Lamb

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

These flavors and aromas transport me to Marrakesh, where our friend Latif, son of the late imam of the great mosque there, guided us through the bustling and mysterious spice markets. Here's how I've recaptured the memory: a boned leg of lamb is stuffed with intensely flavored dried apricots, high in beta-carotene and potassium, then rubbed with aromatic cumin. Buy your cumin from a Middle Eastern market or spice store for the most flavorful results.

This hearty dish comes from Havesathe de Havixhorst in the Drenthe Province in De Wijk, the Netherlands.

Serve this flavorful chili with chopped green onion, cilantro and red bell pepper.

Active time: 1 1/2 hr Start to finish: 3 1/2 hr This recipe, which accompanied our 1954 article on Tunisia, called for what were then two very exotic ingredients. One, the granular pasta called couscous, is now commonplace in supermarkets across America. The other, dried rose petals, is available by mail order.

This hearty and satisfying main course, from Kokkari in San Francisco, was inspired by the flavors of Greece.

Koosa Claritas — pale green, slightly rounded zucchini — are traditionally used in this dish, but we find that yellow zucchini make for a more attractive presentation because they don't discolor when cooked in tomato sauce.

"Recently I had dinner at the Bacchus restaurant in Vancouver's Wedgewood Hotel," says Gail Sussman of Los Angeles, CA. "It seems safe to say that the Greek god himself would have appreciated the delicious rack of lamb. I'd be so grateful if you could obtain the chef's recipe."

Serve this pilaf-like dish with mango chutney and cold yogurt.

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less but requires additional sitting time. Butterflied leg of lamb can sometimes get a little unwieldy. To secure loose flaps of meat, run 2 long metal skewers lengthwise and 2 skewers crosswise through the lamb, bunching the meat together. Securing the lamb this way will also help it cook more evenly.

Manti The lamb will be easier to cut if it has been well chilled. Adding the salt to the filling just before forming the manti prevents the meat from curing.

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Mensaf This recipe, adapted from Kathy Sullivan and Janine El Tal, international educators and longtime residents of Jordan, is a scaled-down version of that country's national dish, which is usually served in large quantities at important gatherings. Mensaf is eaten standing up, using the right hand to form a little ball of rice and meat. Traditionally, jameed, a ball of reconstituted sun-dried yogurt, is used to make the sauce, but it is replaced here by regular plain yogurt that has been stabilized (with egg white and cornstarch) for cooking. Buy the richest, tangiest yogurt you can find. Active time: 55 min Start to finish: 3 1/2 hr

Although lamb is not commonly found in Chinese dishes, Hong Kong restaurants reach out to explore every nuance of Asian cuisine. Lamb is popular with the nomads of Mongolia and Manchuria; they would most likely cook the meat in a firepot. Here it's used in a more delicate stir-fry.

Raita is a fresh yogurt sauce that typically accompanies curries and other Indian dishes. This raita also acts as a marinade.