Simple Cooking

This isn’t your average Caesar salad. Here, the chicken gets smothered in Caesar dressing then roasts until the garlic, anchovies, and mustard become deeply caramelized and flavorful.

This one-skillet dinner gets deep oniony flavor from lots of leeks cooked down to jammy tenderness.

Traditionally, enfrijoladas are made by dipping stale tortillas into leftover frijoles from the night before. They are also great topped with a fried egg, or with roasted vegetables instead of chorizo to make this a plant-based breakfast.

Use plátanos manzanos—a short, fat, and incredibly sweet plantain variety—if you can find them. When pan-fried, the outside caramelizes and forms a hard shell while the inside becomes soft and custardy (like crème brûlée!). Look for them in Latin and Caribbean supermarkets or in the tropical fruit section of large supermarkets.

These turmeric-spiced pumpkin falafels come together in a food processor, then roast in the oven to golden-brown perfection. A punchy carrot slaw keeps things bright.

Brush butternut squash with maple-chile oil before roasting, then top with a lemon-tahini dressing and herby quinoa.

This is a pretty standard all-shortening piecrust, like the one my dad used when I was a youngster. A shortening piecrust won’t have the delicate flavor of a butter crust, and the texture is typically more crumbly, less flaky. Still, this yields a delicious, tender crust that many bakers believe makes the best pies.

Paneer is a fresh farmhouse-style cheese that has a slightly tangy, subtly salty flavor with a texture similar to tofu. It’s a breeze to make at home using only three ingredients: milk, lemon juice, and salt. 

This turkey-based Sloppy Joe-inspired sauce uses carrots and deeply caramelized onions to add a bit of sweetness. Adding eggs and garlicky spinach turns it into a meal.

It takes the better part of an hour to coax an onion's sugars from blonde to nutty brown. Make a big batch of caramelized onions once and save them to pull out when you want all that complex flavor without having spent all that time.

In this ramen recipe, I use miso paste in two different ways, slathering it on the squash before it roasts and mixing it into the broth, where it amplifies both the sweet and savory character of the squash. The real game changer is blending some of the roasted squash into the broth, delivering velvety, rich body. You can use other types of squash or pumpkins for this dish, but because of its robust flesh, nutty flavor, and meaty mouthfeel, Japanese kabocha is my preferred choice; butternut squash is a worthy substitute.

This coconutty soup from Ramin Ganeshram is ideal for fall, when squash and pumpkin are readily available. Serve it with crusty bread or a hearty green salad for the perfect autumn lunch.

When grilled (or broiled) whole, eggplants get silky and smoky inside and charred on the exterior—perfect for mashing and mixing with sautéed onion, garlic, and fresh tomato.

This Trinidadian version of curried chicken is an earthy, rich stew of whole chicken pieces in an aromatic, vibrant broth, spiked with hot chile and a traditional herb paste.

Hot pepper is notably absent from this mixture—unlike curry powder from Madras. Trinidadians like to add fresh hot pepper to dishes, according to taste.

Quickly simmer shrimp in a stew of canned tomatoes, bell pepper, chicken broth, and cumin for an excellent and easy dinner.

Green seasoning is one of those herb mixtures that is unique to the Caribbean and differs slightly from island to island.

Pelau, rice cooked with meat and vegetables, really exemplifies Trinidadian cuisine because it is an admixture of various cooking styles. 

This sherry-Cynar Negroni riff was created by bartender Dan Greenbaum at The Beagle in New York City.

Creole cream cheese is Louisiana's answer to ricotta or burrata cheese. Traditionally, it’s eaten with cream, sugar, and fruit spooned over the top or used as a substitute for yogurt.