Simple Cooking

Serve this spicy pepper jelly with fresh cornbread muffins.

Cooked in dashi with soy sauce, sugar, and sesame oil, these sweet-and-savory black beans are often served as a side dish in Korean households as an accompaniment to spicy stews.

The literal translation of the name of this drink is “the Virgin’s tears,” as the red color of the beets resembles tears of blood said to have been shed by the Virgin Mary. This beverage originated in the state of Guanajuato, maybe as long ago as the end of the sixteenth century. I found a few different variations, but this one seemed to be the most common, and it’s quite special. Although this beverage is customarily prepared during Lent for the festivities of Friday of Sorrows (the Friday before Good Friday), it’s a wonderful drink during fall, when beets and apples abound. This recipe makes a large batch to share at your next gathering.

Aguas frescas, water-based fruit drinks, are a cool way to make your fresh fruit go further—especially in the summertime when you might have a larger watermelon than you know what to do with, or peaches that are starting to shrivel.

This versatile condiment brings a balanced mix of sweet, salty, acidic, and herbaceous flavors that complement virtually any pizza. If it’s not pizza night but you’ve got leftovers, drizzle this over roasted vegetables, cooked chicken, or a crispy-skinned piece of fish.

This method is endlessly adaptable: Swap the black bass for salmon; use spinach instead of cabbage. Don’t like mushrooms? Skip ’em!

Poaching boneless, skinless chicken breasts in well-salted water yields juicy, flavorful meat that won’t dry out. Crunchy veggies and a punchy Dijon vinaigrette make this hearty salad complete.

Here’s a Sichuan-inspired stir-fry of snappy, blistered asparagus and crispy pork. Can’t find asparagus? Green beans or snap peas work just as well. (One thing that’s non-negotiable: a side of chile crisp.)

A slight twist on scallion noodles: the same savory, lip-smacking flavor but now with a lot of texture from the crunchy, spicy garlic topping.

The combination of garlic and ramps may seem like overkill, but we promise it’s not. The garlic will mellow as it cooks while the ramps stay pungent.

This buttery roast chicken gets rubbed with green garlic and cooked low and slow in the oven for juicy, shreddable meat underneath crispy, crackly skin.

These pancakes get their light texture from a batter made with club soda. Pressing hard on them when frying makes them crisp.

Sour cream isn’t just a gimmick. Used in place of the more typical cream or buttermilk, it adds a rich, tangy flavor, and its acidity helps make the biscuits incredibly tender.

If you want to bake these cookies now and don’t have buckwheat flour on hand, whole wheat flour is an acceptable substitute. Your cookies won’t have the same depth of flavor, but they will still be delicious.

Agua de limón, or Key lime water, is probably the most common agua fresca. This recipe is a fun spin on the traditional, using lemons instead of Key limes and adding avocado to acknowledge the very classic combination of citrus and avocado, but out of their normal context. 

These fluffy buttermilk rolls are filled with a cinnamon-scented date purée to capture all that sticky bun glory without being overly sweet.

Sweet rice flour makes this super-adaptable cake gooey-bouncy on the inside and crispy-chewy on the outside. Even better, this particular recipe can go in any flavor direction you want: Add cocoa, matcha, or malt powder; throw in some cinnamon, cardamom, or turmeric.

We strongly endorse eating this dish with your hands, discarding shrimp tails and pepper stems as you go. Soy sauce, lime, and plenty of grated garlic create a marinade that adds tons of flavor in as little as five minutes while helping the shredded coconut adhere to the shrimp.

Letting the dough do its first rise in the fridge overnight means improved flavor and ease of handling, but if you don’t feel like waiting that long, leave it out at room temperature until doubled in size—three to four hours.