Featured recipe

Glazed Christmas ham

A whole glazed leg ham is the centrepiece of the Australian Christmas table, served cold with salads and mustard on a hot December day and eaten in sandwiches for a week after Boxing Day. It is a cured, smoked leg of pork, already cooked, that is scored, studded with cloves and baked with a sticky orange and honey glaze. A common mistake is cutting the rind off too roughly; ease it away with your fingers so the fat stays smooth. Chef's tip: store the leftover ham in a cotton ham bag soaked in water and vinegar in the fridge to keep it moist.

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Bolo de arrozRice flour muffin cakes

Bolos de arroz are the tall, sugar-crusted cakes standing in their paper wrappers in every Portuguese café cabinet, from Porto's breakfast counters to the pastelarias of Lisbon's neighbourhoods. Despite the name they are mostly wheat flour, with a share of rice flour that gives a fine, slightly sandy, springy crumb, perfumed with lemon zest. People have one with a galão mid-morning or for lanche, the afternoon snack, peeling the paper down as they go. Chef's tip: wrap a strip of baking paper around the inside of each muffin hole so it stands 3 cm above the rim; the batter climbs up it and you get the tall, straight-sided shape.

40 min

Portuguese Baking

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Adas poloLentil rice with dates

Adas polo is a homely Tehran weekday rice, also served at the Yalda winter-solstice gathering in December, when tables fill with dried fruit. Brown lentils and long-grain rice are layered and steamed together, then topped with dates and raisins warmed in butter with cinnamon, so every spoonful is savoury, earthy and lightly sweet. Unlike Levantine lentil-and-rice dishes, the rice keeps its long separate grains and gets a saffron crust underneath. Serve it with yogurt, a herb plate and salad shirazi for a complete meal. Chef's tip: cook the lentils separately until just tender but whole; they finish softening during the steam.

75 min

Persian Rice & Grains

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Adjaruli khachapuriCheese bread boat with egg

On the Black Sea promenade in Batumi, the capital of Adjara, this is the bread people queue for after a swim: a boat of soft yeasted dough, the middle filled with molten cheese, and an egg yolk and a slab of butter dropped in at the very end. You stir the yolk and butter through the cheese with a fork at the table, then tear off the crisp ends and dip them in. Locals say the shape is a boat and the yolk the sun over the sea. Georgian imeruli and sulguni cheeses are hard to find outside Georgia, so this uses mozzarella with feta for the salty tang. Choose cheeses labelled vegetarian (microbial rennet). The usual home mistake is putting the egg in too early, which sets it hard; the yolk should go in only for the last 2 minutes so it stays runny. Chef's tip: roll the long edges inwards tightly and pinch the tips hard, or they will unroll in the oven and the cheese will flood the tray.

120 min

Georgian Breads & Parathas

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Solok ladaFish-stuffed green chillies

Bulky green chillies are the cases for this Kelantan festive dish, cooked for weddings and Raya tables in Kota Bharu. Each one is slit, scraped out and packed with a pale filling of fish, freshly grated coconut, shallots, ginger and black pepper, then simmered gently in coconut milk until the chillies slump and the gravy turns rich and faintly smoky. The filling is soft and sweet; the skins bring gentle heat and a green, grassy bite. Serve two or three per person with rice and a sambal, or with nasi kerabu. Chef's tip: choose large, mild chillies (or long sweet peppers for a gentler version) and tie each with a strip of pandan or a toothpick so the filling stays inside.

60 min

Malaysian Snacks & Starters

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Adobong kangkongBraised water spinach

In Manila and across Luzon, adobong kangkong is the cheap green that sits in a tray at the carinderia, the roadside canteen where office workers and jeepney drivers point at two or three dishes to go with their rice. It is not a stir-fry in the Chinese or Malay sense: the water spinach is cooked briefly in an adobo base of cane vinegar, soy sauce, bay and cracked pepper, so the stems stay crunchy while the leaves soak up a sharp, salty, garlicky sauce that runs into the rice. It costs very little, takes ten minutes and is often the only vegetable on a weekday plate. Chef's tip: let the vinegar boil for a full minute before you stir anything, the way Filipino cooks do; the raw, harsh edge cooks off and the sauce turns mellow.

18 min

Filipino Sides

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ÆbleskiverRound pancake puffs

From the first Sunday of Advent until Christmas, Danish homes and Christmas markets in Copenhagen's Tivoli smell of æbleskiver: little round pancake puffs cooked in a cast-iron pan with seven hemispherical wells. They are crisp and golden outside, light and almost custardy within, dipped in icing sugar and raspberry or strawberry jam, and washed down with gløgg or hot cocoa. The name means 'apple slices', a reminder that cooks once tucked a piece of apple inside; many families still do. Danes turn them with knitting needles or wooden skewers, a knack that takes a few rounds to learn. Chef's tip: turn each puff a quarter at a time; the raw batter flows into the space and builds the sphere, rather than flipping it all at once.

45 minScandinavian Desserts

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Bazin with lambBarley dough with lamb stew

Bazin is the traditional festive dish of Libya, especially in Tripoli and the western mountains: a smooth, firm dome of barley-flour dough set in the middle of a wide dish, surrounded by a spicy lamb stew of tomato, chilli and turmeric, with hard-boiled eggs and potatoes. Everyone eats from the same plate with the right hand, pinching off dough and dipping it in the sauce. The mistake is not beating the dough hard enough: it should be pounded until completely smooth, or it tastes floury. Chef's tip: beat the dough with a wooden spoon, adding cooking liquid a spoonful at a time, until it pulls cleanly away from the pot.

150 minAfrican Meat

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ČesnečkaGarlic soup

Česnečka is the soup Czechs swear by after a long night in a Prague pivnice: a thin, savoury broth fragrant with raw garlic, caraway and marjoram, with soft potato cubes, crunchy fried bread and a fistful of grated cheese melting into each bowl. It costs almost nothing, comes together in half an hour and is served in workers' canteens and village pubs all winter. This version uses vegetable stock instead of the old meat bouillon. Chef's tip: crush the garlic into the bowls or add it right at the end off the heat; boiled garlic goes sweet and mild, and česnečka should bite.

30 min

Czech Soups

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Afghan biscuitsChocolate cornflake biscuits

Afghans are a New Zealand classic, found in the old home baking books passed down in Kiwi kitchens and in the glass cabinets of cafés and bakeries from Christchurch to Whangārei. Nobody is quite sure where the name came from. The dough is rich with butter and cocoa, and lightly crushed cornflakes give each biscuit a crunchy, slightly rugged texture. A swirl of soft chocolate icing and a walnut half finish them off. They're not too sweet underneath, which is why the icing works so well. Chef's tip: crush the cornflakes only lightly with your hand; fine crumbs disappear, but big flakes give the crunch an afghan is known for.

35 min

Australian Baking

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Ceylon teaSpiced milk tea

In the misty tea country around Nuwara Eliya, Hatton and Ella, and in every roadside tea kade across Sri Lanka, tea is made strong, sweetened generously and often whitened with milk, then poured from a height between two jugs so it cools a little and wears a frothy cap. Families drink it first thing, again at 'tea time' around four, and with every short eats snack in between. Unlike Indian masala chai there are no spices: the flavour comes from bright, brisk high-grown Ceylon black tea, often a BOP or BOPF grade. If you'd rather have it plain, kahata thé is the same tea with no milk and a bite of jaggery. The common mistake is stewing the leaves too long, which turns it bitter and tannic; three to four minutes is plenty. Chef's tip: pour from jug to jug four or five times; the 'pulled' tea is smoother and creamier.

5 min

Sri Lankan Drinks

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CendolPandan jelly in coconut milk

On a sweltering afternoon in Melaka, the queue snakes out of the cendol shops on Jonker Street: a bowl of shaved ice drenched in salted coconut milk and smoky, dark gula Melaka syrup, hiding soft green jelly 'worms' made from rice flour and pandan, with red beans at the bottom. It's sweet, salty, creamy and cold all at once, and it's the city's signature dessert. Melaka's own gula Melaka is the key; it should smell of caramel and woodsmoke. Chef's tip: a pinch of salt in the coconut milk makes the palm sugar taste deeper; without it the bowl tastes flat.

40 min

Malaysian Desserts

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Cazuela de vacunoBeef and vegetable soup

Cazuela is the soup Chilean grandmothers make all through winter, from Santiago's Central Valley to the farms of the south: each bowl gets a whole piece of beef on the bone, a whole potato, a wedge of pumpkin and a piece of corn in a clear broth, with a little rice or green beans and plenty of fresh coriander. It is eaten as a full meal, with pebre and bread. The mistake is cutting the vegetables small: they should stay in big pieces, one of each per person. Chef's tip: simmer the beef very gently and skim it well so the broth stays clear.

145 min

Chilean Soups

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Causa limeñaLayered potato terrine

Causa limeña is Lima's cold potato terrine: yellow potatoes mashed with lime, oil and ají amarillo, pressed into layers and filled. In Lima it is a lunchtime starter sold in every menú and at every family party, often with tuna or chicken; this vegetarian causa is filled with ripe avocado and a creamy salad of corn, peas and carrot. The potato should be smooth, sunny yellow, tangy and gently hot, and the whole thing is served cold in neat slices. Make it in the morning for dinner, or the day before for a party. Chef's tip: mash the potatoes while warm but add the lime only once they have cooled; lime on hot potato turns the mash grey and gluey.

50 min

Peruvian Snacks & Starters

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Cauliflower tinga tacosChipotle cauliflower tacos

Tinga comes from Puebla, where shredded meat is simmered in a sauce of sweet sliced onion, tomato and smoky chipotle chillies and piled onto tostadas or tacos. Here roasted cauliflower takes the place of the chicken: browned in a hot oven so it turns nutty and holds its shape, then folded through the brick-red sauce so every floret is glossy and smoky. The result, tinga de coliflor, is sweet, tangy and properly spicy; serve it in warm corn tortillas or on crisp tostadas with avocado, shredded lettuce and lime. Chef's tip: cook the onions slowly until soft and sweet before the tomatoes go in; the sweetness is what balances the heat of the chipotle.

35 min

Mexican Vegetarian

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Cataplana de mariscoSeafood and sausage steam pot

Cataplana is the Algarve's showpiece, named after the hinged, clam-shaped copper pan it is cooked in, and it is served at the table in harbour towns like Olhão and Portimão, lid opened in a puff of steam. This version contains pork: smoky chouriço sausage goes in with the onion, peppers and tomato, then clams, prawns and firm white fish steam on top in their own juices. Bring bread for the broth. No cataplana? A wide casserole with a tight lid works. Chef's tip: purge the clams in salty water in the fridge for an hour so they spit out their sand before cooking.

60 min

Portuguese Fish

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SidduSteamed stuffed wheat buns

Siddu are soft, steamed wheat buns from the hills of Himachal Pradesh, especially around Kullu and Manali, made on cold days with a warming filling. The yeasted wholemeal dough is wrapped around ground walnuts, poppy seeds, garlic and green chilli, then steamed until fluffy. Torn open and drenched in melted ghee, they're eaten with green chutney or dal. Some homes fill them with spiced urad dal instead. Chef's tip: let the shaped siddu rise for 15 minutes before steaming, and don't open the lid early; a sudden draught makes them collapse and turn dense.

120 min

Indian Breads & Parathas

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BitterballenCrisp beef ragout balls

Order a round of drinks in an Amsterdam brown café and a plate of bitterballen will follow: small crumbed balls with a crackling shell and a molten centre of beef ragout, eaten with a dab of sharp mustard. They are the classic borrel snack across the Netherlands, served at parties and receptions as well as in bars. The filling is a thick roux sauce with slow-cooked shredded beef that has to set firm in the fridge before it can be rolled. The usual failure is a filling that is too soft, so the balls split open in the oil; cook the ragout until it is very thick and chill it for at least four hours. Chef's tip: crumb them twice (egg, crumbs, egg, crumbs) and freeze them for 20 minutes before frying for a shell that never bursts.

180 min

Dutch Snacks & Starters

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Agra pethaCandied ash gourd sweets

Every train pulling out of Agra carries boxes of petha. The city's halwais have been candying ash gourd for generations, and the plain white kind remains the classic: firm, crystal-clear cubes with a sugar crust and a juicy centre, lightly scented with rose or kewra. At home it makes a good festival sweet for Diwali gifting because it keeps for two weeks. The firmness comes from soaking the gourd in food-grade slaked lime (chuna, sold as pickling lime) or, as some cooks prefer, in alum water. Leaving out the soak, or rushing it, is the most common mistake: the cubes fall apart in the syrup. Chef's tip: prick each cube deeply all over with a fork before soaking, so the lime water and later the syrup reach the centre.

110 min

Indian Indian Sweets

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CassouletWhite bean and duck stew

Cassoulet is the great winter feast of the Languedoc, and the towns of Castelnaudary, Carcassonne and Toulouse still argue over who makes it best. Contains pork: white beans cook with pork rind and belly, then bake for hours with duck confit and garlicky Toulouse sausages in a deep earthenware dish until a dark crust forms on top. It takes two days at a relaxed pace and feeds a crowd. Serve with nothing more than a green salad. Chef's tip: break the crust and push it under several times while it bakes; each new crust adds flavour and body.

280 min

French Meat

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Agua de jamaicaHibiscus iced drink

Agua de jamaica is one of the aguas frescas, the cooling fruit and flower drinks ladled from huge glass barrels at markets and taquerías all over Mexico. It is made by steeping dried hibiscus calyces (flor de jamaica) in hot water, giving a deep crimson drink that tastes tart like cranberry, lightly floral and very refreshing over ice. It is naturally vegan and keeps for days in the fridge. Use the concentrate as the base and sweeten to taste. Chef's tip: don't boil the flowers for long or leave them steeping for hours; too much extraction makes the drink tannic and harsh.

15 min

Mexican Drinks

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Bai sach chroukGrilled pork over rice

Bai sach chrouk, 'rice with pork', is the classic Cambodian street breakfast, grilled over charcoal on pavements in Phnom Penh and Siem Reap in the early morning and eaten before work and school. It is a pork dish: thin slices of pork are marinated overnight in coconut milk, garlic and palm sugar, then grilled until caramelised and smoky and served on broken rice with quick-pickled cucumber and carrot and a small bowl of clear broth. Chef's tip: slice the pork thinly, about 5 mm; it marinates faster and chars before it dries out.

45 min

Cambodian Meat

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Ais kacangShaved ice with red beans

Ais kacang ('bean ice'), also called ABC for air batu campur ('mixed ice'), is the towering, rainbow-coloured treat Malaysian kids beg for at food courts and hawker centres on hot afternoons. Underneath a snowy dome of shaved ice hide red beans, sweetcorn, cubes of black grass jelly and chopped peanuts; on top go streaks of pink rose syrup, dark palm-sugar syrup and a drizzle of condensed milk. Everyone digs in from the top and mixes it into a sweet, icy slush. Chef's tip: chill the bowls in the freezer for 15 minutes first, so the ice holds its peak long enough to get it to the table.

20 min

Malaysian Desserts

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AjapsandaliAubergine and pepper stew

Ajapsandali is what Georgian kitchens make in late summer, when the markets of Tbilisi and the gardens of Kakheti are heaped with aubergines, peppers and tomatoes. The vegetables are fried briefly, layered in a pot and left to stew gently until soft and sweet, then finished with a whole handful of coriander, basil and garlic. It is eaten warm with bread as a main dish during Lent, or cold the next day as a side at a feast. The common mistake is stirring it too often, which breaks everything into mush; shake the pan instead and let the layers keep their shape. Chef's tip: fry the aubergine on its own first until golden; this one step gives the whole stew its deep, rounded flavour.

65 min

Georgian Vegetarian

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Ají de gallinaChicken in creamy chilli sauce

Lima's old criollo kitchens turned leftover hens into this golden, velvety stew, and it still turns up at family lunches, office canteens and menú del día stalls all over the capital. Poached chicken is pulled into threads and folded into a sauce thickened with milk-soaked bread, ground walnuts and parmesan, coloured by ají amarillo, Peru's fruity yellow chilli. It is served over white rice with boiled potatoes, a halved egg and a black olive. Chef's tip: keep the poaching broth; loosening the sauce with it instead of more milk gives a deeper, more chickeny flavour.

70 min

Peruvian Chicken

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Casado vegetarianoRice, beans and plantain plate

Walk into any soda (small family diner) in San José at lunchtime and the board will offer a casado: one plate where rice and beans are 'married' to salad, sweet plantain and a main. The meatless version is just as common, with a fried egg and a slice of fresh white cheese, plus a little picadillo of chopped vegetables. It's a full, balanced lunch, and every element is simple. Chef's tip: cook the plantain only when it's deeply black-skinned and soft; ripe plantain caramelises to sticky dark edges, green plantain just goes dry.

65 minCentral American Vegetarian

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Carne de porco à alentejanaPork and clams

Despite the name, this surf-and-turf dish of pork and clams is most often linked with the Algarve coast, where Alentejo pork met local shellfish; today it is served in tascas all over Portugal, especially for Sunday lunch. It is a pork dish: cubes of pork shoulder marinate in massa de pimentão (sweet red pepper paste), garlic and traditionally white wine, then are fried and tossed with steamed clams, crisp potato cubes, pickles and lots of coriander. For an alcohol-free version, swap the wine for chicken stock with a tablespoon of white wine vinegar. Chef's tip: buy the pork with a little fat on; lean loin turns dry and tough when fried.

80 min

Portuguese Meat

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CarimañolasYuca fritters stuffed with beef

Carimañolas are torpedo-shaped fritters of mashed yuca filled with savoury minced beef, a breakfast and party snack in Panama City and along the Caribbean coast in Colón, often eaten with a cup of coffee or a spoon of hot sauce. The yuca dough is soft and smooth, the outside crisp after frying. The mistake is working the yuca dough while it is cold; mash and shape it while still warm, when it is smooth and pliable. Chef's tip: wet your hands with a little oil or water as you shape them so the dough doesn't stick.

80 minCentral American Snacks & Starters

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Ajiaco santafereñoChicken and potato soup

On cold, drizzly afternoons in Bogotá, high up in the Andes, families sit down to ajiaco: a thick chicken soup made with three kinds of potato. Small yellow papas criollas melt away and thicken the broth, while waxy and floury potatoes keep some bite. Guascas, a dried herb with a grassy, artichoke-like taste, gives the soup its unmistakable flavour, and each bowl comes with corn on the cob, a spoon of cream, capers and slices of avocado to add at the table. A frequent mistake is adding all the potatoes at once; the papas criollas go in first so they can dissolve, the firmer ones later. Chef's tip: if you can't find guascas in a Latin shop, use a mix of dried oregano and a little dried thyme; the soup will still be good, just less Bogotá.

100 min

Colombian Soups

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Bistecca alla fiorentinaGrilled T-bone steak

A proper fiorentina is a T-bone cut three fingers thick, traditionally from Tuscany's white Chianina cattle, and Florentine steakhouses sell it by weight and serve it one way only: charred outside, deep red within. It is a sharing steak for three or four, sliced off the bone at the table and finished with nothing more than good olive oil and coarse salt. On one side of the bone sits the tender fillet, on the other the beefier sirloin, and the bone itself gives the meat flavour as it cooks. Cannellini beans with olive oil and sage and a simple green salad are the usual companions. Chef's tip: after searing both flat sides, stand the steak upright on its bone for several minutes; the heat travels up through the bone and cooks the middle evenly without overdoing the outside.

40 min

Italian Meat

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Sigara böreğiFried cheese pastry rolls

These pencil-thin rolls take their name from the cigarettes they resemble, and they are the börek every Turkish child grows up on. Triangles of yufka (thin Turkish pastry) are rolled round a finger of white cheese and parsley and fried until they shatter when you bite them. They turn up at five o'clock tea parties, on the iftar table during Ramadan and in many a school lunchbox. Yufka is sold in Turkish shops; filo works too if you use two sheets brushed with oil. Chef's tip: shape them all, cover with a damp cloth and fry just before eating; they lose their crunch within an hour.

30 min

Turkish Snacks & Starters

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Bajan fish cakesSalt cod fritters

Fish cakes are on every Bajan party table and in every rum-shop snack box, and on Friday nights at Oistins Fish Fry they are tucked into a split salt bread roll as 'bread and two'. These are not potato patties but spoonfuls of light, herby batter full of flaked salt cod, spring onion, thyme and Scotch bonnet, fried until puffed and golden. Serve them hot with Bajan pepper sauce or a squeeze of lime. The mistake that gives flat, greasy fish cakes is a thin batter; it should drop from the spoon in a soft blob, not pour. Chef's tip: taste a flake of the cooked cod before mixing; if it is still salty, don't add any more salt to the batter.

55 min

Bajan Snacks & Starters

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AjvarRoasted pepper and aubergine relish

Every September the smell of charring peppers drifts over courtyards from Leskovac in southern Serbia to Strumica in North Macedonia, as families roast crates of long red babura peppers on wood stoves and spend a whole Sunday stirring the pulp into ajvar for the winter shelves. A little roasted aubergine softens the flavour, and long cooking with sunflower oil turns it into a glossy, sweet-smoky spread that is eaten on bread with white cheese, beside beans or potatoes, and with almost every winter meal. This is a home-sized batch for two medium jars rather than a cellar full. Chef's tip: do not rinse the roasted peppers under the tap to get the skins off; it washes away the smoky juices that make ajvar taste of autumn, so peel them with oiled fingers and a paper towel instead.

145 minBalkan Chutneys & Dips

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BissaraSplit fava bean soup

Bissara is the cold-morning soup of northern Morocco: in Tangier, Tétouan and Chefchaouen you see it ladled out from big pots at street stalls before work, and it is a favourite to break the fast in winter Ramadans. Dried split broad beans are simmered with garlic until they fall apart and blended into a thick, pale purée, then finished at the table with olive oil, cumin and paprika. Eat it piping hot with crusty bread; leftover bissara thickens into a dip you can spread on toast. Chef's tip: be generous with the final olive oil, it is not a garnish but part of the dish.

50 min

Moroccan Soups

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Bisi bele bathSpiced rice and lentil one-pot

Bisi bele bath means 'hot lentil rice' in Kannada, and it's Karnataka's great comfort dish, served in temples, weddings and Bengaluru tiffin rooms. Rice and toor dal are cooked soft with vegetables, then simmered with tamarind, jaggery and a freshly roasted spice powder of lentils, coriander seed, chilli, cinnamon and coconut until it's thick, glossy and spoonable. A generous ghee tempering with cashews and curry leaves goes over the top. Eat it piping hot with crisp potato chips or boondi raita. Chef's tip: make it looser than you think; it thickens fast as it stands, and the right texture is soft and flowing, like a thick porridge.

70 min

Indian Rice & Grains

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Akoho sy voanioChicken in coconut milk

Akoho sy voanio, chicken with coconut, is a dish of Madagascar's east coast around Toamasina, where coconuts are everywhere, and it has become a favourite all over the island. Chicken is browned with onion, garlic, ginger and tomato, then simmered gently in coconut milk with a pinch of curry until the sauce is creamy and mild. It is eaten with plenty of white rice and a little achard (vegetable pickle). The mistake is boiling the coconut milk hard so it splits; keep it at a gentle bubble. Chef's tip: brown the chicken well first; the coconut sauce needs that savoury depth.

65 min

Malagasy Chicken

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AkokCaramelised egg and coconut cakes

Akok is a Kelantanese kuih traditionally baked in small brass moulds over coals, with more coals laid on the lid, and it is a classic for breaking the fast in Kota Bharu during Ramadan. The batter is mostly eggs, coconut milk and dark gula melaka, so the little cakes come out custardy in the middle with a dark, caramelised, almost sticky crust. A mini-muffin tin in a hot oven gives a very close result. Chef's tip: heat the greased tin in the oven before filling it, which is how the base caramelises.

40 min

Malaysian Desserts

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Cari pouletChicken curry

In Réunion a cari is any stew cooked with turmeric (called "safran" on the island), garlic, ginger, onion, tomato and thyme, and cari poulet is the dish families cook on Sundays in Saint-Denis and the mountain villages, often in a big cast-iron pot over a wood fire. It is served with white rice, red beans or lentils, and a fiery rougail on the side. The mistake is adding water too early: let the chicken brown and the tomatoes melt first, then add only a little. Chef's tip: thyme is essential in Réunionnais cooking; add it whole and fish it out before serving.

65 min

Mauritian Chicken

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AktoriBuckwheat pancakes with greens

High in the Spiti and Lahaul valleys of Himachal Pradesh, where wheat struggles, buckwheat (kathu) grows in short summer fields and its leaves are eaten as a vegetable too. Aktori are thin buckwheat pancakes cooked with a layer of those greens inside, dotted with ghee and eaten warm with yogurt or salty butter tea. Families make them on festival mornings and through the long winter. Outside the valleys, spinach or young chard stands in well for buckwheat leaves. Chef's tip: keep the batter as thin as pouring cream; buckwheat has no gluten, so a thick batter cooks up gummy instead of tender.

30 min

Indian Breakfast & Brunch

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Carciofi alla romanaBraised artichokes with mint

Every spring, from February to April, Roman market stalls pile up round, thornless romanesco artichokes (cimaroli), and trattorie serve them alla romana: stuffed with wild mint, parsley and garlic and braised stem-up in oil and water until meltingly soft. They are eaten warm or at room temperature as a contorno, often next to their crisp cousins, carciofi alla giudia. Any large globe artichoke works at home. Chef's tip: braise them upside down, stems in the air and tightly packed, so the hearts sit in the liquid and the stems steam to the same tenderness.

50 min

Italian Sides

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CapunsChard parcels of herby dough

Capuns come from the valleys of Graubünden, where every village in the Surselva and Engadin has its own way of making them, and they are cooked on cold evenings and for festivals in mountain inns. A soft spätzle batter flavoured with herbs and little cubes of air-dried salsiz sausage and bacon is wrapped in chard leaves, then the parcels are poached in a mixture of milk and stock and finished with butter and grated mountain cheese. The salsiz and bacon are pork. Most first attempts fail because the dough is too runny to wrap; it should drop slowly off a spoon, like very thick porridge. Chef's tip: dip the chard leaves into boiling water for just 10 seconds so they turn supple enough to roll without tearing.

80 min

Swiss Meat

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Ala thel dalaDevilled potatoes

Ala thel dala means 'potato tempered in oil', and it's the quick, fiery potato fry that Sri Lankan mothers make when there's no time for a full curry, served with rice, packed into a lunch box with parippu, or eaten with bread at breakfast. Boiled potato cubes are tossed in hot oil with mustard seeds, plenty of red onion, curry leaves, turmeric and roughly crushed dried chilli until the edges turn golden and the onion goes soft and sweet. Unlike an Indian aloo sabzi there are no ground cumin or coriander, just chilli heat, onion and curry leaf. The usual mistake is boiling the potatoes until they're soft right through; they then break up in the pan. Chef's tip: stop boiling when a knife still meets a little resistance in the middle; the potatoes finish cooking in the pan and keep their shape.

25 min

Sri Lankan Sides

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CaponataSweet and sour aubergine stew

Caponata is the agrodolce dish of Sicily: cubes of fried aubergine, crisp celery, green olives and capers in a glossy tomato sauce sharpened with vinegar and softened with a little sugar. Palermo families keep a bowl in the fridge through late summer and eat it at room temperature as an antipasto, a side or on bread, and many say it is best on the second day. The sweet-sour balance shows the Arab influence on Sicilian cooking. Chef's tip: blanch the celery for 2 minutes before frying; it keeps a pleasant crunch without tasting raw.

45 min

Italian Sides

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Bajan pepper sauceMustard scotch bonnet hot sauce

On every table in Barbados, from rum shops in Oistins to Sunday lunch at home, there's a bottle of yellow pepper sauce. Bajan pepper sauce is unlike the red sauces of other islands: scotch bonnets are blended with onion, yellow mustard, turmeric and vinegar, which give it its colour and a tangy, mellow edge under the fierce, fruity heat. A few drops lift fish cakes, cou-cou, macaroni pie and rice. Chef's tip: let it rest for a few days before using; the mustard and vinegar soften the raw onion and the heat becomes rounder.

25 min

Bajan Chutneys & Dips

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Albóndigas en salsaMeatballs in tomato almond sauce

Albóndigas turn up all over Spain: in a cazuelita on a tapas bar counter, as the second course of a weekday menú del día, and in home kitchens on a Sunday when there is time to roll them. These are made with pork and beef, softened with milk-soaked bread, browned and then simmered in a tomato sauce thickened the old Spanish way with ground fried almonds, which gives it body and a gentle nutty sweetness. Serve them with chips, rice or plenty of bread. They taste even better the next day. Chef's tip: wet your hands with cold water before rolling each meatball; the mixture won't stick and the balls come out smooth and round.

60 min

Spanish Meat

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Bajan seasoningHerb and pepper seasoning

Every cook in Barbados keeps a jar of Bajan seasoning, and families in Bridgetown and St Philip guard their own blend. It's a wet, coarse paste of spring onion, onion, garlic, fresh thyme, marjoram and parsley, sharpened with lime and given a backbone of clove, paprika and scotch bonnet. Bajans press it into slits in fish and meat; here it goes into stews, onto roasted vegetables, tofu and halloumi, and into the stew for cou-cou. It smells strongly herby and peppery, and keeps for weeks. Chef's tip: marjoram is the herb that makes it Bajan; don't skip it, and use fresh if you can find it.

20 min

Bajan Basics

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Bajan sweet breadCoconut and raisin loaf

Sweet bread is what Barbadian families bake in December, wrapped in foil and handed over at Christmas visits around the island, and it's sold year round in bakeries from Bridgetown to Speightstown. It isn't a yeast bread but a dense, moist loaf packed with freshly grated coconut, sweet with brown sugar and scented with almond essence, with raisins, mixed peel and bright red glacé cherries in every slice. The top gets brushed with sugar syrup for a sticky shine. Chef's tip: use fresh or frozen grated coconut if you can; desiccated coconut makes a drier loaf unless you soak it first in the milk for 20 minutes.

80 min

Bajan Baking

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Kalguksu with clamsClam noodle soup

Kalguksu means 'knife noodles': a soft wheat dough is rolled thin and cut by hand. Korean noodle shops serve it all year, but it is the dish people crave on a rainy day, often with a crisp pajeon on the side. Along the west coast, near the mudflats where clams are dug, the broth is loaded with them. The flour clinging to the noodles thickens the soup slightly as they cook, giving it a gentle, silky body. Chef's tip: shake off most of the flour before the noodles go into the pot, so the broth turns silky rather than gluey.

50 min

Korean Pasta & Noodles

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BingtteokBuckwheat crepe rolls with radish

Bingtteok (빙떡) comes from Jeju island, where volcanic soil grew buckwheat and radish better than rice. Thin, almost translucent buckwheat crêpes are rolled around a filling of blanched radish seasoned only with salt, sesame and spring onion. The flavour is gentle and nutty, and it was traditionally brought to funerals, weddings and village gatherings, sometimes with a cup of makgeolli. Today you find it at Jeju's Dongmun and Seogwipo markets beside more fiery snacks. Chef's tip: pour a little batter and swirl the pan fast, or spread it with the back of a ladle; bingtteok crêpes should be so thin you can almost see through them.

40 min

Korean Snacks & Starters

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Slata mechouiaGrilled pepper and tomato salad

Slata mechouia means 'grilled salad', and in Tunisia it opens almost every family meal and Ramadan iftar: peppers, tomatoes, onion and garlic charred over coals until blackened, then peeled and chopped into a smoky relish with olive oil, caraway and coriander seed. It is scooped up with bread or served next to grilled food and couscous. A tuna and egg topping is common in restaurants; this version keeps it to vegetables and olives. Chef's tip: let the vegetables steam in a covered bowl after charring; the skins then slip off in seconds.

45 min

Tunisian Salads

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BeguniBattered aubergine fritters

When the monsoon arrives in Kolkata, the telebhaja shops at every para corner start frying beguni: long, thin slices of aubergine dipped in a spiced gram-flour batter and fried until the coat puffs and turns golden. It is eaten with muri and a cup of tea, or alongside khichuri on a wet Saturday. The inside should be soft and creamy, the shell thin and crackly. Chef's tip: a spoonful of rice flour and a pinch of nigella in the batter keep it crisp long after frying. This is a different dish from begun bhaja, where the slices are fried bare with turmeric and salt.

30 min

Indian Snacks & Starters

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Alfajores de maicenaCornflour dulce de leche sandwich cookies

Alfajores de maicena are the homemade alfajor of Argentina and Uruguay, baked for birthdays, school fairs and merienda (afternoon tea) with mate. Two pale, melt-in-the-mouth biscuits made mostly with cornflour are sandwiched with a thick layer of dulce de leche and rolled in desiccated coconut around the edge. They should crumble at the first bite. Chef's tip: take them out of the oven while still pale; if they colour they lose their tender, sandy texture.

42 min

Argentinian Baking

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Terong baladoFried aubergine in chilli sambal

Balado is the Minangkabau way of smothering fried food in a coarse, shiny red chilli sambal, and in West Sumatra the aubergine version is a daily home dish as much as a restaurant one. The aubergine is fried until soft and creamy inside, then folded into a sambal of red chillies, shallots and tomato cooked down until sweet. Serve it at room temperature with rice and fried tofu. Chef's tip: grind the chillies coarsely rather than to a purée; Padang cooks want flecks of skin and seed in a balado.

40 min

Indonesian Vegetarian

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Soupe au pistouBean and vegetable soup with basil

Soupe au pistou is Provence's summer minestrone, eaten from July to September when basil grows thick in the gardens around Marseille and Avignon. Beans, courgettes, green beans, carrots, potato and small pasta simmer in a light broth, then each bowl gets a spoonful of pistou, a pounded paste of basil, garlic, olive oil and hard cheese with no pine nuts. Stirred in at the table, it turns the broth fragrant and green. It is a whole meal with bread. The traditional cheese is Parmesan or aged Gouda, so use a vegetarian hard cheese. Chef's tip: never boil the pistou; adding it to the pot is the common mistake that turns the basil dark and kills its smell.

60 min

French Soups

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Soufflé au fromageCheese soufflé

The cheese soufflé is a French bistro classic and a favourite family starter or light supper all over France, often served with a green salad and a glass of white wine. A thick cheese sauce is lightened with whisked egg whites and baked until it rises tall above the dish, golden and crusty outside and soft, almost creamy in the middle. It sounds hard but it's mostly about timing. We thicken the sauce with cornflour so it's gluten free (classic recipes use plain flour). Comté and Gruyère are made with animal rennet, so use a vegetarian alternative. Chef's tip: fold the whites in gently with a big spoon, in three goes; stirring hard is the common mistake that knocks out the air so it never rises.

50 min

French Vegetarian

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