This is Paula Wolfert's original recipe from her 1973 book "Couscous and Other Good Food From Morocco," but I leave out the warm spices like cinnamon and cardamom so that the flavors are adaptable. The...
Colombian food is typically not spicy on its own. Instead, a hot sauce called ají - also the Colombian word for chiles - is served tableside. There are as many types of ají as there are regions in Colombia,...
A few tablespoons of this mustard may be whisked into homemade mayonnaise and served with anything poached. It also is a tasty addition to a vinaigrette dressing.
At once musky and sweet, with a pronounced kick, five spice is traditionally made from equal parts cinnamon, cloves, fennel seeds, star anise and peppercorns (usually Sichuan or white). This one, adapted...
Years ago, David Chang of Momofuku showed me how to create a fantastic compound butter with miso. Use it melted on fish, chicken or steak (lots of umami); on asparagus, broccoli or carrots; or drizzled...
Ellen Greenblatt, a friend who lives in Berkeley, Calif., shared this recipe with me. Toss a green salad with this dressing, and no additional herbs will be necessary. It is perfect for chicken salad or...
Preparing tamarind paste is quite simple, and homemade paste has the added advantage of keeping for several months in the refrigerator, the result of its high acid content. Tamarind fruit comes in two...
Classic bordelaise sauce, which can transform shoe leather into strip steak, is made with veal stock, demi-glace and time -- a lot of time. Here, though, you'll use pan drippings from pork chops, simmering...
Sofrito - a blend of garlic, onions, peppers and recao (culantro) - is the backbone of Puerto Rican flavor. Also referred to as recaito, it's typically sautéed in oil as the foundation for sauces, braises,...
Tomatillos, which are closer botanically to the gooseberry than to the tomato, have a wonderful acidic tang. To get the best out of them they should be simmered or grilled for about 10 minutes, until they're...
Ssamjang, meaning "sauce for wraps" in Korean, has a wonderful combination of sweet, spicy and salty elements. It's like American barbecue sauce, which makes sense, as it's often used with grilled Korean...
This is a 13th-century haroseth recipe from Provence, using the Mediterranean fruits and nuts that are still available in the region. Back then, Jewish families would have saved chestnuts from the fall...
A rub is a dry spice or spice and herb mixture used to coat the meat before grilling, adding not only strong flavor but a bit more crunch, especially if you toast, mix and grind the spices yourself.
Here is a surprising, and quick, way to use up the green tomatoes that you couldn't resist at the farmers' market. Tangier, more complex and looser than most marmalades, this one offers candied slivers...
Here is the foundation recipe for easy, fast jam. Take a pound of your favorite fruit, a quarter-cup of sugar, some seasonings and a few other ingredients, and cook until thick. That's it. Store it in...
In Arabic, the term "baharat" simply means "spices" and can refer to any number of different blends, each tailored to a specific dish or ingredients. This all-purpose blend, adapted from Freda Nokaly and...
Homemade mustard is better than its supermarket counterpart, and it's stupendously easy to make. Here, the combination of yellow and brown seeds makes for a medium-aggressive kick, but you could use all...
The liquid and cherries glow Kool-Aid red, but they are seductively crisp-textured and steeped with an exotic, piney, floral flavor that is just sweet enough but balanced by a tart tang. Sublime in a manhattan,...
This easy compound butter brings the brawny flavors of Worcestershire sauce, thyme and garlic to just about anything. Use it on steak, chicken, grilled corn on the cob or French bread - whatever you think...
This spicy oil with an African name is popular throughout Provence. It's usually on the table in pizzerias for drizzling, but it's also terrific drizzled over vegetables, grilled meats or fish, grains...
Pickling is an essential skill for preserving the bounty that comes from the agrarian South. Here, two sons of the South - the cookbook authors Matt and Ted Lee - use the traditional boiling-pot method...
This easy-to-make cumin-flavored salt is traditionally served with Moroccan roast lamb, but it's good on just about everything, even fried eggs. It tastes best freshly made, but will keep for about a month...
This fragrant baking blend splits the difference between pumpkin pie spice and apple pie spice, adding a bit of white pepper for some gentle heat, and cardamom for its deep, bright perfume. You can use...
This recipe is adapted from one by Sir Kensington's, the condiment company in New York that uses chickpea liquid, or aquafaba, to make its vegan mayonnaise. Vegans have embraced the liquid, which whips...
The name "duck sauce" was created in the United States because this sauce was originally served with deep-fried pressed duck, which had no sauce of its own. Duck sauce became popular as a dip for any food...