Meats recipes

Poached chicken breasts cooked gently in an aromatic broth with carrot, onion, celery, and peppercorns, then left to cool in the pot for juicy, sliceable meat. The base for chicken salad, sandwiches, and casseroles.

Two whole chickens simmered with leeks, carrots, celery, and fresh thyme yield a crystal-clear broth and tender diced meat. A from-scratch chicken soup that's worth every minute of the 2.5-hour simmer.

Braising can turn a tough piece of meat into a tender, fall off the bone, comfort food. I can think of no better example than the classic dish osso buco, made from veal shanks.

Lobster tails in patty shells spoons sweet lobster meat in a sauterne-spiked cream sauce with mushrooms, olives, and pimento into golden puff pastry shells. A retro special-occasion dinner straight from the supper-club era.

A rich Mughlai-style balti with chicken simmered in ghee, cardamom, cinnamon, and a silky egg-cream-almond sauce. Royal Indian cooking in your own kitchen.

Haricot beef casserole: an old-school British braise of beef chuck and skirt with haricot (white navy) beans, tomatoes, garlic, and a fresh-herb bouquet of parsley, bay, thyme, and marjoram. Slow-baked in the oven for fork-tender meat.

Taco lentils simmer green lentils until tender, then bake them in a smoky pureed ancho chile and tomato sauce spiced with cumin and chili. A high-protein, high-fiber vegan stand-in for taco meat.

Meatless bulgur tamales wrap a savory filling of cracked wheat, tomatoes, pepper, and brown rice miso inside masa dough and corn husks. A hearty vegetarian Tex-Mex classic with deep umami and no meat required.

Mock fish Buddhist: Chinese vegetarian stir-fry with crispy fried potato slices standing in for fish, paired with snow peas and crunchy wood ear mushrooms. Traditional Buddhist temple cuisine with clever meat-free texture play.

Pan-fried softshell crabs in butter with a white wine cream sauce finished with Dijon mustard and fresh chives. Golden, crispy shells give way to sweet crab meat under a tangy, herb-laced pan sauce.

Provencal beef stew (daube) marinates chuck overnight in red wine vinegar, garlic, thyme, and orange zest, then braises low and slow in dry red wine for fork-tender meat with sun-soaked southern French character.

Venison chili with both ground and chunked deer meat simmered for two hours in a cumin-oregano-cayenne tomato sauce with kidney beans and hot chili peppers. Lean, hearty, and full of wild game flavor.

Classic Italian-American beef lasagna layered with a slow-simmered meat and mushroom tomato sauce, fresh ricotta, mozzarella slices and grated parmesan. The sauce takes 2 hours to cook down for full depth of flavour.

Best homemade tourtiere, the French-Canadian meat pie: spiced ground pork bound with mashed potato, onion and garlic under a flaky double crust. Sage and nutmeg give this Quebec holiday classic its warm, cozy flavor.

Tourtiere, the French-Canadian meat pie served every Christmas in Quebec: spiced ground veal and pork simmered with potato, onion and thyme, tucked into a double crust and baked golden. A cozy, savory holiday tradition.

A Texas-style no-bean chili with cubed beef round and pork loin slow-simmered in beef broth, tomato sauce, and a bold blend of chili powder, cumin, and paprika. Fork-tender meat, big flavor.