Main Dish Recipes

Big-batch river-style chili with stewing beef, bacon, kidney beans, dried mushrooms, and serious heat from red pepper flakes and hot sauce. Simmered low and slow until thick and deeply flavored.

Roasted chicken tenders saltimbocca: sage leaves and prosciutto wrapped around chicken tenders, roasted crisp, served over wild mushroom spaghetti risotto with arugula and toasted hazelnuts.

Roasted chicken thighs Provençal with crispy skin-on thighs, rosemary-thyme potatoes, roasted plum tomatoes, carrots, and briny Niçoise olives. A French countryside sheet-pan dinner for six.

Roman pepper pastry crust made with lard, coarsely ground black pepper, and egg. A savory, peppery Italian dough for pizzas and savory pies that rests in 30 minutes.

Round steak deluxe braised in garlic-scented beef bouillon with cherry tomatoes, green bell pepper rings, and pimento-stuffed olives. A budget cut turned tender, Mediterranean-leaning, and ready in an hour.

Round steak smothered in a rich browned-flour gravy with sliced onions, fresh tomatoes, and apple cider vinegar. A Southern braised steak that turns a tough cut fork-tender.

Salmon Quiche with Mushrooms and Horseradish recipe

Salmon stuffed with arugula, garlic, honey-glazed carrot, and red currants, basted with white wine and finished with a crisp schmaltz-fried skin. A peppery, sweet-tart centerpiece fish dish worth the extra prep.

Cross rib roast braised with vegetables, black olives, tomatoes, red wine, and a bouquet garni for 2 hours until fork-tender. The strained pan juices make a self-thickening gravy with no extra steps.

San Antonio chili made Texas-style with coarse ground beef chuck, no beans, no tomatoes. Slow-simmered with chili powder, cumin, oregano, and cayenne, thickened with cornmeal.

Santa Fe Trail beef casserole: ground beef, onion, green pepper, and green beans in tomato soup, blanketed with egg-enriched mashed potatoes. A shepherd's-pie style Southwestern classic.

Sauerbraten meatballs: cooked beef meatballs simmered in a tangy-sweet German-style gravy thickened with crushed gingersnaps. A 30-minute weeknight riff on the slow-braised classic.

Sauerbraten with Coke uses cola in the vinegar marinade for a sweeter, more caramelized take on the classic German pot roast. Marinated 2 to 4 days, braised until fork-tender, and finished with gingersnap gravy.

Pennsylvania Dutch sauerbraten with chuck roast bacon-larded, vinegar-marinated for days, then pot-roasted with cloves and allspice for an almost-black sweet-sour gravy.

Sausage quesadillas loaded with sauteed sausage, ripe mango, roasted poblano, jalapeno, cilantro, and melted Monterey Jack between crisp flour tortillas. A sweet-heat Tex-Mex appetizer that eats like a party.

Sausages Mediterranean style, a fast one-pan skillet of browned sausage with kidney beans, tomatoes, pesto, sun-dried tomatoes, and olives. A hearty, sun-drenched supper over pasta or with crusty bread.