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Pajagua mascadaBeef and cassava patties

Pajagua mascada is a Paraguayan street-food classic that appears on every table for the San Juan festival on 24 June, when bonfires burn and the night is full of games and traditional food. Minced beef is mixed with mashed cassava, onion, garlic and a little egg and flour, shaped into flat patties and fried until crisp. The name comes from Guaraní and refers to the 'chewing' of old Paraguayan cooks, who made it from leftover meat. Chef's tip: dry the boiled cassava well and remove its woody core, which keeps the patties light and crunchy.

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Dowina (Kurdish yogurt soup)

Dowina, called ash-e doogh in Persian, is warming spring food in Kurdish homes around Newroz, when yogurt is plentiful and the first herbs are cut from the garden. Rice and chickpeas simmer in a tangy, lightly thickened yogurt broth, finished with fresh dill, coriander and a sizzle of dried mint in oil. It is eaten warm, never boiling hot, with flatbread. The common mistake is to heat the yogurt too fast without stirring, which makes it split into grainy curds. Chef's tip: whisk an egg yolk and a spoonful of rice flour into the yogurt before it goes on the heat; it holds the soup smooth all the way to the simmer.

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Chipa so'oCheese bread with spiced beef

In Paraguay, families bake chipa in the clay tatakua ovens on Holy Wednesday so there is food for Thursday and Good Friday, when cooking stops. Chipa so'o ('chipa with meat') is a cassava-starch and cheese bread wrapped around a little filling of minced beef cooked with onion and egg, then baked until crisp outside and chewy within. It is naturally gluten free. Chef's tip: knead the dough until it no longer cracks at the edges when pressed; dry dough splits around the filling.

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TihaneStuffed lamb spleen

Tihane, or tehal, is an old Eid al-Adha speciality from Moroccan towns such as Fez and Marrakech, made on the days after the sacrifice when the offal is shared out. The lamb's spleen is cut open into a pocket and stuffed with chopped liver and heart, a little fat, green olives, preserved lemon, garlic and cumin, then sewn shut, poached and roasted until browned. It is sliced thin and eaten warm or cold with bread. Ask a halal butcher for the spleen and offal. Chef's tip: prick the spleen with a fine needle before poaching so it doesn't burst in the pot.

130 minMoroccanMeatGluten free
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KaguyjyWhite corn pudding

On the night of 23–24 June, Paraguayans celebrate San Juan with bonfires, games like walking over hot coals and the 'paso de fuego', and a table of traditional foods, and kaguyjy (also mazamorra) is one of them. It is a soft, creamy pudding of cracked white corn (locro) simmered slowly in water and then milk with sugar or honey, sometimes with orange peel. It is eaten warm or cold. It is gluten free. Chef's tip: soak the corn overnight and cook it until each kernel is tender before adding the milk, or it never turns creamy.

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KourdassGrilled lamb liver bundles

After the sacrifice of Eid al-Adha, Moroccan families use every part of the lamb, and kourdass is one of the dishes made in the days that follow: pieces of tripe and liver rubbed with cumin and paprika, wrapped in caul fat and traditionally hung up to air-dry before grilling. This home version skips the drying, which is hard to do safely in a modern kitchen, and grills the bundles fresh over charcoal or under a grill until the fat crisps and the liver is cooked through. Buy cleaned, pre-cooked tripe and caul fat from a halal butcher. Chef's tip: wrap the bundles tightly so the caul fat bastes them as it melts.

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KalanehWild leek stuffed flatbread

In Kurdistan and Kermanshah, Newroz arrives with the first spring greens on the hillsides, and families gather wild leeks to fold into kalaneh, thin griddle breads cooked over a fire or a hot pan and soaked in melted butter. The dough is plain and soft, rolled very thin around a pile of chopped leek or chives with a little salt and pepper, so the greens steam inside as the bread blisters. Eat it hot, torn into strips, with yogurt and tea at a Newroz picnic. The common mistake is wet greens, which turn the dough soggy and make it tear; dry them well after washing. Chef's tip: brush the butter on the moment the bread leaves the pan so it soaks right in.

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OsterpinzeEaster anise brioche

Osterpinze is the Easter bread of Styria, Carinthia and the area around Trieste, a soft, golden brioche dome with three deep cuts on top for the Holy Trinity, so that it opens into a crown as it bakes. The dough is rich with egg yolks and butter and flavoured with anise and lemon; old recipes add a splash of white wine, left out here. It is blessed in the Easter basket on Holy Saturday and eaten on Easter morning with ham, horseradish and eggs, or with butter and jam. Chef's tip: make the three cuts with scissors just before baking, deep enough to reach halfway down, so the crown opens wide.

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AllerheiligenstriezelBraided sweet loaf

In Bavaria and Austria, godparents give their godchildren an Allerheiligenstriezel on All Saints' Day, 1 November: a large braided loaf of sweet yeast dough, brushed with egg and scattered with almonds or pearl sugar. The braid is said to recall the old custom of cutting a plait of hair in mourning, and the size of the loaf once showed how generous the godparent was. It is lightly sweet, with lemon and vanilla, and is eaten sliced with butter or jam. Some recipes add rum-soaked raisins; these are soaked in warm water instead. Chef's tip: braid four strands for an impressive, high loaf.

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Yeot-gangjeong (nut and sesame bars in rice syrup)

Yeot-gangjeong is a traditional Korean hangwa made all over the country, especially in the weeks before Seollal and Chuseok, when trays of these bars are given as gifts and set out for visitors. Toasted nuts, sesame seeds and puffed rice are folded into hot rice syrup, pressed flat and cut into bars that are crunchy, nutty and only gently sweet, with a faint malty flavour from the syrup. Serve them with green tea or sikhye, the sweet rice drink, or pack them for a lunchbox. They are naturally egg-free: rice syrup, heated until it bubbles, acts as the glue and sets firm as it cools. Chef's tip: cut the slab while it is still warm. The common mistake is waiting until it is cold, when the bars shatter instead of slicing cleanly.

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Surichwi-tteok (Dano wheel rice cakes)

Dano, on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month, was once called surit-nal, and the green surichwi-tteok of Gangwon and the rest of Korea carries that name: the cakes are pounded with surichwi (Korean mountain aster) and pressed with a cartwheel stamp, since 'suri' was read as 'wheel', a wish for the year to roll on smoothly and for good health as summer heat sets in. The leaves give a grassy, faintly bitter scent and a deep green fleck, and the steamed rice is pounded until it turns chewy and bouncy. If you can't find surichwi, mugwort (ssuk) powder or dried mugwort works well; the flavour is a little more herbal and the cakes are just as traditional in spirit. Serve at room temperature with cold omija hwachae or barley tea. Chef's tip: pound the rice while it is still steaming hot; once it cools it tightens and will never go smooth.

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Gul jeon (oyster pancakes)

Oysters are at their sweetest in midwinter, just as Seollal arrives, and the farms around Tongyeong on Korea's south coast supply most of the country, so gul jeon are a treasured New Year treat. They are a quick, small luxury on a jeon platter that is otherwise mostly vegetables and pork, a taste of the sea brought to the family table for the new year. Each oyster is wrapped in a thin, tender egg coat, so the outside is golden and soft while the inside is briny, sweet and juicy. Use shucked fresh oysters from a tub or the fishmonger, and serve them hot with a soy-vinegar dip, a squeeze of lemon and steamed rice. Chef's tip: pat the oysters really dry, or the flour turns gluey and the oil spits.

20 minKoreanFish
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Gotgam-ssam (walnut-stuffed dried persimmon rounds)

Sangju in North Gyeongsang is Korea's dried-persimmon capital, and in Andong and across the region gotgam-ssam is a sweet for Seollal and Chuseok tables and for welcoming guests in winter. Soft dried persimmons are opened out flat, rolled tightly around a row of walnut halves and sliced, so each round shows a pattern like a flower. They are chewy and honeyed from the fruit, with crunchy, slightly bitter walnuts in the middle. Serve them with sujeonggwa, the cinnamon-ginger punch, or with a cup of roasted barley tea. It is naturally egg-free: the sticky dried fruit is its own glue, and a short chill firms the roll so it slices neatly. Chef's tip: wrap the roll tightly in cling film and chill it before slicing; the common mistake is slicing it straight away, which squashes the rounds and lets the walnuts fall out.

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Kkaennip jeon (stuffed perilla leaf pancakes)

For Chuseok and Seollal, Korean kitchens turn out tray after tray of jeon for the ancestral table, and kkaennip jeon are a fragrant favourite: whole perilla leaves are folded like a half-moon around minced pork, tofu and vegetables, then fried in egg. Perilla tastes of mint, anise and basil all at once, and its scent cuts through the richness of the holiday spread. Each little parcel is soft and juicy inside, with a thin, golden shell. Serve them with a soy-vinegar dip, rice and soup, or tuck them into a lunchbox the day after. Chef's tip: lay the leaves shiny side down so the matt, rougher side holds the flour and filling.

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Pyogo jeon (stuffed shiitake pancakes)

No Seollal or Chuseok table in Korea is complete without a platter of jeon, and pyogo jeon are among the prettiest: shiitake caps packed with a filling of minced pork and tofu, then fried in a thin egg coat so the dark mushroom edge frames a golden centre. Mushrooms were prized offerings on the ancestral (charye) table, and stuffed jeon show the care put into the holiday meal. They are juicy and savoury, with the shiitake giving an earthy, meaty bite. Serve warm or at room temperature with a soy and vinegar dip, alongside other jeon and a bowl of tteokguk; the last step gives an all-tofu vegetarian filling. Chef's tip: dust the gills with flour before stuffing; it acts as glue and stops the filling popping out in the pan.

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Dasik (Korean pressed tea cakes)

Dasik are small pressed tea cakes stamped with patterns of flowers, characters for long life and good fortune, made across Korea for Chuseok, weddings and the tables set for ancestral rites. Powders of roasted grain, black sesame or yellow pine pollen are kneaded with honey and pressed into carved wooden moulds, so a single plate shows contrasting colours. They are dense and melt slowly, tasting of toasted nuts and honey, and they are always served with tea: green tea, or a tea of jujube or citron. This version makes two colours, roasted soybean and black sesame. They are naturally egg-free: honey binds the powders and lets them hold the fine pattern of the mould. Chef's tip: add the honey a teaspoon at a time; the common mistake is too much, which makes a sticky dough that blurs the pattern and won't leave the mould.

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Tmar mehchi (Moroccan almond-stuffed dates)

Tmar mehchi is the stuffed date of Fez and Marrakech, piled high on silver trays at weddings, engagements and Eid, and offered to guests with mint tea. Soft dates are filled with a homemade almond paste perfumed with orange-blossom water, often tinted pale green or pink to match the celebration, then scored with a knife so the filling shows. They are soft, rich and caramel-sweet, with a floral, nutty middle. The paste here is mixed from ground almonds and icing sugar, so there is no shop marzipan, which can contain egg white. It is naturally egg-free: the dates' sticky flesh and a few spoonfuls of orange-blossom water bind the almond filling. Chef's tip: add the orange-blossom water a little at a time and stop when the paste is firm like play dough. The common mistake is a wet paste, which oozes out and makes the dates slippery.

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Gochu jeon (stuffed chilli pancakes)

Gochu jeon bring a flash of green to the jeon platter that Korean families fry together, often for hours, before Seollal and Chuseok, when jeon are laid out for the ancestors and then shared by everyone. Long, mild green chillies are split and filled with a pork and tofu stuffing, so each boat is half crisp, sweet-grassy pepper and half juicy, savoury filling, with only a little warmth. They hold well, which is why they are made ahead for the holiday. Serve with a vinegar and soy dip, steamed rice and kimchi. Chef's tip: choose straight, mild chillies (Korean green chillies, Anaheim or long Turkish peppers); curly hot ones are hard to fill and too fierce for a platter.

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Omija hwachae (five-flavour berry punch)

Across Korea, Dano marks the start of the hot season, and a bowl of hwachae is the old way to cool down. Omija means 'five flavours': the dried schisandra berries are sour, sweet, salty, bitter and pungent at once, and steeping them gives a ruby-pink drink that is tart and bright, said to refresh the body against summer fatigue. Honey is the traditional sweetener; sugar syrup keeps this version vegan and entirely alcohol-free. Float thin pear flowers and a few pine nuts on top and serve it beside tteok or yakgwa. Chef's tip: steep the berries in cold water only, because hot water pulls out their bitterness and the colour turns murky.

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Torantang (taro soup)

Torantang is the soup of Chuseok all over Korea: taro is dug up just as the harvest moon festival arrives, and its name, 'egg of the earth', makes it a natural thanks for the year's crops. Elders also say it settles the stomach after days of rich jeon and rice cakes. The broth is clean and gently beefy with a sea-sweet depth from kelp, and the taro turns silky and creamy, almost like a soft potato. Serve it piping hot with rice, kimchi and the holiday jeon. Chef's tip: wear gloves when peeling taro, which makes bare skin itch, and parboil it before it goes into the soup so the broth stays clear.

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Hwayangjeok (colourful skewers)

Hwayangjeok, made across Korea for Chuseok and Seollal, means something like 'flower-bright skewers': strips of seasoned beef, shiitake, carrot, yellow pickled radish, cucumber and egg are cooked separately and threaded side by side, so each skewer shows the five traditional colours (obangsaek) that stand for balance and good fortune on the ancestral table. Every bite mixes savoury, sweet soy beef with crunchy, tangy radish and soft egg. They are served at room temperature as part of the holiday spread, with rice, soup and other jeon. Chef's tip: cut every ingredient to the same length and thickness before you start; that is what makes the stripes look sharp.

60 minKoreanMeat
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Saeu jeon (shrimp pancakes)Prawn pancakes

Saeu jeon are a celebratory addition to the jeon platter for Seollal and Chuseok in homes all over Korea; prawns, with their bent backs, have long stood for a wish to live until you are old and stooped. Butterflied and pressed flat, each prawn turns into a neat golden fan with a pink tail, sweet and tender inside a soft egg coat. Children love them, and they disappear faster than anything else on the table. Serve with a soy-vinegar dip, japchae and rice. Chef's tip: make a few shallow cuts across the inner belly before flattening; it stops the prawns curling up in the pan.

25 minKoreanFish
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Miyeok julgi bokkeumStir-fried seaweed stems

Seaweed stems, sold salted in Korean grocers, are the crunchy, green-black banchan you find in school canteens and lunchboxes everywhere in Korea, eaten cold with rice. The stems are soaked to draw out the salt, then stir-fried quickly with garlic, onion and a few drops of soy, and finished with sesame. It is vegan and light, with about 2 g of protein per portion. The common mistake is under-soaking: too little and the dish is painfully salty, so taste a piece before you cook. Chef's tip: blanch the stems for 10 seconds after soaking; it sets their bright green colour and removes any fishy-sea smell.

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Mumallaengi muchimDried radish strip salad

Mumallaengi are strips of Korean radish dried in the autumn sun, and dressed this way they become a chewy, sweet-spicy banchan that families across Korea keep in the fridge all winter for lunchboxes and weeknight rice. The strips are soaked briefly, squeezed and massaged with chilli flakes, garlic, soy and syrup, often with dried chilli leaves. Many cooks add fish sauce; this version uses soy alone, so it is vegan. It is a side with about 2 g of protein per portion. The common mistake is soaking the radish too long: it loses its crunch and sweetness and turns watery. Chef's tip: make it a day ahead; after a night in the fridge the strips soak up the dressing and turn glossy red.

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