Recipe Sifter

Ozark-style beef stew slow-simmered with chili powder, cinnamon, cloves, and dried red peppers. A spicy, warmly spiced mountain stew with potatoes, carrots, and tomatoes.

Creamy crawfish pasta in a Dijon mustard cream sauce made from crawfish-soaked milk. Two pounds of tender tails over fresh pasta, Cajun-style and ready in an hour.

Curried rice and lentils built on a sweet-tart applesauce sauce with carrots, onion, garlic, and a generous tablespoon of curry powder. A budget-friendly vegetarian Indian-inspired one-pan main with surprising fruit-and-spice depth.

Swordfish Provencale braised in a French bouquet garni-perfumed tomato sauce with mushrooms, peppers, and white wine. A classic southern French main dish topped with pimentos and capers.

Jumbo pasta shells stuffed with ricotta, prosciutto, Parmesan, and fresh basil, baked in a garlic-anchovy cream sauce. An Italian dinner party dish in 45 minutes.

Jimmy's chili builds a from-scratch chili paste from whole dried chili pods, blended with browned beef, tomato sauce, oregano, cumin, and red wine. Slow-simmered for 3 hours into deeply spiced Texas-style chili.

Pounded round steak dredged in flour, browned crisp, then simmered in crushed tomatoes with oregano, garlic, and a hint of dry mustard. Fork-tender Sicilian comfort food.

Mango chicken Pappacito's-style pan-sears pounded chicken breasts in seasoned flour, then glazes them with a garlicky mango-orange purée finished with toasted almonds.

Belgian beef stew braised in beer with sauerkraut, green olives, marjoram, and a finish of cream. A carbonnade-style oven braise with tangy, complex flavors.

Mussel and saffron soup built on the briny steaming liquor with leeks, fenugreek, and a finish of cream. A French bistro classic with deep golden color and shellfish-rich broth.

Low-fat fettuccine primavera tossed with broccoli, red bell pepper, and a microwave cheese sauce made from skim milk, mozzarella, and Parmesan. Light, creamy, and under 30 minutes.

Honey mustard baked chicken coated in a sticky glaze of honey, mustard, garlic, and flour, then roasted uncovered until caramelized and golden brown.

Slow cooker pork and apples in a creamy sage and white wine sauce, served with homemade cornmeal biscuits. Comfort food that practically cooks itself.

Homemade jalapeno pasta made with pureed peppers in the dough, topped with seared sea scallops in a white wine sauce with cilantro, tarragon, and garlic.

Chicken in white wine: floured breasts pan-seared, then simmered in a bright white wine sauce with garlic, bay, and lemon zest, finished with scallions and butter. An elegant, fast 30-minute skillet dinner.

Ozark venison stroganoff marinates deer cubes, browns them in shortening, then simmers with mushrooms in cream of tomato soup before finishing with sour cream. Hunter's-style game stew over rice or potatoes.