Onion

When I first heard about Ari Weinzweig's delicatessen in Ann Arbor, Michigan, I couldn't believe it. A deli in the home of my alma mater. It's not really a deli but more of an international food emporium like New York's Zabar's with a definite Jewish touch. Mr. Weinzweig, a drop-out Ph.D. candidate, has taken an academic and appetizing interest in updating Jewish recipes like mushroom and barley soup, going back in history to the nineteenth-century Eastern European version similar to that served at New York's Second Avenue Deli.

The first American Jewish recipe I found for fricassee, a kind of ragout — usually made with chicken, browned lightly with onions in fat and then simmered in the drippings — came from a section on Jewish recipes in Jennie June's American Cookery Book of 1866. Jennie June Croley was one of the first American newspaper women and founder of the Sorosis Club. In her only cookbook she included a chapter on Jewish "receipts," which probably came to her from her Jewish friend, Genie H. Rosenfeld. "These are all original and reliable, -- the contribution of a superior Jewish housekeeper in New York," she wrote. Mrs. Rosenfeld was the wife of the dramatist, Sydney Rosenfeld, who was also the first editor of Puck. This nineteenth-century recipe cooks well today. The slow sautéing of the onions along with the nutmeg, mace, and thyme enhances the taste of the chicken. Serve it with rice.

Crispy. Golden. Fluffy. Bubbe would approve.

In this mushroom bourguignon, a vegetarian take on a French classic, earthy fungi braise in a wine-rich umami broth with pearl onions and tender carrots.

Roasted squash loses its bland reputation and turns glossy and fragrant thanks to a gingery miso-glaze and a quick scallion oil.

Fully loaded, meal-prep friendly, and ready to be dressed up, down, or sideways.

Tingly, salty, and irresistibly crunchy, this salt-and-pepper shrimp with cubes of crispy polenta (yes, from those tubes!) is a weeknight MVP.

This saucy noodle recipe gets its crunch from fiery, garlicky toasted cashews.

This speedy dinner features a verdant take on chili crisp, with scallions, jalapeños, and roasted peanuts for crunch.

Upgrade any cookout—or keep the cooking on the stovetop—with these smashed cast-iron bison burgers, then stack with lemon mayo and a crisp cucumber-onion slaw.

Charred chicken breasts coated in a tangy dry rub sit atop a fresh salad of tomatoes, cucumber, and onions.

Scallion-infused oil, or pa gireum in Korean, is a fragrant way to upgrade a pot of rice.

Savory cashew chicken meets tender asparagus in this lightning-fast dinner.

Chicken pieces and meaty bits of torn mushrooms beautifully team up in this deeply savory, scallion-studded, easy-to-make stir-fry.

Chicken thighs cooked inside parchment packets alongside onions and oranges makes for a flavorful dinner that’s almost entirely hands off.

Think of these cabbage-wrapped beauties stuffed with a flavorful pork and shrimp filling as a hybrid between stuffed cabbage and dumplings.

Salty-sweet miso glazed carrots topped with a savory scallion gremolata makes the perfect Thanksgiving side dish.

Tons of caramelized onions, so much gooey cheese, and very few dirty dishes.

A fresh take on a Midwest staple, featuring homemade gravy and plenty of vegetables.

This plant-based twist on the classic Chinese chicken dish swaps in crisped crumbled tempeh and fresh fresno chiles.