Skip to content
Rouz jerbi (Djerban steamed rice)
Featured recipe

Rouz jerbi (Djerban steamed rice)

Djerba islanders cook rice the way the rest of Tunisia cooks couscous, in the top of a couscoussier: raw rice is mixed with small pieces of lamb, chopped spinach, a mound of herbs, chickpeas, tomato paste, harissa and spices, then steamed over boiling water until every grain is tender and stained red-gold. Rouz jerbi is a Friday and family-gathering dish on the island, served from one large platter. The rice stays separate and fluffy, the greens melt in, and the lamb picks up the scent of mint and tabil. Chef's tip: stir the rice from the bottom every 20 minutes; leaving it untouched is a common mistake, as the bottom turns soggy while the top stays hard.

Read more 0 views

What to eat today?

Around the world

Today's trip: Paraguayan

A new country every day, from every cuisine on the site.

Paraguayan

Chipa

Cheese bread rings 50 minMore from Paraguayan (27) →

This week's collection

Kid-friendly dinners
537 recipes · a new collection every Monday

Latest recipes

Chtitha djejChicken in paprika sauce with chickpeas

Chtitha djej is the everyday chicken of Algerian homes from Algiers to Constantine: chicken pieces simmered in a red sauce of paprika, cayenne, garlic and caraway with chickpeas, reduced until thick and clinging. It is mopped up with khobz or matlouh flatbread. The mistake is burning the garlic and paprika when they go into the oil, which turns the sauce bitter; keep the heat moderate and add water as soon as they smell toasted. Chef's tip: add a squeeze of lemon right at the end to brighten the spices.

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Chuanbei liangfenMung bean jelly in chilli oil

Nanchong, in the hills of north Sichuan, is famous for this snack: a soft, wobbly jelly set from bean starch, cut into thick ribbons and drowned in a red, glossy dressing. Street sellers keep it in big blocks and slice it to order, and people eat it as a mid-afternoon snack or a cold starter on hot days. The jelly itself tastes of almost nothing; the slippery texture and the punchy dressing are the point. Chef's tip: let the jelly set fully in the fridge, ideally overnight, so it is firm enough to cut cleanly but still trembles.

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Chuchitos de verdurasSmall vegetable tamales

Chuchitos are Guatemala's everyday tamal: small, firm parcels of masa tied in corn husks, sold from steaming pots at markets in Antigua and Guatemala City and eaten on Saturdays with a spoon of tomato sauce and crumbled dry cheese. They're denser than Mexican tamales, with the masa itself tinted by the red recado. Here they're filled with potato, green beans and sweet pepper instead of chicken. Chef's tip: beat the masa until a pinch floats in a glass of water; that air makes them tender rather than stodgy.

by KrazyBadal 0 views

PatishaptaCoconut-filled rice crepes

Patishapta is the star of Poush Sankranti in mid-January, when Bengali homes make pithe-puli, sweets of new rice, coconut and the season's nolen gur (date-palm jaggery). A loose batter of rice flour, semolina, plain flour and milk is swirled thin on a hot pan and rolled round a sticky filling of coconut cooked with jaggery and cardamom. The crêpe should be soft and pale, never crisp. Chef's tip: keep the heat low and grease the pan only lightly with a cut potato dipped in ghee, which spreads a film rather than a pool.

by KrazyBadal 0 views

ChurchkhelaWalnuts in grape juice coating

Churchkhela are the candle-shaped sweets you see hanging in bunches at every Georgian market, but they are made at home during rtveli, the grape harvest in Kakheti in September and October. Walnuts are threaded on a string and dipped again and again in tatara, fresh grape must thickened with flour, then hung up to dry for a week, until firm and chewy outside and tender within. They are eaten at New Year and kept for months. A common mistake is a tatara that is too thin, which slides off the nuts; it should coat the back of a spoon thickly and fall in ribbons. Chef's tip: let each coat set for 10–15 minutes before the next dip; three or four thin coats look and keep better than one thick one.

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Churpi ningroFiddlehead fern curry

In the monsoon, ningro (fiddlehead fern) shoots appear in the hill markets of Gangtok, Namchi and Darjeeling, curled like violin scrolls. Sikkimese homes cook them quickly with onion, tomato and green chilli, then stir in crumbled soft churpi, a fresh, tangy cheese made from yak or cow's milk, which melts into a creamy, slightly sour sauce. It is a side dish for rice and dal, and tastes green and grassy, a little like asparagus. Chef's tip: always boil ferns for a few minutes and drain before cooking; it removes bitterness. Ricotta or crumbled feta is a fair stand-in for churpi.

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Chushki byurekFried cheese-stuffed peppers

Chushki byurek are one of the great autumn dishes of Bulgaria: in September, when the long red peppers ripen around Plovdiv and Pazardzhik, they are roasted, peeled, filled with sirene and egg, then dipped in flour, egg and breadcrumbs and fried. The outside crunches, the pepper is silky and sweet, and the salty cheese melts inside. They are served hot as a main course with a tomato salad, or cold the next day. Chef's tip: dry the peeled peppers well before filling; a wet pepper is the usual mistake, and the batter slides off and the oil spits.

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Brik à l'œufFried egg pastry triangle

Brik is Tunisia's crackling street and Ramadan snack: a sheet of paper-thin malsouka pastry folded around a raw egg, mashed potato, parsley and capers, and fried for a minute until the shell shatters and the yolk is still runny. In Tunis and La Goulette it is eaten by hand, held by the corners and bitten carefully to avoid egg on the chin. The classic filling adds tuna; this version keeps it vegetarian with a little cheese. It is different from Moroccan briouats, which are small rolled parcels baked or fried with a cooked filling. Chef's tip: have the oil hot and ready before cracking the egg onto the pastry; once the egg sits, it soaks through the sheet.

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Patodi rassaGram flour squares in spicy gravy

Patodi rassa (also called patwadi rassa) comes from the dry, hot districts of Vidarbha around Nagpur and Amravati, where gram flour often takes the place of vegetables. Gram flour is cooked thick like a polenta, spread on a plate, scattered with coconut, sesame and poppy seeds and cut into squares. Just before eating, the squares go into bowls and a spicy, thin rassa of roasted onion and dry coconut is poured over them so they soak it up. It's a dish for a Sunday lunch or a wedding feast in the region, served with jowar bhakri or chapatis and rice. Chef's tip: pour the rassa over the patodi at the table, not in the pot; simmered together, the squares fall apart.

by KrazyBadal 0 views

PatoleoRice dumplings in turmeric leaves

In August, when the monsoon makes turmeric leaves grow tall in Goan backyards, families make patoleo. Catholic households steam them for the Feast of the Assumption on 15 August, and Hindu families make the same sweet, called patoli, for Nag Panchami and Ganesh Chaturthi. A thin layer of rice paste is spread on a turmeric leaf, filled with fresh coconut and dark Goan jaggery, folded and steamed. The leaf leaves a sweet, gingery perfume on the rice that nothing else can copy, so look for fresh turmeric leaves in Indian grocers; banana leaves are a fair substitute. Chef's tip: spread the rice paste as thin as you can while still covering the leaf; thick patoleo are stodgy and the filling gets lost.

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Ciorbă de burtăCreamy sour tripe soup

Romanians swear by ciorbă de burtă the morning after a wedding or a long night out, and in Bucharest there are restaurants that serve little else from breakfast onwards. Strips of beef tripe sit in a silky broth thickened with egg yolk and sour cream, sharpened with vinegar and served with mujdei, a raw garlic sauce, and a hot pepper on the side. It takes time, because tripe only turns tender after a long, slow simmer. The mistake most people make is boiling the soup after the yolks go in, which scrambles them into flecks. Chef's tip: buy cleaned, blanched (white, 'dressed') tripe from the butcher; it saves an hour of scrubbing and is much milder.

by KrazyBadal 0 views

AyranSalted yogurt drink

Ayran is what Turks drink with lunch: a chilled, foamy blend of yogurt, water and a pinch of salt, poured from copper jugs alongside cheese pide, börek, lentil soup and bean stews. In the Susurluk area of Balıkesir it is whisked so hard that it arrives under a thick head of foam, and roadside cafés all over Anatolia serve it in tin cups on hot summer days. It is tangy, refreshing and cooling with spicy food. Make it just before you sit down and drink it ice-cold. Chef's tip: whisk the yogurt alone with the salt until smooth before adding any water, and you'll get a silky drink with no lumps.

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Ciorbă de legumeSoured vegetable soup

Ciorbă is the sour soup that opens a Romanian lunch, from canteens in Cluj to Sunday tables in Moldavia, and the vegetable version is cooked all through the fasting weeks before Easter and Christmas. Root vegetables, beans and peppers simmer in a light broth that is soured at the end with borș, the fermented wheat-bran liquid sold in bottles at Romanian shops, or with lemon juice. Fresh lovage (leuștean) gives its unmistakable celery-like perfume. It is eaten piping hot with bread and a fresh green chilli on the side. Chef's tip: add the borș only at the end and let it come back just to a simmer; boiling it hard dulls the sour tang.

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Ciorbă de perișoareSour soup with meatballs

Across Romania, from Bucharest canteens to Moldavian grandmothers' kitchens, a pot of ciorbă de perișoare turns up on the Sunday table and again on Monday, when it tastes even better. This version contains pork: soft meatballs of minced pork and rice simmer in a clear vegetable broth that is soured at the end with borș (fermented wheat-bran liquid) or lemon juice, then finished with a handful of lovage. It is eaten very hot with a spoon of sour cream and a fresh green chilli to bite between spoonfuls. A frequent slip is boiling the soup hard once the meatballs are in, which breaks them apart and clouds the broth. Chef's tip: wet your hands in cold water before rolling each meatball; the mixture will not stick and the balls stay smooth and round.

by KrazyBadal 0 views

AyibFresh curd cheese

Ayib is the soft, crumbly fresh cheese that Ethiopians serve alongside spicy food to cool the mouth, especially with kitfo and gomen in the Gurage country south of Addis Ababa, where it is made from the buttermilk left after churning butter. It tastes very mild and slightly tangy, a little like ricotta or cottage cheese, and is often mixed with herbs or a pinch of mitmita. This home version uses milk and buttermilk, heated until they separate. Chef's tip: once the curds form, take it off the heat; boiling makes them tough and rubbery.

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Pazham poriBanana fritters

Pazham pori is what the glass cases of Kerala's roadside tea shops are full of at four in the afternoon: long slices of ripe nendran banana dipped in a sweet batter and fried in coconut oil until puffed and golden. Bite through the crisp, slightly chewy coat and the banana inside is soft, hot and honeyed. People eat them standing at the counter with a glass of frothy, milky chaya, or carry a paper parcel home for the family. Chef's tip: wait until the nendran skins are mostly black; the banana must be fully ripe to turn creamy when fried.

by KrazyBadal 0 views

BriamRoasted summer vegetables

Briam is what Greek home cooks put in the oven on a hot afternoon when the garden is full of courgettes: potatoes, courgettes, aubergine, peppers and onions tumbled with grated tomato, garlic and oregano, then roasted slowly until soft and caramelised at the edges. It is one of the ladera, dishes cooked in olive oil and eaten as a main course, usually at room temperature with feta and bread. It tastes better the next day, when the flavours have settled. Chef's tip: cut the potatoes thinner than everything else so they cook in the same time; same-size chunks are the common mistake that leaves you with hard potatoes and mushy courgettes.

by KrazyBadal 0 views

PebreCoriander and tomato relish

Every Chilean asado and every basket of warm bread in a picada (simple eatery) comes with pebre: a fresh relish of finely chopped coriander, onion, tomato and ají verde (green chilli) loosened with oil and a splash of vinegar. In Santiago it's spooned on marraqueta bread while waiting for the grill, and on sopaipillas in winter. It's more herb-heavy and oilier than Mexican pico de gallo. Chef's tip: rinse the chopped onion in cold water and drain it well; it takes away the harsh bite without losing crunch.

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Clafoutis aux cerisesCherry batter pudding

Clafoutis comes from the Limousin in central France, where black cherries ripen in early summer and families make this simple pudding for Sunday lunch. Whole cherries are scattered in a buttered dish and covered with a sweet, eggy batter, like a cross between a pancake and a custard, then baked until puffed and golden. In the Limousin the cherries are left unstoned, which cooks say gives a faint almond flavour; stone them if you are serving children. It's best warm, dusted with icing sugar. Chef's tip: don't overmix the batter once the flour is in; beating it hard is the common mistake and makes the clafoutis tough and rubbery.

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Coastal Mombasa mixChickpea and potato coconut-mango broth

A Mombasa street-food bowl: chickpeas and potato simmered in coconut milk with raw mango and chilli, ladled into small bowls and topped with crisp lentil fritters, crunchy chevdo and red, green and tamarind chutneys. Make the fritters and chevdo ahead and assemble at the table. It's sweet, sour, hot and crunchy all at once.

by KrazyBadal 1 views

Çoban salatasıChopped tomato and cucumber salad

Çoban salatası, the shepherd's salad, is on the table at almost every Turkish meal from Edirne to Van, whether that is a home dinner, a lokanta lunch or a summer barbecue. It is simple by design: small dice of tomato, cucumber, green pepper and onion with parsley, dressed with lemon juice, olive oil and a little sumac. It is eaten alongside pilaf, beans, börek or anything grilled. The common mistake is salting it too early, which draws the water out of the tomatoes and leaves it swimming. Chef's tip: rub the onion slices with salt and sumac and rinse them before adding; the onion stays crunchy but loses its harsh bite.

by KrazyBadal 0 views

PecelBlanched greens in peanut sauce

Madiun, in East Java, calls itself the home of nasi pecel, and its stalls serve it from early morning on banana leaf: rice under a heap of blanched spinach, bean sprouts, long beans and cabbage, drowned in a peanut sauce that's thinner, hotter and more herbal than gado-gado's. The difference is kencur, an earthy, camphor-scented root that gives pecel its signature smell, and lime leaf pounded into the paste. A crisp peanut rempeyek cracker is broken on top. Chef's tip: make a block of pecel paste ahead and dissolve just what you need in hot water each time — that's how East Javanese households do it, and it keeps for weeks in the fridge.

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Cochinita pibilAchiote slow-roast pork

The Maya of the Yucatán peninsula cooked pork in a pib, a pit lined with hot stones, and in Mérida cochinita pibil is still sold at dawn from market stalls, piled into tacos and tortas for breakfast. Pork shoulder sits overnight in a brick-red paste of achiote and sour orange juice, then roasts slowly wrapped in banana leaves until it pulls apart, soaking in its own tangy juices. It goes into warm tortillas with bright pink pickled onions and, for the brave, a habanero salsa. Chef's tip: if you can't find bitter Seville oranges, mix sweet orange juice with lime juice; the sourness is what tenderises and balances the pork.

270 minMexicanMeatGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Pisto manchegoPepper, courgette and tomato stew

Pisto manchego is the summer vegetable stew of La Mancha, the high plains of Don Quixote country: onions, green and red peppers and courgette cooked slowly in olive oil, then simmered with fresh tomato until soft, sweet and jammy. Spain's answer to ratatouille is humbler and softer, with the vegetables cooked one after another rather than all at once. In La Mancha it is eaten with bread and very often topped with a fried egg; it is also served alongside rice or potatoes, or cold the next day as a tapa. Chef's tip: be patient with the onion and peppers; give them a full 15–20 minutes over a low heat until really soft and sweet before the tomato goes in, because that slow start is where pisto gets its deep, mellow flavour.

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Patatas bravasFried potatoes with paprika sauce

Patatas bravas are Madrid's favourite bar snack: chunky potatoes fried until crisp outside and fluffy inside, then splashed with a brick-red sauce of olive oil, pimentón and a little stock. In Madrid the sauce is not ketchup or tomato sauce but a smooth, smoky paprika sauce with a kick; in Barcelona and Valencia you often get it with a spoon of alioli as well. This home version is fried twice for crunch and keeps the heat moderate so children can join in; add more hot paprika for the grown-ups. Serve with cold drinks, tortilla and pimientos de Padrón for a tapas spread. Chef's tip: take the pan off the heat before adding the pimentón; paprika burns in seconds and turns bitter, and that bitterness is the most common reason homemade bravas sauce tastes wrong.

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Paella de verdurasVegetable paella

Paella comes from the rice fields around the Albufera lagoon south of Valencia, where it was cooked over orange-wood fires in a wide, shallow pan. Valencians are strict about it: short round rice, saffron, sweet pimentón, flat green beans (ferraúra) and big white garrofó beans, and never any stirring once the rice is in. This all-vegetable paella keeps those rules and adds artichokes and red pepper, as the market gardeners of the Huerta do in spring. It is cooked and served in the same pan, straight onto the table. Chef's tip: listen for the socarrat at the end. Turn up the heat for the last 1–2 minutes until the rice crackles and smells toasty; that caramelised crust on the bottom is the best part of any paella.

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Pan con tomateTomato rubbed toast

Pa amb tomàquet (pan con tomate in Spanish) is the everyday bread of Catalonia: toasted country bread rubbed with garlic and a cut ripe tomato, drizzled with good olive oil and sprinkled with salt. Catalans eat it at breakfast, as a side to grilled vegetables or with a slice of tortilla, and it is so basic to the table that it is rarely even listed on menus. With so few ingredients the quality of each one matters: the ripest tomatoes, a rustic open-crumbed loaf and fruity extra virgin olive oil. Chef's tip: in Catalonia they use small, juicy 'tomàquets de penjar', hanging tomatoes; at home choose the ripest, softest vine tomatoes you can find and rub them in hard until only the skin is left in your hand.

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Pimientos de PadrónBlistered green peppers

Pimientos de Padrón come from Herbón, near the town of Padrón in Galicia, where they are fried whole in olive oil and showered with coarse salt. They are small, thin-skinned and mostly mild and grassy, but the Galician saying goes 'os pementos de Padrón, uns pican e outros non' (some are hot and some are not): roughly one in ten has a real kick, which is half the fun. They take five minutes and make the perfect tapa with a cold drink, tortilla or bread. Chef's tip: get the oil properly hot and leave the peppers alone for the first minute so the skins blister and puff; stewing them in lukewarm oil makes them soft and khaki instead of bright and blistered.

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Morning glory with garlicGarlic stir-fried water spinach

Rau muống, water spinach or morning glory, is the everyday green of Vietnam, and a plate of it stir-fried with garlic sits on family tables everywhere, from Hanoi rice-shops to Saigon street stalls. Done well, the hollow stems stay crunchy and bright green and the leaves silky, with a strong hit of garlic. Look for it in Asian grocers as water spinach or ong choy. This version is seasoned with soy sauce instead of fish sauce. Chef's tip: blanch the greens for 30 seconds and plunge them into iced water, as Hanoi cooks do, then stir-fry over the highest heat for barely a minute; they stay vivid green and never go soggy.

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Berenjenas con miel de cañaFried aubergine with molasses

Berenjenas con miel are a classic tapa in Andalusia, especially in Córdoba, Málaga and Granada: thin batons or slices of aubergine, lightly floured and fried until crisp, then drizzled with dark, treacly miel de caña. Despite the name, miel de caña is not bee honey but sugarcane molasses, made in the last cane mill in Europe at Frigiliana on the Málaga coast, so the dish is naturally vegan. The contrast of salty, crunchy aubergine and bittersweet syrup is irresistible; serve it the moment it leaves the pan with a cold drink. Chef's tip: soak the aubergine in salted water (or milk, as many Andalusian cooks do) for 15 minutes and pat dry; it seasons the flesh, softens any bitterness and helps the flour cling so the coating stays thin and crisp.

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Vegetarian feijoadaSmoky black bean stew

Feijoada is Brazil's national dish, the slow black bean stew that Rio de Janeiro and the rest of the country eat for long Saturday lunches. The classic version is loaded with smoked pork; this feijoada vegetariana gets its depth from well-browned mushrooms, smoked paprika and bay instead, with sweet potato melting into the dark, glossy broth. Serve it the proper way: white rice, couve à mineira, farofa and slices of orange to cut the richness. Chef's tip: once the beans are tender, mash a ladleful against the side of the pot and stir it back in. That's how Brazilian cooks get the thick, velvety caldo that coats the rice, rather than a thin soup.

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Sopa de ajoGarlic and bread soup

Sopa de ajo, also called sopa castellana, is the warming winter soup of Castile and León, from Segovia to Burgos: stale bread fried in olive oil with lots of garlic and smoky pimentón, simmered in stock and finished with eggs poached right in the soup. It was shepherds' and farmers' food, made from what was always in the kitchen, and is still eaten after a cold night out or on Ash Wednesday. Castilian cooks often add cured ham; this vegetarian version gets its depth from smoked pimentón and a good vegetable stock. Serve it in earthenware bowls, piping hot. Chef's tip: use bread that is truly stale and dry, and toast it in the garlicky oil until golden before adding the stock; fresh bread turns to mush, while toasted stale bread swells but keeps a little texture.

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Tortilla españolaSpanish potato omelette

Tortilla de patatas is the dish every Spanish bar keeps on the counter, from Madrid to Seville: a thick cake of soft potato and sweet onion bound with just-set egg, served warm or at room temperature in wedges or small squares (pinchos) with bread. The potatoes are not fried crisp but gently poached in plenty of olive oil until tender, then soaked in the beaten egg so every slice holds together. Spaniards argue about onion (con cebolla or sin) and about how runny the centre should be; this version has onion and a juicy middle, the way most bars in Madrid serve it. Eat it for breakfast, as a tapa or for a light supper with a tomato salad. Chef's tip: once the hot potatoes go into the beaten eggs, leave them to sit for 10 minutes before cooking; the egg starts to set around the potato and the tortilla turns out creamy and holds its shape.

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Vegan nuoc chamSweet and sour dipping sauce

Nước chấm is the dipping sauce that goes with almost everything in Vietnam: spring rolls, bánh xèo, noodle salads and broken rice. Buddhist vegetarian cooks, all over the country, make it without fish sauce, using light soy sauce and a little coconut water for the deep, rounded taste. It should be thin, clear and pale amber, with flecks of garlic and chilli floating on top. Chef's tip: dissolve the sugar in the warm water first, then add the lime and soy, and stir in the garlic and chilli last, pounded with a pinch of sugar, so they float on the surface instead of sinking.

by KrazyBadal 1 views

Vegetarian broken rice plateBroken rice with lemongrass tofu

Cơm tấm, 'broken rice', is the breakfast and lunch plate of Saigon. Broken grains, once sold cheaply to the poor, cook up soft and slightly sticky, and street stalls serve them with grilled meat, a crisp-edged fried egg, spring onion oil, pickles and cucumber. This vegetarian plate has caramelised lemongrass tofu in place of pork. Every part goes with the sweet-sour nước chấm spooned over the top. Chef's tip: fry the egg in hot oil and spoon the oil over the white, so the edges go lacy and crisp and the yolk stays runny, Saigon-style; break it over the rice and it becomes part of the sauce.

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Salmorejo cordobésThick chilled tomato and bread soup

Salmorejo is Córdoba's answer to gazpacho: thicker, richer and simpler, made with just ripe tomatoes, bread, garlic, olive oil and salt, blended into a cream so dense a spoon almost stands up in it. In Córdoba it is served in a shallow earthenware bowl as a first course or tapa, topped with chopped hard-boiled egg and diced cured ham; this vegetarian version keeps the egg (leave it out for a vegan dish) and adds a few crunchy croutons and a thread of olive oil. Chef's tip: use bread with a dense, tight crumb, like a day-old Spanish 'pan de telera' or a firm white loaf; airy supermarket bread makes salmorejo thin and gluey.

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Showing 36 of 7,762 recipes

Show more recipes

Page 784 of 863