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Mint and onion chutney
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Mint and onion chutney

Onions fried gently until soft and sweet, then blended with fresh mint, green chilli and lemon juice. It's a mellow, fresh-tasting chutney that is great with bhajias, samosas, kebabs and tikka, or spread in sandwiches.

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Lagmi (fresh palm sap)

In the oases of the Tunisian south, in Gabès, Tozeur, Nefta, Kebili and on Djerba, palm climbers cut a small wound at the crown of an ageing date palm and hang a clay pot under it overnight. By sunrise it holds lagmi: cloudy, ivory-white sap, cool and sweet, with notes of coconut water and fresh dates. It is sold in recycled bottles at the roadside and drunk the same morning, because the wild yeasts in it begin to ferment almost at once. By afternoon it is fizzy and sour, and by the next day it has become an alcoholic palm wine, also called lagmi, which is a different drink altogether. The common mistake is buying more than you can drink by lunchtime or leaving it in the sun: keep it on ice from the moment you get it. Fresh lagmi is ready to drink when it is sweet, smells clean and milky, and only a few tiny bubbles rise; once it tastes sour or prickles on the tongue, it has started to turn. It is raw and unpasteurised, so pregnant people, babies, older people and anyone unwell should skip it. Outside the oases, fresh coconut water is the closest stand-in. Chef's tip: chill the glasses too; lagmi is at its best ice-cold.

5 minTunisianDrinksVeganGluten free
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Semur tahuTofu in sweet soy

Semur is the dark, glossy sweet-soy stew of Java, shaped by Dutch spice traders' love of nutmeg and clove, and the tofu version is a thrifty bekal favourite that tastes better each day it sits. The tofu is fried first so it holds together and soaks up the sauce like a sponge. The common mistake is using silken or soft tofu, which crumbles; choose firm tofu and fry it until the skin is golden. Chef's tip: let the sauce reduce until it coats the back of a spoon, then rest the semur for an hour before eating so the spices go right into the tofu.

35 minIndonesianVegetarianVegan
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Agua de tuna (prickly pear drink)

Late summer is tuna season across the central highlands, from Hidalgo and the Estado de México down to Puebla's Teotihuacán valley, and that is when the big vitroleros in markets and taquerías turn shocking pink. Agua de tuna is just the cactus fruit blended with water, lime and a little sugar, strained, and poured over ice with lunch. Red tunas give a vivid colour and a taste between watermelon and pear; green ones make a paler, more herbal drink. It should be light and thirst-quenching, never syrupy. The commonest mistake is blending too long: the hard seeds crack and the agua turns gritty and slightly bitter. Pulse briefly, just enough to free the pulp, then strain well. It is ready when the liquid runs smooth through the sieve and tastes clearly of fruit with only a lift of lime. Handle unpeeled tunas with tongs or gloves: even 'cleaned' ones keep tiny glochids. Chef's tip: chill the peeled fruit before blending; cold pulp keeps its colour bright and needs less ice to dilute it.

15 minMexicanDrinksVeganGluten free
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Yuja-cha (citron tea)

Goheung, on the southern coast of South Jeolla, is Korea's yuja country: in November the groves turn gold and families slice the knobbly citrons for yuja-cheong, the honeyed preserve that becomes tea all winter. From December to March a spoonful in hot water is offered to guests, to students cramming late and to anyone with a scratchy throat, as it is traditionally drunk for colds. The tea is sweet, floral and sharp, with soft, chewy strands of peel that you eat at the end with a spoon. The common mistake is leaving the fruit damp or the pith too thick: wet fruit lets mould in, and thick white pith makes the preserve bitter. Scrub, dry completely and pare away any pith thicker than a few millimetres. The cheong is ready after a day or two, when the sugar has dissolved into a clear, glossy syrup around the peel. Keep it in the fridge for up to three months, always with a dry spoon; throw it away if you see fuzzy mould, smell alcohol or it bubbles. No yuja? Japanese yuzu is the same fruit; otherwise use 2 lemons and 2 mandarins. Chef's tip: soak the seeds in a little of the honey and add that liquid back for a silkier syrup.

45 minKoreanDrinksGluten free
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Sungnyung (scorched rice tea)

Before electric rice cookers, every Korean pot of rice left a golden crust, nurungji, stuck to the bottom. Rather than waste it, cooks poured in water and simmered it while the family ate, and the warm, cloudy sungnyung was drunk at the end of the meal in place of tea. Older Koreans still describe it as the taste of home, and many Seoul restaurants that cook rice in stone pots finish by pouring water over the crust at the table. It tastes of toasted grain and has a faint natural sweetness, with soft pieces of crust to spoon up at the bottom. Without a stone pot you can make the crust from leftover rice in a frying pan. The common mistake is rushing the crust over high heat: it blackens on the outside and turns the drink bitter while the middle stays soft. Keep the heat low and patient, and aim for even golden-brown. The crust is ready when it lifts away from the pan in one sheet and smells like popcorn; the sungnyung is ready when the water is milky and pale gold. Chef's tip: make extra crust, dry it completely and keep it in a jar, so you can make sungnyung in ten minutes any evening.

35 minKoreanDrinksVeganGluten free
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Kyuchan cucumber pickle

Kyuchan is the sweet-salty soy pickle that Japanese mothers tuck into the corner of a bento: thin coins of cucumber that stay crunchy for days thanks to an old trick of pouring hot pickling liquid over them several times. It brightens plain rice and cuts the richness of fried karaage-style dishes. The common mistake is simmering the cucumbers in the sauce, which makes them soft and grey; they should only ever sit in hot liquid off the heat. Chef's tip: squeeze the salted cucumbers really hard in a cloth, because every drop of water you remove is crunch you keep.

45 minJapaneseSidesVegan
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Pan-gayu (bread porridge)

Pan-gayu is a staple of the early rinyushoku (weaning) stage in Japan, the second grain after rice porridge, and it fills the 'first foods' pages of every baby magazine sold in Tokyo convenience stores. Crustless white bread is torn into a pan of water, breast milk or formula and simmered until it collapses, then mashed smooth for a soft, milky, faintly sweet porridge. Bread already contains a little salt, so this is an occasional porridge rather than an everyday one, and no extra salt, sugar or honey goes in. It contains wheat (gluten) and milk if made with milk. Chef's tip: choose the softest, plainest white sandwich loaf with the lowest salt on the label, and cut away every bit of crust.

8 minJapaneseBreakfast & Brunch
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Ensaladang talongGrilled aubergine salad

Ensaladang talong is the smoky side salad that sits beside grilled fish or pork at Filipino family lunches, from Pampanga to Davao, and on the table at weekend beach outings. Long Asian eggplants are charred whole until the flesh collapses, then peeled and topped with diced tomato, red onion and a sharp vinegar dressing. This version leaves out the usual fermented shrimp paste so it is vegan. Suitable as part of a balanced diet, it is low in starch: about 70 kcal and 10 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is pulling the eggplants off the heat too soon; they must be soft right through, or the flesh is spongy and raw. Chef's tip: peel the hot eggplants under a trickle of water with your fingertips to keep the smoky flesh whole.

25 minFilipinoSaladsVeganGluten free
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Portuguese sausage, eggs and rice

In Hawaii, a breakfast plate at a diner in Honolulu or Hilo, or at a drive-in on Maui, often means slices of smoky, garlicky, paprika-red Portuguese pork sausage (brought to the islands by Madeiran and Azorean immigrants in the 1800s) fried until caramelised, two eggs, and two scoops of short-grain rice. A splash of shoyu on the rice is optional. The common mistake is frying the sausage over a high heat so the sugar in it burns before it heats through; fry it steadily over a medium heat until sizzling and piping hot (71 °C if your sausage is uncooked rather than smoked). Cook the eggs fully set for pregnant people, young children, older or vulnerable people. Chef's tip: fry the eggs in the red fat the sausage leaves behind; they come out lacy and full of flavour.

20 minPacific IslanderBreakfast & BrunchGluten free
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KneippbrødWholemeal loaf

Open almost any Norwegian matpakke (the packed lunch wrapped in paper) and you will find slices of kneippbrød, a soft, lightly sweet loaf of sammalt hvete (wholemeal wheat) baked in a tin. Its fine crumb slices thin without crumbling, perfect for brown cheese, jam or cucumber at the school desk. The common mistake is adding too much flour while kneading because wholemeal dough feels sticky; the loaf then bakes dense and dry. Chef's tip: let the dough rest for 20 minutes after mixing, before kneading, so the bran softens and the dough turns smooth on its own.

70 minScandinavianBakingVegan
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Sem ki sabzi (flat beans with potato)

When flat green sem pods fill the sabzi carts in Lucknow and Jaipur in winter, they go into this dry stir-fry with potato and a crackle of ajwain, the classic partner for paratha in an office dabba. The beans stay a little firm and sweet, the potato soaks up the spices, and nothing drips into the roti. The mistake is leaving the stringy edges on the pods; they never soften. Snap the tip and pull the string down each side before chopping. Chef's tip: cook covered for the first half to steam the beans tender, then uncover and turn up the heat so the potatoes catch and brown.

32 minIndianSidesVeganGluten free
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Pâté en croûtePork and veal pie in pastry

Lyon's charcuteries display pâté en croûte like jewellery: a tall loaf of crisp, golden pastry wrapped around a coarse terrine of pork and veal. A slice wrapped in paper is a picnic and lunchbox luxury, and the whole loaf is a Sunday project eaten over several days. The common mistake is undercooking it for fear of drying it out: as it is made with minced pork, the centre must reach 71 °C, so use a probe thermometer. The classic farce has a splash of cognac; it's optional here, and apple juice or extra stock is the alcohol-free swap. Chef's tip: chill the filled, unbaked loaf for 30 minutes before baking so the pastry keeps its shape and pattern.

150 minFrenchMeat
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Escabeche de pescadoFried fish in sweet-sour onion sauce

In Lima, escabeche de pescado belongs to the criollo kitchen of the old city: it turns up on Friday lunch menus, on buffet tables, and above all in Lent and Holy Week, when families eat fish and this dish can be made the day before. Fish is fried until golden, then covered in a warm sauce of thick-cut red onion softened in oil with garlic, ají amarillo, ají panca, cumin and vinegar, and left to cool so the flavours soak in. It is served cold or at room temperature with boiled sweet potato, hard-boiled egg and purple botija olives. It tastes tangy, sweet and gently fruity-hot, with crunchy onion over tender fish. The fish here is fully cooked, but because it is a cold seafood dish, pregnant people, babies, older people and anyone with weak immunity should eat it well chilled and within 2 days. Common mistake: stewing the onions until limp; they should only lose their raw bite. It is ready when the sauce has soaked a little into the fish and smells of vinegar and toasted chilli. Chef's tip: use thick fillets of corvina or bonito; thin fillets break under the sauce.

50 minPeruvianFishGluten free
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MotohoFermented sorghum porridge

Highland mornings in Lesotho can be bitterly cold, and a mug or bowl of warm motoho, thin enough to sip and pleasantly tangy, is how many Basotho families in Maseru and the mountain villages start the day. Sorghum meal is mixed with warm water and a spoonful of starter from the last batch, left overnight by the stove to sour, then cooked into a smooth, pourable porridge with a yoghurt-like tang and a nutty, toasty flavour. Some sweeten it with sugar; others drink it plain with bread. If you have no starter, make one two days ahead with sorghum and water, as below. Chef's tip: keep the ferment warm but not hot; a pot left right on the stove gets too sour and too thin, so a spot nearby is perfect.

30 minSouthern AfricanBreakfast & BrunchVeganGluten free
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Koova kurukku (arrowroot porridge)

Koova, the arrowroot that grows in Kerala's backyards, is dug, washed, grated and dried into a snow-white powder that many families in Thrissur and Kottayam still make themselves. Stirred with water over a low flame, it turns from chalky to clear and glossy in a few minutes, and this kurukku is a classic first spoonful at six months, often given in the hot months because it is thought to be cooling. It is very mild and smooth. No salt, sugar, jaggery or honey goes in for babies. It is free of the major allergens. Chef's tip: buy pure koova or arrowroot powder, not a cornflour blend, and stop cooking the moment the whole pan turns translucent.

10 minIndianBreakfast & BrunchVeganGluten free
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Bánh da lợnSteamed layer cake

Bánh da lợn is piled up in glistening slabs at the dessert stalls of Bến Thành Market and on the trays of Saigon's afternoon sweet sellers. Thin layers of tapioca and coconut batter are steamed one at a time, alternating fragrant pandan green with nutty mung bean yellow, so every slice shows neat stripes and has a soft, bouncy, slightly springy bite. People peel the layers off one by one, especially children. Chef's tip: let each layer set until it turns translucent before pouring the next, or the colours run into each other.

100 minVietnameseDessertsVeganGluten free
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FafdaGram flour strips with papaya salad

On Sunday mornings, and above all on Dussehra, Ahmedabad queues outside its farsan shops for paper parcels of fafda: long, pale-gold strips of gram flour dough, crisp and gently salty with carom, eaten beside hot jalebi, a sour-sweet raw papaya relish called sambharo and whole fried chillies. The real craft is the shaping, done by pushing a little log of dough along a wooden board with the heel of the hand until it stretches into a thin ribbon. Chef's tip: knead the dough with your knuckles for a full 5 minutes until it turns smooth and slightly shiny, or the strips tear as you push them.

40 minIndianSnacks & StartersVegan
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Rolete de cana (sugarcane on a stick)

On the sand at Porto da Barra in Salvador, and in the crowds of the Festa de Iemanjá in Rio Vermelho every February, vendors walk with buckets of ice and bundles of skewers threaded with pale sugarcane discs. You chew each piece to squeeze out the cold, grassy-sweet juice, then spit out the fibre. It is the simplest snack there is and very refreshing in the heat. Not for small children, as the fibres are a choking risk. Chef's tip: cut between the knobbly joints, not through them; the nodes are hard as wood.

15 minBrazilianSnacks & StartersVeganGluten free
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Lolo bunsCoconut cream baked buns

Lolo buns are the Sunday treat of Fijian kitchens, made for church lunches and family get-togethers in Lautoka and Suva: soft yeast buns packed into a tin and baked in a bath of sweetened coconut cream (lolo), which soaks into the bottoms and bakes into a sticky, caramel-edged sauce. Everyone pulls one out warm from the tin. A common mistake is pouring the coconut cream on too early; add it just before baking so the buns have risen fully. Chef's tip: use thick, full-fat coconut cream for a rich glaze.

65 minPacific IslanderBakingVegan
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VakaloloSteamed cassava coconut pudding

Vakalolo is an iTaukei celebration pudding, made for church feasts, weddings and Christmas in villages across Viti Levu and Vanua Levu. Grated cassava is mixed with coconut cream and sugar, wrapped in banana or vudi leaves and steamed until it turns sticky and translucent, then served with a thick caramel of coconut cream and brown sugar poured over. Frozen grated cassava from Asian or Pacific shops saves a lot of work. Cassava must always be fully cooked, never eaten raw. A common mistake is wrapping the parcels loosely so water gets in; fold them tightly. Chef's tip: cook the caramel slowly until it's the colour of toffee, which is where all the flavour is.

90 minPacific IslanderDessertsVeganGluten free
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Fish and brewisSalt cod with hard tack

Fish and brewis (say "brews") is a Newfoundland breakfast and Sunday supper from the fishing outports of the Avalon and Bonavista, made from the two things every boat carried: salt cod and hard bread. Both are soaked overnight, then boiled and served together topped with scrunchions, crisp little cubes of fried salt pork and their fat. It is hearty, salty and very simple. A common mistake is not soaking the fish long enough; change the water several times. Chef's tip: break the softened hard tack by hand so it keeps some texture rather than turning to paste.

50 minCanadianFish
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Pathola currySnake gourd coconut curry

Pathola curry is a quick, gentle white curry from everyday Sri Lankan rice-and-curry lunches, especially loved in the south where snake gourd grows on trellises behind most houses. Thin half-moons of gourd simmer for a few minutes in coconut milk with turmeric, green chilli, curry leaves and a pinch of fenugreek, so they stay pale green, soft and juicy. Serve it with rice, dal and a fiery sambol. The usual mistake is overcooking, which turns the gourd watery and grey; pull it off as soon as it is translucent. Chef's tip: scrape the soft white pith and seeds out with a spoon; they water the curry down.

25 minSri LankanCurriesVeganGluten free
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Lito (sarbottam pitho porridge)

Ask a mother in Kathmandu, Pokhara or a hill village what her baby eats after the pasni rice-feeding ceremony, and the answer is often lito: porridge made from sarbottam pitho, a 'super flour' that families roast and grind themselves from two parts soybean to one part each of maize and wheat. Cooked with water it becomes a smooth, nutty, toast-coloured porridge with more protein than plain rice. For babies there is no salt, sugar, jaggery, honey or ghee needed. It contains soya and wheat (gluten). Chef's tip: roast the grains separately, each until it smells nutty and cracks between your teeth, then grind and sieve; the beans need longest.

12 minNepaliBreakfast & BrunchVegan
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FrittolaFried veal scraps

The frittularu of Palermo carries a wicker basket covered with a cloth, and when you order he reaches in blind and pulls out a handful of frittola: soft, fatty veal trimmings and cartilage that have been boiled, then fried slowly in pork lard with bay leaves and black pepper. You find him at dawn and mid-morning in the Vucciria and Ballarò markets, serving it on paper or in a soft bun with lemon. This home version uses veal brisket and its cartilage, which most butchers will sell. Chef's tip: let the boiled meat dry well before it goes into the lard, so it fries rather than spits and stews.

180 minItalianMeatGluten free
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Fuki no nimonoSimmered butterbur stalks

Fuki, giant butterbur, is one of the wild spring vegetables Japanese families look forward to each April, especially in the mountain prefectures of Akita and Tohoku, where the stalks grow taller than a child. Simmered lightly in dashi, the pale green stalks keep a gentle crunch and a fresh, slightly bitter flavour, and they are served cold as a small dish with rice and miso soup. Suitable as part of a balanced diet: it is very high in fibre and low in starch. About 35 kcal and 4 g carbohydrate per portion. The sugar is optional, or use a sweetener. The usual mistake is skipping the salt rub and blanch before peeling: unpeeled fuki is stringy and harsh. For a vegetarian version, use kombu dashi. Chef's tip: cool the stalks in the broth in a bowl set over ice; they keep their bright green colour.

30 minJapaneseSides
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Jambon-beurreHam and butter baguette

France sells millions of jambon-beurre every working day: half a crusty baguette, split, spread with good salted butter and filled with thin slices of jambon de Paris, the delicate cooked pork ham. Parisians eat it at the office, on a park bench or on the train. The common mistake is a stingy smear of hard butter; the butter is a filling, not a glue, so spread it soft and generous. Some add cornichons, which purists call a different sandwich. Chef's tip: fold each slice of ham loosely in half rather than laying it flat, so the sandwich is airy and every bite has ham.

5 minFrenchFast Food
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Gaji kimchiStuffed aubergine kimchi

When the long jangma rains end and markets across Korea are heaped with slim purple eggplants in July and August, home cooks turn some of them into gaji kimchi, a short-lived summer kimchi eaten cold beside barley rice, cucumber naengguk or a simple grilled fish. The eggplant is steamed just long enough to soften, then split into a cross and stuffed with garlic chives, shredded radish and a bright chilli dressing seasoned with fish sauce. It is silky and juicy, almost melting, with a crunchy, garlicky centre, and after a day the juices turn gently tangy. The usual mistake is steaming too long: the pieces collapse when you stuff them and go mushy in the jar, so pull them as soon as the skin darkens and the flesh bends but still springs back. It is ready to eat after a few hours, best on day two, when the brine in the box tastes lightly sour and the eggplant has turned deep red at the cuts. For a vegetarian version use tamari in place of fish sauce. Chef's tip: choose slim Korean or Japanese eggplants with few seeds; fat globe eggplants hold too much water.

41 minKoreanChutneys & DipsGluten freeSpicy
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Gangaur guneFried dough shapes in syrup

Gangaur, Rajasthan's spring festival for Gauri, is when women fast and pray for their husbands and married daughters receive a sindhara of sweets from home, and gune are always in it. A ghee-rich dough is rolled thin, pleated or pressed into ribbed shapes and fried crisp, then dipped in sugar syrup or jaggery. They are crunchy, flaky and lightly sweet. The common mistake is under-rubbing the ghee into the flour, which makes them hard rather than short and flaky. Chef's tip: rub until the flour holds a clear fist mark when squeezed; that is when the gune will shatter, not crack.

75 minIndianIndian Sweets
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Garbanzos en dulceChickpeas in spiced syrup

In Antigua Guatemala, where the Semana Santa processions walk over carpets of coloured sawdust, the kitchens fill with sweets in dark panela syrup, and chickpeas are among the first to be made. The peeled garbanzos are cooked tender and then simmered slowly in syrup with cinnamon, allspice and cloves until they turn mahogany and glossy, sweet right through but still holding their shape. They are eaten cold from small bowls, often beside sweet mango or fig preserves. Hurrying the syrup is the usual mistake: boil it hard and the chickpeas stay pale inside and the syrup tastes burnt. Chef's tip: rub off the chickpea skins after the first cooking; it takes ten minutes but lets the syrup soak in and gives a silky bite.

90 minCentral AmericanDessertsVeganGluten free
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Steamed Nendran banana mash

Nendran is the long, golden plantain of Kerala, sold in hands at every market from Palakkad to Thiruvananthapuram, and a steamed ripe Nendran is one of the first fruits a Malayali baby tastes. Raw, it is too firm and starchy for a six-month-old, so it is steamed in its skin until the flesh turns soft and orange-gold, the dark string of seeds in the centre is pulled out, and the rest is mashed smooth. It is naturally sweet, so nothing is added: no sugar, jaggery, honey or salt. It is free of the major allergens. Chef's tip: wait until the skin is fully yellow with black freckles; a green Nendran stays chalky however long you steam it.

15 minIndianDessertsVeganGluten free
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Geleia de jabuticabaJabuticaba jelly

Jabuticabas grow in clusters straight on the trunk of the tree, and in the Minas Gerais spring, from September to November, backyards from Sabará to the south of the state are suddenly covered in shiny black berries. The fruit starts to ferment two or three days after picking, so families turn the glut into jelly, liqueur and syrup; Sabará even celebrates the harvest with a festival. Boiling the berries whole draws colour, tannin and pectin out of the thick skins, so the jelly sets with no added pectin. It is deep ruby-purple, sweet and tart like a dark grape, with a faint astringent edge from the skins. Spread it on pão de queijo or toast, or serve it with fresh white cheese. Abroad, use Concord or other dark, slip-skin grapes, or muscadines. Common mistake: boiling past the setting point; the jelly darkens, turns gummy and the tannins taste bitter, so start testing early. It is ready at 104 °C, or when a drop on a frozen saucer wrinkles when pushed. Chef's tip: let the juice drip through the cloth without squeezing; pressing it makes the jelly cloudy.

70 minBrazilianChutneys & DipsVeganGluten free
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Bánh khúcCudweed sticky rice dumplings

Long before sunrise, vendors walk Hanoi's Old Quarter with steaming baskets, calling out for xôi xéo and bánh khúc. These are soft green dumplings coloured and scented with rau khúc, a grassy, herbal cudweed, wrapped around mung bean paste and peppery pork belly, then rolled in sticky rice grains and steamed until the grains turn glossy. They are eaten hot from a scrap of banana leaf with a pinch of sesame salt, often on a cold winter morning. Look for frozen or dried cudweed at Vietnamese grocers. Chef's tip: keep the green dough thin but even; thick dough cracks and lets the filling escape.

120 minVietnameseSnacks & StartersGluten free
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Ghadichi poliLayered chapati

In Maharashtrian homes the everyday poli is not a plain chapati but a ghadichi poli: the dough is oiled, folded into a triangle and rolled again, so it puffs into soft, separate layers that stay tender in a dabba until lunchtime. Mumbai's dabbawalas carry thousands of them every day alongside bhaji and dal. The common mistake is a stiff dough, which makes leathery polis; it should be softer than you think. Chef's tip: as soon as each poli comes off the tawa, clap it between your palms to break open the layers, then stack it in a cloth-lined box.

40 minIndianBreads & ParathasVegan
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GimjabanFried seasoned seaweed

Korean children grow up eating gimjaban scattered over rice or rolled into jumeokbap rice balls, and a little tub of it is the easiest way to make a plain dosirak exciting. It is laver seaweed toasted, crushed and stirred in a pan with sesame oil, a little sugar and plenty of sesame seeds until crisp and savoury-sweet. The common mistake is adding the soy sauce while the pan is very hot, which turns the flakes soggy and clumped. Chef's tip: mix the soy and sugar into the oil first, then toss in the crushed seaweed off the heat and return it to a gentle flame just to dry out.

13 minKoreanSidesVegan
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Ginataang gulayVegetables in coconut milk

Bicol is the Philippine region of coconut and chilli, and ginataang gulay is what a Naga or Legazpi household cooks on meatless Fridays and in Lent: squash, string beans, eggplant and okra stewed in coconut milk with ginger and plenty of siling labuyo. The squash melts a little into the sauce and makes it golden and slightly sweet, while the beans stay crisp. Serve with rice. The usual mistake is boiling the coconut milk hard, which splits it into oil and curds; keep it at a lazy simmer. Chef's tip: add the thick first-press coconut cream only at the end so the dish tastes fresh and rich.

35 minFilipinoVegetarianVeganGluten freeSpicy
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Goan tendli bhajiIvy gourd stir-fry

On an everyday Goan plate of rice, fish curry and a vegetable, the vegetable is very often this quick tendli bhaji. Thin rounds of ivy gourd are softened with onion and green chilli in coconut oil, then tossed with fresh grated coconut just before serving, so they stay crunchy-tender and sweet. Hindu homes make it without onion on fasting or puja days. The mistake to avoid is cutting the tendli thickly and covering the pan for too long, which gives grey, soggy rings; thin slices cooked mostly uncovered keep their green colour. Chef's tip: pick firm, bright green tendli and discard any that are red inside, as they are overripe and slimy.

25 minIndianSidesVeganGluten free
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Godeulppaegi kimchiBitter wild lettuce kimchi

In Suncheon and the hills of South Jeolla, godeulppaegi is dug up from fields and banks in late autumn and again in early spring, and the kimchi made from it is a point of local pride, eaten through winter beside rice, grilled fish and pork. The plant is a small wild lettuce with a pale, carrot-like root and leaves full of milky, bitter sap. Soaked in salt water for several days, the bitterness softens to a pleasant, coffee-like edge that pairs with the deep anchovy sauce and sweet, sticky chilli dressing. Chewy roots, tender leaves, sweet, savoury and gently bitter all at once. The common mistake is rushing the soak: the kimchi is then too bitter to enjoy. Change the brine every day and taste a leaf; stop when the bitterness is noticeable but no longer harsh, usually day 3 to 5. Outside Korea, look for it frozen or dried in Korean shops, or use young dandelion plants with their roots. The kimchi is ready after about 2 weeks in the fridge, when the dressing turns glossy and the roots taste mellow and sour-sweet. Chef's tip: twist a few plants into small coils so each serving comes out of the jar neatly.

83 minKoreanChutneys & DipsGluten freeSpicy
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BatagorFried fish dumplings with peanut sauce

Batagor, short for bakso tahu goreng (fried fish-ball tofu), is the crunchy cousin of siomay and a favourite after-school snack sold from glass-sided carts outside Jakarta's schools and along Jalan Pecenongan's evening food strip. Tofu squares and wonton skins are stuffed with a mackerel and tapioca paste and deep-fried until golden and crackly, then snipped up and covered in a spicy peanut sauce, kecap manis and lime. The contrast of crisp skin and soft, bouncy fish is the whole point. Contains fish, peanuts, soy, egg and wheat. Chef's tip: fry the tofu side with the fish paste facing down first; it seals the filling so it doesn't puff away from the tofu.

60 minIndonesianFish
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Tsestalulu (sea-buckthorn juice)

Sea buckthorn grows wild along the river beds of Ladakh, and in Leh the bright orange berries are pressed into tsestalulu, a sharp, tropical-tasting juice sold in summer cafés and made at home after the autumn harvest. It is drunk chilled, sweetened with sugar or honey and thinned with cold water. The berries are very sour and slightly oily, so the juice is always diluted. The common mistake is boiling the pulp, which dulls both the colour and the fresh taste; just blend and strain. Chef's tip: frozen sea-buckthorn berries or plain unsweetened purée from health shops work very well; strain twice through a fine sieve for a silky drink.

15 minIndianDrinksVeganGluten free
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Batido de lechosaPapaya and orange shake

Lechosa is what Venezuelans call papaya, and on breakfast tables from Valencia to Puerto La Cruz it turns up as a batido beside arepas or empanadas, often blended with the oranges that are piled cheap in every market. It is thick, smooth and sunset-orange, tasting of honeyed papaya and bright citrus, and it fills you up until lunch. Some families blend it with milk instead of juice, which turns it into a creamy merengada. The common mistake with milk is letting it stand: papaya's natural enzyme starts to turn milk bitter within half an hour, so drink it straight away. Another mistake is scraping the seed cavity too hard; the black seeds and their slippery coating make the batido bitter and peppery. It is ready when there are no fibres left, it pours in a thick stream and the colour is an even orange. Choose papaya that is mostly yellow-orange and gives slightly under your thumb; a green-streaked one tastes flat and a little musky. Chef's tip: a few drops of lime juice cut through papaya's musky note and make it taste fresher.

5 minVenezuelanDrinksVeganGluten free
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GrießschmarrnTorn fried semolina pudding

Across Austria and Bavaria, Grießschmarrn is the farmhouse breakfast or light Sunday lunch that grandmothers made from what was always in the larder: semolina, milk, eggs and butter. The semolina is soaked in hot milk until thick, then fried slowly and torn apart with two spatulas into buttery, crisp-edged crumbs, dusted with icing sugar and served with plum or apple compote. The common mistake is turning it too often over a high heat: the crumbs need time on a medium flame to form a golden crust, or they stay pale and pasty. Chef's tip: let the semolina mixture rest for 15 minutes before frying, so the grains swell fully and the Schmarrn crisps instead of sticking.

40 minAustrianBreakfast & Brunch
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Besan chillaGram flour pancakes

Across North India, besan chilla is the answer when the tiffin needs packing in fifteen minutes: a pourable gram flour batter studded with onion, tomato, chilli and coriander, cooked thin on a tawa, then rolled up with chutney or ketchup. It is naturally egg-free and filling. The common mistake is a thick batter, which gives a heavy, raw-tasting pancake; it should flow like single cream. Chef's tip: spread the batter with the back of a ladle in quick circles from the centre outward, and cover the pan for the first minute so the top steams set.

25 minIndianBreakfast & BrunchVeganGluten free
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GuasacacaAvocado and herb sauce

Every parrilla in Caracas puts a bowl of guasacaca on the table: avocado crushed with green pepper, onion, garlic, coriander and parsley, sharpened with vinegar until it is looser and tangier than guacamole. It goes on grilled meat and chorizo, but just as happily on arepas, empanadas, boiled yuca and grilled vegetables. The common mistake is blending it to a smooth mousse; it should keep a little texture. Chef's tip: make it no more than an hour ahead and press cling film onto the surface, so it stays bright green.

15 minVenezuelanChutneys & DipsVeganGluten free
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GuayusaHolly leaf infusion

In Kichwa villages along the Napo river around Tena, families rise before dawn, gather around the fire and share a pot of guayusa: an infusion of the large leaves of an Amazon holly tree, passed round while people talk over dreams and plan the day. It tastes smooth, grassy and faintly sweet, with none of the bitterness of black tea, and it carries a steady lift of caffeine, so it is not one for young children or late evenings. Dried guayusa is sold loose in health-food and tea shops. A common mistake is treating it like delicate green tea and steeping it for just a minute; it needs a gentle simmer to draw out its flavour. Chef's tip: add a strip of lemongrass or a slice of ginger for a fragrant twist, and sweeten, if at all, with a little panela.

14 minAndeanDrinksVeganGluten free
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Gucchi pulaoMorel mushroom pulao

Gucchi, the honeycombed wild morels gathered in spring on the slopes of Kashmir and Himachal, are among the most prized foods in India, and a pulao of them is kept for weddings, Eid and the most honoured guests. The mushrooms are soaked and simmered in their own soaking water, which then flavours the basmati along with ghee, cardamom and fennel, so every grain tastes deeply earthy. Morels must always be cooked thoroughly; never eat them raw or barely warmed. The common mistake is pouring in the soaking water with its grit, so let it settle and leave the last spoonfuls behind. Chef's tip: slit each morel lengthwise and rinse inside; sand hides in the hollow stems.

75 minIndianRice & GrainsGluten free
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Gulab pakRose milk fudge

The sweet shops of Bhuj and Mandvi in Kutch sell gulab pak in pale pink slabs that smell of summer roses, and it is a favourite to carry home after a trip to the Rann or a family wedding. Mawa is cooked down with sugar and gulkand, the sun-cured rose-petal preserve, so the fudge is soft and grainy with little chewy flecks of petal through it. The mistake to watch for is adding the gulkand too early: cooked for long, it darkens and turns the fudge brown and toffee-like. Chef's tip: a few drops of rose water stirred in right at the end lift the perfume without making it taste soapy.

40 minIndianIndian SweetsGluten free
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Gundar pakEdible gum and wheat fudge

When the first cold mornings reach Rajkot and Junagadh, Kathiawadi kitchens fry a big batch of gundar, the edible acacia gum, in ghee and set it into this dense, crunchy pak, eaten one square a day with tea through December and January. Here the gum is the star: it puffs into crisp white popcorn-like pieces that give the fudge its crackle, while wheat flour, jaggery, dry ginger and coconut hold it together. The common mistake is frying the gum in ghee that is too cool, so it stays hard and glassy and sticks to your teeth; it must puff fully within seconds. Chef's tip: crush the puffed gum only lightly with a rolling pin so you still bite into small crunchy nuggets.

55 minIndianIndian Sweets
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Guyanese black puddingRice blood sausage

On Saturday mornings in Georgetown and in villages along the East Bank, black pudding sellers cut thick slices from long dark coils and serve them with a sharp, peppery sour made from cucumber or mango. Guyanese black pudding is a soft sausage of rice, fresh herbs, hot pepper and blood, usually beef or pork blood, filled into casings and gently boiled. Buy the blood fresh and chilled from a licensed butcher (ask for it with an anticoagulant already added) and use it the same day, or use dried blood powder made up with water. The commonest mistake is boiling it hard, which bursts the casings. Chef's tip: keep the water barely trembling and prick any air bubbles with a pin as the sausages cook; they are done when a thermometer pushed into the middle reads 71 °C and the filling is firm and dark.

105 minGuyaneseMeatGluten freeSpicy
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Guyanese egg ballsFried cassava-coated eggs

Egg balls are the snack you buy in a paper bag at a Georgetown cake shop or from a tray at a cricket match at Bourda, with a generous spoon of mango sour over the top. A whole hard-boiled egg is wrapped in a layer of mashed cassava seasoned with garlic, hot pepper and herbs, then fried until crisp and golden. The usual problem is cassava that is too wet or too thin a layer, so the balls crack in the oil; mash it dry and keep the coat about 1 cm thick. Eggs are the main allergen here. Chef's tip: chill the wrapped balls for 20 minutes before frying so they hold their shape.

60 minGuyaneseSnacks & StartersGluten free
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Guyanese plait breadBraided white loaf

A glossy three-strand plait sits on the table in many Guyanese homes on Christmas morning and for Old Year's Night, next to garlic pork, pepperpot and black cake, and bakeries in Georgetown sell it every day for sandwiches. It is a soft, close-crumbed white bread, just a little sweet, that tears into pillowy pieces and soaks up pepperpot gravy beautifully. The common slip is adding too much flour while kneading: the dough should feel slightly tacky, or the loaf bakes up dry and dense. Chef's tip: let the shaped plait prove until a finger pressed into the side leaves a dent that springs back slowly; that is the moment to bake.

60 minGuyaneseBaking
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Guyanese salaraRed coconut roll

Walk into any bakery in Georgetown or along the Berbice coast and the salara is easy to spot: a soft, slightly sweet loaf rolled around a bright red filling of grated coconut, sugar and spice, cut so every slice shows a spiral. It is tea-time and lunch-box food, eaten with a cup of cocoa tea or a cold drink after school. The coconut is coloured with red food colouring, which is part of the look but can be left out. The usual mistake is a wet filling: if the coconut is soggy, the roll splits and the spiral gapes open as it bakes. Chef's tip: squeeze fresh grated coconut lightly in a cloth before mixing it, and roll the dough tight like a Swiss roll, pinching the seam well.

70 minGuyaneseBaking
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Hachis parmentier for toddlersBeef and mash bake for toddlers

Hachis parmentier, France's answer to cottage pie, is a fixture of school canteens and Wednesday family lunches from Lyon to Paris, named after Antoine Parmentier, who championed the potato. This toddler version for children from 12 months uses lean minced beef cooked soft with plenty of carrot and onion, topped with a buttery milk mash and baked until just golden, then cut into soft squares. It is cooked without stock cubes and with no added salt. It contains milk; there is no gluten, egg, nuts or soya. Chef's tip: simmer the meat with a splash of water until it's tender and saucy before topping; dry mince makes a crumbly pie that toddlers struggle with.

60 minFrenchMeatGluten free
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Haejang-gukCabbage and bean sprout soup

Haejang-guk means "soup to chase a hangover", and in Seoul and every Korean city the 24-hour haejang-guk houses fill at dawn with office workers and night-shift drivers. This version is the everyday ugeoji style: outer napa cabbage leaves and bean sprouts simmered with doenjang and chilli in a beef bone broth, with tender beef shin, eaten with a bowl of rice. The common mistake is skipping the soak and first boil of the bones, which leaves the broth murky and metallic. Chef's tip: squeeze the blanched cabbage leaves and rub them with the doenjang and chilli before they go into the pot, so the seasoning clings to every leaf.

120 minKoreanSoupsSpicy
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Gohan oyaki (rice finger patties)

Oyaki means a little pan-cooked cake, and Japanese parents make gohan oyaki from leftover rice when babies around nine months start wanting to feed themselves. Mashed rice is mixed with steamed kabocha squash (or grated carrot) and a spoon of potato starch, shaped into finger-sized patties and cooked gently until lightly golden. They are soft and sweet inside, hold together in a small fist and squash easily against the gums. They are free of the major allergens: no milk, egg, gluten, nuts, soya, sesame or fish. Chef's tip: mash the rice while it is warm; cold rice will not stick together and the patties crumble.

25 minJapaneseSnacks & StartersVeganGluten free
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Detsadovsky omlet (kindergarten oven omelette)

Anyone who went to a detsky sad, a kindergarten, in Moscow, Kyiv or Minsk remembers this omelette: tall, pale and soft as a sponge, baked in big trays and served in squares with a slice of bread and butter. The secret is lots of milk and a deep dish, so the eggs steam-bake into a quivering, custardy block rather than a flat frittata. It makes a protein-rich breakfast or supper for toddlers from 12 months, made here without salt. It contains egg and milk; there is no gluten, nuts or soya. Chef's tip: stir the eggs and milk, don't whisk them into a foam, or the omelette rises and then collapses.

35 minRussianBreakfast & BrunchGluten free
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HariharizukeDried daikon pickle

Hariharizuke takes its name from the sound it makes, 'hari-hari', as you chew. It starts with kiriboshi daikon, the radish strips dried in the cold winter sun across Miyazaki and much of rural Japan, which are rehydrated and steeped in a sharp, slightly sweet soy-vinegar with ribbons of kombu and a little chilli. It is a year-round side dish, but home cooks lean on it in late winter and early spring when fresh vegetables are fewer, packing it into bento boxes or setting it beside grilled fish and rice. The taste is sweet-sour and savoury, with a concentrated, almost caramel daikon flavour, and the texture is springy and crunchy. The common mistake is soaking the dried daikon too long: after 10–15 minutes it is pliable, and beyond that it turns soft and loses its crunch. It is ready when the strips are glossy, tan and taste seasoned right through, about an hour after mixing, and even better the next day. Look for dried daikon in Japanese or Korean shops (Korean mumallaengi is the same thing). Chef's tip: add the carrot in very fine matchsticks and a few drops of sesame oil just before serving for colour and aroma.

28 minJapaneseChutneys & DipsVegan
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Harina de maíz dulceSweet cornmeal porridge

In Cuban homes "harina" means cornmeal, and harina dulce is the soft, sweet porridge that grandmothers in Havana and Santiago cooked for children before school, scented with cinnamon and a curl of lime peel the way rice pudding is. It should be smooth and spoonable, like a loose polenta. The usual mistake is pouring the cornmeal into boiling milk, which seizes into lumps at once: start it in cold liquid and whisk as it heats. Chef's tip: take the lime peel out once the porridge thickens, or its oils turn bitter as it sits.

25 minCubanBreakfast & BrunchGluten free
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Shānyào ní (Chinese yam purée)

Chinese yam (shānyào, the long, hairy-skinned root sold in bundles in markets from Beijing to Guangzhou) is valued in Chinese homes as easy on the tummy, and steamed shānyào ní is one of the classic first purées offered at six months. Once steamed, the crisp, slippery flesh turns floury and pale, and pressed through a sieve it gives a smooth, slightly sweet, potato-like purée. Nothing else is added: no salt, sugar or honey for babies. It is free of the major allergens. Chef's tip: wear gloves or oil your hands before peeling; the raw sap makes skin itch, but cooking destroys it completely.

25 minChineseSidesVeganGluten free
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Hawaiian poi for babiesTaro paste for babies

Poi, cooked taro (kalo) pounded with water, is the oldest staple of Hawaiʻi, and it was traditionally among the first foods given to babies across the islands; you can still buy it fresh by the bag at markets in Honolulu and on Kauaʻi. Fresh poi is mild, smooth and gently sweet, with a lilac-grey colour; left a few days it ferments and turns sour, which adults love but a baby is better without. Taro must be cooked right through, because raw taro contains crystals that irritate the mouth. Nothing else is added: no salt, sugar or honey. It is free of the major allergens. Chef's tip: wear gloves to peel raw taro, and cook a test piece; if it tingles on your tongue, it needs longer.

90 minPacific IslanderSidesVeganGluten free
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Henan hulatangPeppery beef breakfast soup

In Zhengzhou and towns across Henan, breakfast means a bowl of hulatang ladled from a huge pot, a thick, glossy soup whose heat comes not from chilli but from a big dose of black and white pepper. It is full of beef, chewy wheat gluten, glass noodles, wood ear, peanuts and kelp, and it is eaten with fried dough or steamed buns. For a meat-free version, leave out the beef and use vegetable stock. The usual mistake is adding the starch slurry too fast, which turns the soup gluey and lumpy. Chef's tip: stir the soup in one direction while you pour the slurry in a thin ribbon, and stop when it coats the back of a spoon.

75 minChineseSoupsSpicy
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Herbata z sokiem malinowymTea with raspberry syrup

In Polish homes a bottle of sok malinowy, the raspberry syrup made each July from garden or forest raspberries, waits in the pantry for winter. When someone comes in from the frost, or lies in bed with a cold, it goes into a glass of hot black tea, sometimes with a slice of lemon; grandmothers insist it makes you sweat the chill out, and the drink is traditionally given at the first sign of a sniffle. It also appears simply after a winter walk or with a slice of cake. The tea turns ruby, tastes of summer berries with a light tannic edge, and is sweet enough without sugar. The usual mistake is pouring syrup into boiling tea straight from the kettle: the fresh raspberry aroma cooks off and only sweetness is left. Let the tea cool for a minute or two first. It is ready when the tea is deep amber, the syrup has fully swirled through and it smells clearly of raspberries. No homemade syrup? Use a good shop-bought raspberry syrup, or make the quick one in the optional steps. Chef's tip: brew the tea weaker than usual, about two minutes, so the fruit stays in front.

7 minPolishDrinksVeganGluten free
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Bollitos pelonesBeef-stuffed corn dumplings in tomato sauce

Bollitos pelones are proper home cooking from central Venezuela: little balls of corn dough tinted with onoto, stuffed with a spoonful of spiced minced beef and simmered in a light tomato sauce until the dough firms. Mothers make them for school-day lunches with white rice, and they reheat well. The common mistake is stirring the pot, which breaks the balls apart. Chef's tip: give the pan a gentle shake instead of stirring, and don't touch them for the first 10 minutes.

75 minVenezuelanMeatGluten free
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Jīdàn gēng for babies (steamed egg custard)

Jīdàn gēng, egg steamed with water into a quivering custard, is the dish Chinese grandparents everywhere from Shanghai to Guangzhou make for small children, and it is often the way a baby first meets whole egg at around nine months. The family version is finished with soy sauce, sesame oil and spring onion; this one is plain, so it tastes clean and gently eggy. Steamed slowly, it is smooth as silk and fully set. It contains egg and is free of milk, gluten, nuts, soya, sesame and fish. Chef's tip: cover the bowl with a plate while it steams; dripping condensation is what pockmarks the surface.

15 minChineseBreakfast & BrunchGluten free
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HilachasShredded beef in tomato sauce

The name means 'threads', and that is how the beef should look: pulled into fine strands and simmered with potato and carrot in a brick-red sauce of tomato, tomatillo and dried guajillo chilli. Hilachas is everyday food in Guatemala City, served at lunch counters with white rice and tortillas, and it is a thrifty way to stretch a piece of flank. Rushing the first simmer is the classic mistake: if the beef doesn't fall apart easily, it shreds into chewy chunks instead of threads. Chef's tip: shred the meat along the grain with two forks while it is still warm; cold beef tears unevenly.

120 minCentral AmericanMeatGluten free
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Hinger kochuriUrad dal stuffed puffed bread

In Kolkata's sweetshops, Sunday breakfast often means hinger kochuri: soft, white-flour puris stuffed with a smear of urad dal paste perfumed strongly with hing, fried puffy and served with aloo dum or a sweet-sour pumpkin chhokka. They are smaller and softer than North Indian kachoris, closer to a stuffed luchi. The hing must be generous; it is the point of the dish. The common mistake is a wet filling, which steams the dough from inside and stops it puffing; cook the dal paste until it leaves the pan dry. Chef's tip: roll gently from the centre outwards so the thin filling layer stays even and the kochuri puffs all over.

60 minIndianBreads & ParathasVegan
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Daegu-sal juk (cod and vegetable baby porridge)

In Korea, homemade baby food (iyusik) follows clear stages, and by the late stage around nine months, Seoul parents are making juk with roughly crushed rice and small pieces of fish and vegetables. Daegu-sal juk uses mild, flaky cod with sweet courgette (aehobak) and carrot, and no soy sauce, salt or sesame oil. It is creamy, delicate and soft enough to mash between the gums. It contains fish and is free of milk, egg, gluten, nuts, soya and sesame. Chef's tip: crush the soaked rice lightly with a rolling pin or a couple of pulses in a blender; broken grains thicken the juk faster and give exactly the soft lumps this stage needs.

35 minKoreanRice & GrainsGluten free
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HjortronsyltCloudberry jam

Cloudberries grow one berry to a stem on the bogs of Norrbotten, Lapland and northern Finland, and families guard their picking spots for generations. They ripen for barely two weeks in late July and August, turning from hard red to soft, honey-gold, and almost all of the harvest goes into hjortronsylt. It is a treasure kept for special days: warmed over vanilla ice cream, spooned onto Swedish waffles on Våffeldagen, served with warm leipäjuusto, Finland's squeaky baked cheese, and set out with cream on the Christmas table. The jam is loose and bright, tasting of apricot, sour apple and honey, with crunchy seeds. Unlike most jams it is cooked very briefly, so the delicate flavour survives. Common mistake: boiling it like strawberry jam; long cooking turns cloudberries brown and dull, so stop after a few minutes. It is ready when the sugar has dissolved and the berries look glossy and just collapsed. Chef's tip: frozen cloudberries from Nordic shops work perfectly; for a smoother jam, press half the berries through a sieve to remove seeds, as many Finnish cooks do.

25 minScandinavianChutneys & DipsVeganGluten free
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Manipuri boraGram flour fritters

Bora are the crisp fritters that Meitei families fry for evening tea, for guests and for festivals like Cheiraoba, using whatever is in season: onion and herbs, gourd flowers, or tender greens. The batter is gram flour with a little rice flour, so they stay crisp. The common mistake is a thick batter that makes doughy fritters; it should just coat the vegetables. Fill the pan no more than a third deep with oil, test it with a drop of batter (it should rise in 2–3 seconds) and never leave it unattended. Chef's tip: mix the batter just before frying so the vegetables don't weep and make it watery.

30 minIndianSnacks & StartersVeganGluten free
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HoenderpasteiChicken pie

Church bazaars from Paarl to Graaff-Reinet sell hoenderpastei by the slab, and a family-sized dish turns up at Christmas lunch and funerals alike. Under its puff pastry lid sits shredded chicken in a pale, silky sauce scented with allspice, cloves and a little nutmeg, with slices of boiled egg tucked through it. Sago is the old trick here: soaked and cooked in the stock, the little pearls swell into a glossy thickener that sets as the pie cools, so slices hold their shape. Serve it with geelrys, buttered green beans and a sharp beetroot salad. Chef's tip: let the filling cool before the pastry goes on; a hot filling melts the butter in the pastry and the lid bakes flat instead of rising into flaky layers.

120 minSouth AfricanChicken
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Chennai onion samosa

In Chennai's old tea shops, many started by Irani and Muslim families, a glass of strong tea comes with a plate of small onion samosas: thin, crackly pastry folded around a filling of nothing but slow-cooked onion, green chilli, curry leaves and a little poha to soak up the juices. They are sold by the dozen in the evenings and at bus stands across Tamil Nadu. The pastry is the thin, ready-rolled samosa-patti kind, so they are quick to fold. The common mistake is undercooking the onion, which leaks water and makes the samosas soggy; fry it until soft and sweet, then cool. Chef's tip: seal the folds with a thick paste of flour and water, not plain water, so they do not open in the oil.

65 minIndianSnacks & StartersVegan
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Pikelets

Pikelets are the small, thick pancakes Kiwi and Aussie kids learn to make first, cooked for afternoon tea in farmhouse kitchens from the Waikato to Tasmania and served with butter and jam, or jam and whipped cream. They are ready in 20 minutes and are best eaten warm. A common mistake is a pan that's too hot; they brown outside before the centre sets. Chef's tip: flip them when bubbles have popped on the surface and the edges look dry.

20 minNew ZealandBreakfast & Brunch
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Arvi ka salanColocasia in tangy gravy

Arvi ka salan is a Lahore and Karachi home curry, cooked on weekday evenings when the vegetable seller has a basket of small, hairy colocasia roots. The roots are boiled, peeled and simmered in a loose, sour gravy of onion, tomato, ajwain and a squeeze of lemon, so the slightly slippery arvi soaks up the spice and turns creamy at the centre. Eat it with hot roti or plain rice and a little raw onion. The usual mistake is undercooking the arvi: half-cooked colocasia leaves an itchy, scratchy feeling in the throat, so it must be soft all the way through. Chef's tip: once the boiled arvi is peeled, press each piece flat with your palm before it goes into the gravy, so the rough edges thicken the sauce.

50 minPakistaniCurriesVeganGluten free
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Hong suan tangFermented tomato sour soup base

In the Miao and Dong villages of Qiandongnan, south-east Guizhou, small wild 'hairy' tomatoes and red chillies ripen together in late summer, and every household fills tall jars with them to ferment into hong suan tang, the red sour base of the region's famous sour-soup fish and sour-soup beef hot pots. The fermented paste is bright scarlet, sharply sour, fruity and fiery, with a funk from the ferment that ordinary tomato never has. People say three days without sour and you walk unsteadily, and it goes into soups year round. Outside Guizhou, use cherry tomatoes, which have a similar high acidity. Common mistake: fermenting with too little salt or with wet produce, which goes mushy and off; dry everything first and weigh the salt. Normal signs: bubbles, a sour, wine-like fruity smell and liquid rising. Bad signs: fuzzy coloured mould, pink or black patches, or a rotten smell; discard. It is ready after 2–3 weeks, when it tastes clearly sour and the raw tomato taste has gone. Then keep it in the fridge for 3 months or freeze it. Chef's tip: fry a few spoonfuls in oil with ginger before adding stock; it turns a deeper red and smells richer.

60 minChineseBasicsVeganGluten freeSpicy
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CassareepCassava syrup

Cassareep is what makes Guyana's Christmas pepperpot dark, sweet-savoury and long-keeping, and in Amerindian villages of the Rupununi and along the rivers it is still boiled down from the juice of grated cassava. Traditional cassareep uses bitter cassava, whose raw juice is poisonous until it has been boiled for hours; this home version uses only sweet cassava (the kind sold in shops as yuca), and still boils the juice for a long time, because even sweet cassava must never be eaten raw. A little dark sugar helps it reach the deep colour that slow reduction gives in the villages. The usual mistake is stopping too soon, when it is brown and thin; it should be black and syrupy, like molasses. Chef's tip: take the pan off the heat when it coats a spoon thickly, as it thickens much more as it cools.

220 minGuyaneseBasicsVeganGluten free
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Karawila curryBitter gourd coconut curry

Bitter gourd is a favourite of older Sri Lankan cooks, and karawila curry appears on weekday tables across the island alongside rice, dal and a mild white curry to balance its bite. The gourd is salted, squeezed and lightly fried, then stewed in coconut milk with roasted curry powder, tamarind and a touch of sugar, so it becomes dark, glossy and pleasantly bitter rather than harsh. The usual mistake is skipping the salting and squeezing, which leaves the curry fiercely bitter. Chef's tip: fry the gourd until the edges are brown before it meets the coconut milk; the browning softens the bitterness more than sugar does.

35 minSri LankanCurriesVeganGluten free
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Kerau ko tarkariGreen pea and potato curry

Kerau ko tarkari turns up on Nepali tables in winter, when fresh peas are cheap in Kathmandu's Asan market, and it is a favourite in children's tiffin boxes with beaten rice or roti. Potatoes and peas are simmered with cumin, tomato and a little timur pepper until the potatoes start to break and thicken a soft, golden gravy. It is mild enough for children and goes with rice, roti or sel roti. The usual mistake is adding the peas with the potatoes: fresh peas go grey and mushy, so add them once the potatoes are half cooked. Chef's tip: crush a few potato pieces with the back of the spoon at the end; it gives the gravy body without cream.

30 minNepaliVegetarianVeganGluten free
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HrousFermented onion chilli paste

Hrous is the old pantry paste of Sfax and Djerba, made in late spring when the sweet onions come out of the ground and stored for months to season the year's fish couscous, stews, lablabi and simple saucers of olive oil for dipping bread. The onions are sliced, salted heavily and left for about a week to wilt and ferment, then squeezed dry and pounded with sweet and hot dried chilli, turmeric, caraway, coriander and crushed dried rosebuds, and packed into a jar under olive oil. A teaspoon goes a long way: it is brick red, salty, sour and fiery, with a funky onion sweetness and a perfumed finish from the roses, earthier and more complex than harissa. Sfaxi families stir it into fish dishes and spread it thinly on bread with olive oil at breakfast. The mistake to avoid is cutting the salt to make it milder, as the salt is what keeps the ferment safe; stick to 10% of the onion weight. The onions are ready when they are limp, smell pleasantly sour and pickled, and the paste turns glossy after a week under oil. Chef's tip: grind the rosebuds fresh, just before mixing, for the full perfume.

60 minTunisianChutneys & DipsVeganGluten freeSpicy
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Kohila curryLasia root curry

Kohila (lasia root) grows in the marshy paddy edges of Sri Lanka's south and west, and kohila curry is a traditional village dish, eaten at home and served at New Year and almsgiving lunches. The thorny stems and roots are peeled, sliced into crunchy rounds and boiled in tamarind water to take away their itchy bite, then simmered with roasted curry powder, mustard and coconut milk until tender but still slightly crisp. Serve with red rice and a green mallung. The usual mistake is skipping the boil, which leaves an itch in the throat. If you can't find fresh kohila, use frozen sliced kohila from Sri Lankan grocers. Chef's tip: wear gloves to peel kohila and drop the slices straight into water so they don't darken.

50 minSri LankanCurriesVeganGluten free
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Hummus el shamHot chickpeas with tahini

When the cold winds of January blow through Cairo and Alexandria, carts with steaming copper pots appear on street corners, outside universities and along the Corniche. The vendor ladles hummus el sham — Levantine chickpeas — into glasses: soft chickpeas in their own cooking broth, seasoned with lemon, cumin, salt and a fiery spoon of shatta, sometimes with tomato and chopped onion. It is drunk and eaten with a spoon, a warming, peppery, sour-salty cup that is very different from the dip. The common mistake is using undercooked chickpeas or draining away the cooking water: the broth is the drink, and it should be cloudy and slightly thick from chickpeas that are soft enough to crush between your fingers. A pinch of bicarbonate of soda in the pot helps them soften, as Cairo vendors do. It is ready when the broth tastes deeply of chickpeas and lemon, the cumin is fragrant and the chilli leaves a warm burn. Adjust the heat for children. Canned chickpeas with their liquid work in a pinch: simmer them for 10 minutes with fresh water. Chef's tip: squeeze the lemon into each cup at the end; boiled lemon turns bitter.

85 minEgyptianDrinksVeganGluten freeSpicy
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Adobong talong (aubergine adobo)

Adobo is a method in the Philippines, not a single dish, and when meat is short or it's Lent, Filipino families make it with long eggplant: fried until soft and browned, then simmered briefly in vinegar, soy sauce, garlic, bay and peppercorns. Like any adobo it tastes better the next day, which makes it a favourite for baon with rice. The common mistake is stirring as soon as the vinegar goes in; let it boil untouched for a minute first, or the sauce keeps a raw, sharp edge. Chef's tip: crush the garlic and fry half of it until golden to scatter on top at the end, for crunch.

30 minFilipinoVegetarianVegan
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HyldeblomstsaftElderflower cordial

In Denmark the elder hedges flower from late May to the end of June, and picking the creamy umbels on a dry, sunny morning is one of the first rituals of summer. The flowers steep for a few days with sliced lemon, sugar syrup and citric acid, then are strained into bottles of hyldeblomstsaft, a non-alcoholic cordial that is diluted with cold still or sparkling water and poured at garden lunches, children's birthday parties and around the bonfire on Sankt Hans aften, 23 June. It tastes floral and honeyed, a little like muscat grapes, with a fresh lemony edge that keeps it from cloying. The mistake most people make is picking flowers that are already browning, damp or growing by a busy road; they give a musty, catty smell. Choose freshly opened heads that smell sweet, and shake out the insects instead of washing them, which rinses away the pollen and the flavour. The cordial is ready when it tastes clearly of elderflower and the lemon slices have softened. Chef's tip: snip the florets off with scissors right under the flowers, as green stalk makes it bitter.

40 minScandinavianDrinksVeganGluten free
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Ajwaini arbiPan-fried colocasia with carom seeds

Across Delhi, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh, arbi is the vegetable that goes into a dabba with ajwain rotis or plain phulkas: the small colocasia roots are boiled, flattened slightly and pan-fried with carom seeds, red chilli and dried mango powder until crisp outside and creamy inside. Ajwain is there for its flavour and because it is said to help digest the starchy root. The mistake is boiling the arbi too long: it turns slimy and falls apart in the pan. Cook it until just tender, then cool fully before peeling. Chef's tip: press each piece gently with your palm to crack it before frying; the cracks catch the spices and crisp up.

40 minIndianSidesVeganGluten free
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IsijingiPumpkin and maize porridge

When the big grey-skinned pumpkins come in at the end of summer, Xhosa grandmothers around Butterworth and Ngcobo stew them down and stir in maize meal to make isijingi, a bright orange porridge that children love and adults secretly do too. It is soft and spoonable, gently sweet from the pumpkin and a little sugar, with the faint corn flavour of the meal underneath. Serve it as a side to beans or a vegetable stew, or eat a bowlful on its own for supper on a cold evening. Watery pumpkin is the classic mistake, so cook the pumpkin until most of its liquid has evaporated before the meal goes in. Chef's tip: use a dense, deep orange pumpkin or butternut, not a watery jack-o'-lantern type, for the sweetest flavour.

40 minSouth AfricanSidesVeganGluten free
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Dubu gangjeongSticky fried tofu cubes

Gangjeong usually means sticky glazed fried chicken, but Korean mothers make this tofu version for the dosirak because the starch coating stays crisp even after a morning in the lunchbox. The glaze is mild, sweet and garlicky, so children love it; add gochujang for the grown-ups. The common mistake is skipping the pressing, which leaves wet tofu that spits in the oil and goes soggy under the sauce. Chef's tip: let the fried cubes cool for two minutes before glazing, and boil the sauce to large, slow bubbles first, so it clings instead of soaking in.

30 minKoreanVegetarianVegan
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Iwashi no tsumire jiruSardine dumpling soup

Along the coasts of Chiba and Kanagawa, where sardines are landed in huge numbers in autumn, cooks chop them by hand into tsumire (fish dumplings) and drop them into a light dashi with daikon and carrot. It is an everyday supper soup, warming and very savoury, eaten with rice and pickles. Suitable as part of a balanced diet: sardines are rich in protein and omega-3 fats, and the soup is low in starch. About 220 kcal and 9 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is pureeing the sardines smooth in a processor, which makes the dumplings rubbery; chop with a knife, leaving a little texture. Chef's tip: add a teaspoon of miso and plenty of ginger to the fish paste; it seasons it and hides any strong fishiness.

40 minJapaneseSoups
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Daing na bangusMarinated fried milkfish

Bangus (milkfish) is the national fish of the Philippines, and daing na bangus, butterflied and soaked overnight in vinegar, garlic and pepper, then fried until the skin shatters, is a favourite morning plate from Pangasinan to Manila. It comes with garlic rice, a fried egg and a dip of spiced vinegar. Buy it boneless (deboned bangus) from Filipino shops, or use mackerel fillets. The usual mistake is putting the wet fish straight into the oil, which spits and stops it crisping. Chef's tip: pat the fish completely dry and fry skin side down first, pressing gently, without moving it for five minutes.

40 minFilipinoFishGluten free
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Candied salmon

Candied salmon, sometimes called salmon candy, comes from the First Nations smokehouses of British Columbia's coast, where strips of wild salmon are cured in salt and brown sugar, then slowly smoked and glazed until sticky, chewy and deep red. It is a snack for the trail, the fishing boat and the lunchbox. This home version cures the fish in the fridge and then cooks it low in the oven with a little smoked salt or liquid smoke, so it is fully cooked rather than cold-smoked. A common mistake is skipping the drying stage; the pellicle (a tacky skin) is what lets the glaze cling. Chef's tip: keep the oven low and steady; too hot and the fish weeps white albumen.

210 minCanadianFishGluten free
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Bush tomato chutney

Bush tomato, known as akudjura or desert raisin, is the small fruit of a desert plant gathered by Aboriginal people in Central Australia and around Alice Springs; dried and ground, it tastes of caramel, tamarillo and sun-dried tomato. A spoon of it turns an ordinary tomato chutney into something rich and smoky, great with cheese, barbecues and burgers. Buy ground akudjura from a native food supplier; only the ripe dried fruit of the right species is safe to eat, so never forage it. A common mistake is adding too much; it is strong. Chef's tip: toast the ground bush tomato in the oil first to wake up its flavour.

75 minAustralianChutneys & DipsVeganGluten free
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Jaulo for babiesRice porridge for babies

Jaulo is the soft rice and lentil porridge Nepali families in Kathmandu and the hills turn to for anyone small, tired or getting over a cold. After a baby's pasni, the rice-feeding ceremony held at five or six months, it soon becomes a regular lunch, and from about nine months it is mashed lumpy rather than smooth. This version keeps the ghee, cumin and turmeric for gentle flavour but leaves out the usual salt, garlic and ginger. It is warm, buttery and comforting. It contains milk (ghee) and is free of gluten, egg, nuts, soya and sesame. Chef's tip: fry the cumin only until it smells toasty and is a shade darker; burnt cumin turns the whole pot bitter.

35 minNepaliRice & GrainsGluten free
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Eenthapazham acharDate pickle

Date pickle came to Kerala with the Gulf, and in Malabar and central Travancore it has become a fixture at weddings, where it sits on the leaf beside the biriyani or the sadya rice. Pitted dates are simmered briefly in a gingelly-oil masala of garlic, ginger, green chilli and Kashmiri chilli, then loosened with vinegar and a little sugar. The dates stay plump and sticky, and the sauce is sweet, sour and gently hot all at once, like a spiced chutney with more punch. Serve it with ghee rice or biriyani, with chapati and a mild kurma, or tucked into a sandwich with cucumber. The common mistake is cooking the dates for too long so they dissolve into paste; add them at the end and warm them through for only a few minutes. It is ready when the masala is glossy and thick enough to cling to each date and the oil shines at the edges. With garlic and ginger in it, the vinegar (at least 5% acidity, undiluted) keeps it sharp, but it still belongs in the fridge: it keeps up to a month. Chef's tip: use soft, semi-dry dates rather than very sticky ones; they hold their shape and soak up the vinegar better.

40 minIndianChutneys & DipsVeganGluten free
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