Recipe Sifter

Here's a recipe for Chow Mein which is a pretty classic application using pan fried noodles.

Clam and shrimp chowder: a creamy New England-style seafood chowder with potatoes, corn, red pepper, and fennel seed. The anise note from fennel lifts it out of the ordinary.

Curried cream of eggplant soup with potato, thyme, and basil, puréed velvety smooth and finished with cream. Salt-sweating removes bitterness for a mellow, earthy bowl.

Pureed broccoli soup with celery, onion, and heavy cream, brightened with lemon juice and a kick of Tabasco. A simple 30-minute cream soup that serves a crowd.

Tender-crisp asparagus blanched in chicken broth and drizzled with a glossy oyster sauce glaze made with rendered chicken fat, sherry, and sesame oil. A 20-minute Chinese-style vegetable side dish.

Curried corn and tomato soup: a silky pureed Indian-spiced soup with sweet corn kernels, fresh tomato, and a swirl of cooling yogurt. Bright, warming, and ready in 40 minutes.

Deviled halibut: garlic-marinated fillets coated in sharp cheddar and breadcrumbs, baked golden, and served with a curry-spiked tomato sauce. Bold Anglo-Indian fish dinner.

Easy chicken Creole with cooked chicken in a tomato-paste sauce with onions, green pepper, garlic, and Tabasco. A 25-minute Louisiana-style weeknight dinner over rice.

Lamb Creole gumbo with browned riblets, stewed tomatoes, okra, black-eyed peas, white wine, and lemon. A Cajun-Louisiana stew with a lamb twist that freezes well.

Toasted garlic couscous sauteed in olive oil with chicken broth, cumin, and butter. A pilaf-style method that adds nutty depth in under 15 minutes.

Eggplant, tomato, and red pepper sauce simmered with garlic, tomato paste, and honey. A versatile, low-fat sauce for pasta, grilled fish, or chicken.

The coriander, sugar and bland cheese balance the tartness of green tomatoes in this recipe.

Fall corn chowder with bacon, potatoes, fresh corn, milk, and cream finished with thyme and parsley. Hearty harvest soup ready in 40 minutes.

Sardinian fregula with clams, prosciutto, saffron, and chili flakes cooked to a risotto-like consistency in white wine and tomato broth. A rustic Italian seafood pasta.

Garlic soup Provencal with two full heads of garlic, saffron, sage, leeks, and tomatoes, thickened with potato for a silky, deeply aromatic French soup. No cream needed.

Georgetown red rice cooked in bacon fat with tomatoes, onions, ketchup, and chicken broth. The Lowcountry South Carolina classic that holds the line as the unofficial state rice dish, smoky and tomato-stained.