Recipes
53 recipes — page 1 of 3
Vegetarian Mapo Tofu
Silken tofu simmered in a fiery doubanjiang sauce with finely chopped shiitakes standing in for pork, finished with ground Sichuan peppercorn for its numbing tingle. Ready in under half an hour.
Tomato Rasam
A thin South Indian broth of tamarind and tomato seasoned with black pepper and cumin, finished with a hot tempering of mustard seed and curry leaf. Sip it from a cup or spoon it over rice.
Tom Yum Goong
A clear Thai hot-and-sour shrimp soup built on lemongrass, galangal, and lime leaf, sharpened with lime juice and fish sauce and rounded out with roasted chile paste.
Thai Basil Chicken Stir-Fry
Minced chicken stir-fried hard with garlic and bird chiles, seasoned with fish sauce and oyster sauce, then finished with a heap of holy basil that wilts into the pan. Twenty minutes start to finish.
Tamagoyaki Rolled Omelette
Seasoned egg cooked in thin layers and rolled onto itself into a striped, faintly sweet log. Sliced crosswise, it works for breakfast or a lunchbox.
Sunomono Cucumber Salad
Paper-thin cucumber salted and wrung dry, then dressed in sweetened rice vinegar. The squeeze is what makes it: the slices stay crisp instead of turning watery in the bowl.
Sundubu Jjigae Soft Tofu Stew
Silken tofu spooned into a kelp and shiitake broth built on a quick gochugaru chile oil, with onion and scallion. It arrives at the table still bubbling and comes together in under half an hour.
Stovetop Kettle Corn
Popcorn popped in oil with sugar stirred in at the moment the kernels go, so it caramelizes into a thin sweet-salty shell instead of scorching in the pot.
Spaghetti alla Carbonara
Spaghetti tossed off the heat with rendered guanciale, egg yolks, and Pecorino Romano until the sauce turns glossy. No cream: the emulsion comes from pasta water and constant tossing.
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.
Sinangag Garlic Fried Rice
Filipino breakfast fried rice built on day-old grains and a lot of garlic, half of it fried crisp for the top. Salty, toasty, and dry enough that every grain stays separate.
Shakshuka
Eggs poached directly in a thick, cumin-and-paprika spiced tomato and pepper sauce. Everything happens in one skillet, and the dish goes to the table in the pan.
Sambal Oelek
The plain Indonesian chile paste: fresh red chiles ground coarse with salt, sharpened with a little vinegar. No garlic, no shallot, just heat and fruit.
Salsa Verde
Tomatillos, serranos, onion and garlic charred over live fire until blistered, then blended coarse with cilantro. Tart, smoky and loose enough to spoon over tacos.
Salmon Teriyaki Donburi
Salmon fillets seared skin side down, then glazed in a reducing soy, mirin, and sake sauce and set over hot rice. The pan glaze doubles as the sauce for the bowl.
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.
Pimento Cheese Dip
The Southern spread: sharp cheddar grated by hand so it stays in strands, bound with mayonnaise and pimentos and seasoned with mustard and cayenne. Ready in the time it takes to grate the cheese.
Peruvian Ceviche
Cubes of firm white fish tossed with fresh lime juice, red onion, chile, and cilantro, served with boiled sweet potato and corn. The lime does its work in minutes, not hours.
Panzanella
Day-old country bread torn into ripe tomatoes and their salted juices, with red onion softened in vinegar and torn basil. The bread should end up soft in places and chewy in others.
Pajeon Scallion Pancake
A Korean scallion pancake built on whole lengths of scallion in a thin flour-and-cornstarch batter, fried until the edges shatter, with a sharp soy and vinegar dipping sauce.
Overnight Oats with Berries
Rolled oats and chia seeds soaked cold in almond milk until they thicken to a soft pudding, then topped with fresh berries. Ten minutes of work the night before, no cooking.
Orange and Olive Salad
A Moroccan first-course salad of cold orange rounds with salty oil-cured olives and sharp raw onion, dressed with cumin and cinnamon. It comes together in one bowl and no heat.
Onigiri Rice Balls
Hand-formed triangles of salted short-grain rice with a pickled plum center and a strip of nori. They hold at room temperature for hours, which makes them a practical packed lunch.