Sides
18 recipes
Southern Braised Collard Greens
Collards braised low and slow with a smoked ham hock, onion and red pepper flakes until the leaves go soft and the pot likker turns rich. Cider vinegar goes in at the end to cut the fat.
Som Tam Green Papaya Salad
Shredded unripe papaya pounded in a mortar with garlic, chile, palm sugar, lime and fish sauce, plus long beans and tomato. Sour, salty, sweet and hot, bruised rather than tossed.
Smashed Cucumber Salad
Cucumbers bruised open with the flat of a knife so their ragged edges hold a dressing of Chinkiang black vinegar, soy sauce, garlic and toasted sesame oil. Salting first keeps it from going watery.
Roasted Broccolini with Chile and Lemon
Broccolini roasted on a preheated sheet pan until the stems are tender and the leafy tips char, then finished off the heat with chile flake and lemon zest and juice.
Patatas Bravas
Potato cubes parboiled then fried until the shells crackle, served under a smoky sauce of sweet and hot pimenton, tomato and sherry vinegar. The sauce is thickened by reduction, not flour.
Moroccan Carrot Salad with Cumin
Carrot coins simmered just tender, then marinated while still warm in cumin, paprika, garlic, lemon and olive oil so the dressing soaks in rather than sitting on top.
Jeera Aloo Cumin Potatoes
Boiled potato cubes tossed in cumin seeds bloomed in hot oil with turmeric and green chile, pan-fried until the edges crisp and finished with amchur and lemon. Dry-textured, meant to go alongside dal and roti.
Greek Lemon Roasted Potatoes
Potato wedges braised in the oven in lemon juice, olive oil, garlic and oregano, then roasted uncovered until the liquid reduces to a syrupy glaze and the edges brown.
Gratin Dauphinois
Thinly sliced potatoes simmered in garlic-scented cream and milk, then baked slowly until the top browns and the center sets into sliceable layers. No cheese, no flour, just potato starch doing the thickening.
Goma-ae Sesame Spinach
Blanched spinach squeezed dry and dressed with toasted sesame seeds ground to a coarse paste with soy sauce, sugar and mirin. Nutty and lightly sweet, served at room temperature in small portions.
Garlic Butter Smashed Potatoes
Baby potatoes boiled until tender, flattened on a sheet pan and roasted hard so the torn edges shatter, then finished with garlic butter and parsley. The dry-out step after draining is what makes them crisp.
Fried Sweet Plantains
Blackened-ripe plantains cut on a long bias and shallow-fried until the sugars caramelize into dark lacy edges around a custardy center. Salt and cayenne go on while they are still hot.
Ethiopian Gomen Collard Greens
Collard greens stewed down with onion, garlic, ginger and green chile until silky and barely wet, warmed with a little cardamom. Cooked in oil rather than spiced butter, so it stays vegan.
Esquites Mexican Corn Salad
Corn grilled until blistered, cut off the cob and tossed warm with lime, chile, cilantro and crumbled cotija bound in a little mayonnaise. The char is the whole point, so let the kernels blacken in patches.
Creamed Spinach
Chopped spinach folded into a nutmeg-scented bechamel and cooked down until it holds its shape on a spoon. Squeezing the spinach dry is what keeps it thick instead of soupy.
Causa Limena Potato Terrine
Riced yellow potato worked with aji amarillo paste, lime and oil into a smooth putty, layered cold around sliced avocado and pressed in a loaf pan so it cuts into clean slices.
Caribbean Rice and Peas
Long-grain rice steamed in coconut milk with kidney beans, thyme, scallion and allspice. A whole Scotch bonnet rides on top for perfume, left unpierced so its heat stays out of the pot.
Atchara Pickled Green Papaya
Shredded green papaya drawn down with salt, then packed with ginger, carrot and garlic in a cold sweet-sour cane vinegar brine. A refrigerator pickle meant to cut through fried and grilled food.