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Chicken-fried steak

Chicken-fried steak is Texas's unofficial state dish, served in truck stops, small-town cafés and Sunday after-church lunches across the Hill Country: a tenderised beef steak breaded and fried like fried chicken, smothered in white cream gravy with lots of black pepper, next to mashed potatoes. It came from German and Austrian settlers' schnitzel. Chef's tip: double-dip in seasoned flour, buttermilk and flour again for the craggy, crunchy crust.

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Nous-nous (half-half coffee)

Sit down at a café terrace in Casablanca, Rabat or Marrakech and order a 'nous-nous' (from 'nus', half) and you will get a small glass of half espresso, half steamed milk, often layered so the coffee floats in a dark band over the pale milk with a cap of foam. It is the default morning and afternoon coffee for many Moroccans, sipped slowly while watching the street, usually with a sugar lump or two on the saucer. It is smaller and stronger than a latte and milkier than a macchiato. A moka pot works fine at home if you have no espresso machine. Chef's tip: heat the milk only to 60–65 °C, hot to the touch but not scalding; boiled milk loses its sweetness and the foam collapses, a common mistake.

5 min

Moroccan Drinks

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MichironesBroad beans with chorizo and ham

Michirones are dried broad beans slowly simmered with pork, bay and hot chilli until soft and spicy, and in Murcia they are the tapa of cold months, ladled into small bowls in the city's bars with a spoon stuck in. The beans need a long soak and a long cook, so bars make a big pot in the morning that lasts all day. This contains pork (chorizo, panceta and a cured ham bone). Chef's tip: wait until the end to add salt, because the ham bone and chorizo season the broth as they cook.

195 min

Spanish Meat

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Chickpeas with cumin (hummus bel kamoun)

On chilly evenings, street carts in the medinas steam a great pot of chickpeas and scoop them, piping hot, into paper cones with a shake of cumin, salt and sometimes a little chilli. It is one of the cheapest and most comforting snacks in the country, eaten while strolling, and the chickpeas should be tender and creamy but whole, never mushy. At home they make a lovely warm nibble, a lunchbox protein or something to pick at alongside soups. Dried chickpeas give the best texture and need an overnight soak; tinned ones work in a hurry, just warmed through in salted water. Chef's tip: toss the cumin and salt onto the chickpeas the moment they come out of the water, while they are still steaming and damp, so the seasoning clings.

65 min

Moroccan Snacks & Starters

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Pappardelle al ragù di cinghialePappardelle with wild boar ragù

Wild boar roam the Maremma, the wooded south-west corner of Tuscany, and in autumn, when the hunting season opens, every country trattoria serves pappardelle with a dark, gamey boar ragù. The meat is marinated overnight in red wine with juniper and herbs, then simmered slowly with tomato until it falls into shreds and coats the wide egg ribbons. Wild boar is hard to find outside game butchers, so pork shoulder is a good substitute, giving a milder but still rich ragù; either way the sauce also uses pancetta, making it a pork dish. It uses red wine, and the note gives an alcohol-free option. Chef's tip: shred the meat with two forks rather than mincing it; the uneven strands cling to the pappardelle far better.

210 min

Italian Pasta & Noodles

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Sfenj (Moroccan doughnut rings)

Early in the morning, in medina lanes from Fez to Casablanca, the sfenji pulls handfuls of sticky dough from a bowl, pokes a hole through each with his thumb and drops the rings into a big pan of oil, where they puff into crisp, golden, irregular doughnuts with a chewy, airy inside. Customers carry them away threaded on a strip of palm leaf, to eat hot with mint tea or coffee, plain, dusted with sugar or dipped in honey. The dough is just flour, yeast, salt and water, and deliberately very wet; that is what gives the open, holey crumb. Allow about 1 1/2 hours for it to rise. Where sfenj go wrong is a dough that is too stiff; it should be sticky and slack, or the rings come out bready instead of open and chewy. Chef's tip: keep a bowl of water beside you and wet your hands before every piece, so the sticky dough slides off your fingers instead of clinging to them.

130 min

Moroccan Baking

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MidopilafoMussel pilaf

Midopilafo is what Thessaloniki fishermen's families make on a fasting Friday or a cheap midweek night, when a bag of mussels from the Thermaic Gulf can feed a crowd. The mussels are steamed first and their briny liquor becomes the stock for the rice, which simmers with onion, a little tomato and dill until tender and a touch soupy. The shelled mussels go back in at the end so they stay plump. Some cooks add white wine; this version uses lemon and the mussel juice only, so it is alcohol-free. Common mistake: cooking the shelled mussels with the rice the whole time — they shrink to rubber. Chef's tip: strain the mussel liquor through a fine sieve lined with kitchen paper to catch any grit.

60 min

Greek Fish

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Midye dolmaRice-stuffed mussels

Late at night along Istanbul's Beşiktaş and Kadıköy streets, vendors walk with trays of shiny black mussels stuffed with fragrant rice, cracking one open, squeezing lemon on it and handing it over until you say stop. The rice is cooked with onion, tomato paste, cinnamon, allspice, currants and pine nuts, then steamed back inside the shells. Make them at home for a meze table and they are safer and fresher than any street tray. Chef's tip: soak the closed mussels in cold salted water first; the shells relax slightly and are much easier to prise open with a small knife.

105 min

Turkish Fish

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MutzbratenMarjoram roast pork shoulder

Mutzbraten is the fairground roast of eastern Thuringia, from Schmölln and the Altenburg area, where big chunks of pork shoulder are rubbed with salt, pepper and lots of marjoram, threaded on skewers and hung in an iron cage over a birch-wood fire. It is sold sliced with sauerkraut and a slice of rye bread at markets and village festivals. At home a lidded kettle barbecue with birch or other mild wood chips gives a close result; an oven version is in the steps. Chef's tip: marinate overnight, as the marjoram needs time to work its way into the meat.

170 min

German Meat

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Migas a la aragonesaFried breadcrumbs with sausage and bacon

Shepherds in the Aragonese uplands made migas from yesterday's bread, a little water, garlic and whatever pork was hanging in the larder, and it is still a cold-weather breakfast, a hunters' lunch and a fiesta dish in villages from the Pyrenees to the Maestrazgo. Fried slowly in a wide pan, the dampened crumbs turn golden and crisp on the outside and stay soft inside, flecked with fried longaniza and bacon. Fresh green grapes or a fried egg on the side are the classic way to serve them. This contains pork (longaniza sausage and bacon). A common mistake is soaking the bread: sprinkle the water on and leave it overnight, or the migas turn to paste. Chef's tip: keep turning the crumbs with the edge of a spatula, chopping as you go; it is the long, patient stirring that makes them loose and crisp.

55 min

Spanish Meat

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Kibbeh bil saniehBaked tray kibbeh

When a Lebanese family is expecting a crowd for Sunday lunch, out comes the round tray of kibbeh bil sanieh, cut into diamonds before baking so everyone can lift a neat piece. Two layers of lamb and fine bulgur kneaded with onion and spices sandwich a filling of minced lamb fried with onions and toasted pine nuts; the top bakes crisp and brown while the inside stays moist. Serve it warm or at room temperature with yoghurt, cucumber salad or fattoush. Common mistake: using coarse bulgur, which won't bind; you need fine bulgur (number 1). Chef's tip: dip your hands in iced water while you press the top layer — it smooths the surface and stops the mixture sticking.

90 min

Lebanese Meat

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Migas extremeñasFried breadcrumbs with chorizo

Migas were the breakfast of Extremaduran shepherds, made from the hard bread they carried, and they are still what families cook on a rainy winter day or at a village fiesta, often in a huge pan stirred with a long spoon. The bread is cut tiny, dampened and left overnight, then fried slowly in garlicky oil with panceta and chorizo until loose, golden and crunchy at the edges. They are served with grapes or melon on the side, and sometimes a fried egg. This contains pork (panceta and chorizo). Chef's tip: keep turning the crumbs with a spatula the whole time; this constant movement is what makes them loose.

55 min

Spanish Meat

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Kibbeh labaniehKibbeh in garlic yoghurt sauce

In Lebanese homes, kibbeh labanieh is the dish that turns a batch of stuffed kibbeh into a comforting winter supper: the little torpedo-shaped shells of bulgur and lamb, filled with spiced mince and pine nuts, are poached in a silky yoghurt sauce scented with garlic and dried mint. It is eaten hot, ladled over vermicelli rice. The yoghurt has to be stabilised with cornflour and stirred in one direction while it heats, or it splits. Common mistake: letting the sauce boil hard before it has thickened; it curdles instantly. Chef's tip: make the kibbeh balls a day ahead and freeze them on a tray — they hold their shape better in the sauce.

95 min

Lebanese Meat

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Kibbeh safarjaliehKibbeh with quince in pomegranate sauce

Aleppo is known as the city of a hundred kibbehs, and kibbeh safarjalieh is its autumn showpiece, made when quinces turn golden in the markets. Stuffed kibbeh are simmered with chunks of quince and a little lamb in a sauce sharpened with pomegranate molasses and lemon and scented with dried mint. The fruit softens and blushes pink, and the sauce is sweet, sour and fragrant all at once. Serve with plain rice or bread. Common mistake: cutting the quince too early; it browns fast, so drop each piece into lemon water as you go. Chef's tip: leave the quince skin on — it holds the pieces together and helps colour the sauce.

110 min

Syrian Meat

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Texas carne guisada

Carne guisada is the South Texas comfort stew of the Rio Grande Valley and Corpus Christi, ladled into fresh flour tortillas for breakfast tacos or eaten from a plate with rice and refried beans. Cubes of beef chuck are browned and slowly stewed with onion, pepper, garlic and cumin in a thick, peppery brown gravy. Chef's tip: dust the beef with flour as it browns; it thickens the gravy just enough to cling to a tortilla.

135 min

American Meat

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San Antonio puffy tacos

The puffy taco is San Antonio's own: a ball of fresh corn masa pressed flat and dropped into hot oil, where it puffs into a light, crisp, hollow shell, then shaped into a U and filled with seasoned beef mince, lettuce and tomato. Family-run Tex-Mex restaurants on the West Side have served them since the 1950s, and the city's baseball team even has a puffy taco mascot. Chef's tip: as soon as the dough puffs, press a spatula into the middle to make the fold, before it sets.

70 min

American Meat

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FranzbrötchenCinnamon butter pastries

No Hamburg bakery opens without a tray of Franzbrötchen: flaky, buttery yeast pastry rolled with cinnamon sugar, cut into pieces and pressed down hard in the middle with a wooden spoon handle so the spirals splay out into a squashed butterfly. The sugar caramelises underneath into a sticky, crunchy base. They are breakfast with coffee on the way to work and a Sunday treat at the harbour. The common mistake is letting the butter go soft while laminating: it oozes out and you get bread, not layers. Chef's tip: chill the dough between every fold, and press the shape down firmly before the final rise or it will spring back in the oven.

80 min

German Baking

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Pé de molequePeanut brittle

Lumpy, glossy slabs of peanut set in dark sugar are sold in every rodoviária snack bar and handed round at festa junina, wrapped in cellophane or set in little paper cups. The name, 'street-kid's foot', probably comes from the cobbled look of the top. Piracicaba in São Paulo state is famous for it, and in the Northeast the same name can mean a cassava cake, so expect confusion. This is the crunchy southeastern style: roasted peanuts cooked into rapadura (unrefined cane sugar) until it caramelises and clings. Rapadura or panela is sold in Latin shops; dark muscovado is a fine substitute. People burn it by walking away; once the peanuts go in, the sugar darkens in seconds. Chef's tip: have the oiled tray ready before you start, because the mixture sets almost as soon as it leaves the heat.

25 min

Brazilian Desserts

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Kig ha farzBeef and pork with buckwheat pudding

Kig ha farz, "meat and stuffing" in Breton, belongs to the Léon country of north Finistère, where it is still the big shared dish of village fêtes, rugby-club dinners and family gatherings. Beef shin and salt pork belly simmer for hours with cabbage, carrots, leeks and turnips, and in the same pot sits a cotton bag of buckwheat batter that cooks into a dense, nutty pudding. The pudding is crumbled and served with the meats and vegetables, often with lipig, a sauce of shallots melted in butter. Chef's tip: tie the cloth bag loosely, leaving room for the batter to double, or the pudding turns heavy and rubbery.

250 min

French Meat

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Milho fritoFried cornmeal cubes with kale

Order espetada in any Madeiran restaurant and a basket of these golden cubes comes with it: polenta-style cornmeal cooked with shredded kale and garlic, set in a tray, then cut and fried until crunchy outside and soft and creamy within. They are also cooked at home on Sundays alongside grilled fish. Chef's tip: make the cornmeal the day before, as a well-chilled block cuts cleanly and doesn't fall apart in the oil.

60 min

Portuguese Sides

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Tafarnout (pebble-baked Amazigh bread)

In the villages of the Anti-Atlas and the south, tafarnout is named after the domed clay oven it is baked in, lined with pebbles that are heated by a wood fire until the dough slapped onto them puffs and blisters within minutes. The stones leave the bottom deeply dimpled and charred in spots, while the top stays soft; it is torn and dipped into argan oil, amlou or olive oil, or eaten with tagines. You can come close at home with a tray of clean, smooth river pebbles or a baking stone in a very hot oven. Allow about 1 1/2 hours for the dough to rise. Use only smooth, dense pebbles, scrubbed and dried for an hour in a low oven first: stones with trapped water can crack in the heat. Chef's tip: let the pebbles heat for a full 40 minutes; lukewarm stones make a pale, flat loaf.

130 min

Moroccan Breads & Parathas

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Barley couscous with vegetables (belboula)

In the palm oases of the Draa Valley, south of the Atlas, barley grows where wheat struggles, and the couscous cooked for family meals is often belboula: cracked barley grains steamed three times until fluffy, nutty and slightly chewy. It is heaped on a big platter, crowned with vegetables from the broth bubbling beneath it, such as carrots, turnips, pumpkin, courgettes and cabbage, plus chickpeas, then moistened with ladles of the turmeric-and-ginger broth. On hot days the same couscous is eaten cold with buttermilk instead. It takes time but very little skill once you know the rhythm of steaming. Chef's tip: oil and rub the grains between your palms before each steaming so they stay separate.

105 min

Moroccan Rice & Grains

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Santa Maria tri-tip

In the Santa Maria Valley on California's Central Coast, ranchers' barbecues over red oak fires gave the state its own style: a triangular tri-tip roast of beef rubbed simply with salt, pepper and garlic, grilled until crusty, then sliced thin. It comes with pinquito beans, salsa and garlic bread at fundraisers and Saturday roadside barbecues. Chef's tip: tri-tip's grain changes direction in the middle, so cut the roast in two where the grain turns and slice each piece across its own grain.

55 min

American Meat

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Kentucky burgoo

Burgoo is the thick, peppery stew Kentuckians cook in iron kettles for Derby parties, church picnics and political rallies, stirred for hours with a wooden paddle. Traditionally it used whatever meat was shot or raised; today it is usually beef, pork shoulder and chicken simmered with tomatoes, corn, okra, butter beans and potatoes until it all melts together. Chef's tip: burgoo should be thick enough that the paddle stands up; cook it down more if it's soupy.

180 min

American Meat

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Lowcountry shrimp perloo

Perloo (or purloo, pilau) is the Charleston and Savannah family of rice dishes born on the Carolina Gold rice plantations, where West African cooks simmered rice in rich broth with whatever the coast or yard gave. This one uses smoked bacon (pork), tomato and fresh shrimp, so every grain is separate, red-tinged and full of flavour. Chef's tip: once the lid goes on, don't lift it or stir; perloo should be fluffy, never creamy like risotto.

60 min

American Rice & Grains

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Petits pâtés de PézenasSweet spiced lamb pies

Pézenas, the old Languedoc town of Molière, is famous for these little pies shaped like cotton reels, sold warm from its bakeries all winter and especially around Christmas. Local legend links them to the Indian cooks of Lord Clive, who stayed nearby in 1768, which would explain the unexpected sweet-savoury filling of minced lamb, brown sugar and lemon zest. They have a crisp, sturdy hot-water crust and a juicy, gently sweet centre with a hint of spice. Eat them warm as a starter, with a green salad, or as a mid-morning snack the way Piscénois do. Chef's tip: shape the pastry while it is still warm and supple; once it cools it cracks instead of folding.

90 min

French Snacks & Starters

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Pastel de ChavesMinced veal puff pastry pies

In the spa town of Chaves near the Spanish border, these crescent-shaped pasties are sold warm from bakeries all day and eaten for breakfast, lunch or with a coffee on the old Roman bridge. Many crisp, buttery layers enclose a savoury filling of minced veal. Chaves bakers use their own protected dough; at home, good all-butter puff pastry gets very close. A common mistake is a warm filling; it melts the butter in the pastry, so cool the meat completely before shaping. Chef's tip: cook the filling and let it cool completely before filling, or it melts the butter in the pastry and the layers will not rise.

65 min

Portuguese Snacks & Starters

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Mingau de tapiocaTapioca and coconut porridge

Before the buses fill up, mingau sellers set out tall aluminium pots on Salvador's street corners and ladle out tapioca porridge into plastic cups for workers on the way in. It is thick, spoon-coating and gently sweet, made with granulated tapioca or small pearls cooked in milk and coconut milk with cinnamon and clove, and finished with a dusting of cinnamon. At home it is a quick breakfast, a soothing supper for children and the classic thing to give someone who is unwell. Many vendors also sell mingau de milho and de puba from neighbouring pots. Where people go wrong is adding the tapioca to boiling milk without soaking it first; it clumps and stays chalky in the middle. Chef's tip: take the pan off the heat while it still looks a little loose, because the tapioca keeps drinking up liquid and the porridge sets thicker within minutes.

25 min

Brazilian Breakfast & Brunch

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