489 bay leaf recipes

Smoky Western beans with bacon, pinto beans, kidney beans, and lentils simmered in a spiced tomato sauce with cumin and chili powder. Easy one-pot comfort food for a crowd.

Cajun file gumbo with canned salmon, okra, and the holy trinity simmered down and finished with file powder. A Lafayette-style one-pot supper served over hot rice.

This is a very colorful and tasty arrangement of marinated and then skewered and grilled vegetables and fish. The marinade, called chermoulla, is a blend of fragrant seasonings, oil, and lemon juice. In this version I've suggested my favorite vegetables for kebabs. You should choose your own favorites; some other good choices are eggplants, mushrooms, and onions.

A rich Mexican mole sauce with unsweetened chocolate, almonds, pumpkin seeds, hot salsa, tomatoes, currants, and warm spices poured over browned turkey pieces. This homemade turkey mole is a labor of love that feeds a crowd.

Open-faced black bean nachos with spicy chorizo, melted Monterey Jack, and a smoky black bean pesto thickened with ham hock. Fried flour tortillas baked into crisp wedges. Loaded restaurant-style nachos.

Louisiana red beans and rice with kidney beans, andouille sausage, tasso ham, and pickled pork, thickened with file powder. A chef-level Creole classic with layered smoke and spice.

Provencal fish stew with haddock, fennel, thyme, and bay leaf in a tomato-white wine broth. Served over garlic croutons, 40 minutes from the first sear to the ladle.

Pacific Northwest smoked salmon chowder with red potatoes, fish stock, dill, tarragon, and a finish of half-and-half. Smoky, herby, and built on bacon fat for layered depth.

Hearty cabbage soup with homemade tofu and whole-wheat dumplings, seasoned with soy sauce and bay leaf. A cozy, plant-based bowl ready in one hour.

Filipino-style caldereta: vinegar-marinated lamb braised with dried chiles, cinnamon, peppercorns, potatoes, bell pepper, and green olives. A rich, spiced stew that fills the house with warmth.

Here is how Boston chef William Poirer makes red chowder, and it is good enough to convert the most diehard white chowder fanatic.

Bacon, Italian sausage, and ground beef simmer low and slow with mushrooms, tomatoes, and red wine in this robust spaghetti sauce. Hints of cinnamon and cloves add depth.

Vegan cabbage soup with tender tofu and whole-wheat dumplings in a soy-seasoned broth. Filling, nourishing, and completely plant-based.

Oven-braised beef stew with toasted cumin, chili powder, red wine, crushed tomatoes, pearl onions, and green olives. A Southwestern spin on classic stew with deep, earthy warmth in every spoonful.

Yogurt-marinated chicken thighs cook right on top of basmati rice with curry, cardamom, and cinnamon in this one-pot chicken biriani. Fragrant, hands-off, and endlessly satisfying.

Spicy turkey chili spiked with Worcestershire, vinegar, cinnamon and allspice. A lean Cincinnati-style chili for two ready in 45 minutes, freezer-friendly.