Confort

This classic Shanghainese dish, adapted from “My Shanghai: Recipes and Stories from a City on the Water” by Betty Liu (Harper, 2021), features pork belly braised in light and dark soy sauces, Shaoxing wine and rock sugar until it’s deeply flavored, caramelized and glossy, a popular method called “red cooking.” There are endless variations of this dish throughout Shanghai: Some include hard-boiled eggs, tofu knots or salted yellow croaker fish.

Like magic, a faster path to Jamaican curry chicken appears with the presence of a pressure cooker and the absence of chicken bones. Boneless, skinless chicken thighs and potatoes tenderize quickly in a sweat of onion, garlic and ginger.

During Chinese New Year, long noodles are eaten in all corners of China “Longevity noodles,” also presented at birthday celebrations, are never cut or broken by the cook, and if they can be eaten without biting through the strands, it’s considered even more auspicious Longevity noodles are usually stir fried, presenting challenges to the home cook

Easy but exciting, this five-ingredient pasta dish is spiked with spicy gochujang, a Korean red chile paste that provides heat and complexity Chopping the shrimp into bite-size pieces before cooking ensures that they will distribute more evenly in the finished dish, leaving you with perfect bite after perfect bite Once that’s done, sear the chopped shrimp in olive oil, set them aside, then toss in scallions, halved cherry tomatoes, gochujang and a splash of pasta water for a supereasy pan sauce

This recipe came to The Times in a 2006 magazine article about the 75th anniversary edition of The Joy of Cooking, the soup-to-nuts cookbook found on practically every home cook's shelf since its first publication in 1931 Like many of the book's beloved recipes, this dish is a crowd-pleasing, homespun classic that is incredibly simple to put together First, make a quick chili of beef, black beans, corn, green pepper and onion seasoned with chile power and cumin

There is no high drama about simmering a stew However fine, stew is a homey, intimate exchange, a paean to the way living things improve when their boundaries relax, when they incorporate some of the character and flavor of others Soulful, a word inextricably linked with a good sturdy stew, is the payoff to the cook who plans a little and has the patience to abide.

Hungarian goulash, a stew of paprika-spiced braised meat and vegetables, likely arrived in the United States with a wave of immigrants in the late 1800s The dish began a game of telephone, slowly evolving into something new entirely While American-style goulash may not bear much resemblance to its Hungarian namesake, the hearty one-pot dish has endured as an easy and comforting family weeknight dinner

With minimal prep and a quick cook time, this shrimp stew feels elegant for such an easy weeknight meal You can also take the dish in a number of directions: Substitute the shrimp with an equal amount of flaky white fish or even seared scallops, or stretch the dish into a meal for six by stirring in some butter and serving over cooked spaghetti or rigatoni A good glug of your best olive oil would also be welcome.

For the fastest path to deliciousness, select ingredients that punch above their weight This weeknight recipe leans on just five primary ingredients — ground chicken, lettuce and rice form the foundation; kimchi adds depth and hoisin lends sweetness — for a fresh spread that cooks in just 15 minutes Bracing and assertive, kimchi doesn’t slip into this dish; it dominates

Like coq au vin, its sister dish from the Burgundy region of France, beef Bourguignon is a stew of meat slowly simmered in hearty red wine along with pearl onions, mushrooms and crisp, cubed bacon Use a good wine here, something simple but drinkable It makes all the difference in the finished dish

Humble green cabbage wedges are roasted to charred perfection and made dinner party-worthy with a drizzle of tamarind and a crunchy, Indian-inspired peanut-sesame topping. Roasting cabbage at a relatively low temperature followed by a shorter burst of high heat allows even the toughest parts of the cabbage to turn melt-in-your-mouth tender while delivering deeply browned, crisp outer leaves and gloriously charred bits.

I think of this recipe, adapted from my book “Big Vegan Flavor” (Avery Books, 2024), as a spin on a North Indian chana masala with the addition of spinach and coconut milk and a South Indian-style tadka to finish. Tadka, perhaps my favorite and most used flavor-infusion technique from Indian cooking, is the process of blooming spices (and sometimes aromatics) in a fat, such as oil.

Gochujang, a Korean fermented chile paste, enlivens a straightforward dinner of roast chicken and vegetables with a salty, spicy and umami-rich layer of flavor Freshly grated ginger, sliced scallions and quick-pickled radishes elevate the flavor even further This recipe calls for a wintry mix of squash and turnips, but equal amounts of root vegetables like carrots, potatoes and beets, or lighter vegetables like cauliflower, brussels sprouts or broccoli will work well too.

Whether or not you’ve fallen for this cheesy white-bean tomato bake, we’d like you to meet its bolder counterpart, smoky and spiced, with lots of melty cheese Black beans shine in a deep-red mixture of fried garlic, caramelized tomato paste, smoked paprika and cumin The whole skillet gets coated in a generous sprinkling of sharp Cheddar or Manchego cheese, then baked until melted

Also known as McBitty's Bean Burgers, these veggie burgers from Mark Bittman are loaded with black beans, porcini mushrooms, garlic, smoked paprika (or chili powder) and soy sauce, for a satisfying patty you can serve with all the usual burger fixings.

A sweet, soft mix of cabbage and leeks forms the base of this homey one-pot dish Using vegetable broth instead of water as the liquid in the pot deepens the flavor, which is rounded out with salty, nutty Gruyère cheese and sour cream, and finished with smoked paprika and dill (or another fresh herb) You can use any short pasta here, just keep an eye on it so it doesn’t overcook; it should be just tender without being mushy.

There’s really no reason not to celebrate meatloaf — it’s simple, budget-friendly, cleanup is a breeze and there are almost always leftovers for next-day sandwiches While beef is often the go-to choice for the meat, turkey is a flavorful alternative that can take on a slew of mix-ins Here, seasoned bread crumbs, garlic powder and Worcestershire do the work, but a teaspoon of Italian seasoning or a palmful of fresh, chopped thyme or sage can be added for an extra boost

Simple yet surprising, this pantry risotto is a study in contrasts: Luscious, creamy risotto is topped with caramelized carrots that are roasted with spicy chile crisp while you make the rice The risotto base — a classic approach using shallots, garlic and white wine — is the foundation for a cheap though lush meal that can be cobbled together with pantry ingredients This one is subtly sweetened with freshly grated carrots, then topped with a pile of smoky roasted carrots

The Dark ’n’ Stormy is a festive and fiery cocktail made with spicy ginger beer, warm dark rum and a refreshing hint of lime — a welcome wake-up call for your taste buds This cookie recipe is no different Cayenne joins the classic spice mix of ginger, cloves and cinnamon, and candied ginger, infused with dark rum, is mixed in, adding chewiness and sweetness

The dark ’n’ stormy has become a cult highball due to a felicitous combination of its no-fault simplicity and the balance of its headstrong ingredients, each of which is perfectly suited to the common goal: reviving the flagging, heat-pummeled constitution It is simply dark rum — very dark rum — with ginger beer and some fresh lime The rich spirit is shaken awake by the buoyant piquancy of the ginger beer, while the lime slashes through the sweetness of both

Streamlining preparations for this celebration makes gathering in community even more meaningful.

A korma can be made with any combination of meats and vegetables, braised or stewed In the Indian coastal state of Kerala, where coconuts are abundant, vegetable korma is made with desiccated fresh coconut and coconut milk This quick, convenient version uses the same foundation — onion, tomatoes, ginger and garlic — while skipping the fresh coconut

A snack prized for their crunch and salt factor, chicharrones commonly involve fried pork skin You’ll find versions across Spain and Latin America where they might be crisped by methods that include deep-frying, baking or boiling This recipe uses long, 1-inch-wide pork belly strips that include the skin, fat and belly

Atole is often thought of as a sweet, drinkable corn-based beverage, but in parts of Mexico, it also refers to this hearty, savory porridge made with masa harina and hominy This version, inspired by the traditional atole de grano, is thick, creamy and deeply comforting — perfect for showcasing the variety of textures and flavors that different forms of corn can bring Here, sweet corn kernels and chewy hominy add dimension to the velvety base, while a topping of roasted chicken and caramelized poblanos brings savory depth

Soft and perfectly chewy, here is our best recipe for sugar cookies.

In this rendition of a slow-cooker classic, chicken thighs are transformed into a zesty, pull-apart tender dinner, with plenty of herby, buttery sauce As the sibling to Mississippi pot roast, this dish has many of that beloved recipe’s staple ingredients, like pepperoncini and butter, but here, instead of packaged ranch seasoning and au jus powder, soy sauce and a blend of fresh herbs and seasonings are used Mashed potatoes, rice and greens are great sides that would hold up well to the tangy gravy, or serve with some peas for a bit of sweetness

Somehow, there is always leftover cranberry sauce after all of the other Thanksgiving leftovers have disappeared The classic grilled cheese sandwich comes to the rescue, welcoming any cranberry sauce you have on hand into its warm, melty embrace A meat-free alternative to the traditional Thanksgiving leftover sandwich, this cranberry sauce grilled cheese thrives with mild or sharp Cheddar, though any cheese is welcomed here

Canned pumpkin purée and coconut milk, heavily seasoned with curry spices and lots of fresh lime juice, make a sweet-sharp sauce for chickpeas It’s a rich, creamy curry that you can eat on its own, or serve over rice or couscous If you want to incorporate more vegetables, stir in some spinach, baby kale or sliced green beans during the last few minutes of cooking, letting them soften in the sauce.

Coconut milk and Thai red curry paste turn up the heat, but brown sugar and butter are part of the mix too in this side dish — an amazing combination of flavors It would be a fine addition to any table from Thanksgiving through May.

A specialty from Sichuan, a province in the southwest of China, vendors once balanced baskets of noodles and sauce on their shoulder poles and cried out “dan dan mian!” to hawk their wares Dan dan refers to those bamboo shoulder poles and mian means noodles, but there’s no one way to prepare them Nowadays in the Western diaspora, the dish is associated with a few essentials, namely chile oil and sesame paste, but another is worth adding: preserved vegetables