The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 5 plus 4 letter word TABLE SALT
I've seen this crossword clue in The Guardian
T
A
B
L
E
S
A
L
T
More clues leading to the result TABLE SALT
- Sort of tall beast that’s kept in cellar?
- Condiment Bill allowed, Sarah briefly admitted
- Formally present sailor as one on board that’s seasoned?
- State backing included in new lab test to produce food additive
- Present for discussion on second key food additive
- Proposes key food additive
- It adds zest to meals for sailor on board
- Food seasoning at intervals usually going into flattish cake
- Sal breaks pill to provide condiment
- Bill left on slate possibly for seasoning
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "It adds zest to meals" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case it adds zest to meals = table salt.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.