Main Course
8665 recipes found
Thin Pan-Seared Pork Chops
Double-thick pork chops always look appetizing, but unless they are cooked perfectly, they tend to be dry, regardless of whether you grill or bake them. That's especially true if they are lean loin chops. But skinny chops cooked over high heat on the stovetop are far more apt to come out juicy. Giving them an hour in quickly made brine adds even more flavor and tenderness. Ask your butcher to cut thin chops that weigh 4 to 5 ounces.
Corn-Seafood Stew With Avocado and Chiles
The bright, tangy flavors of this colorful seafood dish, adapted from the chef Jose Salazar of Mita’s Restaurant in Cincinnati, are loosely based on Mexican pozole verde, a hominy stew usually made with pork or chicken, or both. But here, the starchy grains are replaced by juicy, fresh corn kernels, and seafood stands in for the meat. Perfect for summer, the stew is herbal and light, with a sweetness from the corn that’s balanced by lime juice and roasted tomatillos, while green chiles give the whole thing a kick. You can use any combination of seafood here, adjusting the cooking times as needed.
Swordfish With Green Sauce
Turkey Steaks With Mushrooms and Mustard Seeds
Slow-Roasted Fish With Mustard and Dill
What if, instead of my usual hot-roasting method, I wrapped a whole fish tightly in parchment and put it in a slow oven? It was a technique I had never seen in a cookbook, and when I described it to Eric Ripert, the chef and an owner of Le Bernardin, he said it was new to him. The experiment worked beautifully. A week later, to serve with Portuguese white wines, I had the opportunity for an encore. This time it was a two-pound porgy, and again, after exactly an hour, the bone lifted easily from the perfectly cooked, moist and silken flesh. Lemon, ginger, mustard and herbs brought it into harmony with the wines.
Paillard Of Squid
Winter Stew of Braised Lamb, Red Onions And Macaroni
Tacos de Picadillo
In Texas, picadillo is a ground-beef mixture that can be tucked into tacos, stuffed into peppers or burritos, or even eaten like stew with tortillas. Adán Medrano, a chef and writer whose work focuses on the Mexican-American food he grew up on in South Texas, created this dish based on the rolled tacos served for nearly seven decades at the Malt House in San Antonio, a beloved Texas Mexican spot that was demolished in 2018. The meat is flavored with what Mr. Medrano calls the “holy trinity,” a Texas Mexican spice paste of peppercorns, cumin and garlic. While many Mexican-Americans soften the tortillas in hot oil as for enchiladas, Mr. Medrano dips them in caldito, a broth created from the picadillo liquid.
Moo Shu Mushrooms
Joyce Chen put moo shu (or “moo shi,” as she calls it) pork on the menu of her restaurant in Cambridge, Mass., in 1958. The classic version of this Chinese-American restaurant staple combines slivered pork with scrambled egg, wood ear mushrooms and day lilies, stir-fried together, then served with paper-thin Mandarin pancakes and hoisin sauce. For this version, I like to flip the ratio of mushrooms to pork on its head, loading up with an assortment of mushrooms and just a bit of pork. For the fresh mushrooms, I love using a mix of Asian mushrooms like shimeji (beech), shiitake, enoki, oyster and maitake (hen of the woods), aiming for a mix of flavors and textures, but cremini or button mushrooms will also do in a pinch. If you cannot find dried day lily buds, you can substitute canned bamboo shoots in their place; use 4 ounces sliced bamboo shoots and omit the soaking step.
Midnight Pasta With Roasted Garlic, Olive Oil and Chile
This recipe is a version of aglio e olio pasta, which is often known as midnight pasta because it can be made quickly with a few pantry staples: garlic, olive oil, red-pepper flakes and pasta. This recipe takes a bit more time because it calls for roasting the garlic first, but doing so adds a complex, mellow flavor to the entire dish. If you’re a planner, you could even roast a couple of heads of garlic in advance. (Roasted garlic will keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to two weeks and in the freezer for up to two months.) Add whatever vegetables or proteins look good to you.
Smothered Pork Chops With Tomato and Cream
Skillet Chicken Thighs With Brown Butter Corn
This weeknight-friendly recipe pairs sweet corn kernels with sautéed boneless chicken thighs. Easily made in one large skillet, the chicken is cooked first before the corn kernels are added to sauté in the drippings, seasoned with garlic, thyme and plenty of brown butter. Finished with torn basil, lime juice and scallions, it walks the line between rich and sweet, and tangy and fresh — all in under 30 minutes.
Sicilian Beef Ragout
This recipe was developed to accompany the dense, earthy wines of Sicily, specifically the ones made with the grape known as nero d’Avola. It is a hearty beef ragout enriched with the wine, fresh herbs, olives, chiles and tomatoes, roasted to reduce the liquid and concentrate the flavor. Like most treasures of the stew pot, the dish benefits from a rest and a reheat. If you store the tomatoes in a microwave-safe container, they can be warmed with a 30-second zap.
Smoky Sweet Potatoes With Eggs and Almonds
Slow-roasting sweet potatoes in coconut oil and spices gives them a rich flavor and delicately crisp texture on their exterior while they turn velvety within. Don’t be tempted to take them out of the oven early. As Steven D., a reader, wrote in the notes of the recipe upon which this one is based: “The potatoes are soft after a half hour or so, but then the crusts harden in the second half hour, giving them the delicious texture that makes the dish unique.” Adding fried eggs, a smoky yogurt sauce and crunchy almonds turns a sweet potato side dish into a satisfying, meatless meal. And if you don’t have coconut oil on hand, you can use olive or another cooking oil, though the potatoes won’t have the same texture.
Polenta, Corn and Cheese
Pork Chops Smothered With Fennel And Garlic
A Mess of Pork Chops With Dijon Dressing
Lamb Shanks With Apricots and Chickpeas
This stew, inspired by Moroccan tagines, is meant for lamb shanks, but lamb shoulder, cut in large chunks, would also work. As with most braises, this one improves after a night in the fridge, giving the flavors time to meld and deepen. You could even make it a few days before serving. The subtle commingling of onion, saffron and apricots is enchanting. Take the time to soak and cook dried chickpeas, if you can. Using canned is easier, but freshly cooked chickpeas taste far better (and their drained cooking liquid makes a delicious vegetarian broth).
Pork Chops With Brandied Cherries
Pork and fruit is a classic combination, and for good reason: The sweetness and tang of the fruit softens the gamy richness of the meat. Here, a pan sauce of ripe summer cherries seasoned with a little brandy and fresh thyme adds verve and complexity to seared pork chops, while garam masala and allspice add heady, aromatic notes. You can use either sour or sweet cherries, as long as you balance the flavors at the end. Sweet ones will need a touch of vinegar for acidity, while sour cherries may need a drizzle of honey. Do take the time to get a good, dark sear on the meat before making the sauce. Those browned bits on the bottom of the pan are the flavor backbone of the sauce. The darker the color, the deeper the sauce.
Chicken Tetrazzini
Chicken tetrazzini takes its name from the Italian opera star Luisa Tetrazzini, and was a mainstay of upscale restaurant menus of the early 20th century. Today, though, it is hardly fancy. (And definitely not Italian.) The recipe that follows is built on the frame of what might be called a Mississippi-style tetrazzini, made with canned tomatoes and chiles and processed cheese. The chef Brad McDonald, who grew up in Yazoo City, at the top of the Delta, used to cook a bespoke version for his tasting menu at the Lockhart, a restaurant in London, using washed-rind Irish cheese and a mixture of roasted green bell peppers and jalapeños to flavor his shredded chicken, along with porcini mushrooms and guajillo chiles. I made a few changes of my own, and discovered a weeknight casserole of great distinction.
Thai Orange Duck
The Thai-style version of duck à l'orange here requires only a little more work. It does not take much time to begin with, but if it makes life easier, prepare the curry base in advance, then cook the duck breasts when guests arrive. Reheat the curry sauce, carve the meat and combine. The fragmenting segments of orange and the deep sourness of the juice perfectly complement the oily richness of the coconut and the fat sweetness of the meat.
Pan-Fried Breaded Pork Chops
Look for beautiful good-quality pork, such as Berkshire, and ask for center-cut loin chops with bone. For the bread crumbs, use day-old firm white sandwich bread or French loaf, cubed and whirled in a food processor, for about three cups of soft, fluffy crumbs. Dry, fine store-bought crumbs will not yield the same result. Make sure to fry these chops very gently over medium-high heat, to allow the bread-crumb coating to brown slowly, creating a crisp, golden crust. Serve with a tart salad or braised greens, such as broccoli rabe.
Fresh Corn Griddle Cakes With Spicy Salsa
Sweet tender corn is one of summer’s great joys, and adding fresh kernels turns these cornmeal griddlecakes into something quite special. Stirring a bit of chopped jalapeño and chives into the batter improves them all the more. A zippy salsa of chopped summer peppers and tomatoes makes a fine topping. Serve a colorful plateful of them as is, hot off the griddle, or to accompany grilled pork chops. For the best texture and rise, prep the wet and dry ingredients for the batter in advance, but wait to combine them until just before cooking.