What Is Chana Masala? Chana masala originated from the northern parts of India where it’s a staple dish. But it has gained popularity in the past few years because it’s vegan, rich in protein, and simple to make. Chana masala can also be called chole masala, referring to the kind of garam used in the dish. So if someday you see chole masala on a menu, then rest assured that it is your beloved chana masala....
Cheese tacos are our stand-by what-do-you-make-when-you-haven’t-really-thought-about-it-in-advance lunch. There’s always a stack of corn tortillas in the fridge. There’s almost always cheddar or jack cheese. I’ve noticed that most of my friends regularly make a quick sandwich for lunch. Maybe once a month I’ll make a sandwich. Three times a week I’ll make cheese tacos. (What? You don’t have a stack of tortillas in your fridge?) You Can Put Anything in a Tortilla and Call It a Taco Usually cheese tacos just have cheese in them....
Milanese – a crusty crumb coating on chicken cutlets – is one of the simplest Italian preparations and it wows guests every time. The term Milanese, from Milan, originally applied to veal, which has fallen out of popularity and few markets in this country carry now. These days, the dish typically features boneless skinless chicken breasts, pounded to an even thickness. Pounding & Tenderizing Chicken Breast Besides tenderizing the chicken and helping it cook more quickly and evenly, pounding lessens the shrinkage....
While other Americans are happily firing away during the hot summer, filling up their neighborhoods with juicy aromas, we would tend to stay inside and think of what we could make for dinner that didn’t use the stove or oven. The problem is that Sacramento summers start early and go on forever, and cold food just gets tiring after a month or two. Which is why I brought home a grill a few weeks ago....
There were two major influences on this chewy chocolate chip cookie recipe: the Nestle Toll House back-of-the-package recipe (which I think we can all agree is pretty much The Standard as far as chocolate chip cookies go) and a recipe from Christina Tosi’s cookbook Milk Bar Life. It’s thanks to Christina’s chocolate chip cookie recipe that I discovered the wonders of this one special ingredient that makes all the difference....
This Chocolate Sour Cream Cake is tender, soft, and rich with chocolate flavor! The Secret Ingredient The secret ingredient is coffee! Coffee is to chocolate what vanilla is to custard. It provides richness and depth, intensifying the best qualities of chocolate without overpowering it. If you don’t like coffee don’t worry. You can’t detect the taste of coffee in this cake–only chocolate. And if you don’t do caffeine don’t worry....
How To Make the Salad Dressing I experimented with few different dressings and ultimately settled on this one, which I think is just the right balance of soy sauce, rice vinegar (or rice wine vinegar; they’re the same), ginger, garlic, and sesame oil. Whisk everything together, taste and adjust the seasonings to your liking, then toss with the salad. The dressing stored on its own will also keep for at least a week or longer....
Unknown Origins, Delicious Bite For centuries, Koreans have rolled bap (“rice” in Korean) and banchan (Korean side dishes) in gim (“dried seaweed” in Korean and sometimes spelled kim). What goes inside the roll has always varied. It’s the most colorful and delicious bite of food. Is this the origin of kimbap? Or perhaps it evolve during the Japanese occupation of Korea in the first half of the 1900s, eventually becoming the version here, often considered the classic kimbap....
What’s in a Paloma? Some fancy renditions call for fresh grapefruit juice, simple syrup, and club soda, but the classic (and easiest!) version is made with just blanco tequila, fresh lime, and a chilled bottle of grapefruit soda. You can add a pinch of salt to the ice, or rim the glass. When it comes to grapefruit soda, Squirt and Jarritos Toronja are the go-to options. They taste great in this drink!...
Cumin is a key player in any well-stocked spice cabinet and is absolutely worth getting to know. Dive into this curious spice, from its ancient history to its variations and versatility. What is Cumin? Cumin is an ancient spice. It was discovered in excavations in ancient Egypt, where it was used as both a spice and a preserve for mummies. Today, it’s one of the most reached for spices in Middle Eastern, Indian, Latin American, and North African cuisines....
Tuck this recipe into your back-pocket—you’ll be reaching for it again and again. Need ideas? There’s tamagoyaki, miso soup, gyeran jjim, and this amazing salad. Types of Dashi There are five types of dashi. Some include a single ingredient and others are a combination. All are fairly simple to make: Awase dashi, the most commonly used dashi, is the backbone of Japanese cooking. It’s the version used to make miso soup....
But for some folks, caffeine isn’t a friend. It makes them jittery, keeps them up at night, or is bad for their health. Thankfully, decaffeinated coffee allows enjoyment of coffee’s aromas and flavors without most of the caffeine. And though decaffeinated coffee has a bad reputation for being flavorless, decaf has come a long way from the old-school Folgers green canister found on the grocery store shelf. What Is Caffeine?...
Deviled Eggs for Passover To give classic deviled eggs a Passover makeover, I give them a kick of horseradish—an ingredient representing the bitterness of slavery in Egypt, and a traditional Seder plate staple. Minced shallots aren’t particularly symbolic of anything, but they do add lots of flavor and a little crunch to the creamy filling! When my family had Seder dinners growing up, we didn’t serve appetizers before we read the Haggadah....
Especially if it came from a can. We wanted to be cool like Popeye, who could knock Bluto to Kingdom Come just by downing a can of spinach, which always conveniently found its way to Popeye’s mouth when his situation was most dire. Our parents worked hard to convince us that cooked fresh spinach was just as good, if not better than the canned stuff. How to Cook Spinach My father prepares spinach this way at least once or twice a week, usually with fresh spinach from the farmer’s market....
How to Make Perfect Buttercream Frosting The difference between a buttercream that’s just OK, maybe a little dense or grainy, and one that is smooth and super fluffy is the method. Here’s what to do: Add the powdered sugar to the butter in two stages.Beat the sugar and butter together for a full minute after each addition.Scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl so everything is well mixed.Use heavy cream instead of milk or half-and-half....
This is a quick and easy endive salad recipe, chopped endive tossed with chopped pears, walnuts, and crumbled gorgonzola, and drizzled with oil and vinegar. Perfect for the fall! If you don’t have access to endive, feel free to substitute butter lettuce. Some of the other lettuces in the chicory family would work as well—curly endive, escarole, frisee, radicchio. By the way, my French friends in the area insist that the endive we grow here in Northern California is less bitter, and more exquisite than what you find in Europe....
I no longer live in Detroit, and can no longer call my grandmother every weekend to come over, but these biscuits remain a staple in my New York kitchen. Every biscuit is a unique experience. Sometimes a simple spread of jam and butter will do, and other times these biscuits become a vessel for something wonderful—like a crispy piece of spicy, buttermilk fried chicken (or catfish, if I’m feeling spontaneous)....
And because I’m never one to keep things traditional when it comes to Panzanella (I’ve made so many variations), I swapped in pan-fried polenta for the typical crouton. This is seriously genius, and it’s so easy to make. All you do is cut the store-bought polenta into one-inch rectangles, and fry it in a cast iron skillet until it’s browned on all sides. The result is this super crispy, slightly chewy “crouton” that soaks up all the juices from the tomatoes and vinaigrette....
But don’t despair! Let your freezer and blender rescue happy hour. This drink hits all the right notes: It’s refreshingly tart and a little bitter, a nice change-up from your standard gin and tonic or frozen margarita. What Is a Siesta Cocktail? Back in 2006, bartender Katie Stipe created the Siesta by riffing on the Hemingway Daiquiri, a Havana-made concoction made with white rum, fresh lime juice, fresh grapefruit juice, and Maraschino liqueur....
