Featured recipe

Sayur lodeh

Sayur lodeh is everyday cooking in Central Java, made in big pots in Solo and Semarang kitchens and ladled over rice, with lontong rice cakes at Lebaran, or alongside opor and sambal goreng on festive tables. It's soupy rather than thick: a fragrant broth of coconut milk, galangal, lemongrass and lime leaf that carries chunks of aubergine, long beans, chayote and sweetcorn, plus tempeh and tofu to make it a meal. The flavour is mellow and slightly sweet, so the heat comes from sambal on the side. Chef's tip: keep the pot at a gentle simmer once the coconut milk goes in and stir now and then — a rolling boil splits the coconut milk into oily curds.

What to eat today?

Spin the randomizer, search with what's already in your fridge, or browse recipes from our chefs.

Pick a recipe for me Cook with what I have Ask in plain words Tonight's pick

Latest recipes

Kolo mee

Ask anyone from Kuching what they miss most and the answer is usually kolo mee, a bowl that looks almost too simple: curly, springy egg noodles tossed in fragrant shallot oil, a little soy and white pepper, then crowned with savoury minced pork and slices of char siu. There is no thick gravy and no chilli on top; the flavour is clean, porky and aromatic, and the texture is the whole point, each strand bouncy and separate. Stalls often add a dash of red char siu oil for the 'red' version. It is eaten at any hour with a small bowl of clear soup and pickled green chilli on the side. Chef's tip: cook the noodles in small portions in a big pot of fiercely boiling water and shake them really dry; any leftover water dilutes the shallot oil.

40 min

Malaysian Pasta & Noodles

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Salata aswad

Salata aswad, the 'black salad', is a Khartoum favourite: aubergine fried until almost black and collapsing, then mashed with peanut butter, garlic, lime and a little chilli into a rich, smoky spread. It is served at Ramadan iftars and family lunches with kisra or bread, next to ful and fresh tomato salad. The peanut is what makes it Sudanese rather than a Levantine aubergine dip. Chef's tip: salt the aubergine and squeeze it dry before frying; it absorbs far less oil.

40 min

Sudanese Chutneys & Dips

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Tudkiya bhath

Tudkiya bhath comes from Chamba in western Himachal Pradesh, where it is the dish cooks make when a crowd turns up: rice, whole lentils and potato cooked in one big pot with fried onions, tomato and a tangy splash of yogurt. Tudka means tempering, and the name hints at the generous mustard-oil base of whole spices that flavours every grain. It is heartier and spicier than a pulao, a little wetter than a biryani, and is usually eaten with a bowl of plain yogurt or a sour pickle. Chef's tip: fry the onions properly to a deep golden brown; they give the rice its colour and its sweetness.

75 min

Indian Rice & Grains

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Madra

Madra is the pride of the Himachali dham, the communal feast cooked by hereditary cooks called botis at weddings and temple fairs in Chamba and Kangra. Chickpeas are simmered in yogurt with ghee, cloves, cardamom and cinnamon until the sauce turns thick, pale and rich, with no onion or garlic at all. It arrives on a leaf plate beside rice, rajmah and kadhi, and some families add a few raisins or cashews for a festive touch. Chef's tip: cook the chickpeas until they squash easily between two fingers before they go into the yogurt; they won't soften further once the sauce is in.

90 min

Indian Curries

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Mullah bamia

Mullah is the Sudanese word for the thick stews that go with kisra and aseeda, and mullah bamia, with okra, is one of the most loved, cooked in homes from Khartoum to Kassala. The base is a large amount of onion cooked very slowly until it melts, then tomato and garlic; the okra is left to soften until the sauce turns silky. Many households add dried ground okra (weika) for a thicker, earthier stew. It is normally made with meat; here it is all vegetable. Chef's tip: cook the onions until they collapse into a jam before adding anything else; that slow base is what gives mullah its depth.

70 min

Sudanese Curries

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Butter chicken

Butter chicken was born in the Punjabi restaurants of Old Delhi after Partition, when cooks found a way to use up tandoori chicken by simmering it in tomatoes, butter and cream. It is not the same as chicken tikka masala: tikka masala builds its sauce on fried onions and is chunkier and spicier, while makhani gravy has no onion at all, is strained silky-smooth, and gets its gentle sweetness and smoky-savoury note from butter, cashews and dried fenugreek leaves. It is the dish families order for celebrations across Delhi and Punjab, mopped up with butter naan or eaten with jeera rice, and it's mild enough for children. Chef's tip: crush the kasuri methi between your palms right over the pot; that one step is what makes it taste like the restaurant version.

70 min

Indian Chicken

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Amritsari aloo wadiyan

Every winter, rooftops in Amritsar's old city are covered with trays of wadiyan: little cones of spiced urad-dal paste studded with black pepper and dried in the sun until rock hard. Punjabi homes break them into chunks, fry them until they smell nutty, and simmer them with potatoes in a mustard-oil gravy. The wadiyan soften into chewy, spicy, almost meaty pieces, and the potatoes soak up their pepper. It is everyday comfort food, eaten with hot phulkas or rice and a raw onion on the side. Chef's tip: wadiyan are already salted and spiced, so add salt only at the end, after tasting.

55 min

Indian Curries

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Sepu vadi

No dham in Mandi district of Himachal Pradesh is complete without sepu vadi. Light urad-dal dumplings are fried, softened in warm water and then simmered in a smooth spinach gravy tangy with yogurt, until they swell up and turn spongy. The botis who cook the feast make huge copper pots of it, served on leaf plates with rice and eaten with the fingers. At home it makes a rich weekend curry with rice or chapati. Chef's tip: beat the ground dal by hand for a few minutes before frying; the air you whip in is what makes the vadi light.

75 min

Indian Curries

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Salatat daqua

Daqua is the Sudanese name for peanut paste, and this everyday salad of tomato, cucumber, onion and green chilli dressed in thinned peanut butter and lime sits on the table at almost every meal in Omdurman and Khartoum, especially in the hot months. It is cooling, crunchy and creamy at once, and is eaten with ful medames, kisra or grilled food. Chef's tip: thin the peanut butter with water and lime before adding it to the vegetables; dolloped straight in, it clumps and never coats them.

15 min

Sudanese Salads

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Babru

Ask anyone who grew up in Shimla about babru and they will mention a paper plate of them in the Lower Bazaar, still puffing from the oil, with a ladle of dark tamarind chutney poured over. Unlike Uttar Pradesh's flaky urad kachori, babru is made from a soft, yeasted wheat dough, so it fries up light and bready, and it is pressed flat and wide rather than shaped into a ball. The filling is whole black gram, soaked and ground with ginger and green chilli. In Himachal homes it is a tea-time and festival snack, and it travels well in a tiffin. Chef's tip: grind the dal coarse and thick, like hummus; a runny paste leaks and makes the babru greasy.

120 min

Indian Breads & Parathas

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Chingri malaikari

Big prawns in a pale, silky coconut gravy are what a Bengali family cooks for guests, for a new son-in-law at Jamai Sasthi, or for a wedding lunch. The dish is gently spiced, a little sweet, and leans on the head fat of the prawns for richness, so it tastes of the sea rather than of chilli. Serve it with steamed gobindobhog or basmati rice. Chef's tip: if you can find shell-on prawns with heads, leave the heads on; squeeze them into the gravy as you eat for the full flavour.

45 min

Indian Fish

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Kung pao chicken

Named after a 19th-century governor of Sichuan, gong bao chicken is weeknight food in Chengdu: small cubes of tender thigh meat tossed in a wok with scorched chillies, tingling Sichuan pepper and crunchy peanuts. Its signature is the glossy sauce Sichuan cooks call 'lychee flavour', sweet and sour in equal measure, clinging lightly rather than pooling on the plate. The chilli here perfumes the oil more than it burns, so it is the gentlest of the classic Sichuan stir-fries. Serve it with plain steamed rice and a green vegetable such as stir-fried pak choi. Chef's tip: mix the sauce in a bowl before you light the hob, because the whole stir-fry is over in about four minutes and there is no time to measure once the wok is hot.

25 min

Chinese Chicken

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Texas chili con carne

Texans call it a 'bowl of red', and at chili cook-offs from San Antonio to Terlingua the rules are firm: chunks of beef, a sauce made from dried chillies, cumin and garlic, and no beans in the pot. Beef chuck braises slowly in a brick-red purée of toasted ancho and guajillo chillies until it falls apart at a touch. Serve with chopped onion, grated cheese and crackers or cornbread. Chef's tip: toast the dried chillies only until they smell fragrant and soften, about 30 seconds per side; burnt chillies make the whole pot bitter.

210 min

American Meat

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Lancashire hotpot

Lancashire hotpot was the slow supper of the cotton-mill towns of north-west England, left in a low oven while families worked long shifts, and it is still served in pubs and homes around Bolton and Preston with pickled red cabbage on the side. Chunks of lamb neck and lots of onion cook slowly in stock beneath overlapping slices of potato that turn golden and crisp on top and soft underneath. Chef's tip: brush the top layer with melted butter and take the lid off for the last 40 minutes; that is how the potatoes crisp.

180 min

British Meat

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Khambir

Khambir is the everyday bread of Ladakh: a thick, round wholewheat loaf with a dent pressed into the middle, browned on a griddle and finished in the heat of the kitchen stove. In homes in Leh and Kargil it appears at breakfast, torn into chunks and dipped into salty butter tea, or spread with apricot jam made from the region's dried apricots. The crust is chewy and toasty, the inside dense and slightly sour. Bakers in Leh's old town still sell it warm in the mornings. Chef's tip: let the dough rise until truly doubled; under-risen khambir is heavy and gummy in the middle.

150 min

Indian Breads & Parathas

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Qalb el louz

Qalb el louz ('heart of almond') is the Ramadan sweet of Algiers: a dense, sandy semolina cake with a ribbon of almond filling, cut into diamonds with an almond on top and soaked in syrup while hot. Pastry shops in the Casbah sell it by the tray after iftar, to eat with mint tea or coffee late into the night. The semolina is soaked overnight in butter and water, which gives it its moist, grainy crumb. Chef's tip: pour cold syrup over the hot cake; hot syrup on a hot cake makes it soggy instead of moist.

90 min

Algerian Baking

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Samgyetang

On the three hottest days of the Korean summer, called boknal, queues form outside samgyetang restaurants all over the country. The idea is to fight heat with heat: a small whole chicken is stuffed with glutinous rice, ginseng, jujubes and garlic, then simmered until the meat falls off the bone. Each person gets their own bird in its own bowl, with salt and pepper for dipping. Ginseng is not advised in pregnancy, so leave it out if unsure. Chef's tip: cut a small slit in the skin of one thigh and tuck the other leg through it, so the stuffing stays inside without string.

90 min

Korean Chicken

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Ladakhi skyu

Skyu is what Ladakhi families in Leh and the villages along the Indus cook when the passes close and fresh vegetables run short: a thick stew of turnip, potato and carrot with little cups of wheat dough pressed with the thumb, a bit like orecchiette. It is filling, gently peppery and made in a single pot on the kitchen stove that also heats the house. Some homes finish it with a splash of milk or a crumble of dried cheese; this version keeps it plant-based and lets the vegetables flavour the broth. Chef's tip: press each piece of dough thin enough to see the thumbprint clearly; thick pieces stay doughy in the middle.

60 min

Indian Soups

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Showing 18 of 4,484 recipes

Show more recipes

Page 254 of 499