Vegetable

This scalloped potatoes recipe is a classic from Gourmet, simply made with softened onions, an easy roux, and thinly sliced potatoes.

In this recipe, beets are cooked in two separate batches: One batch is used to make “beet water,” a kind of rich beet stock, and the other batch is cooked and grated. This two-step process gives the borscht its distinct taste and depth of flavor.

Fish and chips, when done well, is a cornerstone of British culinary success. It can be wrapped in old newspaper and eaten at the beach with a wooden fork with the same fervor and joy as a finely dined fish and chips served on white china with an expensive bottle of Chablis next to it. That comforting combination of carb and fish protein can be seen in many other cultures too. (Fish tacos, anyone?) So why wouldn’t Ghana have its own version?

Here is my super bougie restyling of an everyday Ghanaian hot chile condiment. My bet is that once you’ve made it, you’ll be shouting at your West African friends because no one told you about it before. Until now, you thought XO sauce solved everything. Until now, you thought sambal belacan was the only smoked fish dip the world needed. But now, you’ve realized: I Shito, therefore I am. This recipe is luxurious, it is decadent, it is rich and textured for lavish enjoyment. Right here is where hot pepper sauce dreams comes true.

This summer soup is deeply savory, with anchovies, bacon, and a brown butter–tomato sauce anchoring the whole thing. 

Tomato brown butter is the deeply savory—and slightly sweet—result of swirling fresh, raw tomato purée into fragrant brown butter. Drizzle it over roasted vegetables, grilled fish, or grain bowls.

When I was growing up, my mother served a lot of canned vegetables, but the one thing she always made from scratch was acorn squash, which she roasted with butter and maple syrup. When I revisited her old method, I found it was just as good as I remembered. The sweet squash filled with a big puddle of melted butter and sweet syrup is so irresistible!

Turmeric, chiles, and chewy-nutty cooked grains balance the sweetness of fresh corn in this loose vegan riff on creamed corn.

This savory pie calls for roasting tomatoes to concentrate their flavor, then layering them with two kinds of cheese atop a garlic-butter crust for a result as dramatic as it is delicious.

This dish of seared paneer channels flavors traditionally found in matar paneer—coriander, cumin, chile, and ginger—by incorporating them into a quick-cooking cherry tomato sauce.

This reimagined chicken salad is lighter and leafier than your standard picnic lunch. Tender poached chicken, crisp greens, cukes, and scallions get tossed with a sesame dressing that takes its cues form gomae, a Japanese spinach salad.

This super-flavorful dish spins the flavors of shish barak—lamb and pine nut dumplings from the Levant—in a pasta direction.

This dish is inspired by a classic Cantonese preparation, which is traditionally battered and deep-fried. Here, the fish is pan-seared in hot oil, but still gets plenty of texture and flavor from ginger, caramelized scallions, and lots of freshly ground black pepper.

Fresh salmon makes these ginger and scallion-laced burgers luscious and flavorful. Pile them high with peppery watercress, crunchy cucumber quick pickles, fragrant mint, and cilantro.

Pork tacos al pastor may get the fame, but this fish al pastor deserves plenty of glory. A potent chile marinade adds lots of flavor before the fillets hit the grill, and a pineapple salsa is the perfect finishing touch.

These crispy zucchini fritters take inspiration from the Bengali onion snack piyaju. Soaked and blended red lentils make up the batter, which is spiked with turmeric and chile powder.