Recipes with bay leaves

Greek red wine and tomato sauce with bay leaf, whole cloves, and oregano for oven-baked keftedes meatballs. Simmered until thick and fragrant, this is the authentic way to finish keftedes tou fournou.

Slow-simmered chili con carne with ground beef, kidney beans, and black olives. Bacon fat builds the base, and a splash of vinegar and brown sugar balance the heat.

Yucatan seafood stew loaded with clams, mussels, monkfish, tuna, cod, lobster, shrimp, oysters, and squid in a fire-roasted tomato and lime broth. The Mexican coastal showpiece for a special-occasion table.

A velvety vegetarian split pea soup blended smooth with potato, celery, and garlic, seasoned with caraway seeds and a whisper of mace. Hearty, warming, and naturally creamy without any dairy.

Crockpot London broil roast braised low and slow in a rich brown gravy with onion, garlic, wine and bay leaves. A dump-and-go slow cooker beef dinner that turns a lean cut fork-tender.

Hearty chicken and leek soup with pearl barley, carrots, and celery simmered from a whole chicken. A rustic, filling bowl with chewy barley and meltingly soft leeks.

Homemade barbecue sauce with maple syrup, English mustard, butter, and lemon juice simmered for an hour. A rich, tangy-sweet glaze for ribs, chicken, and grilled meats.

Armenian-style artichoke hearts and potatoes braised in olive oil, lemon juice, and a spiced broth of fennel, coriander, and bay leaf. Served cold.

Classic Philadelphia snapper soup made with snapping turtle meat, veal knuckles, dry sherry, and tomatoes. A rich, old-school Pennsylvania tradition simmered for hours.

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

Pork chops braised under smothered red cabbage with apples, red onion, cranberry juice, and red wine vinegar. A hearty one-pot fall dinner full of tangy sweetness.

Fish in horseradish sauce: poached white fish chilled and napped with a creamy roux-based horseradish sauce, finished with sour cream and sieved hard-boiled eggs. A traditional cold Eastern European starter.

California-style bouillabaisse with lobster, snapper, halibut, shrimp, crab, clams, oysters, and mussels in saffron-fennel broth with white wine and tomato. Pacific coast classic.

Traditional Ukrainian fish in aspic (studynyna rybiacha): whole fish poached in aromatic stock, layered with carrot rounds, and set in shimmering gelatin. A stunning cold appetizer for holidays.

Homemade white vegetable stock simmered with celery, carrots, leeks, mushrooms, garlic, and white wine. A versatile vegan base for soups, risottos, and sauces that's clean-tasting and full of depth.

Chunky Southwestern chicken stew with kielbasa, potatoes, zucchini, summer squash, and corn in a cumin-tomato broth. A Dutch oven crowd-feeder that serves 8.