Recipes with vegetable oil

Competition-style Texas chili with 4 pounds of cubed round steak, 14 spices including curry and cinnamon, green chiles, and a secret weapon: milk chocolate melted in at the end.

Cheese fried chicken coated in a Parmesan, flour, and oregano crust with a hot sauce egg wash. Crispy, savory, and golden with a sharp cheese bite in every crunch.

Pumpkin Muffin like Starbucks if you add the cream cheese

Polish-style fried onion seasoning: finely chopped onions browned with flour in oil, finished with a knob of butter. The make-ahead golden flavor base for Polish soups, dumplings, and gravies.

One-skillet fish fillets with sauteed mushrooms, soy sauce, and dry sherry. A light, diabetic-friendly dinner that cooks gently in about 30 minutes with clean Asian-inspired flavors.

Louisiana chicken gumbo with stewing hen, andouille sausage, oysters, and file powder built in a cast iron pot. Browned-hen fond, holy trinity, and oyster liquor give this gumbo serious depth.

Beach Bar Chicken and Cashew Salad layers poached chicken, fresh fruit, mandarin oranges, and cashews over greens with a coconut-yogurt honey dressing. A tropical, make-ahead summer salad.

Crispy Japanese shrimp and vegetable tempura fried in a light, lacy cake flour batter. Served with a homemade tentsuyu dipping sauce with grated daikon, this is the real deal from scratch.

Szechuan-style blistered green beans deep-fried until wrinkled and charred, then stir-fried with ground pork, dried shrimp, and mustard greens in a soy-sesame sauce.

South Indian couscous patties made with ground urad dal, green chilies, ginger, mustard seeds, and curry leaves. Vegetarian, spicy, and shaped by hand.

Asparagus shrimp salad with herb dressing marinates plump shrimp and crisp-tender spears in a vinaigrette sharp with basil, oregano, and chervil. Cool, make-ahead salad served over lettuce with diced tomato and Monterey Jack.

These crispy pan-fried crabcakes get their crunch from a golden cornmeal crust while minced cornichons and jalapeño add bright, briny heat. Fresh lump crab stays the star with minimal filler.

Marinated prawns soak cooked shrimp in a spicy white vinegar bath with whole chilies, oregano, carrots, and stuffed olives for two days. A make-ahead Caribbean-style escabeche appetizer.

Apricot brandy cake layers a tender, spice-kissed crumb with sticky apricot preserves and brandy buttercream frosting. The secret? Apricot baby food keeps the cake moist and fruit-forward with zero fuss.

Lamb bredie, a South African stew with bone-in lamb, cabbage, carrots, green chiles, cinnamon, and cloves simmered low and slow for 75 minutes. No stirring required.

Chickpea and green bean salad with two separate garam masala dressings, garlic, cayenne, and fresh ginger. A spiced bean salad served cold or at room temperature.