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WhatToEat.Today

Low-calorie recipes

Lighter recipes that are still filling and full of flavour. (485 recipes)

Ful nabitSprouted fava bean soup

Sprouted beans are ladled out with their cooking liquor in Cairo homes when the weather turns cold or someone is feeling run down, and Egyptians swear by the broth as a pick-me-up. The beans are soaked and left to sprout for a few days, then simmered with onion, garlic and cumin into a light, earthy soup that is sharpened at the table with plenty of lemon. You can eat the beans with a spoon or pop them from their skins. Allow 3 to 4 days for sprouting, although the hands-on work is only about 20 minutes. People with G6PD deficiency (favism) must not eat fava beans. Chef's tip: stop the sprouting when the shoots are about 1 cm long; longer sprouts taste grassy and bitter.

70 minEgyptianSoupsVeganGluten free
by KrazyBadal 2 views

Matzah

Matzah is the flat unleavened bread eaten at Passover, recalling the Israelites leaving Egypt in too much haste for their bread to rise, and in Israel and Jewish homes worldwide it is also eaten as a crisp everyday cracker with soups and dips. The dough is only flour and water; by tradition it is mixed, rolled and baked within 18 minutes so it cannot ferment. This home version follows that rhythm but is not certified for Passover use. There is no salt: about 0.0 g salt per sheet. The usual mistake is rolling too thick, which gives a tough, chewy bread; roll until you can almost see the counter through it. Chef's tip: prick the dough all over with a fork before baking so it stays flat and blisters evenly.

20 minIsraeliBreads & ParathasVegan
by KrazyBadal 1 views

Dominican berenjena guisadaStewed aubergine

Dominican home cooks make berenjena guisada as a weekday side next to white rice and beans, the aubergine stewed down with tomato, sweet peppers and plenty of dried oregano into a soft, savoury guiso. It is light, quick and good hot or at room temperature. The common mistake is adding all the water at the start, which boils the aubergine grey; let it soak up the oil and sofrito first, then add liquid a little at a time. Chef's tip: rub the dried oregano between your palms as it goes in, to release the oils; Dominican cooks swear by it.

35 minPuerto RicanVegetarianVeganGluten free
by KrazyBadal 1 views

ŞalgamFermented purple carrot drink

Order an Adana kebab in its home city and a tall glass of şalgam arrives with it, deep purple, salty, sour and often fiery. It is made by fermenting black carrots with a little bulgur and salt for a week or more, and the sharpness clears the palate between bites of lamb and grilled onion. Street carts in Adana sell it by the glass in summer. This home version skips the separate bulgur-sour-dough stage the big producers use. Use non-iodised salt: iodised salt can stall the ferment. Chef's tip: taste from day 5; when it is sour enough to make you blink, strain and chill it, because it keeps fermenting at room temperature.

20 minTurkishDrinksVegan
by KrazyBadal 1 views

Methi palak dhokraFenugreek and spinach bean cake

A soft, spongy, low-calorie dhokra made from soaked black-eyed beans blended to a batter with fresh fenugreek, spinach and green chilli-ginger paste, lifted with fruit salt and steamed. Cut into squares and serve with green chutney as a snack or light meal.

40 minIndianSnacks & StartersVeganGluten free
by KrazyBadal 1 views

Salade palmisteHeart of palm salad

Hotel menus around Praslin once called it millionaire's salad, because a whole native palm had to be felled for the single pale heart at its crown. That is no longer how it should be made: buy fresh hearts from farmed peach palm, which regrows from the base, or a good jar of hearts of palm, and you get the same cool, crunchy ribbons with a faint sweetness like young coconut and artichoke. Seychellois serve it as a starter at celebrations or beside grilled fish and Creole rice, dressed simply so the palm stays the star. Chef's tip: dress it no more than 15 minutes before eating; left longer, the lime softens the crunch and the salad goes limp.

15 minMauritianSaladsVeganGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Choddo shaakFourteen leafy greens stir-fry

On Bhoot Chaturdashi, the night before Kali Puja and Diwali, Bengali homes light fourteen lamps for their ancestors and eat a dish of fourteen greens at lunch to keep illness and restless spirits away. Markets in Kolkata sell bundles already mixed for the day: spinach, red and green amaranth, Malabar spinach, water spinach, fenugreek, mustard and radish greens, bathua, jute leaves, pumpkin leaves, helencha and a few neem leaves for bitterness. Fried briefly in mustard oil with nigella and dried chilli, they cook down to an earthy, slightly bitter, faintly sweet tangle. It is eaten as the first course with hot rice and a drizzle of ghee for those who want it. If you can't find all fourteen, use what your grocer has; the mix matters more than the exact list. Chef's tip: cook it uncovered after the first wilt so the water evaporates; choddo shaak should be dry and glossy, not stewed.

40 minIndianSidesVeganGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Samaki wa kupakaGrilled fish in coconut tamarind sauce

Samaki wa kupaka is a Swahili coast favourite from Mombasa, Lamu and Zanzibar, grilled over charcoal for family feasts, Eid and evening food markets. Whole fish or thick fillets are marinated with lemon, garlic and turmeric, grilled until charred, then basted again and again with a thick sauce of coconut milk, tamarind, chilli and spices so it forms a sticky, golden coat. This version uses light coconut milk and is suitable as part of a balanced diet; serve with kachumbari and greens, or a small portion of brown rice. About 370 kcal and 8 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is flipping the fish too soon, before the skin crisps, so it sticks and breaks. Chef's tip: oil the grill rack well and use a fish basket if you have one.

50 minEast AfricanFishGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Chłodnik litewskiChilled beet leaf soup

In Podlasie and the lake country of north-east Poland, chłodnik is the soup of hot June and July days, when young beets are pulled with their leaves still tender. The beet greens and baby beets are cooked briefly, chilled, then stirred into kefir with cucumber, radish, spring onion and lots of dill, so the soup turns shocking pink, tangy and cold. It is served as a starter or a light lunch with half a hard-boiled egg in each bowl. Suitable as part of a balanced diet. About 170 kcal and 13 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is mixing the kefir into warm beets, which makes it split and dulls the colour, so chill them completely first. Chef's tip: add a squeeze of lemon to the cooking beets; the acid keeps the colour a vivid pink instead of brownish.

30 minPolishSoupsGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Pollo arvejadoChicken with peas

Pollo arvejado is a Chilean home-cooking classic, the kind of quick, homely braise that mothers in Santiago make on a weekday and that appears on set lunch (colación) menus all over the country. Chicken pieces simmer with onion, garlic, carrot and plenty of green peas (arvejas) in a light, golden sauce flavoured with cumin, oregano and a little paprika. It is a good balance of protein and vegetables and suitable as part of a balanced diet; serve with salad or a small portion of brown rice instead of the usual white rice or mashed potato. About 400 kcal and 17 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is adding the peas at the start, which turns them grey; add frozen peas only for the last 8 minutes. Chef's tip: take the skin off the chicken after browning, so you keep the colour but lose most of the fat.

55 minChileanChickenGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Salată de ardei copțiRoasted pepper salad

Every Romanian family makes salată de ardei copți in late summer, when the long, sweet bell peppers are piled high at the markets of Bucharest and Cluj and the smell of peppers roasting on the hob fills apartment blocks. The peppers are charred whole, peeled and dressed with garlic, vinegar, oil and parsley, then left to soak up the dressing. It is served cold as a side with grilled meat or fish, or with mămăligă, cheese and eggs. Suitable as part of a balanced diet. About 100 kcal and 9 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is rinsing the peeled peppers under the tap, which washes away the smoky juices. Chef's tip: steam them in a covered bowl for 10 minutes after charring, and the skins slip off easily.

35 minRomanianSaladsVeganGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

SchmorgurkenBraised cucumbers

Schmorgurken are a late-summer dish of Berlin and the Spreewald, the market-garden country south-east of the city, where big, thick braising cucumbers are piled up in August. Peeled and seeded, they are braised with onion and a little stock until tender and juicy, then finished with dill, mustard and a spoon of sour cream. Many families add minced meat or bacon; this is the vegetarian version, good with boiled new potatoes or a fried egg. Suitable as part of a balanced diet, it is a low-starch vegetable dish: about 110 kcal and 9 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is braising them for too long until they collapse into mush; they are ready when just translucent. Chef's tip: scrape out the seeds thoroughly, or the dish turns watery.

30 minGermanVegetarianGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Salatat zabadiYogurt and cucumber salad

In Khartoum and Omdurman, salatat zabadi is the cooling dish set on the shared tray at lunch and during Ramadan iftar, eaten beside spicy stews, beans, grilled meat and kisra bread. Thick yoghurt is whisked with grated cucumber, garlic, a little green chilli and dried mint, so it is creamy, fresh and gently hot. Suitable as part of a balanced diet. About 90 kcal and 7 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is adding the cucumber without squeezing it, which floods the yoghurt and makes it watery within minutes. Chef's tip: chill the bowl for half an hour before serving, as the garlic mellows and the flavours come together.

10 minSudaneseSaladsGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Sauce gomboOkra and fish sauce

Sauce gombo is one of the everyday sauces of Côte d'Ivoire, simmered in Abidjan compounds and village kitchens for lunch and eaten with foutou, rice or attiéké. Sliced okra cooks down with tomato, onion, chilli and a little red palm oil until it turns pleasantly silky and draws together, and smoked fish gives it a deep savoury flavour, with fresh fish added at the end. High in fibre and protein and suitable as part of a balanced diet; serve with a modest portion of brown rice or attiéké. About 290 kcal and 12 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is stirring hard and often, which makes the okra stringy; stir gently. Chef's tip: pick small, bright okra pods that snap cleanly, as large pods are woody.

60 minIvorianCurriesGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Ensaladang talongGrilled aubergine salad

Ensaladang talong is the smoky side salad that sits beside grilled fish or pork at Filipino family lunches, from Pampanga to Davao, and on the table at weekend beach outings. Long Asian eggplants are charred whole until the flesh collapses, then peeled and topped with diced tomato, red onion and a sharp vinegar dressing. This version leaves out the usual fermented shrimp paste so it is vegan. Suitable as part of a balanced diet, it is low in starch: about 70 kcal and 10 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is pulling the eggplants off the heat too soon; they must be soft right through, or the flesh is spongy and raw. Chef's tip: peel the hot eggplants under a trickle of water with your fingertips to keep the smoky flesh whole.

25 minFilipinoSaladsVeganGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Ceci in ziminoChickpeas stewed with chard

In Genoa and along the Tuscan coast, ceci in zimino is the dish of Lenten Fridays and the first cold days of All Souls in November, when the household cooks a big pot of chickpeas and stews them with chard and a little tomato. The chickpeas turn creamy, the chard gives a gently bitter green sauce, and a spoon of good oil on top makes it taste of the Riviera. Serve it as a main dish with toasted wholegrain bread. Suitable as part of a balanced diet, it is high in fibre and plant protein: about 300 kcal and 32 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is adding the chard leaves too early so they turn brown; keep them for the last 10 minutes. Chef's tip: mash a ladleful of chickpeas with a fork and stir them back in to thicken the zimino naturally.

50 minItalianCurriesVeganGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Ensaladang pakoFiddlehead fern salad

Pako, the young curled fronds of the vegetable fern, grow along streams in the Cordillera, Laguna and Mindanao, and in the rainy season they are sold in bundles at roadside stands. Blanched for a moment and tossed with tomato, onion, a calamansi and vinegar dressing and wedges of salted duck egg, they make a crunchy, refreshing side for grilled dishes at lunch. Suitable as part of a balanced diet, it adds greens with some protein: about 120 kcal and 8 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is eating the fern raw or barely warmed; always blanch it until tender. Chef's tip: plunge the fern straight into iced water after blanching so it stays bright green and crisp.

20 minFilipinoSaladsGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Paneer tikka

Paneer tikka is the vegetarian star of Punjabi dhabas and Delhi wedding buffets, and at home it is a weekend starter cooked under the grill or in a hot oven. Thick cubes of paneer, pepper and onion are coated in hung yogurt with ginger, garlic, chaat masala and roasted gram flour, then charred at high heat so the edges blister while the centre stays soft. Paneer set at home with lemon juice or vinegar uses no rennet; if you buy it, check the label. Serve with mint chutney and a big salad instead of naan. It is suitable as part of a balanced diet. About 330 kcal and 10 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is a runny marinade, which slides off; hang the yogurt for 20 minutes first. Chef's tip: marinate in the fridge for at least 30 minutes, and don't skip a final blast of high heat for the charred spots.

35 minIndianSnacks & StartersGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Suan la baicaiHot and sour cabbage

Hot-and-sour napa cabbage is a cheap, fast winter dish cooked in Sichuan home kitchens and right across northern China when cabbages are stacked outside every door. The thick white stems are stir-fried first over a fierce flame with dried chillies and Sichuan pepper, then the leaves go in, and a splash of black vinegar is sizzled round the edge of the wok for a sharp, smoky tang. Serve it with tofu or eggs and a small bowl of rice. It is suitable as part of a balanced diet. About 80 kcal and 8 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is cooking over a low heat, which stews the cabbage in its own water; the wok must be very hot. A pinch of sugar is traditional; it is optional, and a sweetener can be used instead. Chef's tip: slice the stems on a sharp angle so they cook as fast as the leaves.

15 minChineseSidesVeganSpicy
by KrazyBadal 0 views

ScafataBroad bean and chard stew

Scafata comes from the hill towns of Umbria, around Spoleto and Foligno, where it is cooked in late April and May when the first fresh broad beans, chard and spring onions arrive together. The beans are stewed slowly in olive oil and tomato until they are soft and creamy, with the chard melting into a green, fragrant sauce scented with wild fennel or mint. Eat it warm with a slice of wholegrain bread. Suitable as part of a balanced diet, it is rich in fibre and plant protein: about 240 kcal and 22 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is boiling it fast, which toughens the beans; it needs a lazy simmer. Chef's tip: double-pod only the large, older beans; young ones can be cooked in their pale skins.

50 minItalianVegetarianVeganGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Bonchi curryGreen bean coconut curry

Bonchi curry is one of the small vegetable curries that fill a Sri Lankan rice-and-curry lunch, cooked daily in Colombo kitchens and village homes in the hill country, where green beans grow in terraces near Nuwara Eliya. The beans are simmered in thin coconut milk with turmeric, curry leaves, pandan and green chilli until just tender, then enriched with a splash of thick milk so the sauce is mild, creamy and pale yellow. Suitable as part of a balanced diet, it is a high-fibre vegetable dish: about 150 kcal and 9 g carbohydrate per portion; serve it with red rice for slower-releasing carbohydrate. The usual mistake is boiling the thick coconut milk, which curdles it; add it at the end and only heat through. Chef's tip: cut the beans on a long diagonal so they soak up more of the sauce.

30 minSri LankanCurriesVeganGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Simi ko tarkariGreen bean stir-fry

Simi ko tarkari is cooked all summer in Nepal, when runner and French beans climb the bamboo poles of every hill farm, and it is one of the dry sides on the plate with dal, rice and achar. The beans are stir-fried in mustard oil with cumin, garlic and tomato, and finished with crushed timur, Nepal's citrusy, tingling pepper. Suitable as part of a balanced diet, it is a high-fibre vegetable side: about 110 kcal and 10 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is covering the pan for too long, which steams the beans grey; keep the heat high and the lid off for most of the cooking. Chef's tip: toast the timur briefly in a dry pan before crushing; its lemony scent doubles.

25 minNepaliSidesVeganGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Mâncare de dovleceiStewed courgettes

In Romanian homes, from Moldova to Oltenia, mâncare de dovlecei is the summer stew made when the garden is full of courgettes, and it fills a pot on fasting days when Orthodox families eat no animal products. Courgettes are cooked down slowly with onion, peppers and tomato until soft and sweet, then finished with a fistful of dill and garlic. Eat it warm or at room temperature with bread or a slice of mămăligă. The usual mistake is adding too much liquid: courgettes release their own water, and a watery pot loses its flavour. Chef's tip: let the onion and pepper soften properly before the courgettes go in; that sweetness is what seasons the whole stew.

40 minRomanianVegetarianVeganGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

KitchaUnleavened flatbread

Kitcha (qita) is the everyday quick bread of the Ethiopian and Eritrean highlands, baked when there is no time to ferment injera, and eaten for breakfast with tea or coffee, or torn up as kitcha fitfit with spiced butter and berbere. The dough is just flour and water, spread thick on a hot mitad griddle and cooked on both sides until speckled and firm. Traditionally there is no salt in it at all: about 0.0 g salt per portion, so it sits well beside salty stews. The usual mistake is spreading it too thin, which gives a cracker; aim for 1 cm so the middle stays soft. Barley or teff flour can replace some of the wheat for a nuttier bread. Chef's tip: press a little hollow in the middle with your fingers before turning, and the bread cooks evenly without a raw centre.

25 minEthiopianBreads & ParathasVegan
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Salatet tahinaTahini sauce

No Egyptian table is complete without salatet tahina: in Cairo and Alexandria it is served with fried fish, grilled kofta, ful and falafel, and it is on every mezze plate at Friday lunch. Sesame paste is whipped with lemon juice, garlic, cumin and cold water until it turns pale, fluffy and creamy, with no sugar at all. Suitable as part of a balanced diet, it brings sesame protein and healthy fats with very little carbohydrate: about 150 kcal and 5 g carbohydrate per portion of 3 tablespoons. The usual mistake is panicking when the tahini seizes and goes thick after the lemon goes in; keep adding cold water a spoon at a time and it loosens into a smooth sauce. Chef's tip: use ice-cold water, which makes the tahina whiter and fluffier.

10 minEgyptianChutneys & DipsVeganGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Hmarcha rawtRoasted green chilli relish

No Mizo table in Aizawl is complete without a small bowl of hmarcha rawt, the sharp relish that goes with plain rice, boiled vegetables and bai at almost every meal. Green chillies are charred over a flame or on a dry pan, then pounded with raw onion, ginger and salt. The mistake is to blend it smooth; it should be coarse and juicy, with bits of charred skin. Chef's tip: roast the chillies until blistered all over, not black, or the relish turns bitter.

13 minIndianChutneys & DipsVeganGluten freeSpicy
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Zupa szczawiowaSorrel soup

Zupa szczawiowa is a spring and early summer soup all over Poland, made when sorrel grows thickly in gardens and meadows from May onwards, and it is a favourite Sunday-lunch starter. Fresh sorrel melts into a vegetable broth with carrot and celeriac, giving a bright, lemony sourness, and a spoon of sour cream softens it before halved hard-boiled eggs go into each bowl. Many cooks add potatoes; this version uses just a small one to keep the starch low. Suitable as part of a balanced diet. About 190 kcal and 11 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is stirring sour cream straight into the boiling soup, where it curdles. Chef's tip: wilt the sorrel in a little butter first; it turns khaki in seconds, which is normal, and the flavour stays bright.

35 minPolishSoupsGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

PasuljWhite bean soup

Pasulj is the beloved bean soup of Serbia, served in Belgrade's old taverns and in army and school canteens, and especially on Thursdays and cold weekends. Usually it is cooked with smoked pork ribs or bacon; this vegetarian version gets its smoky depth from smoked paprika instead, and it is the version cooked on Orthodox fasting days. White beans simmer slowly with onion, carrot, bay and paprika until creamy and thick enough to stand a spoon in. Eat it with bread and pickled peppers. Suitable as part of a balanced diet. About 310 kcal and 40 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is thickening with too much flour roux; mashing some beans gives the same body and keeps it gluten free. Pressure cooker option: 25 minutes at pressure. Chef's tip: change the water after the first boil, as Serbian cooks do, for a softer, gentler soup.

130 minBalkanSoupsVeganGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Kori gassiChicken in red chilli coconut gravy

Kori gassi is the Sunday chicken curry of Mangalore's Bunt community on the Karnataka coast, cooked for family lunches and festivals and traditionally eaten with paper-thin neer dosa. Byadgi chillies, coriander, cumin and a little fenugreek are roasted until fragrant, ground with coconut, garlic and tamarind, then simmered with chicken into a brick-red, gently sour gravy. This version uses less coconut than usual and is suitable as part of a balanced diet; serve it with brown rice, millet roti or a salad. About 360 kcal and 9 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is roasting the spices over a high heat: they scorch and turn the gravy bitter. Chef's tip: byadgi chillies give deep colour with gentle heat, so don't swap them for hot chilli powder.

60 minIndianChickenGluten freeSpicy
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Ensalada de pulpoOctopus salad

Ensalada de pulpo is a beach-shack favourite of Puerto Rico, sold at the kiosks of Luquillo and Piñones and made at home for summer gatherings and Christmas parties. Tender octopus is cut into bite-sized pieces and dressed with sweet peppers, red onion, olives, cilantro, olive oil and vinegar, then chilled so the flavours soak in. Lean protein with no starch, suitable as part of a balanced diet; eat it with a green salad rather than tostones. About 260 kcal and 8 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is undercooking the octopus, which leaves it rubbery; it needs a slow simmer until a skewer slides easily into the thickest part of a tentacle. Chef's tip: buy octopus frozen, or freeze fresh octopus for a day, because freezing tenderises it.

90 minPuerto RicanFishGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Jhinge postoRidge gourd with poppy seeds

Jhinge posto is a summer staple of West Bengal and especially the Bankura and Birbhum districts, where poppy seed (posto) goes into almost every everyday lunch. Ridge gourd is cooked in its own juices with nigella seeds and green chilli, then coated in a creamy paste of ground white poppy seeds, giving a mild, nutty, slightly sweet dish. Serve it with rice and dal, or with a millet roti for a lower-GI plate. It is suitable as part of a balanced diet. About 150 kcal and 9 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is adding water: the gourd releases plenty, and extra water makes the posto runny. Chef's tip: soak the poppy seeds in hot water for 20 minutes before grinding so the paste is smooth, not gritty.

40 minIndianVegetarianVeganGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Xiaocong ban doufuCold tofu with spring onion

Xiaocong ban doufu is a northern Chinese home dish, especially popular in Beijing and Shandong on hot summer evenings, so simple that it has given Chinese a proverb about being clear as 'green onion and white tofu'. Soft tofu is blanched, cooled, cut into cubes and tossed with a heap of chopped spring onion, sesame oil and a little salt, so it is cool, silky and fresh. Serve it beside stir-fried vegetables and a little rice or a wholewheat bun. It is suitable as part of a balanced diet. About 120 kcal and 3 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is stirring hard so the tofu breaks into crumbs; fold it gently with a spoon. Chef's tip: blanch the tofu in salted water for a minute, which firms it up and takes away the raw beany taste.

10 minChineseSaladsVeganGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Bouillon brèdeGreens broth

Ask a Mauritian what they eat when they are tired or under the weather and the answer is often a bowl of bouillon brède: a clear, gingery broth with soft greens, poured over plain rice next to a fried fish or a dish of lentils. The greens change with the market, from petsai (Chinese leaves) to watercress, pak choi or the leaves of the chayote vine, and the broth is never thickened, so it stays clean and almost sweet. It is done in under twenty minutes, which is why it turns up on so many weeknight tables from Rose-Hill to Mahébourg. People often boil the greens until they turn khaki and stringy; add them at the end and stop as soon as the stems are just tender. Chef's tip: crush the garlic and ginger, don't chop them, and fry them for just a minute so the broth smells warm without turning brown.

20 minMauritianSoupsVeganGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Pathola currySnake gourd coconut curry

Pathola curry is a quick, gentle white curry from everyday Sri Lankan rice-and-curry lunches, especially loved in the south where snake gourd grows on trellises behind most houses. Thin half-moons of gourd simmer for a few minutes in coconut milk with turmeric, green chilli, curry leaves and a pinch of fenugreek, so they stay pale green, soft and juicy. Serve it with rice, dal and a fiery sambol. The usual mistake is overcooking, which turns the gourd watery and grey; pull it off as soon as it is translucent. Chef's tip: scrape the soft white pith and seeds out with a spoon; they water the curry down.

25 minSri LankanCurriesVeganGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

SalmoriglioLemon, oregano and oil sauce

Salmoriglio is the sauce of Sicily and Calabria's summer grills, brushed over swordfish in Messina and over grilled aubergine and peppers in every courtyard from Palermo to Reggio. Olive oil is whisked with lemon juice, a little warm water, dried oregano and garlic until it turns pale and creamy, and the herbs and citrus do the seasoning that salt usually does. This version uses no salt: about 0.0 g salt per portion. The usual mistake is pouring it over cold food; brush it onto food straight off the grill so the heat releases the oregano's perfume. Use Sicilian oregano on the stem if you can find it. Chef's tip: whisk the oil in slowly over a bowl set on warm water, the old way, and the sauce emulsifies and stays creamy.

5 minItalianChutneys & DipsVeganGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Gremolata

Gremolata is the Milanese finishing touch spooned over ossobuco on Sunday tables across Lombardy, and it brightens any slow-cooked stew, roast vegetables, beans or grilled fish. Flat-leaf parsley, lemon zest and raw garlic are chopped together so finely that they become a fragrant green confetti; the fresh, sharp flavour wakes up a dish so much that you need far less salt. About 0.0 g salt per portion. The usual mistake is grating the white pith with the zest, which makes it bitter; take only the yellow skin. Make it no more than an hour ahead, as the garlic gets harsh and the parsley darkens. Chef's tip: chop the garlic first with a few parsley leaves, so the juice soaks into the herbs instead of sticking to the knife.

5 minItalianChutneys & DipsVeganGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Neem begunNeem leaves with aubergine

Neem begun opens a traditional Bengali lunch in spring, especially around Poila Baisakh, when the neem trees of West Bengal put out soft new leaves. A few tender leaves are fried crisp in mustard oil, then tossed with small cubes of fried aubergine so the bitterness is softened by the creamy brinjal. Eat a spoonful or two with the first mouthfuls of rice, before the dal. It is suitable as part of a balanced diet and is meant to be eaten in small amounts, as Bengali cooks always have. About 110 kcal and 7 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is frying the neem too long, which turns it black and acrid; it needs only seconds. Chef's tip: dry the leaves completely on a cloth before they go into the oil, or they spit and steam instead of crisping.

20 minIndianSidesVeganGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

NakatiBitter eggplant leaves with tomato

Nakati are the leaves of the African eggplant, and in Kampala and the Buganda countryside they are cooked as an everyday green beside matooke, posho or rice. The leaves are simmered down with onion and tomato until soft, then often enriched with a spoonful of groundnut paste that softens their pleasant bitterness and makes a creamy sauce. Look for nakati at African grocers; young spinach with a handful of kale is a good stand-in. The usual mistake is adding the groundnut paste too early, which lets it catch and burn. Chef's tip: loosen the groundnut paste with a little hot water before stirring it in, so it melts smoothly into the greens.

28 minEast AfricanVegetarianVeganGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

KabichiFried cabbage and carrot

Hardly a weekday supper in a Nairobi flat goes by without a pan of kabichi next to the ugali: it costs little, uses one cabbage from the corner duka and is on the table in twenty minutes. Thin ribbons of cabbage meet onion, grated carrot, tomato and green pepper in a hot pan, staying sweet with a little bite and soaking up just enough tomato to turn rosy. Pair it with ugali and ndengu or beans, or roll it into a chapati. Most cooks go wrong by covering the pan and letting the cabbage steam to a grey, sulphurous heap; keep the lid off and the heat up. Chef's tip: salt the cabbage only at the very end, because salt pulls out water and stops it frying.

20 minEast AfricanSidesVeganGluten free
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Laohu caiTiger salad

Laohu cai, 'tiger salad', is the fierce raw salad of China's north-east, served in Shenyang and Harbin homes and restaurants alongside dumplings, grilled skewers and heavy stews. Long green chillies, cucumber, coriander and spring onion are cut into thin strips and dressed with rice vinegar, a little soy and sesame oil, so it is hot, crunchy and very fresh. Serve it next to protein dishes as a crisp, low-starch side. It is suitable as part of a balanced diet. About 50 kcal and 5 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is dressing it too early, so the cucumber weeps and the coriander goes limp; dress it just before eating. Chef's tip: choose a mix of mild and hot chillies so you control the heat and still get plenty of crunch.

10 minChineseSaladsVeganSpicy
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MutakuraBeans, cowpeas and maize

Mutakura is old Zimbabwean country food, cooked in rural Mashonaland after harvest from the store of dried beans, cowpeas, groundnuts and maize kernels, and eaten as a filling lunch or snack, often at gatherings and ceremonies. Everything is soaked, boiled for hours until tender, then simply seasoned with salt, so the beans are creamy, the maize chewy and the groundnuts soft and rich. Suitable as part of a balanced diet. About 340 kcal and 45 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is cooking everything together from the start: the maize needs a long head start, and the dried red beans must be boiled hard for 10 minutes to be safe. A pressure cooker cuts the maize time to about 40 minutes. Chef's tip: soak everything overnight in separate bowls; the maize and groundnuts need it most.

160 minSouthern AfricanVegetarianVeganGluten free
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Xiangchun chao jidanChinese toon scrambled eggs

For a few weeks each April in Shandong, Henan and Beijing, the red-tipped young shoots of the Chinese toon tree are sold in bundles at every market, and the first thing families make is this quick scramble for lunch or supper. The toon has a strong, garlicky, almost oniony perfume that turns sweet and nutty once cooked with egg. It is eaten with rice, congee or steamed buns. Suitable as part of a balanced diet, it is high in protein and very low in starch: about 190 kcal and 3 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is skipping the blanch: raw toon tastes harsh and is always scalded first. Chef's tip: chop the toon very finely and beat it into the egg before cooking, so every mouthful carries the scent.

15 minChineseVegetarianGluten free
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Liangban zhusunCold bamboo shoots

From May to August, sweet green bamboo shoots arrive in Taiwanese markets from the hills around Taipei and Tainan, and families boil them whole and chill them as a cool summer starter or side. The ivory shoots are crisp, juicy and almost sweet, cut into wedges and eaten plain, with a little mayonnaise in the Taiwanese way, or with soy sauce and sesame oil. Suitable as part of a balanced diet. About 70 kcal and 6 g carbohydrate per portion with a little mayonnaise. Fresh bamboo shoots must always be fully cooked: raw shoots contain natural compounds that are unsafe until boiled. The usual mistake is peeling them before boiling, which makes them bitter; boil them in their husks. Chef's tip: start them in cold water and let them cool completely in their cooking water, which keeps them sweet and tender.

55 minTaiwaneseSaladsGluten free
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Salade de pois chichesChickpea salad

In Nice and around the old port of Marseille, chickpeas are the grain of the poor and the stuff of socca, and on hot summer days families toss them into this simple salad to eat at lunch or carry to the beach. Creamy chickpeas, sharp red onion, parsley and lemon are bound with fruity olive oil, with a few black olives and cumin in some homes. It works as a starter, a side to grilled fish or a light main. Suitable as part of a balanced diet, it is high in fibre and plant protein: about 270 kcal and 26 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is dressing cold, straight-from-the-tin chickpeas; warm them for a minute first so they drink up the dressing. Chef's tip: soak the sliced red onion in the lemon juice for 10 minutes to soften its bite.

17 minFrenchSaladsVeganGluten free
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Leshta chorbaLentil soup

Leshta chorba is cooked in Bulgarian homes all winter, and it is the soup of choice on fasting days before Christmas and Easter, when families eat no meat or dairy. Brown lentils simmer with onion, carrot and tomato, coloured with sweet paprika and scented with chubritsa (summer savory), the herb that makes Bulgarian cooking taste like itself. It is eaten with a slice of wholemeal bread and a few pickles. Suitable as part of a balanced diet. About 280 kcal and 34 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is frying the paprika in very hot oil: it burns and turns bitter in a few seconds, so take the pan off the heat first. Chef's tip: a splash of vinegar stirred into each bowl at the table brightens the earthy lentils.

50 minBulgarianSoupsVeganGluten free
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Mas ko dalBlack lentil dal

Mas ko dal, made from whole black urad, is the thick, dark dal of the Nepali hills, cooked in heavy pots in Kathmandu, Gorkha and the Newar towns, especially on cold days and for festival meals. Slow cooking makes it creamy and earthy, and the tempering of jimbu, garlic and cumin in hot mustard oil gives it the scent of the Himalaya. Eat with rice, roti or dhido. Suitable as part of a balanced diet, it is high in protein and fibre: about 250 kcal and 30 g carbohydrate per portion; brown rice or millet dhido suits it well. The usual mistake is not soaking the lentils, which leaves them hard and the dal thin; soak them overnight. Chef's tip: simmer the dal with a few ginger slices and mash it lightly with a wooden spoon at the end for the classic thick texture.

70 minNepaliCurriesVeganGluten free
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Sorakaya pulusuBottle gourd in tamarind gravy

Sorakaya pulusu is everyday Telugu home cooking from Vijayawada to Visakhapatnam, made on weekdays when there's a bottle gourd in the basket and the family wants something light and sour with rice. Soft pieces of gourd simmer in a thin tamarind broth balanced with a little jaggery, chilli and onion, thickened only lightly with rice flour, and finished with a mustard and fenugreek tempering. Mix it into hot rice with a spoon of ghee or eat it with a crisp vada. The usual mistake is overcooking the gourd to mush; it should be tender and translucent but still in pieces. Chef's tip: taste a raw slice of the gourd before cooking, and throw it away if it is bitter, because bitter bottle gourd should not be eaten.

35 minIndianCurriesVeganGluten free
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GhiveciBaked mixed vegetable stew

Ghiveci is the Romanian answer to a late-summer glut, made in August and September and often bottled for winter, and it is a mainstay on Orthodox fasting days because it contains no animal products. Aubergine, peppers, courgette, green beans, carrots and onion are layered with tomato and herbs and baked slowly until soft and sweet, with a little browned crust on top. Serve warm or cold with bread, or beside beans. Suitable as part of a balanced diet. About 190 kcal and 20 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is cutting the vegetables all the same size: harder carrots and beans need smaller pieces than courgette and aubergine so everything is tender at once. Chef's tip: bake uncovered for the last 20 minutes so the juices reduce and the top caramelises.

95 minRomanianVegetarianVeganGluten free
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Meen pollichathuFish wrapped in banana leaf

Meen pollichathu belongs to the backwaters of Alappuzha and Kumarakom, where karimeen (pearl spot) is caught in the lagoons and served wrapped in banana leaf at toddy shops, houseboats and Syrian Christian Sunday lunches. The fish is rubbed with chilli and turmeric, briefly pan-fried, then wrapped with a thick masala of shallots, ginger, garlic, tomato, curry leaves and a little coconut milk and cooked on a pan until the leaf chars. Suitable as part of a balanced diet: high-protein fish with no flour. About 320 kcal and 9 g carbohydrate per portion; serve with a small portion of red matta rice or vegetables. The usual mistake is skipping the first light fry, which leaves the skin soft and lets the fish fall apart in the parcel. Sea bream or pomfret work well. Chef's tip: cook the masala until it is almost dry, or the parcel steams instead of roasting.

55 minIndianFishGluten free
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BourrideFish stew with garlic sauce

Bourride is the fish stew of Sète and the Provençal coast, a quieter, creamier cousin of bouillabaisse eaten for Friday lunch and summer dinners by the sea. Firm white fish poaches in a broth of fennel, leek, orange peel and thyme, then the broth is thickened with a rich garlic aïoli until it turns silky and pale gold. It is high in protein and suitable as part of a balanced diet; skip the traditional bread or keep it to one thin slice, and serve with steamed greens. About 400 kcal and 8 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is letting the broth boil after the aïoli goes in, which splits it like scrambled egg. Chef's tip: use pasteurised egg yolks, and stir the broth over a low heat until it coats a spoon and reaches about 72 °C.

50 minFrenchFishGluten free
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Mizo panch phoran tarkariMixed vegetables with five spices

Mizo cooking uses very little oil and few spices, and this Aizawl tarkari of pumpkin, potato, brinjal and beans is a good example: a few seeds of panch phoron bloom in a spoonful of oil, the vegetables steam in their own juices and dinner is ready. It is eaten on weekdays with rice, dal and a sharp chilli relish. The common mistake is stirring too often, which mashes the pumpkin; turn it gently only once or twice. Chef's tip: cut everything about the same size so it cooks evenly.

32 minIndianVegetarianVeganGluten free
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Kefir

Kefir is the sour, lightly fizzy fermented milk that families across Russia, Georgia and the North Caucasus drink plain from a glass at breakfast, as an evening snack or alongside a meal, and also use in pancakes and cold soups. It is made by leaving milk with kefir grains, a living culture of yeasts and bacteria, at room temperature for a day until it thickens. Nothing is added: no salt and no sugar. About 0.25 g salt per 250 ml glass, all from the milk itself. Always use pasteurised milk. The usual mistake is leaving it too long, until it separates into curds and whey; check after 18 hours and stop when it is just thick and pourable. Chef's tip: a second ferment of 6 hours in the fridge in a closed bottle makes it smoother and a little fizzier.

1445 minRussianDrinksGluten free
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Koinar saagKachnar leaf greens

In Jharkhand's spring, as the kachnar (Bauhinia) trees put out pale tender leaves, Santhal, Munda and Oraon families gather them for koinar saag, a slightly tangy, earthy green cooked with lots of garlic in mustard oil and eaten with rice and dal or with madua roti. Some households dry the leaves to use through the summer. The usual mistake is using older, darker leaves, which stay tough and fibrous however long you cook them. Chef's tip: blanch the leaves first and squeeze them hard; it softens the faint astringency and the saag absorbs the garlic oil better.

25 minIndianVegetarianVeganGluten free
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Goan tendli bhajiIvy gourd stir-fry

On an everyday Goan plate of rice, fish curry and a vegetable, the vegetable is very often this quick tendli bhaji. Thin rounds of ivy gourd are softened with onion and green chilli in coconut oil, then tossed with fresh grated coconut just before serving, so they stay crunchy-tender and sweet. Hindu homes make it without onion on fasting or puja days. The mistake to avoid is cutting the tendli thickly and covering the pan for too long, which gives grey, soggy rings; thin slices cooked mostly uncovered keep their green colour. Chef's tip: pick firm, bright green tendli and discard any that are red inside, as they are overripe and slimy.

25 minIndianSidesVeganGluten free
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Chancho en piedraCrushed tomato, garlic and chilli salsa

Despite the name, 'pig in stone' has no pork in it. It is a rough salsa of ripe tomato, garlic and chilli crushed in a stone mortar (piedra), and it is on the table at every September fonda during the Fiestas Patrias, with hot sopaipillas, bread straight from the oven or choripán. Blending it smooth in a machine is the classic mistake: it should be rustic and juicy, with small pieces. Chef's tip: pound the garlic, chilli and salt to a paste first, then add the tomatoes; the salt acts as grit and the flavour gets into every bit.

15 minChileanChutneys & DipsVeganGluten free
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Chech bhajiJute leaf curry

Chech bhaji is a monsoon green in Chhattisgarh, picked from the jute plants that come up in field edges and village gardens, and cooked almost every week during Sawan. The leaves turn slippery as they soften, a bit like okra, and the cook reins that in with tomato and a little rice water left from washing the rice. It is eaten with plain rice and dal or bore baasi. The mistake to avoid is stirring it endlessly; the leaves go stringy and gluey, so stir only now and then. Chef's tip: frozen or dried molokhia leaves from an Arab grocery are the same plant and work well outside India.

25 minIndianVegetarianVeganGluten free
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Ispanakhi matsvnitSpinach with yogurt

In Georgian homes from Tbilisi to Kakheti, ispanakhi matsvnit is one of the quick dishes on a supra table and a weekday side all spring, when spinach is young and sweet. The spinach is wilted, squeezed and chopped, then folded into thick matsoni (Georgian set yoghurt) with crushed garlic, coriander and a little blue fenugreek, and served cool with bread, beans or grilled vegetables. Suitable as part of a balanced diet. About 110 kcal and 8 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is not squeezing the spinach hard enough, so water seeps into the yoghurt and makes it thin. Chef's tip: crush the garlic with a pinch of salt to a smooth paste so it spreads evenly through the yoghurt rather than hitting you in raw lumps.

15 minGeorgianSidesGluten free
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GrønkålssalatRaw kale salad

Kale (grønkål) is a winter classic in Denmark, traditionally stewed with cream at Christmas, but in Copenhagen homes and cafés it is now just as often eaten raw in this bright salad through the cold months, from November to March. Shredded kale is massaged with lemon juice and oil until it turns silky and dark green, then tossed with crisp apple, red onion and toasted sunflower and pumpkin seeds. Serve it beside rye bread with eggs, or with baked salmon or potatoes. Suitable as part of a balanced diet. About 160 kcal and 9 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is skipping the massage, which leaves the leaves tough and squeaky. Chef's tip: strip out every bit of stalk; even thin stems stay woody in a raw salad.

18 minScandinavianSaladsVeganGluten free
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Tortilla de acelgaSwiss chard omelette

In Montevideo and Buenos Aires, tortilla de acelga is a homely supper or picnic dish, cut into wedges for a weekday dinner or packed for a Sunday at the beach, hot or cold. Plenty of chard is cooked down with onion and garlic, then bound with eggs into a thick, green, juicy omelette that is flipped in the pan like a Spanish tortilla. Serve it with a tomato salad. Suitable as part of a balanced diet. About 190 kcal and 7 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is leaving the chard wet: squeeze it well, or the tortilla weeps and won't set. If you're cooking for anyone pregnant, a young child or anyone with a weakened immune system, cook it until fully set in the middle. Chef's tip: cook it on a low heat with a lid on for the first side; it sets through without burning the base.

35 minParaguayanBreakfast & BrunchGluten free
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Jogi guiGrilled yellow croaker

Yellow croaker from Yeonggwang on Korea's west coast is so prized that dried gulbi are given as gifts at Chuseok, and a simply grilled or pan-roasted croaker is a classic of the family table and of ancestral memorial meals. The fish is salted, dried briefly and cooked whole until the skin crackles and the flesh comes away in sweet, moist flakes; you eat it with rice, kimchi and a few vegetable banchan. Suitable as part of a balanced diet: high in protein with no batter or flour. About 210 kcal and 1 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is turning the fish too early, so the skin tears and sticks; wait until it releases on its own. Small sea bream or red mullet work if you cannot find croaker. Chef's tip: pat the fish completely dry and leave it uncovered in the fridge for 30 minutes before cooking for the crispest skin.

25 minKoreanFishGluten free
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Qingzheng luyuSteamed sea bass

Steamed whole fish is the heart of a Cantonese family dinner in Guangzhou and Hong Kong, and at Lunar New Year it is served whole for abundance. Sea bass steams over ginger until just set, then gets a pour of seasoned soy and a sizzle of hot oil over shredded spring onion that releases a sweet, fragrant aroma. The flesh should be silky and moist. It is low in fat and suitable as part of a balanced diet; serve with greens and a small portion of rice. About 230 kcal and 3 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is over-steaming: even two minutes too long makes the flesh dry and woolly. Chef's tip: lay the fish on two chopsticks across the plate so steam circulates underneath and it cooks evenly.

25 minChineseFish
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BrudetFisherman's fish stew

Brudet (or brodetto) is the fisherman's stew of the Dalmatian coast and islands, cooked in Split, Hvar and Korčula with whatever the morning's catch brings, and eaten for Friday lunch and summer suppers. Thick fish steaks on the bone stew slowly in olive oil with onion, garlic, tomato and a dash of wine vinegar, and the pot is shaken, never stirred. It is high in protein and suitable as part of a balanced diet; polenta is the classic partner, but grilled courgettes, chard or a small portion of soft polenta keep the carbohydrate down. About 330 kcal and 10 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is stirring with a spoon, which breaks the fish into shreds. Chef's tip: use at least three kinds of fish, mixing firm and softer ones, for a deeper broth.

60 minBalkanFishGluten free
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KundeCowpea leaves with peanut paste

Farms around Kisumu and Siaya grow cowpeas for the beans, but the young leaves are picked all season and sold in bundles at roadside stalls for an everyday village vegetable. Cooked down with onion and tomato, the leaves are soft with a gentle, almost green-bean flavour, and a spoon of peanut paste stirred through at the end makes the sauce nutty and creamy. Find cowpea leaves fresh or frozen at African grocers, or use young spinach with a few pea shoots, and serve with ugali, rice or boiled sweet potatoes. Adding the peanut paste too early and leaving it to boil is the usual pitfall: it catches and tastes scorched. Chef's tip: loosen the peanut paste with a few spoons of hot cooking liquid before stirring it in, so it melts smoothly instead of clumping.

30 minEast AfricanSidesVeganGluten free
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Ou tenga dalMasoor dal with elephant apple

Assamese cooks love a sour note, and ou tenga dal is the everyday lentil dish of Upper Assam's homes in the monsoon and autumn, when elephant apples (ou tenga) fall from the trees. Split masoor is boiled thin with turmeric and slices of the hard, tart fruit, then tempered with mustard oil, panch phoron and garlic, so it tastes bright, fruity and comforting. Serve with rice, or with a millet roti and a green vegetable for a lower-GI plate. It is suitable as part of a balanced diet. About 190 kcal and 26 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is adding the fruit too late, so its sourness never comes out; it must cook with the lentils from the start. If you can't find it, use a slice of green mango or 1 tsp tamarind. Chef's tip: bruise the ou tenga slices with a pestle so they release their juice.

35 minIndianCurriesVeganGluten free
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TondakMixed beans and cashew gravy

Tondak is a Goan Saraswat dish cooked in homes around Ponda and Margao for festivals, weddings and Sunday lunches: mixed beans and plump cashews in a gravy of roasted coconut, red chillies and coriander seeds. The beans soften into the reddish-brown sauce while the cashews stay buttery, making it filling and rich in protein. Serve it with a little rice or a millet bhakri and a vegetable side. It is suitable as part of a balanced diet. About 380 kcal and 34 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is grinding raw coconut; it must be roasted to a deep golden brown first or the gravy tastes flat. Chef's tip: dried kidney beans must be soaked overnight and boiled hard for 10 minutes before they simmer, so do this even if you then use a slow cooker or pressure cooker.

65 minIndianCurriesVeganGluten free
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Tara chiriCod and tofu hot pot

Tara chiri is a winter hot pot from all over Japan, cooked at the table on cold nights in December and January when Pacific cod is at its fattest and cheapest. The broth is only kombu and water, so the clean taste of the fish comes through; cod, tofu, napa cabbage, leek and mushrooms poach gently, and each mouthful is dipped into citrusy ponzu with grated daikon and chilli. Suitable as part of a balanced diet: lean protein and plenty of vegetables, with no rice needed. About 260 kcal and 12 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is boiling the fish hard, which breaks it into flakes in the pot; it should poach just below a simmer. Chef's tip: pour boiling water over the cod pieces and rinse them in cold water first (shimofuri); it removes any fishy smell and keeps the broth clear.

35 minJapaneseFish
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Ojingeo sukhoeBlanched squid with chilli sauce

Ojingeo sukhoe is a summer favourite in the fishing towns of Gangwon and on Ulleungdo island, where squid are landed overnight and served at home and in harbour restaurants within hours. The squid is scored, blanched for barely a minute so it stays tender, sliced into rings and eaten with crisp cucumber, lettuce and chogochujang, a tangy chilli-vinegar sauce. Suitable as part of a balanced diet: lean protein and fresh vegetables. About 160 kcal and 10 g carbohydrate per portion; the teaspoon of sugar in the sauce is optional, or use a sweetener. The usual mistake is overcooking: squid goes from tender to rubbery after about 90 seconds. Chef's tip: plunge it into iced water the moment it curls, so the cooking stops instantly.

15 minKoreanFish
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Pucuk paku goreng belacanStir-fried fern shoots with shrimp paste

In Sabah, Sarawak and the kampungs of the Malay Peninsula, curly young pucuk paku (vegetable fern) are picked from riverbanks and sold in bundles at every tamu and pasar, and this fiery stir-fry with belacan appears at lunch with rice and fish almost every day. The fronds stay crunchy and green, coated in a punchy paste of shallots, garlic, chilli and toasted shrimp paste. Suitable as part of a balanced diet: leafy greens with no starch. About 110 kcal and 8 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is undercooking: fern shoots should always be blanched or cooked through, never eaten raw. Fiddlehead ferns or water spinach can stand in. Chef's tip: toast the belacan in a dry pan until it crumbles and smells strongly, then open a window; this is what gives the dish its depth.

18 minMalaysianSidesGluten freeSpicy
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SagetSpider plant greens in soured milk

Spider plant, saget to the Kalenjin and sagaa in Swahili, grows in every kitchen garden around Eldoret and Kericho, and its slightly bitter, peppery leaves are boiled and then softened with mursik or cream to go with ugali. The result is tender, dark greens in a tangy, creamy sauce, bitter in a pleasant way like rapini. Look for fresh or frozen spider-plant leaves at African grocers (sometimes sold as African cabbage or cleome); don't pick wild plants, and if you can't find them, use spinach with a handful of kale or mustard greens for the bite. Letting the milk boil hard is where people slip: it curdles into grainy bits, so add it over a low heat. Chef's tip: some homesteads cook saget the day before and leave it overnight in its milk; it mellows and tastes even better reheated gently.

40 minEast AfricanSidesGluten free
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KalembulaSweet potato leaves with groundnuts

Kalembula grows wherever there is a patch of sweet potato, so it is as common in Eastern Province villages as it is in the backyard gardens of Kitwe, and it is usually picked minutes before it is cooked. The heart-shaped leaves are softer than pumpkin leaves and need no peeling; they wilt into a smooth, slightly mucilaginous relish with a pleasant, faintly bitter edge. Here the onion and tomato are fried first into a sweet base, the leaves go in after, and groundnut powder enriches the pot at the finish. Serve beside nshima and beans, or with fried kapenta for the non-vegetarians in the house. Overcooking turns it olive-drab and mushy, so stop as soon as the leaves are tender. Chef's tip: shred the leaves very finely, almost like a chiffonade, so they cook in minutes and stay green.

30 minSouthern AfricanSidesVeganGluten free
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Konnyak jorimBraised konjac

Konjac, the grey, jelly-like block made from a root called devil's tongue, has almost no calories, and in Korea it is braised in sweet soy until glossy and chewy, a popular dosirak banchan that never wilts. Its texture is the point: bouncy, with a savoury glaze clinging to every scored cube. The common mistake is skipping the blanch, which leaves konjac's slight fishy smell from the alkaline water it is set in. Chef's tip: score a shallow criss-cross on the cubes or tear them with a spoon rather than cutting, and the sauce grips the rough surfaces.

25 minKoreanSidesVeganGluten free
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Nduma na viazi vitamuBoiled arrowroot and sweet potato

A plate of nduma and sweet potatoes with a mug of hot milky chai is the classic weekend breakfast in Kiambu and Murang'a homes, and farmers eat the same before a long day in the shamba. What Kenyans call arrowroot is taro, a starchy corm with a dense, nutty flesh that turns faintly purple and almost creamy when boiled; the sweet potatoes beside it are soft and honeyed, lovely with sliced avocado. Find taro (also called eddoes or dasheen) at African, Caribbean and Asian grocers. Raw taro irritates skin and mouth, so wear gloves to peel it and make sure it is boiled right through: undercooking is the one real mistake here and leaves an itchy, scratchy feeling in the throat. Chef's tip: cut taro and sweet potato into similar-sized pieces but add the sweet potato 10 minutes later, so both are done at once.

45 minEast AfricanBreakfast & BrunchVeganGluten free
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Lal mathachi bhaji (red amaranth stir-fry)

In Mumbai and the Konkan, bunches of red math (amaranth) with their magenta stems come in during the monsoon, and this quick garlicky bhaji turns the dabba's chapatis pink at the edges. It is cooked fast in a hot pan so the leaves stay bright, then finished with a little fresh coconut, the coastal touch that sets it apart from the Bengali way with the same leaf. The mistake is cooking it covered for a long time, which turns it grey and watery. Chef's tip: chop the tender stems finely and cook them for a minute before the leaves go in, so everything is done at the same moment.

18 minIndianSidesVeganGluten free
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Pane toscanoUnsalted Tuscan bread

Pane toscano, called pane sciocco ('foolish' or 'bland' bread) in Florence and Siena, is the saltless loaf that Tuscans have eaten for centuries; legend blames a medieval salt tax. It has a thick, crackly crust and an open, chewy crumb, and it is made to be eaten with salty prosciutto, pecorino and ribollita, or soaked in panzanella and pappa al pomodoro. There is no salt in the dough: about 0.0 g salt per slice. The usual mistake is under-proving: without salt the dough rises fast, and with too little rest it tastes floury; a starter and a slow rise give it flavour. Chef's tip: bake with steam (a tray of boiling water in the oven) for the first 15 minutes, which is what gives the crust its proper Tuscan crunch.

70 minItalianBreads & ParathasVegan
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PersilladeParsley and garlic mix

Persillade is the parsley-and-garlic mixture French cooks keep at hand, from Provence to the Périgord, to throw over sautéed potatoes, mushrooms, green beans, grilled fish or a lamb chop in the last minute of cooking. The heat just softens the raw garlic and releases the parsley's fresh, green flavour, so a dish tastes finished with far less salt. About 0.0 g salt per portion. The usual mistake is adding it too early: a persillade fried for more than a minute turns bitter and brown. A little olive oil helps it spread. Chef's tip: dry the parsley thoroughly before chopping, so it chops into fine, fluffy flecks instead of a wet green paste.

5 minFrenchChutneys & DipsVeganGluten free
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Crudités

Crudités are how a French family lunch, a Paris bistro menu or a school canteen meal often begins: a plate of raw vegetables, each prepared on its own: grated carrot with lemon, crunchy radishes, cucumber slices and celery, dressed with a sharp mustardy vinaigrette. Crisp, cold vegetables taste so lively that very little salt is needed; with the small amount of mustard in the dressing this plate has about 0.3 g salt per portion. The usual mistake is dressing everything together in advance, which turns it watery and limp; dress each vegetable just before serving. Chef's tip: grate the carrots on the fine side of the grater and toss them with lemon first; they soften slightly and taste sweeter, the way French grandmothers make carottes râpées.

20 minFrenchSaladsVeganGluten free
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Neer mor (spiced buttermilk)

From April to June, when Chennai and Madurai bake at forty degrees, temples, shops and political parties set up 'thaneer pandhal' sheds by the roadside, offering free neer mor to every passer-by from great clay pots. At home it comes after a rice meal of sambar and rasam, or in the middle of the afternoon. The curd is churned and thinned with water until barely white, then seasoned with green chilli, ginger, curry leaves, coriander and a pinch of asafoetida, sometimes finished with a tempering of mustard seeds. It should be very thin, salty, tangy and herby, with a little chilli heat and a lingering savoury scent. The common mistake is using too little water: it then drinks like a heavy lassi rather than a thirst-quencher. Aim for about one part curd to four parts water. It is ready when the buttermilk is smooth, cold and pale green-flecked, and smells of curry leaf. It keeps a day in the fridge. Chef's tip: crush the ginger, chilli and curry leaves rather than chopping them; bruising releases far more flavour into the thin liquid.

12 minIndianDrinksGluten free
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BulanglangMixed vegetable stew

Bulanglang is the plain, light vegetable soup of Batangas and the Tagalog provinces, made in farmhouses at lunchtime from whatever is in the garden: squash, okra, string beans, eggplant and a handful of malunggay or sweet potato leaves. Instead of stock it uses hugas bigas, the cloudy water from washing rice, which gives the broth a soft, milky body. It is often eaten with grilled fish and a dip of bagoong; this version stays vegan and is served with a soy-and-calamansi dip. The usual mistake is boiling everything together from the start, which leaves mushy squash and raw-tasting okra; add the vegetables in order of firmness. Chef's tip: save the second rice wash, not the first, for the cleanest, creamiest broth.

30 minFilipinoSoupsVeganGluten free
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Liangban sansiCold three-shred salad

Liangban sansi, 'cold-tossed three shreds', is one of the most common cold dishes on Chinese family tables, made in summer and at Lunar New Year as a fresh plate among the richer dishes. Fine strips of carrot, cucumber and kelp (or tofu skin) are blanched where needed and dressed with garlic, rice vinegar, soy and sesame oil, giving a crunchy, bright, gently sour salad. Serve it beside steamed fish or tofu. It is suitable as part of a balanced diet. About 70 kcal and 7 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is cutting the shreds thick and uneven, which makes the salad clumsy and the dressing slides off. A pinch of sugar in the dressing is optional; a sweetener works too. Chef's tip: soak dried kelp strips until soft and blanch them for one minute with a splash of vinegar so they lose their sliminess.

20 minChineseSaladsVegan
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Fuki no nimonoSimmered butterbur stalks

Fuki, giant butterbur, is one of the wild spring vegetables Japanese families look forward to each April, especially in the mountain prefectures of Akita and Tohoku, where the stalks grow taller than a child. Simmered lightly in dashi, the pale green stalks keep a gentle crunch and a fresh, slightly bitter flavour, and they are served cold as a small dish with rice and miso soup. Suitable as part of a balanced diet: it is very high in fibre and low in starch. About 35 kcal and 4 g carbohydrate per portion. The sugar is optional, or use a sweetener. The usual mistake is skipping the salt rub and blanch before peeling: unpeeled fuki is stringy and harsh. For a vegetarian version, use kombu dashi. Chef's tip: cool the stalks in the broth in a bowl set over ice; they keep their bright green colour.

30 minJapaneseSides
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Gogji razmaKidney beans with turnips

In the Kashmir valley, gogji razma is a winter comfort dish, made in heavy pots when turnips are sweet after the first snow and dried beans from Bhaderwah fill the store. Red kidney beans and turnip chunks simmer in a thin, red gravy flavoured with mustard oil, ground fennel, dried ginger and Kashmiri chilli, without any onion or tomato. Serve with a modest bowl of rice or a millet roti and a green salad. It is suitable as part of a balanced diet. About 300 kcal and 38 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is slow-cooking dried kidney beans without boiling them hard first; raw kidney beans are unsafe, so soak them overnight and boil hard for 10 minutes before simmering. Chef's tip: add the turnips only when the beans are almost soft, so they keep their shape and sweetness.

90 minIndianCurriesVeganGluten free
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Tuver tothaGreen pigeon peas in garlic gravy

Tuver totha is a winter street-stall and wedding favourite from Mehsana and the villages of North Gujarat, eaten hot on cold evenings when fresh green tuver is in season. The peas are boiled soft, then simmered in a fiery, garlicky gravy of onion, tomato and green chilli and finished with chopped onion, coriander and lemon. In Gujarat it is mopped up with bread; for a lower-GI plate serve it with a bajra rotla or a small bowl of brown rice. It is suitable as part of a balanced diet. About 260 kcal and 30 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is undercooking the peas, which then stay chalky in the gravy. Out of season, use frozen green pigeon peas, or dried green tuver soaked overnight and pressure-cooked. Chef's tip: mash a ladle of the cooked peas and stir them back in so the gravy thickens without any flour.

45 minIndianCurriesVeganGluten free
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Ugba saladFermented oil bean salad

Ugba, the long, thin slices of fermented African oil bean, are a favourite of Igboland in south-east Nigeria, eaten at village meetings, weddings and as an evening snack with cold drinks in Enugu and Owerri. The slices have a nutty, savoury, slightly funky flavour, and here they are tossed with diced garden eggs, shredded garden-egg leaves, onion, fresh pepper and a little red palm oil. Many cooks add ground crayfish and stockfish; this version is vegan. Suitable as part of a balanced diet, it is high in fibre and plant protein: about 220 kcal and 10 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is not rinsing shop-bought ugba, which can taste too sharp and fermented; rinse it in warm water first. Chef's tip: warm the palm oil just enough to make it runny, never hot, so it coats every slice.

22 minNigerianSaladsVeganGluten free
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Qingchao jiaobaiStir-fried water bamboo

Jiaobai (water bamboo, Manchurian wild rice stem) is a summer and early-autumn vegetable of the lakes around Suzhou, Wuxi and Hangzhou, and 'clear-fried' jiaobai is how Jiangnan home cooks show off its sweet, juicy crunch. The pale stems are cut into thin slices or strips and stir-fried briefly with garlic, a splash of soy and a pinch of salt, so they stay crisp and taste faintly like bamboo shoot and corn. Serve with tofu, fish or eggs and a little rice. It is suitable as part of a balanced diet. About 60 kcal and 6 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is overcooking, which makes it soft and loses the crunch; two or three minutes is enough. Asian grocers sell it fresh or vacuum-packed. Chef's tip: choose plump, white stems with no black specks inside, which show an older stem.

13 minChineseSidesVegan
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HmissGrilled pepper and tomato salad

Hmiss is an everyday cooked salad from Algiers, Oran and Constantine, made in summer when peppers are cheap, and it is set out with bread at the start of Ramadan iftars and family lunches. Green and red peppers and tomatoes are grilled until charred, peeled, chopped and then cooked briefly with garlic, cumin and plenty of olive oil, so it is smoky, soft and gently spicy. Serve it with bread, beside eggs, or with grilled fish. Suitable as part of a balanced diet. About 120 kcal and 10 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is chopping it to a purée in a blender: hmiss should keep some texture, so chop by hand. Chef's tip: grill a mild green chilli alongside the peppers for gentle heat without overpowering the sweetness.

40 minAlgerianSaladsVeganGluten free
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Jicai doufu gengShepherd's purse and tofu soup

In Shanghai and Jiangsu, shepherd's purse (jicai) is picked from field edges in early spring, and this gentle, lightly thickened soup is one of the first dishes of the season at home and in Shanghainese restaurants. Finely chopped greens and small cubes of soft tofu are simmered in vegetable stock with a few shiitake, then thickened just enough to coat a spoon, giving a soothing, savoury soup with a fresh, grassy taste. Serve it as a starter or with a small bowl of rice. It is suitable as part of a balanced diet. About 110 kcal and 7 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is adding too much starch, which makes it gluey; it should flow off the spoon. Spinach works if you can't find jicai. Chef's tip: blanch and squeeze the greens before chopping, which keeps the soup bright green instead of murky.

25 minChineseSoupsVegan
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Vary amin'ananaRice with greens

Before the sun clears the hills of Antananarivo, steam is already rising from pots of vary amin'anana at the hotely, the little roadside cafés where office workers and taxi-brousse drivers stop for breakfast. Rice simmers with a heap of chopped greens, a little tomato and fresh ginger until the grains swell and soften into something between a pilaf and a loose porridge, green-flecked and gently savoury. Locals spoon sakay or a sharp lasary relish on top, and anyone with more appetite adds a few beans on the side. The greens matter most: brèdes mafana (paracress) give a faint tingle, but watercress, spinach or mustard greens from the shop all work well. Chef's tip: add the tender leaves only for the last 8 minutes; boiled from the start, they turn grey-brown and bitter, which is the commonest way this simple dish goes wrong.

40 minMalagasyBreakfast & BrunchVeganGluten free
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DakbaeksukPoached whole chicken

Dakbaeksuk is a whole chicken simmered plain in a big pot, a dish Koreans eat on the boknal 'dog days' of midsummer and at valley restaurants in the mountains, where families sit on platforms by the stream. Unlike samgyetang it is not stuffed; the bird simmers with a fistful of garlic, a few jujubes and dried roots such as astragalus until it falls apart, and you eat the meat with salt and pepper and drink the milky broth. Suitable as part of a balanced diet: high in protein, with no flour or added sugar. About 420 kcal and 8 g carbohydrate per portion; restaurants finish with rice porridge in the broth, so keep that portion small or use brown rice. The usual mistake is boiling it fiercely, which makes the meat stringy; it should simmer gently. Chef's tip: skim the fat off the broth before serving; it tastes cleaner and lighter.

100 minKoreanChickenGluten free
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Ash-e shalghamTurnip and rice soup

In Tehran and Mashhad homes, ash-e shalgham is the pot put on the stove when someone in the family catches a cold in the first frosts of winter. Turnips and rice are simmered together until the turnips melt and the rice thickens the soup, which ends up soft, sweet and peppery, with a fried-onion and turmeric base. Many families add a little lamb; this one is vegan. The usual mistake is using big, old turnips, which taste bitter and woody; choose small, heavy ones. Chef's tip: grate half the turnips and dice the rest, so the soup is creamy yet still has pieces to bite.

65 minPersianSoupsVeganGluten free
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LampascioniWild hyacinth bulbs

Lampascioni, the bulbs of the wild tassel hyacinth, are dug in winter and spring in the fields of Puglia and Basilicata and sold in nets in Bari and Matera markets. They look like small red onions and have a pleasantly bitter, earthy bite that the people of Salento love as an antipasto or side to grilled meat, beans or eggs. Suitable as part of a balanced diet, they are high in fibre: about 120 kcal and 12 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is not soaking them long enough; unsoaked lampascioni are very bitter, so change the water several times. Jarred lampascioni in brine, rinsed well, are a quick alternative. Chef's tip: cut a small cross in the root end of each bulb so the bitterness leaches out and they cook evenly.

60 minItalianSidesVeganGluten free
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Bathua raitaChenopodium leaf yogurt

Bathua (chenopodium or lamb's quarters) grows wild in the wheat fields of western Uttar Pradesh and Haryana in winter, and from December to February families blanch it and stir it into yogurt as a cooling raita beside paratha, dal or bajra roti. The leaves are boiled briefly, chopped and folded into whisked yogurt with roasted cumin, black salt and a little green chilli, so it tastes earthy, tangy and fresh. It is suitable as part of a balanced diet. About 90 kcal and 7 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is adding the greens while they are still hot or wet, which makes the yogurt thin and grainy; squeeze them dry and cool them first. Chef's tip: grind half the blanched leaves to a paste so the raita turns an even pale green.

15 minIndianSidesGluten free
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Agretti all'agroSaltwort with lemon

Agretti, also called barba di frate or 'monk's beard', appear in Roman and Tuscan markets for a short season in March and April, tied in bunches that look like thick chives. Blanched for a minute and dressed all'agro, with lemon and good olive oil, they are a juicy, slightly salty spring side for an egg dish, grilled fish or beans. Suitable as part of a balanced diet, they are almost free of starch: about 80 kcal and 3 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is overcooking them into limp threads; they should keep a crisp, spinach-like snap. Chef's tip: agretti are naturally salty, so taste before adding any salt at all.

15 minItalianSidesVeganGluten free
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LasopyBlended vegetable soup

Highland evenings in Antananarivo can turn surprisingly cold, and that is when lasopy comes out, a smooth, pale-orange soup of carrot, leek, potato, turnip and green beans blended until velvety. Market cooks and grandmothers usually simmer it with beef bones; this version keeps it fully vegetarian, with the vegetables browned lightly first and a bay leaf and thyme for depth, so the water turns into a sweet, savoury broth on its own. It is often eaten with a handful of thin vermicelli cooked in it, or simply with bread, and a dab of sakay stirred in at the table. Leave the vegetables in big chunks: chopping them tiny makes them boil to mush before the flavour comes out. Chef's tip: hold back a ladle of cooking liquid and blend the rest, then thin to taste, because once lasopy is too watery there is no fixing it.

60 minMalagasySoupsVeganGluten free
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Kachnar ki sabziBauhinia bud stir-fry

For a few weeks each March, the kachnar trees of Lahore, Rawalpindi and the Punjab plains are covered in buds, and families pick them to cook this seasonal sabzi, often eaten with fresh roti at Sunday lunch. The buds are boiled briefly, then cooked down with onion, tomato and dry spices until they turn soft with a pleasant, slightly astringent bite, a little like green beans and artichoke. Suitable as part of a balanced diet, it is fibre-rich and low in starch: about 140 kcal and 12 g carbohydrate per portion; a wholewheat or millet roti suits it. The usual mistake is skipping the blanch, which leaves the buds bitter and tough. Chef's tip: pick tight, unopened buds; open flowers turn mushy.

40 minPakistaniVegetarianVeganGluten free
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Lüdou zhouRice and mung bean congee

In Beijing and across the north, a pot of lüdou zhou is what families cook on hot summer mornings: plain rice and mung beans simmered until the beans split and the rice turns creamy, believed to cool the body. It is eaten with salty pickled vegetables, a fried dough stick or a spoon of sugar for children. The mistake is putting the rice and beans in together; mung beans need a head start or you get mushy rice with hard beans. Chef's tip: once it is cooked, leave it to stand off the heat with the lid on for 10 minutes; it thickens into a silky congee without extra stirring.

60 minChineseRice & GrainsVeganGluten free
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ThechwaniCrushed radish curry

Thechwani is a winter dish from the hill villages of Garhwal, Uttarakhand, cooked when the radishes are fat and sweet. Instead of chopping, the radish (or potato) is bashed with a stone or pestle so it cracks into rough pieces with lots of surface, then simmered in an iron kadhai with mustard oil, jakhya seeds and a little tomato. The broken pieces soak up the spices, and the iron pot darkens the gravy. It is eaten with rice or mandua (finger-millet) roti. Jakhya, a crunchy wild seed, is sold in hill stores; cumin is the swap. The usual mistake is slicing the radish neatly with a knife, which keeps the spices on the outside. Chef's tip: add the radish greens, finely chopped, in the last 5 minutes for colour and a peppery bite.

40 minIndianVegetarianVeganGluten free
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Lingdi ki sabziFiddlehead fern curry

When the monsoon arrives in the Kullu and Mandi valleys, coiled fiddlehead ferns (lingdi) appear along streams and in village markets, and families cook them as a quick dry sabzi with onion, garlic and chilli, or pickle them for winter. The young fronds taste a little like asparagus and green beans, with a pleasant snap. Only eat edible fiddlehead species from a trusted seller, and always cook them well: undercooked ferns can upset the stomach. The common mistake is skipping the blanching, which leaves them bitter and unsafe; boil them first, then fry. Chef's tip: rub off the brown papery scales under running water before trimming; they hold grit.

28 minIndianVegetarianVeganGluten free
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NazkhatoonSmoky aubergine with pomegranate

Nazkhatoon comes from Gilan, the green, rainy province on Iran's Caspian coast, where it is eaten in summer as a starter or side with grilled fish, rice and fresh herbs. Charred eggplant is chopped with tomato, garlic and mint, then sharpened with sour pomegranate molasses and verjuice, so it tastes smoky, tart and fresh at once. Suitable as part of a balanced diet, it is a vegetable salad with no grain: about 110 kcal and 14 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is using sweet pomegranate syrup; it must be the sour Gilani style, and a little goes a long way. Chef's tip: chop everything by hand rather than in a blender, so the salad keeps some texture.

40 minPersianSaladsVeganGluten free
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Daikon to aburaage no nimonoSimmered daikon and fried tofu

When winter daikon is fat, sweet and cheap in every Japanese market, home cooks from Hokkaido to Kyushu simmer it with strips of aburaage, the thin fried tofu pouches, as an everyday side for rice and grilled food. The radish turns soft and see-through and drinks up a light soy broth, while the tofu soaks up the rest like a sponge. This version uses a kelp and shiitake dashi instead of bonito, so the whole pot is vegan, and it tastes even better reheated the next day. The usual mistake is boiling it hard: the daikon edges crumble and the broth goes cloudy, so keep it at a lazy simmer under a drop lid. Chef's tip: pour boiling water over the aburaage before cutting it, which rinses off the stale frying oil and lets the broth soak in.

40 minJapaneseSidesVegan
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Takenoko no tosaniSimmered bamboo shoots

In Kyoto and the hills around Nagaoka, April means fresh bamboo shoots, and almost every home cooks a pot of tosani: shoots simmered in dashi and soy, then tossed in crumbled bonito flakes (the 'Tosa' style, after the bonito-fishing province on Shikoku). It is served as a small side with rice and grilled fish, or packed into bento boxes. Suitable as part of a balanced diet: it is high in fibre and uses only a teaspoon of sugar, which you can leave out or swap for a sweetener. About 45 kcal and 5 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is using fresh, unboiled bamboo shoots straight away; raw shoots must be pre-boiled for an hour (traditionally with rice bran) to remove bitterness and natural toxins, so use ready-boiled vacuum-packed shoots unless you do that step. Chef's tip: let the shoots cool in the broth so they drink it up before you add the bonito.

35 minJapaneseSides
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Bhapa ilishSteamed hilsa in mustard

When the monsoon brings hilsa up the Padma and Hooghly rivers, Kolkata households cook bhapa ilish, the fish steamed in a pungent paste of mustard seeds, green chilli and mustard oil in a closed tiffin box. It is the star of Jamai Sasthi and of any rainy-season Sunday, served with plain rice. The fish is rich and tender, with a nose-tingling mustard heat. Suitable as part of a balanced diet: high in protein and omega-3 fats, with no starch in the dish itself. About 340 kcal and 4 g carbohydrate per portion; keep the rice portion modest. The usual mistake is grinding the mustard seeds too long or with warm water, which turns the paste bitter; grind briefly with cold water, a pinch of salt and a green chilli. Hilsa is bony, so eat slowly and warn guests. Chef's tip: drizzle raw mustard oil over the top just before closing the box; it gives the true Bengali aroma.

40 minIndianFishGluten free
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Tandoori pomfret

Tandoori pomfret is a fixture of Mumbai's coastal restaurants and Koli fishing families' feasts, especially in the cooler months when silver pomfret is at its best. Whole fish are slashed, given a lemon-and-salt first marinade, then coated in thick yogurt with ginger-garlic, Kashmiri chilli, ajwain and garam masala and roasted until charred at the edges and juicy inside. Suitable as part of a balanced diet: high-protein fish with no batter. About 280 kcal and 6 g carbohydrate per portion; serve with onion-cucumber salad and mint chutney. The usual mistake is using runny yogurt, which slides off and steams the fish; strain it first. Chef's tip: a spoon of roasted gram flour (besan) in the marinade helps it cling and char.

55 minIndianFishGluten free
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Mursalski chaiIronwort tea

High in the Rhodope mountains, shepherds and villagers start the day with a pot of mursalski chai, brewed from the dried flowering stems of Sideritis scardica, the Balkan ironwort that grows on the limestone slopes around Mursalitsa peak. It tastes gently floral, lemony and a little like chamomile and mint, and is traditionally sweetened with honey or drunk plain. The common mistake is steeping it for just a couple of minutes like black tea; the woody stems need a short simmer to give their full flavour and golden colour. Chef's tip: break the stems into 5 cm pieces so they fit the pot and release more flavour, and use a slice of lemon to brighten the colour. Vegans can sweeten it with sugar instead of honey.

11 minBulgarianDrinksVeganGluten free
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Sana hua nimbuLemon and radish with curd

On sunny winter afternoons in Kumaon, families sit on the rooftops and make a big bowl of sana hua nimbu to share: segments of the giant hill lemon (galgal) mashed with radish, curd, jaggery and green salt pounded with hemp or coriander. It is sweet, sour, salty and crunchy all at once, and is eaten with fingers straight from the bowl. Ordinary lemons or a mix of lemon and pomelo work well. The common mistake is leaving in the pith and seeds, which make the whole bowl bitter. Chef's tip: mix just before eating; once it sits longer than 20 minutes the radish weeps and the curd thins.

15 minIndianSaladsGluten free
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Kumaoni kheere ka raitaCucumber raita

This yellow raita is the famous one of Kumaon, made from the fat, pale hill cucumbers of late summer and served at every wedding and Holi gathering. It gets its nose-tingling kick from freshly ground raw mustard seed, which is left to mellow in the curd for an hour, and its sunny colour from turmeric. It is eaten with rice, puris and pakodas. The common mistake is not squeezing the grated cucumber, which floods the raita and dulls the mustard. Chef's tip: make it at least an hour ahead and chill it; the mustard grows sharper and rounder as it rests.

15 minIndianSidesGluten free
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Limonata a cosce aperteFizzy lemonade

On hot afternoons along the Lungomare and in Piazza Sannazaro, the old acquafrescai kiosks squeeze half a lemon into a glass of sparkling water, then add a pinch of bicarbonate of soda. The drink foams up and over the rim, so you have to lean forward with your legs apart to drink it without soaking your shoes, which is where the cheeky name comes from. It tastes sharp, salty-fresh and very fizzy, and Neapolitans swear by it after a heavy lunch. Chef's tip: have the glass at your lips before you stir in the bicarbonate; the foam rises in seconds.

5 minItalianDrinksVeganGluten free
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Bajre ki raabdiFermented pearl millet buttermilk porridge

In the villages of Haryana and the Rajasthan border, raabdi is drunk at midday in May and June to keep cool in the fields. Pearl-millet flour is stirred into buttermilk and left to ferment for a few hours, then cooked slowly until thick, cooled in a clay pot and thinned with more buttermilk and salt. It tastes tangy and earthy, a little like a savoury porridge you can drink. Ferment at warm room temperature (25–32 °C) for 4–6 hours: it should smell pleasantly sour with a few bubbles. Throw it away if you see pink, black or furry mould or it smells rotten or of nail varnish. The common mistake is cooking on high heat, which scorches the millet and leaves raw lumps. Chef's tip: keep the cooked raabdi in the fridge and drink it within 2 days, thinning each glass to taste.

35 minIndianDrinksGluten free
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Methi gajarCarrots with fenugreek leaves

When the long red Delhi carrots and bunches of fresh methi fill the winter markets of Haryana and Punjab, this quick dry sabzi turns up beside every plate of rotis and dal. The slight bitterness of the fenugreek leaves and the sweetness of the carrots balance each other, helped along by a pinch of sugar and a squeeze of lemon. It takes about 25 minutes. The common mistake is adding the methi too early, which makes it bitter and dark. Chef's tip: rub the chopped methi with a little salt and squeeze it after 10 minutes; this tames the bitterness without losing the fragrance.

27 minIndianVegetarianVeganGluten free
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Goan pezRice porridge with pickle and papad

Pez is the plainest food in a Goan kitchen and one of the most loved: red parboiled rice simmered in plenty of water until the grains burst and the liquid turns milky. Fishermen and farmers ate it before a day's work, mothers serve it to anyone who feels unwell, and on heavy monsoon evenings it comes with a spoon of mango or lime pickle, a roasted papad and sometimes a dry fish or vegetable on the side. The mistake is cooking it in too little water so it becomes a sticky porridge; good pez has whole soft grains floating in thin, starchy broth. Chef's tip: stir in a little salt only at the end and let everyone add buttermilk or coconut milk to their own bowl.

45 minIndianRice & GrainsVeganGluten free
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TangturCurd with greens and chilli

Through the short Ladakhi summer, when the fields around Leh are green, tangtur is on the table at almost every lunch: boiled leafy greens chopped into thick, cool curd or buttermilk with raw onion and green chilli. It is served beside paba, khambir or rice, and cuts through anything rich or spicy. In villages the greens may be wild ones gathered from field edges; spinach, mustard or radish leaves work well at home. The mistake to avoid is adding the greens while still hot, which splits the curd; cool them completely first. Chef's tip: squeeze the boiled greens really hard in your fist so the tangtur stays thick instead of watery.

15 minIndianSaladsGluten free
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Xaak bhajiStir-fried greens

Xaak bhaji is the simplest dish on an Assamese table and one of the most loved: whatever greens are in season, mustard leaves in winter, red or green amaranth and dhekia fern in the monsoon, wilted in mustard oil with garlic and a dried chilli. It is eaten at the start of the meal with rice in homes from Sivasagar to Guwahati. People often add water and stew the greens; they should cook in their own moisture over brisk heat so they stay bright. Chef's tip: mix two or three greens together, as Assamese cooks do, for a fuller flavour.

20 minIndianSidesVeganGluten free
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ChirmolCharred tomato and mint salsa

Wherever Guatemalans light a grill for Sunday carne asada, a bowl of chirmol sits beside it. The tomatoes are blackened on a comal until their skins split, then crushed with raw onion, lime and fresh mint, which is the herb that sets it apart from Mexican salsas. It is smoky, sharp and loose, meant to be spooned over grilled meat, black beans, eggs or plain rice. A common mistake is blending it smooth; chirmol should be chunky and juicy, crushed by hand or with a fork. Chef's tip: leave some of the charred skin in; those black flecks carry most of the smoky flavour.

20 minCentral AmericanChutneys & DipsVeganGluten free
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Maito de tilapiaLeaf-grilled tilapia with cassava

Maito is how Kichwa and Shuar cooks along the rivers around Puyo and Tena prepare fish: seasoned simply with salt, garlic and palm heart, wrapped in big bijao leaves and laid over glowing coals until the parcel blackens and the fish steams in its own juices. Banana leaves, sold frozen in Asian and Latin shops, work just as well at home. It comes to the table in its leaves with boiled sweet cassava, a fiery ají and a cup of guayusa. The common mistake is wrapping the fish in stiff leaves, which split and let the juices escape; soften them over a flame first. Chef's tip: open one parcel to check: the fish is ready when the flesh is opaque and lifts cleanly off the bone.

45 minAndeanFishGluten free
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HinkejvuTaro and mustard leaf stew

Hinkejvu is a light Sumi Naga everyday dish from Nagaland's Zunheboto district, where colocasia, cabbage, mustard leaves and beans are simmered together with only ginger, chilli and salt. It is eaten with plain rice and a smoky chutney, often after a heavier meat dish the day before. The common mistake is adding oil or spices, which hides the clean vegetable flavour; Naga home cooking relies on the produce. Chef's tip: cook the colocasia until it starts to break and thicken the broth slightly.

35 minIndianVegetarianVeganGluten free
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Sayur bening bayam for toddlersSpinach and corn soup for toddlers

Sayur bening, 'clear vegetables', is the light soup that turns up at nearly every Javanese family lunch in Yogyakarta and Solo, and it is one of the first family dishes Indonesian children share. Spinach and sweet corn are simmered for just a few minutes in water scented with shallot and temu kunci (fingerroot), giving a sweet, fresh broth to spoon over rice. For toddlers from 12 months it is made with no salt or sugar, and the corn is chopped. It is vegan and free of the major allergens. Chef's tip: add the spinach at the very end; overcooked bayam turns grey and bitter.

20 minIndonesianSoupsVeganGluten free
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Kandalee ka saagStinging nettle greens

Every spring in Uttarakhand people pick the soft tips of kandalee (bichhu ghas, stinging nettle) from field edges and cook them into a deep green saag with garlic, chilli and a spoon of rice paste, eaten with mandua roti or rice. Nettles taste like a rich, mineral spinach and the sting disappears completely once they are blanched. Always wear gloves or use tongs when picking and washing them. The common mistake is skipping the blanch and going straight to the pan, which leaves stringy stems and some sting. Chef's tip: squeeze the blanched nettles well and chop fine before cooking; this is what gives the smooth, creamy texture hill cooks are proud of.

35 minIndianVegetarianVeganGluten free
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Consomé de chipichipiTiny clam broth

On the beaches of Margarita and the Sucre coast, vendors ladle steaming cups of consomé de chipichipi, a clear, salty broth of tiny clams with garlic, ají dulce and coriander, famous as a cure after a long night. Chipichipi are hard to find outside Venezuela; small clams such as palourdes or Manila clams are a good stand-in. The common mistake is boiling the clams too long, which makes them rubbery. Chef's tip: let the clams soak in salted water first so they spit out their sand.

55 minVenezuelanSoupsGluten free
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MatbuchaCooked tomato and pepper relish

Matbucha came to Israel with Moroccan Jewish families, and it is on almost every Friday-night and Shabbat table among the salads served with challah, as well as in Jerusalem breakfast spreads. Ripe tomatoes and roasted peppers cook down slowly with garlic, chilli and olive oil for over an hour, until thick, sweet, jammy and spicy. Eat it as a dip, beside eggs or grilled fish, or spooned over beans. Suitable as part of a balanced diet. About 90 kcal and 8 g carbohydrate per portion. The pinch of sugar is optional, and a sweetener works too. The usual mistake is rushing it on high heat: it catches and tastes scorched instead of sweet. Chef's tip: stir more often in the last 20 minutes, when the sauce turns glossy and starts to spit; that's when it's nearly done.

110 minIsraeliChutneys & DipsVeganGluten free
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KamandeBrown lentil stew

Kamande is a weekday staple in Nairobi homes and small hotelis (cafés), served at lunch or supper with chapati, rice or ugali and a side of sukuma wiki greens. Brown lentils are simmered until tender, then cooked into a thick, savoury stew of onion, tomato, garlic, ginger and a touch of curry powder, finished with fresh coriander. Suitable as part of a balanced diet. About 300 kcal and 38 g carbohydrate per portion; brown rice or extra greens on the side suit a lighter plate. The usual mistake is boiling the lentils to mush before adding the tomato base; they should still hold their shape. Chef's tip: cook the onions low and slow until soft and golden before the tomatoes go in, which gives the stew its natural sweetness.

50 minEast AfricanCurriesVeganGluten free
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Loroco con huevoScrambled eggs with loroco

Loroco is a climbing vine whose fragrant flower buds Salvadorans love, best known inside pupusas, and in San Salvador and the countryside it is also scrambled with eggs for breakfast during the rainy season, from June to October, when the buds are in season. The buds taste green, floral and a little like asparagus and artichoke, softened with onion and tomato and set into soft eggs. Serve with corn tortillas and a spoon of refried beans or avocado. Suitable as part of a balanced diet. About 210 kcal and 6 g carbohydrate per portion without tortillas. The usual mistake is cooking the eggs on high heat, which makes them dry and rubbery. Frozen or jarred loroco works well; rinse jarred loroco first. If you're cooking for anyone pregnant, a young child or anyone with a weakened immune system, cook the eggs until fully set. Chef's tip: soften the loroco with the onion first so its flavour spreads through the eggs.

15 minCentral AmericanBreakfast & BrunchGluten free
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Chirimoya alegreCherimoya in orange juice

Chileans call it 'happy cherimoya': ripe custard-apple pulp dropped into fresh orange juice and served ice-cold. It turns up as the summer dessert after a big lunch in the Central Valley and in the Aconcagua valley, where much of Chile's cherimoya grows. The fruit should be soft like a ripe avocado; a hard one tastes starchy. The most common mistake is preparing the fruit ahead without juice, so it turns brown and loses its perfume: drop each piece straight into the orange juice. Remove every black seed, as the seeds must not be eaten or crushed. Chef's tip: squeeze the oranges yourself and taste before you sweeten; good juice often needs no sugar at all.

15 minChileanDessertsVeganGluten free
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Cheonggukjang jjigaeFermented soybean stew

Cheonggukjang is a sticky, quick-fermented soybean paste made over two or three days in a warm room, and in Korean homes it becomes a bubbling winter stew, cooked in an earthenware pot and set in the middle of the table with rice and banchan. Its smell is famously strong, but the taste is nutty and deeply savoury, with tofu, courgette, onion and greens simmered in an anchovy-kelp stock. Suitable as part of a balanced diet: it is high in plant protein and fibre. About 230 kcal and 14 g carbohydrate per portion; eat it with a small bowl of mixed-grain rice. The usual mistake is boiling the cheonggukjang for a long time, which makes it bitter and dulls its flavour; it goes in for the last few minutes. Chef's tip: mash a spoon of doenjang in with it for a rounder, saltier base.

30 minKoreanSoups
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Ensalada chilenaTomato and onion salad

Every Chilean barbecue, every plate of empanadas on 18 September and most weekday lunches come with this salad: ripe peeled tomatoes and white onion cut into fine 'feathers' (corte pluma), dressed with oil, salt and coriander, sometimes with a little green chilli. It is cool, juicy and sharp, the perfect counterweight to grilled meat or a bean stew. The mistake that ruins it is using raw onion straight from the board: it overpowers everything. Soak the slices in cold salted water first and they turn sweet and crunchy. Chef's tip: peel the tomatoes, as Chileans do, so they drink up the dressing.

20 minChileanSaladsVeganGluten free
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Surinamese peprewatraHot pepper fish broth

Peprewatra means 'pepper water' in Sranan Tongo, and in Paramaribo it is the broth people reach for after a long night, on a rainy day or when they feel a cold coming: a clear, very spicy fish soup with Madame Jeanette peppers, onion, tomato and lots of herbs, often with a few pieces of cassava or plantain to make it a meal. Use firm white fish steaks with the bone in for flavour. The usual mistake is boiling the fish hard, so it breaks into shreds; add it to the hot broth and keep it just simmering. Chef's tip: drop the whole pepper in first and pierce it once; take it out when the broth is as hot as you like it.

50 minGuyaneseSoupsGluten freeSpicy
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Liangban haizheCold jellyfish salad

In Shanghai and along the eastern coast, crunchy cold jellyfish is one of the classic cold starters at banquets and summer dinners, served before the hot dishes. Ready-salted jellyfish is soaked, blanched for seconds so it curls and crisps, then tossed with cucumber, garlic, rice vinegar and sesame oil. It has almost no flavour of its own; the pleasure is its springy crunch and the sharp dressing. Very light and suitable as part of a balanced diet. About 90 kcal and 6 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is skipping the long soak: the jellyfish is packed in salt and stays far too salty and tough. Another is blanching in boiling water, which shrinks it to rubber. Chef's tip: blanch in water just off the boil, around 80 °C, for 10 seconds, then plunge it into iced water.

22 minChineseSalads
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Poulet basquaiseBasque chicken with peppers

Poulet basquaise is the everyday family braise of the French Basque Country around Bayonne and Espelette, cooked all summer when peppers are sweet and plentiful. Chicken thighs are browned, then simmered in a piperade of red and green peppers, onion, garlic and tomato, warmed with the region's mild, fruity piment d'Espelette. Rich in vegetables and suitable as part of a balanced diet; serve with green beans or a small portion of brown rice instead of the usual white rice. About 380 kcal and 14 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is crowding the pan when browning, so the chicken steams and the skin stays pale. Chef's tip: let the peppers cook down slowly until soft and sweet before the chicken goes back in; that is the flavour of the dish.

75 minFrenchChickenGluten free
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Nurungji porridgeScorched rice porridge

Every Korean home knows the golden crust that sticks to the bottom of the rice pot, and on cold mornings it is simmered in water into nurungji, a nutty, soothing porridge that tastes faintly of toast. Grandmothers serve it with kimchi and a few banchan for breakfast, or as a gentle meal after a heavy night. You can buy dried nurungji sheets in Korean shops, but it is easy to make your own from leftover rice. The common mistake is pulling the crust too soon: pale rice gives a flat, starchy porridge, so wait until it is deep gold. Chef's tip: break the crust into pieces before simmering but keep a few larger shards back and add them in the last minute, so the bowl has soft and slightly crunchy bits.

25 minKoreanRice & GrainsVeganGluten free
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Braaied gem squashGem squash with sweetcorn and cheese

Small, round and dark green, gem squash is the vegetable South African children grow up scooping from the shell with a teaspoon, and at a weekend braai it goes into the coals wrapped in foil alongside the potatoes. The halves steam in their own juice until the orange flesh is tender and sweet, with a pool of melted butter, golden corn and cheese in the hollow. Serve them as a side for anything from the grid, or make a plate of them with pap tert and a tomato salad for a meat-free braai. Indoors, an oven gives the same result. Putting them straight onto flaming wood is the mistake: they char outside and stay hard inside, so wait for grey, glowing coals. Choose a vegetarian cheddar, since many are made with animal rennet. Chef's tip: trim a thin slice off the round base of each half so it sits flat and holds its filling.

40 minSouth AfricanSidesGluten free
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Nama saladSea grapes with coconut milk

Nama, the glossy green sea grapes that grow on the reef flats of Fiji's Lau and Kadavu islands, are sold in bundles at the Suva market and eaten as a fresh, salty salad with almost every iTaukei lunch of fish and cassava. The little bubbles pop in the mouth with a taste of the sea. They are dressed in lolo (coconut milk) with lemon, onion, tomato and chilli just before eating. A common mistake is dressing them too early; the salt and acid make the grapes collapse. Chef's tip: soak them in cold water for 5 minutes to plump them and wash away grit.

15 minPacific IslanderSaladsVeganGluten free
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SalabatHot ginger tea

Salabat is the Filipino early-morning cup, simmered in homes from Luzon to Mindanao when the weather turns cool or a sore throat threatens, and drunk with bibingka and puto bumbong outside churches during the Christmas dawn masses. It is just ginger, water and dark sugar, but the ginger has to be bashed to release its heat. The mistake is slicing the ginger thinly and boiling briefly; you get a pale, weak tea. Crush it and simmer it properly. Chef's tip: leave the skin on young ginger, scrub it well and smash it with the flat of a cleaver, which gives a stronger, rounder heat.

20 minFilipinoDrinksVeganGluten free
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Aibika in coconut milkGreens in coconut milk

Aibika, a tall leafy hibiscus grown in almost every garden in Papua New Guinea, is the country's most important green vegetable, cooked daily from the Highlands to Port Moresby. The large leaves are slightly slippery like okra and turn silky and rich when simmered in coconut milk with onion. Serve with kaukau, taro or rice. Outside PNG, spinach, Chinese spinach or taro leaves cooked well can stand in. A common mistake is overcooking, which turns the leaves slimy; a few minutes is enough. Chef's tip: shred the leaves into ribbons so they cook evenly.

20 minPacific IslanderVegetarianVeganGluten free
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MaślankaChilled buttermilk

Maślanka, the tangy liquid left after churning butter, is sold in cartons all over Poland and drunk ice-cold with breakfast, with boiled new potatoes in summer, or blended with fruit for children. On its own it is thin, sour and refreshing; with strawberries and a spoon of sugar it becomes a light pink breakfast smoothie. The mistake is buying "buttermilk" that is really thickened yoghurt drink with added flavourings; look for plain cultured buttermilk with nothing else on the label. Chef's tip: chill the glasses as well as the buttermilk, and blend for no more than 20 seconds so it stays light and doesn't separate.

5 minPolishDrinksGluten free
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ManaguNightshade greens

Market women in Kisii and Kakamega sell managu in thick bunches, and in the hills it is the green that goes with ugali at almost every family dinner. The leaves of cultivated African nightshade are soft and pleasantly bitter, a bit like a stronger spinach, and here they are blanched, then cooked down with onion and tomato into a soft, savoury heap. At home many families stir in a spoon of cream at the end; to keep it vegan, use coconut milk as below; buy managu fresh or frozen from African grocers and never gather wild nightshade, as some kinds are poisonous. Using the boiling water as a sauce is a common error: always drain the first boil, or the dish stays harsh. Chef's tip: squeeze the drained leaves firmly in your fist before frying so the tomato flavour soaks in instead of being watered down.

30 minEast AfricanSidesVeganGluten free
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Jwano ko jholCarom seed broth

Jwano ko jhol is the soup Nepali families make for a mother in the weeks after a birth, and for anyone in the house who has a cold during the Kathmandu winter. Carom seeds are fried in ghee with a spoon of flour until nutty, then whisked with water, garlic and ginger into a thin, peppery, slightly thyme-like broth that is sipped hot from a bowl or poured over rice. The usual mistake is burning the jwano: it turns bitter in seconds, so take it off the heat as soon as it darkens a shade. Chef's tip: whisk the water in a little at a time, as with gravy, so the flour never forms lumps.

25 minNepaliSoups
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MchichaAmaranth greens with peanut

Bundles of mchicha (amaranth leaves) are stacked high at Kariakoo market in Dar es Salaam, and almost every Tanzanian family cooks them a few times a week, often as the vegetable beside ugali and maharage. The leaves wilt quickly into something silkier and earthier than spinach, and a spoonful of ground peanuts turns the tomato juices into a creamy, nutty sauce. Look for amaranth leaves (also sold as callaloo, chauli or bayam) at African, Caribbean or Asian grocers; baby spinach works if you cannot find them. Overcooking is the main thing to avoid: take them off the heat while still deep green. Chef's tip: toast the peanuts in a dry pan before grinding them; raw peanuts taste beany in the finished dish.

25 minEast AfricanSidesVeganGluten free
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Ensaladang talbos ng kamote (sweet potato leaf salad)

In Filipino provinces from Pampanga to Leyte, the tender tips of sweet potato vines grow by every house, and this quick salad of blanched leaves, ripe tomato and red onion in sukang Iloko vinegar sits beside fried fish or rice in baon and family lunches. The leaves turn silky and mild, and the vinegar keeps it fresh in a closed tub. The mistake is boiling the leaves for minutes until they turn dark and slimy; thirty seconds is enough. Chef's tip: plunge the leaves into iced water straight from the pot, so they stay bright green until lunchtime.

13 minFilipinoSaladsVeganGluten free
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Oi bokkeumStir-fried cucumber

Cooked cucumber sounds odd until you try oi bokkeum, a Korean banchan in which salted, squeezed slices are flashed in a hot pan with garlic and sesame. They come out bright green and squeaky-crunchy, like a warm pickle, and they hold up beautifully in a dosirak because the salting has already drawn out the water that would make other cucumber sides soggy. The common mistake is frying too long; past a minute or two the slices go soft. Chef's tip: spread the cooked cucumber on a plate to cool at once rather than leaving it in the hot pan, so it keeps its colour.

25 minKoreanSidesVegan
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Warrigal greensGarlic native spinach

Warrigal greens grow wild along the beaches and estuaries of the New South Wales and Queensland coast and were cooked by Aboriginal people long before Captain Cook's crew ate them to fight scurvy. The thick, triangular leaves taste like a salty, more robust spinach. They hold oxalates, so they must be blanched briefly and the water thrown away before cooking. Sautéed with garlic and lemon they make a quick side for grilled fish or barramundi. A common mistake is skipping the blanch; the leaves taste bitter and are not good for you raw. Chef's tip: use tender tips only and discard woody stems.

13 minAustralianSidesVeganGluten free
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Iwashi no tsumire jiruSardine dumpling soup

Along the coasts of Chiba and Kanagawa, where sardines are landed in huge numbers in autumn, cooks chop them by hand into tsumire (fish dumplings) and drop them into a light dashi with daikon and carrot. It is an everyday supper soup, warming and very savoury, eaten with rice and pickles. Suitable as part of a balanced diet: sardines are rich in protein and omega-3 fats, and the soup is low in starch. About 220 kcal and 9 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is pureeing the sardines smooth in a processor, which makes the dumplings rubbery; chop with a knife, leaving a little texture. Chef's tip: add a teaspoon of miso and plenty of ginger to the fish paste; it seasons it and hides any strong fishiness.

40 minJapaneseSoups
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MorogoGreens with tomato and onion

Out in Limpopo and on the edges of Gauteng, morogo is the word for edible leaves, and a pot of them simmering with onion and tomato is what turns a plate of stiff pap into supper. In villages the leaves come from amaranth, cowpea or pumpkin plants picked in the yard; at home you can use shop-bought amaranth or pumpkin leaves from an African grocer, or plain spinach mixed with a little kale, which gives a very similar soft, earthy, slightly mineral result. The greens cook down until silky and dark, with sweet tomato and a little chilli running through them. Serve with pap, samp and beans or a pile of rice, and eat it with your hands, rolling a ball of pap through the greens. Chef's tip: let the onion and tomato fry down to a thick jam before the leaves go in, otherwise the morogo ends up watery and bland.

25 minSouth AfricanSidesVeganGluten free
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MrendaJute mallow greens

Luhya grandmothers in Kakamega and Bungoma say mrenda slides the ugali down, and they mean it: jute mallow leaves, cooked with a little soda, turn deliberately slippery and silky, a texture Western Kenya loves. The flavour is mild and grassy, lifted here with onion and tomato, and the greens are often mixed with cowpea leaves or eaten beside fish. Fresh jute mallow can be hard to find, but frozen chopped leaves sold as molokhia in Middle Eastern and African shops work perfectly. The traditional alkali is a lye filtered from ash; bicarbonate of soda stands in, and heaping it in is the mistake that leaves a soapy taste, so keep to a pinch. Chef's tip: stir with a wooden whisk or a fork in one direction as it cooks; Luhya cooks beat it this way to make the sauce smooth.

23 minEast AfricanSidesVeganGluten free
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ChibwabwaPumpkin leaves with groundnuts

From December to March, when pumpkin vines sprawl over every compound fence in Lusaka and the Copperbelt, chibwabwa is on the table almost daily as a relish for nshima. The tender leaves and shoots are stripped of their hairy outer fibres, cooked down until silky and finished with tomato, onion and freshly pounded groundnuts, which thicken the juices into a creamy, nutty sauce. The taste is green and mildly sweet, closer to young spinach than to pumpkin itself. Look for pumpkin leaves at African or South Asian grocers; spinach mixed with a little chard is a fair stand-in. Skipping the peeling is the mistake people make, and it leaves the stems stringy and prickly. Chef's tip: add the groundnut powder only at the end and simmer it gently, or it sinks and scorches.

35 minSouthern AfricanSidesVeganGluten free
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Ragi ambaliFinger millet porridge drink

Across rural Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, farm workers drink a big glass of ragi ambali in the early morning before the summer heat, and clay pots of it are sold at roadside stalls in April and May. Finger-millet flour is cooked into a thick paste, left overnight to ferment lightly, then thinned with buttermilk and stirred with raw onion, green chilli and curry leaves into a cool, tangy, savoury drink. It is suitable as part of a balanced diet. About 140 kcal and 22 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is pouring the ragi flour straight into boiling water, which makes lumps; mix it with cold water first. Chef's tip: cook the paste until it turns glossy and darker, about 8 minutes; undercooked ragi tastes raw and floury.

15 minIndianDrinksGluten free
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Suan rong xilanhuaGarlic broccoli

Garlic broccoli is on the menu of almost every Chinese home kitchen and family restaurant, from Guangzhou to Shanghai, as the quick green dish at a weekday dinner. The florets are blanched just until bright, then tossed in a hot wok with a big spoon of minced garlic and a splash of water, so they stay crisp, glossy and full of garlic flavour. Serve with tofu, fish or eggs and a modest portion of rice. It is suitable as part of a balanced diet. About 90 kcal and 8 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is adding the garlic to very hot oil before the broccoli, where it burns and turns bitter. Chef's tip: add a few drops of oil to the blanching water; it keeps the broccoli shiny and green.

15 minChineseSidesVeganGluten free
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