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Involtini di pesce spada
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Involtini di pesce spada

Swordfish rolls

Swordfish has been hunted in the Strait of Messina for centuries, and in early summer, when the boats with their tall lookout towers are out, the city's cooks roll thin slices around a filling of toasted breadcrumbs, pine nuts, raisins, lemon and parsley. Threaded onto skewers with bay leaves and onion, they are grilled or baked until just opaque, sweet-salty and fragrant. Serve with lemon wedges and a fennel and orange salad. Swordfish is high in mercury, so pregnant women and young children should limit how often they eat it; thin slices of tuna loin work too. Chef's tip: ask the fishmonger to slice the swordfish as thinly as possible, then pound it gently between sheets of cling film to 3 mm.

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Water chestnut cake

Dim sum halls across Hong Kong lay out amber squares of water chestnut cake on small plates, and every Lunar New Year home kitchens steam a tray to give away to visitors. Set from water chestnut starch and brown slab sugar, the cake is translucent and gently chewy, flecked with pieces of fresh water chestnut that stay crisp and juicy. It is eaten cold and wobbly in summer, or sliced and pan-fried until the outside forms a caramel crust with a soft centre, with a cup of jasmine or oolong tea. A frequent problem is a lumpy, cloudy cake, which comes from pouring the hot syrup into the starch all at once without stirring. Chef's tip: let the cake set completely, ideally overnight in the fridge, before slicing with a knife dipped in water.

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Siu yuk (Cantonese crispy roast pork belly)

Hanging in the window of every Hong Kong siu mei shop beside the char siu and roast goose, siu yuk is a slab of pork belly whose skin has been roasted into a glassy, bubbled crackling that crunches loudly over juicy, five-spice-seasoned layers of meat and fat. Shops chop it into cubes for rice boxes at lunch, and whole slabs are carried to temples and family altars at Ching Ming and on festival days. Serve it with English-style mustard and a dish of sugar for dipping, plus rice and greens. The usual error is a damp skin: any moisture left on it steams instead of crackles, so the belly must dry uncovered in the fridge overnight. Chef's tip: prick the skin all over with a sharp skewer until it looks like sandpaper; those tiny holes are where the blisters start.

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Tainan beef soup

Before dawn in Tainan, workers and night owls fill steamy shops near the slaughterhouse districts for bowls of fresh local beef sliced paper-thin and blanched by a ladle of boiling broth, eaten with rice and a saucer of soy and ginger as a sunrise breakfast. The meat is tender and rosy, the broth clean, sweet and beefy. Traditionally the slices are barely cooked; this recipe gives a safer 30-second dip in simmering broth and a fully cooked option. The pink version is not for pregnant women, young children or anyone with a weakened immune system. People often cut the beef too thick, so it toughens before it cooks through; firm it in the freezer and slice it as thin as you can. Chef's tip: bring the broth to a hard, rolling boil right before every ladle; a broth that has dropped off the boil never cooks the beef evenly.

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Mango pudding

Wobbling out of fish-shaped moulds at the end of a Hong Kong dim sum lunch, mango pudding is just as popular in small cups from dessert chains, which sell it through the sticky summer months when Philippine and Thai mangoes flood the markets. It's smooth, creamy and full of fruit, with pieces of fresh mango through it and a drizzle of cold evaporated milk on top. Restaurants usually set it with gelatine; this version uses agar, which keeps it vegetarian and sets slightly firmer and cleaner. The problem with agar is impatience: it begins to set below about 40 °C, so cold purée added too slowly turns into lumpy strands. Chef's tip: warm the mango purée before you mix it in, then whisk briskly and pour into the moulds right away.

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Ginger milk curd

Born in the Pearl River Delta town of Shawan in Panyu, Guangdong, ginger milk curd crossed the border to become a favourite of Hong Kong dessert parlours in Jordan and Causeway Bay, ordered hot on a winter night. There's no setting agent: an enzyme in fresh ginger juice curdles hot milk within minutes into a trembling, spoonable custard that's sweet, creamy and warming, with a peppery ginger kick. It is eaten straight from the bowl while still warm, with nothing alongside. Long-life UHT milk is the classic mistake, since its proteins have been changed by the high heat and it simply won't set; use fresh pasteurised whole cow's milk. Chef's tip: use mature, fibrous ginger rather than young pink-tipped ginger, and heat the milk to 70–75 °C, measured with a thermometer.

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Black sesame soup

Steaming bowls of inky ji ma wu are a staple of Hong Kong dessert shops on cool evenings, eaten after dinner or as a late-night snack on the way home. The soup is thick enough to coat a spoon, nutty and roasted with a faint bitterness that balances the rock sugar, and so smooth it feels like warm velvet. It's often paired half-and-half in one bowl with almond tea or walnut soup, or served with sweet glutinous rice balls. Over-toasting the sesame is the mistake to avoid; once the seeds scorch, the whole pot tastes acrid. Chef's tip: blend the toasted seeds with water for a full two minutes, until no grit is left between your fingers, before it goes into the pan.

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Steamed egg with minced pork

Hong Kong grandmothers make this on busy weeknights, and it is one of the first dishes children there learn to love: a trembling, glass-smooth egg custard with a layer of soy-seasoned minced pork underneath, served in its dish with a drizzle of soy and sesame oil and a bowl of white rice. It costs little, cooks in minutes and tastes of comfort. Getting the texture right is all about gentle heat. The pitfall nearly everyone hits is steaming on full blast with no lid on the dish, which gives a pitted, spongy surface; cover the bowl and steam on a medium heat instead. Chef's tip: use warm stock or water at 1½ times the volume of the beaten eggs, and strain the mixture through a sieve to remove the bubbles.

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Beef brisket noodles

Queues form outside the brisket shops of Central and Sham Shui Po at lunchtime for a bowl of ngau naam min: wobbly chunks of beef brisket, braised for hours with chu hou paste, star anise, cinnamon and dried tangerine peel until the fat and sinew melt, set over springy egg noodles in a separate, clear, peppery broth with daikon. The braise is dark, sticky and aromatic, the broth light and clean, and you dip between them. A slosh of Shaoxing rice wine goes in the braise; an alcohol-free swap is in the ingredient list. Many home cooks cut the brisket before cooking into small cubes, which then shrink and dry out; braise it in big pieces and cut it afterwards. Chef's tip: the braise is better the next day, so make it ahead, chill it and lift off the fat before reheating.

180 minHong KongPasta & Noodles
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HangikjötSmoked lamb with white sauce

Hangikjöt, 'hung meat', is the Icelandic Christmas Day dinner: lamb or mutton smoked over birch or dried sheep dung, then simmered slowly and served hot or cold with potatoes in white sauce (uppstúfur), green peas, red cabbage and laufabrauð or flatkökur. Icelanders buy it ready-smoked in December; it is cooked at home. A common mistake is boiling it hard, which toughens the meat and makes it too salty. Chef's tip: let it cool in its cooking water; the meat stays juicy and absorbs back some of the flavour.

130 minScandinavianMeat
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AwazeBerbere chilli dipping paste

Wherever tibs are fried or meat is grilled in Ethiopia, from roadside butcher-restaurants on the edge of Addis Ababa to wedding feasts, a small dish of brick-red awaze sits beside it. It is berbere turned into a thick, glossy paste: hot, garlicky, a little sharp from lemon, with a rounded warmth from the spices. Strips of meat are dabbed into it, it is stirred into a pan of tibs at the last moment, and a spoon of it livens up plain lentils too. Some cooks loosen it with tej (honey wine) or red wine, both of which contain alcohol; this version uses water and lemon juice and is entirely alcohol-free. Chef's tip: let it rest for an hour before using; the raw edge of the chilli softens and the garlic mellows into the paste.

12 minEthiopianChutneys & DipsVeganGluten freeSpicy
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AvelookDried braided sorrel with walnuts

In Syunik, the mountainous south of Armenia around Goris, women pick wild mountain sorrel in May and braid the long leaves into ropes that hang drying in every kitchen. In winter and during Lent the braids are soaked, simmered until soft and fried with onion and walnuts, giving a dark, earthy, sour salad with a taste somewhere between spinach and olives. Braids are sold in Armenian shops. A common mistake is skipping the second boil, which leaves the leaves bitter and tough. Chef's tip: squeeze the cooked sorrel well and fry it long enough to dry and slightly crisp at the edges; that is when the flavour deepens.

60 minArmenianSaladsVeganGluten free
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BozartmaLamb stew with tomato and saffron

Bozartma comes from Ganja, Azerbaijan's second city at the foot of the Lesser Caucasus, where lamb on the bone is browned and then stewed with a mountain of onions and tomatoes until the sauce turns thick and red-gold with saffron. The name hints at the browning (boz, 'grey-brown'), and Ganja cooks say the onions must melt completely. It is eaten with bread and greens, and a chicken version is common too. A common mistake is adding water; the onions and tomatoes give all the liquid needed. Chef's tip: cook it uncovered for the last 15 minutes, until the fat rises to the top; that is how Ganja cooks know bozartma is ready.

105 minAzerbaijaniMeatGluten free
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Brabants worstenbroodSausage roll

Worstenbrood is a Brabant institution, bought from bakeries in Eindhoven, Tilburg and Den Bosch for birthday mornings, Sunday breakfast and above all for carnival in February: a soft, slightly sweet bread dough wrapped around a log of minced pork seasoned with nutmeg, pepper and clove, baked golden. This is a pork dish. A common mistake is wrapping the dough too thick, which leaves a doughy roll and an undercooked middle. Chef's tip: roll the dough thin and bake until the filling reaches 71 °C; eat it warm from the oven.

70 minDutchSnacks & Starters
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Soy sauce fried noodles

Order this at a Hong Kong cha chaan teng or a dim sum breakfast and it lands on the table glossy, mahogany brown and smelling of the wok, a plate of nothing more than noodles, soy sauce, bean sprouts and spring onions. Thin egg noodles turn springy and slightly crisp at the edges, coated in a sweet-salty soy glaze, while the sprouts stay crunchy. Locals eat it for breakfast with milk tea, or share it at yum cha next to steamed dumplings, often with a dab of chilli oil. Wet noodles are the enemy here: if they go into the wok damp, they steam, clump and turn soggy instead of frying. Chef's tip: toss the noodles with chopsticks or tongs rather than a spatula, lifting and shaking them through the sauce, so the strands stay long and separate.

20 minHong KongPasta & Noodles
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Champola de guanábanaSoursop milk shake

On a sticky afternoon in Havana, a tall glass of champola is the classic cooler: soursop pulp blended with ice-cold milk and a little sugar into something between a shake and a fruit drink. Soursop (guanábana) tastes of pineapple, banana and lemon at once, with a creamy body all its own. The common mistake is blending the black seeds in, which makes the drink bitter, so remove every one or use frozen pulp. Chef's tip: add a squeeze of lime just before serving; it sharpens the fruit and stops the drink tasting flat.

10 minCubanDrinksGluten free
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AushNoodle soup with beans and yogurt

Aush is the bowl Afghan mothers make when someone in the house has a cold or the first snow falls on Kabul, a thick, tangy soup of hand-cut noodles, kidney beans and chickpeas, enriched with garlicky yogurt and finished with a spoonful of spiced minced meat and a heavy dusting of dried mint. The broth is slightly sour, creamy and warming with chilli, and the noodles are soft and a little slippery. It is a meal in itself, eaten with nothing more than naan and pickles. For a vegetarian version, leave out the meat sauce and add a handful of cooked mung beans. Noodles dropped into a soup that has gone off the boil stick together into a clump, so keep it bubbling as you add them a few at a time. Chef's tip: stir the yogurt in only after the pan is off the heat, so it turns the broth creamy without splitting.

90 minAfghanSoups
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Atjar tjampoerSweet-sour mixed vegetable pickle

Atjar tjampoer is the bright yellow pickle in every Dutch-Indonesian toko and on every rijsttafel: crisp cucumber, carrot, cabbage, cauliflower and shallot pickled in a sweet-sour vinegar brine coloured with turmeric, with a little chilli and ginger. It cuts through rich satay and rendang. A common mistake is cooking the vegetables, which makes them soft; they should only be blanched or simply covered with hot brine. Chef's tip: salt the cucumber first and squeeze it, so it stays crunchy for days.

30 minDutchChutneys & DipsVeganGluten free
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AthirasaFried rice flour jaggery cakes

Athirasa, a dark, flat disc with a shiny, slightly crinkled surface, is one of the keeping sweets of the Avurudu season: families fry stacks of them in early April, store them in tins and offer them to every visitor for weeks. The dough is simply rice flour stirred into jaggery syrup cooked to the soft-ball stage, flavoured with cardamom and left to rest, then patted into rounds and fried until deep brown. The cook presses each one firmly between two flat spoons or saucers to squeeze out excess oil, which gives athirasa its chewy, toffee-like centre and lacy, crisp edges. The typical slip is undercooking the syrup, which makes the dough too soft to shape and causes the rounds to fall apart in the oil. Chef's tip: shape the discs on a piece of oiled banana leaf or baking paper and slide them straight into the oil from it, so they keep a neat round shape.

60 minSri LankanDessertsVeganGluten free
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Maqaw chicken soupMountain pepper chicken soup

High in the mountains of northern Taiwan, in Atayal villages around Wulai and Fuxing, maqaw berries are picked from the mountain litsea tree in summer and dried to flavour soups, grilled meat and tea. In this clear chicken soup, served at home suppers and in Indigenous restaurants with millet or rice and wild greens, the crushed berries give a fresh lemongrass-and-ginger perfume with a gentle peppery tingle. Bone-in chicken simmered slowly makes a light, golden broth. People spoil it by adding the maqaw at the start and boiling it for an hour, which turns it bitter; add it for the last 15 minutes instead. If you can't find maqaw, use black peppercorns, a stalk of lemongrass and a strip of lemon zest. Chef's tip: lightly crush the berries just before they go in; whole ones barely flavour the broth, while powder makes it cloudy.

60 minTaiwaneseSoupsGluten free
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Atama soupPalm nut and atama leaf soup

From Abak and the Ibibio heartland of Akwa Ibom comes this palm-nut soup with a perfume all its own: atama leaves, which smell somewhere between mint, anise and fresh hay. The palm cream is cooked with assorted meat, stockfish, dried fish and periwinkles until the oil glistens on top, then the atama goes in near the end. It is weekend and visitors' food, eaten with pounded yam, fufu or eba. Dried atama is sold in African shops; dried tarragon is the closest substitute. Periwinkles should be bought cleaned, and any with cracked shells thrown away. Avoid adding the atama leaves too early: long boiling dulls their perfume. Chef's tip: go easy on the atama, as too much turns the soup bitter, so start with the amount below and taste before adding more.

90 minNigerianMeatGluten free
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Asun peppered goatPeppered grilled goat

Asun started in Ekiti, where goat was roasted whole over an open fire, and it has become the star of Lagos owambe parties and Friday evenings at the bar. Skin-on goat is boiled with seasoning until just tender, grilled until smoky and charred at the edges, chopped into bite-size pieces, then tossed in a hot sauce of scotch bonnet, onion and a little oil. It is chewy in a good way, smoky and very spicy, eaten on its own, with jollof rice or with cold drinks. Cook the goat until tender and no pink remains. Chef's tip: dry the boiled goat well before grilling; wet meat steams and never takes on the charred, smoky flavour that makes asun.

95 minNigerianMeatGluten freeSpicy
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Salade liégeoiseWarm green bean and potato salad

Salade liégeoise is the warm salad of Liège, eaten as a main course in the city's brasseries in summer when green beans are in season: just-cooked green beans and waxy potatoes tossed while warm with onion softened in butter and a sharp vinegar dressing, scattered with parsley. In Liège it is made with crisp bacon lardons; this version leaves them out and adds a fried egg on top for a fuller meal if you like. A common mistake is dressing cold vegetables, which don't absorb the vinegar. Chef's tip: deglaze the onion pan with the vinegar, then pour it straight over the hot beans and potatoes.

30 minBelgianSaladsGluten free
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Asopao de polloSoupy chicken and rice

Somewhere between a soup and a risotto, asopao is the pot Puerto Rican mothers put on for a rainy Sunday, a cold, or a hangover after a long party night, and it is spooned straight from deep bowls with tostones on the side. Bone-in chicken is seasoned with garlic, oregano and lime, simmered in a sofrito broth, then rice goes in until the whole pot turns thick and brothy, finished with olives, capers, peas and strips of roasted pepper. The common mistake is making it ahead: the rice keeps drinking the broth and turns stodgy, so cook it just before eating, or keep extra stock to loosen leftovers. Chef's tip: take the pot off the heat while the rice is still a touch firm; it carries on cooking in the bowl.

75 minPuerto RicanSoupsGluten free
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Galinha à portuguesa (Portuguese chicken)

Puzzlingly, you will not find this in Portugal: galinha à portuguesa belongs to Macau, where cooks mixed a Portuguese idea of a creamy baked chicken with the turmeric, curry powder and coconut milk that came through the Portuguese trading routes from Goa and Malacca. Macanese restaurants and Hong Kong's cha chaan teng serve it bubbling in a clay pot or baking dish, golden on top, with chicken and potatoes in a mild, yellow, gently sweet coconut sauce, always with white rice to soak it up. It is a favourite for family dinners and Christmas tables. The thing people get wrong is boiling the coconut sauce hard, so it splits and turns oily; keep it at a gentle simmer. Chef's tip: brown the chicken well first, and finish under a hot grill for the speckled golden top that Macau restaurants are known for.

75 minMacaneseChickenGluten free
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Lo mai gai (sticky rice in lotus leaf)

Unfold the dried lotus leaf at a Hong Kong yum cha table and a cloud of tea-scented steam rises from a parcel of glossy sticky rice, hiding a centre of soy-braised chicken thigh, shiitake and slices of lap cheong, the sweet Chinese pork sausage. Teahouses from Sheung Wan to Mong Kok sell it from the morning trolleys, and office workers grab one as a filling breakfast with a pot of pu'er. The rice is chewy and sticky but each grain stays whole, and the leaf gives it a faint grassy perfume. Shaoxing rice wine goes into the filling; an alcohol-free swap is given in the ingredient list. The most common mistake is cooking the rice in water like plain rice: soaked glutinous rice must be steamed, or it turns into paste. Chef's tip: wrap the parcels tightly and steam them again from cold or frozen; they reheat better than almost any dim sum.

130 minHong KongRice & Grains
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Aseedat bobarPumpkin pudding with ghee

In Doha and Kuwait City, aseedat bobar arrives on winter evenings and at Ramadan iftar in a shallow dish, smooth and orange, with a little pool of melted ghee in the centre. Bobar is the Gulf word for red pumpkin, cooked down and thickened with toasted flour, sugar and cardamom into a soft, spoonable sweet that tastes a bit like a spiced pumpkin pie filling. Scoop it warm with a spoon or with pieces of bread, alongside Arabic coffee. Stopping the stirring too soon is the usual mistake: the pudding must cook until it pulls away from the sides, or it tastes of raw flour. Chef's tip: toast the flour in a dry pan until it smells like biscuits before it goes in; that nutty note is what makes it.

45 minGulf ArabianDesserts
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Asa watFish in berbere stew

Around Lake Tana in Bahir Dar and on the shores of Lake Hawassa, fresh tilapia, Nile perch and catfish are cheap and plentiful, so fish goes into the same deep red berbere sauce that elsewhere would hold beef or chicken. Asa wat has the familiar long-cooked onion base and warming spice, but it is lighter than a meat wat, with tender, sweet chunks of fish soaking up the sauce. It is eaten with injera, often alongside a lentil or greens dish, and is a popular choice on fasting days for those who eat fish. Stirring once the fish is in is the classic mistake; it breaks into shreds, so shake the pan instead. Chef's tip: add the fish only once the sauce is fully cooked and thick, then give it no more than 10 minutes.

55 minEthiopianFishGluten freeSpicy
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Asa tibsFried tilapia pieces

Down by the fish market on the shore of Lake Hawassa, cooks fry tilapia straight from the boats and serve it with injera, bread and a fiery dip, and asa tibs is the version you can easily make at home. Bite-sized pieces of fillet are dusted, fried until crisp and golden, then tossed briefly with soft onion, green chilli and a spoon of awaze, so the fish is crunchy outside, flaky and sweet inside, and coated in a spicy glaze. It is a favourite on fasting days for people who eat fish, and quick enough for a weeknight. Chef's tip: leave each piece undisturbed until it releases from the pan by itself; moving fish too early is the common mistake, and it tears the coating and breaks the flesh.

27 minEthiopianFishGluten free
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LencsefőzelékLentil stew

On New Year's Day all over Hungary, a pot of lencsefőzelék sits on the stove, because every lentil eaten is meant to bring a coin in the year ahead. The rest of the year it is an everyday Budapest canteen dish. Meat-eaters often top it with sausage or a fried egg; this version is fully plant-based and eaten with pickled vegetables and crusty bread. The lentils cook until creamy with a whole bay leaf, a little carrot and onion, then a paprika roux made with oil and a dash of vinegar turn them into a thick, savoury, gently sour stew. Where most people go wrong is making the roux too dark or adding paprika over high heat, which turns it bitter; take the pan off the heat first. Chef's tip: rest the finished stew for 10 minutes before serving; it thickens and the flavours settle.

50 minHungarianCurriesVegan
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Aruban pan batiSweet cornmeal pancakes

Aruban families put a stack of pan bati on the table with almost every bowl of soup or stew, from sopi di pisca to kabritu stoba: thick, slightly sweet pancakes of cornmeal and flour, cooked on a dry griddle and torn to mop up the broth. They are soft, a little grainy and golden at the edges. The mistake is cooking them too fast, so they burn outside and stay raw in the middle. Chef's tip: let the batter rest for 10 minutes so the cornmeal softens and the pancakes come out tender.

30 minCaribbeanBreads & Parathas
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Sweet potato ginger soup

Cheap, warming and ready in under an hour, this is the tong sui Hong Kong families make at home on cold, damp winter nights, ladled out after dinner or before bed rather than ordered in a shop. Chunks of orange, yellow or purple sweet potato turn tender and fudgy in a clear amber syrup made with brown slab sugar and plenty of smashed ginger, so each spoonful is sweet first and then pleasantly hot. Some cooks add a few pitted red dates or a piece of dried tangerine peel. Boiling the sweet potatoes from the start is the usual slip; by the time the ginger has given up its heat, they've collapsed and clouded the syrup. Chef's tip: soak the cut sweet potato in cold water for 10 minutes to rinse off surface starch, and add it only once the ginger broth has simmered for a good 10 minutes.

40 minHong KongDessertsVeganGluten free
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KletskoppenLacy almond biscuits

Kletskoppen are the lacy, crackly biscuits of Bruges, sold in the old city's bakeries and served with coffee in the cafés around the Markt: brown sugar, butter and chopped almonds with very little flour (this version uses none), baked until they spread into thin, see-through, toffee-flavoured lace. A common mistake is putting them too close on the tray; they spread enormously and join up. Chef's tip: let them cool for a minute on the tray before lifting, and drape them over a rolling pin while still warm if you want curved tuiles.

30 minBelgianBakingGluten free
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Arroz mamposteaoFried rice and stewed beans

Fondas around San Juan put arroz mamposteao on the menu as a way to use yesterday's white rice and the last ladle of habichuelas, and at home it is the Sunday-night fix when the pots from lunch come out of the fridge. The rice is fried in olive oil with a fresh sofrito, then the beans and their sauce go in until every grain is stained pink and the edges catch and crisp. Many cooks add ham or bacon; this version stays meat-free and gets its depth from the sofrito and a little smoked paprika. The common mistake is using freshly cooked rice, which turns to paste; cold, day-old rice keeps separate grains. Chef's tip: leave the pan alone for the last few minutes so a crunchy layer forms on the bottom, then fold it through.

25 minPuerto RicanRice & GrainsVeganGluten free
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Reform tortaWalnut meringue chocolate cake

Belgrade pastry shops have sold reform torta since the early twentieth century, and it is still the cake Serbian families bring out for birthdays, weddings and the slava. Three thin layers of walnut meringue, crisp at the edge and chewy inside, are stacked with a dense chocolate butter cream made with egg yolks cooked over steam until thick. It is very rich, so cut thin slices and serve with strong coffee. The usual slip is beating the butter into a chocolate mixture that is still warm, which melts it and splits the cream; let it cool to room temperature first. Chef's tip: assemble the cake the day before; overnight in the fridge the meringue softens a little and the cake slices cleanly with a hot knife.

150 minBalkanBaking
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Alu kesel curryPlantain turmeric curry

Alu kesel, the grey-skinned cooking plantain whose name means ash banana, is picked green and treated like a vegetable, and this creamy curry is a regular on Kandyan lunch tables and at temple almsgivings, where it fills out the spread cheaply and well. The slices are rubbed with turmeric and salt, fried until golden at the edges, then simmered in coconut milk with unroasted curry powder, fenugreek, cinnamon and pandan, so they turn soft and starchy like potato with a hint of banana sweetness. It sits happily beside parippu, a green mallung and a sharp pickle. Peeling the plantains with dry hands is a messy mistake, because the sap stains skin and knives black; oil your hands and the blade first. Chef's tip: frying the slices before they go into the gravy keeps them in neat pieces; unfried plantain tends to fall apart and thicken the curry into paste.

40 minSri LankanCurriesVeganGluten free
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AluwaRice flour diamond sweets

Pale, smooth and cut into precise little diamonds, aluwa brings a touch of order to the crowded Avurudu sweet tray, and it is often the first sweet children learn to help make because there is no deep-frying involved. Rice flour is roasted until it smells like biscuits, then kneaded with hot sugar syrup, chopped cashews and cardamom into a firm dough, rolled out and cut. The finished sweet is dense, slightly crumbly and not too sweet, with a gentle nuttiness, and it keeps for weeks in a tin to be offered to visitors with tea. The point where it goes wrong is the syrup: too thin and the aluwa never sets, too thick and the dough cracks before you can roll it, so aim for the one-thread stage. Chef's tip: roll the dough between two sheets of baking paper and cut it while it is still warm and pliable; once cold it breaks instead of slicing.

45 minSri LankanDessertsVeganGluten free
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SulguniStretched cheese

Sulguni is the famous cheese of Samegrelo, made in Zugdidi homes by taking fresh, slightly soured curd, cutting it up and working it in hot water until it can be pulled into a glossy, layered, salty ball. It is eaten in thick slices, melted into elarji and khachapuri, and smoked over embers for a darker version. The curd has to be acidic enough to stretch, so you make the cheese one day and stretch it the next, or buy fresh Imeretian cheese and start from there. Traditionally animal rennet is used; vegetarian rennet works too. A common mistake is trying to stretch fresh, sweet curd; it melts into a puddle instead of pulling. Chef's tip: test a small piece in hot water first; if it stretches 30 cm without breaking, the curd is ready.

70 minGeorgianBasicsGluten free
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Kartoshka cakeCocoa and cake crumb truffles

Soviet cafés and school canteens sold these knobbly brown 'potatoes' for a few kopecks, and they began as a thrifty way to use up sponge and biscuit trimmings at the bakery. Crumbs are bound with butter and sweetened condensed milk, flavoured with cocoa and vanilla, shaped into little potatoes, rolled in cocoa and finished with two dabs of pale butter cream for the sprouts. They are fudgy and dense like a brownie truffle, need no oven, and children love making them. Traditional bakers added a spoonful of rum, an optional extra for adult batches only; this version is alcohol-free with vanilla. The usual slip is coarse crumbs, which make the potatoes crack, so blitz them as fine as sand. Chef's tip: chill the shaped potatoes for at least 20 minutes so they hold their shape and slice cleanly.

30 minRussianDesserts
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Arroz con maízRice with sweetcorn

In central Cuba, when the fields are full of young corn, families cut the kernels straight off the cob into the rice pot with a sofrito of onion, pepper, garlic and annatto, cooking everything together until golden and sticky at the base. Many farm cooks add salt pork; this vegan version leans on cumin and a little smoked paprika. A common mistake is using too much water, as fresh corn releases its own milk, so keep to the amounts given. Serve with black beans or a tomato and avocado salad. Chef's tip: scrape the cobs with the back of the knife after cutting off the kernels and add that milky pulp; it gives the rice a creamy sweetness.

45 minCubanRice & GrainsVeganGluten free
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Arroz con dulceCoconut rice pudding

From the start of December to the Three Kings in January, trays of arroz con dulce cool on Puerto Rican kitchen counters, sliced into squares and handed round at parrandas when carollers arrive at the door late at night. Unlike a milky rice pudding, it is cooked in a water steeped with fresh ginger, cinnamon, cloves and star anise, then finished with coconut milk and raisins, so it is fragrant, firm enough to cut and dairy free. The common mistake is adding the sugar too early, which keeps the rice grains hard; sweeten only once they are soft. Chef's tip: soak the rice for an hour first, and it cooks evenly and absorbs the spiced coconut far better.

120 minPuerto RicanDessertsVeganGluten free
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Babka wielkanocnaEaster yeast cake

A golden babka standing tall in the Easter basket used to be a matter of family pride, and old cooks whispered while it baked, convinced a slammed door would make it sink. The dough is soft and rich with egg yolks and butter, beaten until it is elastic, then baked in a fluted ring tin into a cake with a fine, feathery, saffron-yellow crumb. Raisins are often soaked in rum; this version uses orange juice, but a couple of spoons of rum work if you prefer. The usual slip is adding too much flour to a sticky dough, which makes the babka dry; it should stay soft and almost batter-like. Chef's tip: cool the babka on its side, turning it now and then, so the delicate crumb doesn't collapse.

185 minPolishBaking
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Tunisian octopus salad

Fishermen of the Kerkennah islands, off Sfax, still catch octopus in clay pots laid on the shallow seabed, and in winter the season's catch turns up in harbour cafés and home kitchens as this simple salad. The octopus is simmered slowly until tender, cooled in its broth, then sliced and tossed with red onion, plenty of parsley, lemon juice and good olive oil, with a little harissa if you like. It is light, clean and briny, eaten as a starter with bread or on a summer table of salads and grilled fish. Buy octopus from a reputable fishmonger; frozen and thawed octopus is often more tender than fresh. A common mistake is boiling the octopus at a rolling boil, which makes it rubbery; keep it at a gentle simmer until a knife slides in easily. Chef's tip: let the cooked octopus cool in its cooking liquid for 20 minutes before slicing; it stays juicy rather than tightening up.

80 minTunisianFishGluten free
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Arroz a la cubanaRice with tomato and egg

Havana cafeterías put this plate on the lunch board when cooks want something cheap, fast and filling: a mound of plain white rice, a ladle of garlicky tomato sauce, a fried egg with a runny yolk and slices of caramelised ripe plantain. Breaking the yolk into the rice and sauce is the whole point, so the eggs should be fried at the last minute. The usual mistake is using plantains that are still yellow-green; they need black-spotted skins to turn soft and sweet in the pan. Serve with a simple avocado salad. Chef's tip: baste the egg whites with hot oil from the pan so they set with lacy edges while the yolks stay liquid.

30 minCubanRice & GrainsGluten free
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ArishtaButtered egg noodles

In Gyumri and the villages of Shirak, grandmothers still roll arishta by hand, cut it into thin strips and dry it in the sun to store for winter. To serve, the noodles are first toasted in butter until they turn golden and nutty, then boiled until tender and topped with garlicky matsun yogurt. It is simple, filling food for cold days on the Shirak plateau. A common mistake is skipping the toasting step, which gives soft, plain noodles without the characteristic roasted flavour. Chef's tip: dry the cut noodles for at least an hour before toasting, so they brown evenly instead of clumping.

60 minArmenianPasta & Noodles
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ArikanchanTaro leaf rolls in mustard gravy

Arikanchan is a monsoon speciality of Maithil kitchens in Janakpur and the eastern Terai, cooked when the taro plants in the courtyard put out huge, tender leaves. A spiced chickpea-flour paste is spread over the leaves, which are rolled up tight like a Swiss roll and steamed, then the rolls are sliced into spirals, fried and simmered in a punchy gravy of ground mustard seed, garlic, chilli and tomato cooked in mustard oil. The result is soft and layered, with a gentle sourness and the nose-tingling heat of fresh mustard, eaten with rice and a dal. The biggest risk is undercooking the taro leaves, which can leave an itchy, scratchy feeling in the throat. Chef's tip: use only young leaves, strip the thick ribs, and always include the tamarind in the paste, because the sourness neutralises the irritant in the leaves.

70 minNepaliVegetarianVeganGluten freeSpicy
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Babi pangangCrispy pork in sweet-sour sauce

Babi pangang is one of the most ordered dishes in the 'Chinees-Indisch' restaurants found in every Dutch town: crisp-skinned roast pork belly, sliced and smothered in a bright red, sweet-sour sauce with tomato, ginger and pickled vegetables, served with rice or nasi goreng. This is a pork dish. A common mistake is pouring the sauce over too early, which turns the crackling soft. Chef's tip: dry the skin overnight in the fridge and roast it hot at the end, then pour the sauce around, not over, the pork at the table. Whole pork joints are safe at 63 °C plus a rest; belly is best cooked longer, until tender.

105 minDutchMeat
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Arepa dominicanaSweet cornmeal coconut cake

Not the stuffed corn patty of Venezuela: in the Dominican Republic arepa means a dense, sweet cornmeal cake that grandmothers once baked in a covered pot with hot coals on the lid. The cornmeal is first cooked with coconut milk, milk, butter, sugar and cinnamon into a thick porridge, then baked until it sets with a dark, caramelised crust and a soft, pudding-like centre. It is eaten at merienda with coffee or a glass of cold milk. The common mistake is not cooking the cornmeal long enough on the hob, which leaves the cake gritty. Chef's tip: let the arepa cool completely before slicing; warm, it is too soft to cut cleanly.

75 minPuerto RicanBakingGluten free
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Arepa di pampunaCinnamon pumpkin pancakes

Curaçao and Aruba use the word arepa differently from their South American neighbours: arepa di pampuna are not corn arepas but small, sweet pumpkin pancakes, fried in a little oil and eaten warm for breakfast, or alongside a bowl of soup or stoba at lunch. The mashed pumpkin makes them tender and bright orange, with cinnamon and a little sugar. The mistake is too much flour, which makes them dense; the batter should be thick but soft. Chef's tip: cook the pumpkin the day before and drain it overnight in the fridge for the lightest pancakes.

30 minCaribbeanBreakfast & Brunch
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AreekaWholemeal bread with ghee and honey

In the green mountains of Asir in south-west Saudi Arabia, areeka is the breakfast for guests, weddings and cold mornings in Abha: thick wholemeal breads are torn while still hot and kneaded with ghee into a smooth, soft dome, then hollowed out and filled with a pool of warm ghee, mountain honey and date syrup. Everyone eats from the same plate, pinching off pieces and dragging them through the sweet centre. It is rich, warm and comforting, with a nutty wheat flavour. The usual mistake is letting the bread cool before kneading; it must be worked hot or it will not bind. Serve with cardamom coffee or milky tea, and a spoonful of cream if you like. Chef's tip: wear clean rubber gloves so you can knead the bread while it is properly hot.

45 minGulf ArabianBreakfast & Brunch
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Babath curryBeef tripe curry

Babath curry belongs to the Muslim and Malay kitchens of Colombo and Slave Island, a frugal, rich dish of beef tripe that turns up at family lunches and in small rice-and-curry cafés where regulars ask for it by name. The tripe is cleaned, boiled with turmeric and vinegar until soft, then sliced into ribbons and simmered in a dark roasted curry with black pepper, cinnamon and a little coconut milk until it soaks up all the spice. The texture is pleasantly chewy and the gravy deep, hot and slightly sour, and it is eaten with rice, roti or bread to mop up the sauce. Many first attempts fail because the tripe is not boiled long enough first, so it stays rubbery however long it spends in the curry. Chef's tip: buy cleaned, bleached honeycomb tripe from a halal butcher, and boil it until a knife slides through with no resistance before you start the curry.

150 minSri LankanMeatGluten freeSpicy
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AranygaluskaGolden walnut yeast dumplings

Aranygaluska means golden dumplings, and the pull-apart cake really does come out of the oven bronze and gleaming. Walnut-sized balls of sweet yeast dough are dipped in melted butter, rolled in ground walnuts and sugar, stacked loosely in a ring tin and baked, so the nuts caramelise into a sticky crust. It is a family Sunday pudding all over Hungary and a favourite at school canteens, and Hungarian emigrants took it to America, where it became monkey bread. Pour warm vanilla custard over each helping. Some cooks serve it with a wine custard; this version keeps to vanilla, so it is alcohol-free. Where it goes wrong is packing the balls tightly; leave gaps so they can rise and the walnut coating reaches every side. Chef's tip: spoon a little apricot jam between the layers for a tart note.

120 minHungarianDesserts
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Antiguan ducanaSweet potato coconut dumplings

In Antigua, ducana turns up beside saltfish and chop up on Saturday plates and at Independence celebrations in November, little leaf-wrapped parcels of grated sweet potato and coconut with sugar, raisins and spice, boiled until set. It cuts through the salty fish with a soft, sticky sweetness. Many cooks add a little flour; this version keeps to sweet potato and coconut and is gluten free. The common mistake is wrapping the parcels loosely, so water seeps in and they turn mushy. Chef's tip: grate the sweet potato finely on the small holes and the ducana will hold together without any flour.

75 minCaribbeanDessertsGluten free
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Antiguan chop upMashed aubergine, okra and spinach

Antigua's national plate pairs fungee, a cornmeal and okra loaf, with pepperpot, and on the side there is often chop up: aubergine, okra and spinach cooked down with onion, garlic and thyme, then mashed to a soft, green-flecked purée. It is gentle, savoury and silky, and some cooks add butter or salted meat; this version is vegan and uses coconut oil. The mistake to avoid is stirring the okra too much early on, which makes it slimy; let it soften undisturbed, then mash. Chef's tip: a squeeze of lime at the end lifts the flavour and calms any okra stickiness.

45 minCaribbeanVegetarianVeganGluten free
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AnoushabourChristmas wheat pudding

Anoushabour, 'sweet soup', is cooked by Armenian families for New Year and for Christmas, which the Armenian church keeps on 6 January; in Yerevan and diaspora kitchens a big pot is made and bowls are carried to friends. Whole hulled wheat is simmered until creamy, sweetened and filled with apricots, raisins and prunes, then topped with walnuts, almonds, pomegranate and cinnamon. A common mistake is adding the fruit early, which turns it to pulp. Chef's tip: stir in a spoon of rose water at the end and serve the pudding cool; it sets slightly and the flavours come together.

120 minArmenianDessertsVegan
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AzuBeef stew with pickles

Kazan's working canteens gave azu its fame: strips of beef braised in a peppery tomato gravy, sharpened with diced salty pickled cucumbers and finished with golden fried potatoes, all served steaming in a clay pot. It is hearty, sour-savoury and thick enough to mop up with rye bread, and Tatar families serve it on cold weekday evenings. Where most people go wrong is adding the potatoes raw to the stew; they turn floury and the gravy goes muddy, so fry them separately and fold them in at the end. Chef's tip: use proper brine-fermented cucumbers rather than sweet vinegar pickles; their sourness is what makes azu taste like azu.

75 minRussianMeat
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Ang ku kuehRed glutinous rice cakes

Red for luck and shaped like a tortoise for long life, ang ku kueh are carried to Hokkien and Teochew family altars and handed out in boxes at a baby's first-month celebration, at elders' birthdays and at temple festivals across Singapore, from Chinatown shophouses to neighbourhood confectioners in Bukit Merah. The skin is soft, chewy and slightly elastic, made from glutinous rice flour kneaded with mashed sweet potato, and it wraps a smooth, mildly sweet filling of split mung bean (or crushed peanut and sugar). Each cake is pressed in a carved wooden mould and steamed on a square of banana leaf. The usual mistake is steaming over a fierce boil, which makes the skin puff up, crack and lose the printed pattern; steam gently with the lid slightly open. Chef's tip: brush the cakes with a little oil the moment they come out of the steamer, so the pattern shines and the skin doesn't dry out or stick together.

130 minSingaporeanDessertsVeganGluten free
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AndijviestamppotEndive and Gouda mash

Stamppot, mashed potato stirred with vegetables, is the Dutch winter dinner, and the endive version is a little lighter: raw, finely shredded curly endive is stirred into piping-hot mash, so it wilts slightly but keeps a fresh, bitter crunch, then cubes of aged Gouda are folded in and start to melt. Dutch families eat it with gravy and a smoked sausage; this vegetarian version uses a pool of brown butter. Aged Gouda is usually made with animal rennet, so choose a vegetarian aged Gouda-style cheese. A common mistake is cooking the endive, which turns it soggy and grey. Chef's tip: stir the endive in off the heat at the very last moment.

30 minDutchVegetarianGluten free
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Anday ka halwaEgg halwa

Sweet, golden and grainy like a rich crumble, egg halwa is the quick showpiece of Hyderabadi and Karachi home kitchens, made when unexpected guests arrive or for a winter Sunday, and it fills the house with the smell of ghee and cardamom. Eggs are beaten with milk, sugar and milk powder, then stirred in ghee until the custard sets, breaks and finally fries into soft, sandy granules that cling together like khoya; there is no eggy taste once it is properly cooked. It is served warm in small bowls, topped with almonds and pistachios, sometimes with a few saffron threads. The commonest failure is stopping too soon, when the halwa is still wet and scrambled-egg-like, rather than cooking on until it turns granular and golden and the ghee separates. Chef's tip: strain the beaten egg mixture through a sieve before cooking, which removes the stringy whites and gives a smooth, even grain.

50 minPakistaniIndian SweetsGluten free
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Anda parathaEgg-stuffed paratha

At the dhabas along the GT Road and the breakfast stalls of Rawalpindi's Saddar, the paratha-wala cracks an egg straight into a bowl with onion and chilli, half-cooks a paratha, pours the egg over and flips the whole thing onto the tawa so the egg fries into the bread. The result is one golden, layered disc that is crisp at the edges, soft where the egg meets the dough, and peppery with green chilli. Truck drivers, students and office workers eat it folded in half with chai, ketchup or green chutney, and it is a common packed lunch for school because it needs no curry. The problem most people run into is pouring the egg onto a raw paratha, which tears, or onto a fully cooked one, which will not let the egg stick. Chef's tip: cook the first side only until brown spots appear, then add the egg to the cooked side and flip so the egg sets against the hot iron.

30 minPakistaniBreakfast & Brunch
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