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This no-cook quickie dinner is less than 18 percent fat. Dig in!

Ji Geung Lo Mein Editor's note: This recipe is reprinted from My Grandmother's Chinese Kitchen: 100 Family Recipes and Life Lessons, by Eileen Yin-Fei Lo. At the New Year, noodles represent longevity. Because of this they were never cut when preparing them, and to serve them was to wish those who ate them a long life. In Sah Gau there were many varieties and shapes of noodles, and for vegetarians there were noodles made without eggs. These are what were served to the nuns, along with that special food that came usually with the onset of the New Year, young ginger, more subtle, less hot than the customary kind. These days this young, often pinkish gingerroot is available year-round. This dish illustrates what a "lo mein" is — that is, a dish tossed together, not precisely stir-fried.

Geung Chung Jing Hin Editor's note: This recipe is reprinted from My Grandmother's Chinese Kitchen: 100 Family Recipes and Life Lessons, by Eileen Yin-Fei Lo. Clams are the fruit of the sea that represent prosperity and are, to be sure, permissible to be eaten by observant Buddhists, including nuns.

Start making the dough one day in advance; it needs to be refrigerated overnight.

Carbonnade is a Belgian beef stew flavored with beer, onions, and brown sugar. We’ve substituted inexpensive chicken thighs. Serve over egg noodles.

Packed with veggies and two kinds of cheese, this dish is hearty and surprisingly luxurious.

Here, chorizo replaces the usual steak or chicken.

This recipe originally accompanied Curried Lamb Samosas with Apricot Chutney .

This recipe originally accompanied Jalapeño Popper Fritters with Tomato Salsa .

Test kitchen director Ruth Cousineau, who developed these recipes, says, "For a big dinner, you must include soup. Just don’t make it heavy." Here, she's created a chicken broth infused with the aroma of ginger and cardamom. Petite savory flans, studded with tender chives, lend a light creaminess to each mouthful.

Every family has its own (ahem, best) version of these savory potato pancakes. We’re offering you a classic formula, though not everyone drains the potato mixture before frying—we find this prevents the latkes from absorbing too much oil and allows them to crisp into golden disks. Maybe this will become the new family favorite.

This homey soup—a piquant start to a satisfying Mexican-style dinner of tacos or enchiladas, or a main dish when paired with a grilled cheese sandwich and a salad—gets its fire from a chopped jalapeño.

Applesauce goes global in a chutney spiced with ginger and red-pepper flakes. Tart Granny Smiths and sweet Galas are cut into chunks, giving this topping a firm bite. Fabulous over potato latkes, it’s also delicious with zucchini latkes .