Recipes By Alexa Weibel
122 recipes found
Galbi and Tteok Skewers
Salty, tangy and supremely textural, this dish from David Shim, the executive chef at Cote in New York City, harnesses the flavors of galbi, partnering marinated short ribs with crisp-tender tteok, spearing them on skewers and grilling them until smoky. It was served at the New York Times Food Festival in 2022, but Mr. Shim’s recipe delivers great results on any grill. “The strongest galbi flavors come from the sweetness of the marinade, which is especially a result of the Asian pears,” Mr. Shim said. The pear-and-soy marinade tenderizes the meat as it flavors it. Cut into small batons that readily soak up the seasoning, the boneless short ribs are well suited to grilling due to their high fat content. They even send a signal when they’re done: Once they’re grill-marked, they’ll be perfectly tender, juicy and medium-rare, as if by magic.
Kimchi Chicken Lettuce Wraps
For the fastest path to deliciousness, select ingredients that punch above their weight. This weeknight recipe leans on just five primary ingredients — ground chicken, lettuce and rice form the foundation; kimchi adds depth and hoisin lends sweetness — for a fresh spread that cooks in just 15 minutes. Bracing and assertive, kimchi doesn’t slip into this dish; it dominates. Though each jar of kimchi is unique, its salty, spicy and tangy notes reign. You’ll cook off a portion of the chopped fermented cabbage with the chicken, taming its taste and texture, then use the remainder as a garnish. To offset kimchi’s assertiveness, the chicken is glazed with hoisin sauce, which adds sweetness, color and glossiness. Set the chicken mixture, kimchi, lettuce and rice in separate bowls for tableside assembly — less work for the cook, more fun for the guests.
Spicy Tomato and Nectarine Salad
When it comes to savory tomato salads, the iconic Caprese salad feels unsurpassable because its formula is simple but sublime: sliced fruit, bright herbs (basil) and rich cheese. This salad started out basic as well, initially combining tomato with stone fruit and a spicy honey-jalapeño vinaigrette, but surrendered to Caprese’s gravitational pull to eventually include fistfuls of fresh herbs (basil, mint or cilantro) and cheese for richness. (Salty ricotta salata shavings stand up to the zippy vinaigrette without overpowering it.) Seasoning your individual elements to taste might seem excessive, but it builds better flavor. Some salads are built to tower, but this salad feels fancy, fresh and less fussy when layered directly on the platter, served flat.
Chicken Milanese
Chicken Milanese is a simple dish that makes chicken breasts seem positively lavish. Similar to Italian veal Milanese, this classic dish pairs hot and crispy breaded chicken with a cool and lemony salad. The recipe takes a little preparation, but the execution is easy: Pound lean chicken breasts until thin, bread them, then pan-fry until the bread crumbs are golden; the crust ensures that the chicken stays moist. While not traditional, this version adds onion powder, garlic powder and grated Parmesan to the breading. Experiment by adding spices, nuts and seeds to the bread crumbs, and cooked or raw fruits and vegetables to the greens. A swipe of mayonnaise on the plate? Unnecessary but sublime.
Çilbir (Turkish Eggs With Yogurt)
This traditional Turkish egg dish of garlicky yogurt with poached eggs and a drizzle of spicy butter is rich, luscious and faintly smoky. Typically served as a meze among a spread of other dishes, it makes a light lunch or brunch that comes together in the time it takes to poach eggs. For your base, opt for Greek yogurt to mimic the thicker yogurt common in Turkey. Next, bloom Aleppo pepper in butter or olive oil. Also known as pul biber, it delivers about as much heat as chipotle, with smoky notes and a fruity flavor. This version of çilbir is adapted from Özlem Warren, a cookbook author and blogger. Though the dish is traditionally served without herbs, she recommends dill or parsley for a modern flourish.
Stir-Fried Lotus Root
Lotus root has a subtle flavor — mildly sweet, and vaguely reminiscent of fresh corn — but its striking appearance and singular texture distinguish it, with a crunch that is snappier than an undercooked potato but not quite as assertive as jicama. This speedy stir-fry adapted from M Shanghai, a Shanghainese restaurant in Brooklyn, celebrates the root vegetable and its unique texture. May Liu, the restaurant’s owner, wanted lotus root on the menu because it’s a traditional Shanghainese dish. “It’s light, it’s tasty, it’s delicious, it’s unusual. It’s not a dish you can find at every Chinese restaurant,” she said. Simply seasoned with salt, mushroom seasoning and just enough sugar to render its components glossy, the flavor of this dish is subdued, allowing the quiet lotus root to dominate. The ingredients, like mildly spicy bullhorn peppers (sometimes labeled as green long hot peppers), can be found in Asian markets.
Spicy Cucumber Margaritas
Verdant and herbaceous, this margarita is slightly more work than the classic, but you can produce it hours in advance. Some cocktail recipes call for preparing simple syrup on the stovetop, then combining with other ingredients, but this one uses a blender to combine the cucumbers, cilantro, sugar, lime zest and juice as a shortcut. Using delicate, thin-skinned Persian cucumbers ensures a vibrant color, and cilantro adds grassy notes. Because the heat levels of jalapeños can fluctuate, allow guests to garnish with sliced jalapeño to taste.
Tagliatelle With Prosciutto and Butter
Like cacio e pepe, this prosciutto-studded pasta — coated in emulsified butter, starchy pasta cooking water and Parmesan — requires repetition to master, but it's not at all difficult. Adapted from Evan Funke’s pasta cookbook, “American Sfoglino,” this dish comes together with just a few ingredients, but you’ll need to work fast: Add the pasta, pasta water and cheese to the butter and prosciutto quickly, then stir vigorously while gently jostling the pan back and forth with the other hand. Serve immediately, as the pasta can lose its luster within minutes as it soaks up the sauce.
Queso
Queso, a popular Tex-Mex dip made with processed American cheese and canned tomatoes, was inspired by chile con queso, a Mexican dip of melted cheese and chiles that made its way to the United States in the 1930s and ’40s. As the two-ingredient Americanized adaptation gained popularity, supermarkets began placing Ro-tel canned tomatoes near shelf-stable Velveeta cheese, and queso became mainstream. Purists will argue that any ingredient beyond American cheese and spicy diced tomatoes is unnecessary, but you can customize this recipe by adding any combination of black beans, scallions, cilantro, garlic, cumin, red-pepper flakes, oregano, lime zest or juice.
Macaroni Salad With Lemon and Herbs
Consider this a macaroni salad for the 21st century: Like the original, it’s a welcome accompaniment to picnic fare and pairs with virtually anything off the grill. But this version also happens to be bright, acidic and herbaceous. The traditional elements have been preserved — elbow macaroni, mayonnaise and a pinch of sugar are mandatory — but they’ve been bolstered by bright flavors: lemon zest, tangy capers and pickles, crunchy celery and tons of fresh herbs. It goes lighter on mayonnaise than the original, swapping in tangy buttermilk for a dressing that is more glossy than gloopy. It can be served straight from the fridge or at room temperature. A splash of water stirred in restores its silky sheen.
Roasted Tomato Tart With Ricotta and Pesto
Save those wider-than-tall, about-to-burst tomatoes for slicing and showering with flaky sea salt. For this recipe, you want smaller, sturdier varieties like kumato, Campari or petite heirlooms. Brushing the uncooked puff pastry with crème fraîche adds a subtle tanginess that you won’t necessarily notice, but the tomatoes will taste better for it. You might be tempted to skip salting your tomatoes, but don’t: It helps prevent a soggy crust while intensifying the flavor of your tomatoes. This tart is best enjoyed straight out of the oven, at its flaky prime, but it’s also great at room temperature, or even cold, devoured directly from the fridge.
Tomato and Peach Salad With Whipped Goat Cheese
Whizzed in the food processor with some heavy cream and lemon zest, earthy goat cheese becomes rich and creamy, the perfect complement to juicy peaches and tomatoes. Fresh purslane, if you can find it, provides a slight crunch to the salad, but mâche or watercress would also work well. You could also tear up some basil, parsley or other tender herbs you have lying around and toss those in just before serving. Colorful, fresh and easy, this salad works as a starter, a side or a summery supper, piled on top of grilled bread.
Superiority Burger’s Crispy Fried Tofu Sandwich
Ranging from silken and creamy to firm and chewy, tofu comes in many forms and is prized around the world for its versatility. In this recipe, which is adapted from the “Superiority Burger Cookbook” (W.W. Norton & Company, 2018) by chef Brooks Headley, extra-firm tofu is pressed, marinated, breaded and fried, to make the “tofu-fried tofu” sandwich at Superiority Burger, his popular vegetarian restaurant in New York City. To achieve a dense tofu patty with plenty of flavor and bite, Mr. Headley starts with extra-firm tofu, presses out any excess liquid, then marinates it in a spicy pickle juice brine. It’s then double-battered and deep-fried until crisp. This sandwich is best enjoyed on a sunlit stoop in the East Village, just steps outside Superiority Burger, but it’s also achievable in any home kitchen.
Quick White Bean and Celery Ragout
Inspired by a Chez Panisse recipe that uses fresh shell beans, this simple ragout is less precious but no less delicious. Sauté celery, zucchini and scallions with a glug of olive oil, then add canned beans and cook until warmed. If you prefer a thicker sauce, add the beans at the beginning of cooking so they break down as they’re stirred. Serve with grilled bread, pearl couscous or farro. Soft herbs like basil or parsley, tender greens like arugula or mâche, or pesto or salsa verde would all make for a lovely garnish.
Creamy Swiss Chard Pasta With Leeks, Tarragon and Lemon Zest
This creamy vegetarian pasta is hearty enough for chilly temperatures while still nodding toward spring with the addition of bright-green chard, leeks and fresh herbs. For texture, it’s topped with toasted panko, a garnish that can go many ways: Instead of using nutritional yeast, which adds tangy flavor here, you can melt a finely chopped anchovy with the butter and toss it with the panko. You could also add some ground coriander, Italian seasoning or herbes de Provence. Toasted panko, plain bread crumbs or even crushed croutons are a solid back-pocket trick to add crunch to any pasta, especially the creamiest kind. Don’t skip the tarragon and lemon zest garnish, which add a fresh note to an otherwise-rich dish.
Salmon and Daikon in Garlic Butter Miso Sauce
A stunning one-pot meal that cooks in just 15 minutes, this salmon dish creates a silky miso sauce that tastes lavish. The recipe comes from Naoko Takei Moore, who co-authored “Donabe: Classic and Modern Japanese Clay Pot Cooking” with Kyle Connaughton (Ten Speed Press, 2015) and created Toiro, a Los Angeles shop that specializes in donabe and Japanese cookware. It’s intended to be cooked in a donabe, a Japanese clay pot prized for its ability to retain heat and cook evenly, but also works well in a Dutch oven or other pot. Once you’ve stirred together your miso sauce, seasoned your salmon and prepped your vegetables, the meal comes together with little effort, as you layer the vegetables, dashi, salmon and sauce in your pot then simmer until tender. Organize your prepped ingredients and the practice of cooking this dish feels as soul-soothing as the results.
Sheet-Pan Roast Chicken and Mustard-Glazed Cabbage
This hearty one-pan meal is inspired by the classic combination of sausage and sauerkraut, but with chicken in place of pork and fresh cabbage instead of fermented. Cabbage slices are brushed with a simple mustard vinaigrette, then roasted underneath chicken thighs that have been seasoned with cumin and coriander. In the heat of the oven, the chicken crisps, the cabbage softens and the red onion becomes jammy and sweet. Serve with crusty bread and additional mustard on the side.
One-Pot Zucchini-Basil Pasta
This no-colander-necessary, one-pot pasta method isn’t a gimmick: Cooking the noodles in just enough seasoned stock means they’re done in the same amount of time it takes the liquid to reduce into a concentrated, extra flavorful sauce. Mascarpone makes it silky, though crème fraîche or even softened cream cheese would be solid substitutes. While the pasta cooks, make a quick gremolata of chopped parsley, salted almonds and basil, which adds brightness and texture to the finished dish. Though this pasta comes together quickly, it requires more attention than some: Be sure to stir frequently so the noodles cook evenly, and add a splash of water toward the end of cooking, as needed, so they stay saucy.
Pad Krapow Gai (Thai Basil Chicken)
As dynamic as it is speedy, this ground chicken and green bean recipe from “Night + Market” (Clarkson Potter, 2017) by Kris Yenbamroong and Garrett Snyder, delivers a wallop of flavor with punchy ingredients that stir-fry in just 15 minutes. While this popular Thai street food can be whipped up using a range of proteins, Mr. Yenbamroong refers to his riff as “low-rent” because it’s prepared with ground chicken rather than pricier slices of meat. It’s piled with basil; Thai basil or holy basil provide more assertive licorice notes, but sweet basil adds herbal bursts of brightness. Spiked with Thai seasoning (see Tip), the chicken mixture is salty on its own, but it’s inextricably linked with rice, and imparts the right amount of salinity when dispersed.
Spicy and Saucy Cherry Tomato Pasta
In this incredibly easy weeknight pasta, red-pepper flakes, capers and tomato paste turn a simple cherry tomato sauce into something hearty enough for cold weather. Sautéeing tomato paste until it caramelizes develops deep flavor, while pan-fried capers add crunch and red-pepper flakes provide heat. For smokier undertones, you can use dried ancho chile or chile de árbol, chipotle powder or Aleppo pepper in place of the red-pepper flakes. A dollop of ricotta, freshly grated pecorino or Parmesan, or shaved ricotta salata is not necessary, but takes the dish up a notch.
Five-Ingredient Creamy Miso Pasta
This one-pot pasta comes together in minutes, and requires zero prep and minimal cleanup. It builds on the classic combination of pasta, butter and cheese with a spoonful of miso paste for complexity. But you could experiment with using any other condiments or spices you have on hand, such as red pesto, curry paste or ground turmeric in place of the miso. To achieve a silky smooth pasta, you’ll need to put your cacio e pepe skills to work: Vigorously toss the pasta, grated cheese and pasta water together to achieve a properly emulsified sauce. Top with shrimp, edamame, frozen peas or any steamed vegetable. The optional nori or furikake imparts an unexpected flavor of the sea, and it’s worth using if you have it on hand.
Crispy Rice Salad With Halloumi and Ginger-Lime Vinaigrette
If you delight in leftover rice — and the infinite ways to put it to good use — here’s another technique to add to your repertoire: Crisp cooked rice in just a couple tablespoons of hot oil until it’s scorched in spots, and simultaneously crunchy and chewy. The turmeric-stained rice clusters are used as salty croutons in this salad of ginger-lime marinated onions, seared halloumi and a pile of baby greens, a delicate backdrop that highlights the rice’s crunch and the halloumi’s squeak. A riot of texture, this salad crackles and pops.
Ferran Adrià’s Potato Chip Omelet
This recipe, adapted from the cookbook “The Family Meal: Home Cooking With Ferran Adrià” (Phaidon, 2011), is a study in simplicity. The chef of El Bulli, the famous Spanish restaurant, Mr. Adrià created an omelet reminiscent of a Spanish tortilla that comes together in minutes using only eggs, salted potato chips and olive oil. As with any recipe calling for just a few ingredients, quality truly matters here, so opt for the best potato chips, the finest olive oil and the freshest eggs. There’s no need to season the dish with salt, Mr. Adrià advises, since the chips are already salted, but serving the omelet with salt and pepper adds nuance. If you like, add finely sliced chives, a handful of grated Manchego or perhaps a pinch of piment d’Espelette or paprika like a true tortilla Española.
Vegetable Chow Mein
When you order chow mein in the United States, your meal is likely to look different depending on your location: In the Northeast, it might be a plate full of gravy-laden stir-fried vegetables crowned with crispy noodles, whereas on the West Coast, the strands are thick and chewy. More traditional Cantonese restaurants will serve up deep-fried noodles, but in New York City, those noodles might be softer and thinner. Some versions use soy sauce liberally, while others abstain entirely. This Hong Kong-style chow mein is from the chef Lucas Sin, who researches regional Chinese cuisine and how it has morphed across the globe. This recipe, from his menu at Nice Day, a Chinese American takeout place in New York, is stained with soy sauce and has a robust vegetable-to-noodle ratio. It’s bouncy, it has bite and it’s delicious hot off the wok (or even cold from the fridge).