chicken can be cooked into chicken soup or deep-fried into crispy chicken wings. Add a few spices, and you can make an incredible chicken stir fry.

Chicken with a side of vegetables is a standard, American meal. No matter how you prefer your chicken, we know it has to be on our list of foods that start with C!

24. Capulin

Capulin is a Mexican black cherry. The dark red, sweet fruit has a single hard stone in the center. The tree yields a sap that has medicinal uses.

The capulin cherry can be eaten raw, stewed, used in desserts, or cooked into a jam. A bowl of yogurt with fresh capulin cherries on top would be a wonderful breakfast!

25. Cranberries

Cranberries are another small, red fruit that begins with C. Cranberries grow in very wet bogs. To harvest the small berries, they are knocked off the bush and floated in the water. They are then scooped out of the water and packaged.

Cranberries are quite tart. They are often used to make baked goods, like cranberry bread. Sweet desserts are the best use for these powerful tart berries.

26. Cashews

Cashews are often called nuts, but they are actually a fruit. The cashew grows at the end of a cashew apple, curving off of the bottom of the apple.

Cashews are low in sugar and rich in fiber. If you are looking for a plant-based protein, then you should definitely try cashew! Cashews are very high in protein and heart-healthy fats.

The mild flavor of cashews pairs well with other food and also tastes great eaten alone.

27. Celery

Celery is a member of the parsley family. Rather than eating the leaves, the stalks of the plant are used. Celery can be added to lots of different foods to give a nice crunch and salty flavor.

28. Chili Powder

Chili powders are hot spices that are added to a lot of different dishes. Chili peppers are dried, ground, and then used to season almost anything!

29. Clam Chowder

Clam chowder is a thick creamy soup made using fresh clams. There are many different types of clam chowder. Manhattan chowder is thinner and tomato-based. New England clam chowder is thick and creamy.

30. Calamari

Calamari is fried squid rings and tentacles. The word calamari stems from the Italian word “calamaro,” which means inkpot.

Hot calamari is traditionally served with a side of marinara sauce. It is a staple on most Italian food menus.

31. Cookies

Cookies must be included on our list of food that starts with C. They are one of the best desserts out there! Cookies are classic comfort food.

There are hundreds of different cookie recipes. From chocolate chip cookies to fruity raspberry cookies, there are cookies out there for everyone!

32. Carne Guisada

Carne guisada is a thick stew made with meat, rice, and beans. It is usually served with flour tortillas and sometimes contains other vegetables.

Carne guisada can be made spicy by adding extra cumin and other spices. It is a very filling dinner!

33. Canistel

The canistel fruits are native to Mexico and other tropical areas. They are small, creamy fruits that taste like the yolk of a hardboiled egg. Canistel is perfect for making cakes, pies, and even ice cream.

34. Cos Lettuce

Cos lettuce also goes by the name romaine. It is tall lettuce with darker green leaves. The outer leaves of the lettuce are used in salads but the inner leaves, also called the heart, are the most tender.

35. Confit

The term confit refers to any meat that is slowly cooked in its own fat. Duck confit is the most common dish. Confit is considered a delicacy as it can be tricky to perfect.

36. Clementine

Clementines are a deep reddish, orange citrus fruit. Clementines are very similar to mandarin oranges. They are often bred to have no seeds and to be easier to peel than an orange.

37. Candy

Candy refers to any small sugary food. There are hundreds of kinds of candy in all different flavors. From chocolate to fruity hard candies, it is safe to say that candy is an irresistible food beginning with C!

38. Carrots

Carrots are vegetables that grow underground. The long, skinny root can be orange, yellow, white, or even purple. Carrots can be eaten straight out of the ground or cooked in hundreds of recipes.

39. Congee

Congee is a classic Chinese breakfast dish. It is essentially rice porridge or gruel. Congee is eaten warm and often seasoned with onions, soy sauce, or beef stock.

40. Cereal

Cereal is a breakfast staple. Its typically made from grains and sweetened slightly with sugar or flavorings. Cereal is often eaten with cold milk. Grocery stores in the United States carry a few hundred varieties of cereal at all times.

Sweet and Savory Dishes Beginning with C

It’s incredible how many foods start with C. We hope that you discovered some new and exciting C foods. If you think of any other foods beginning with C that should be on our list, let us know!

Now, go give some of these great C foods a try! Enjoy.