Characteristic: ginger

--inspired by World Vegetarian by Madhur Jaffrey   Serves 4   Richly flavored, hearty yet relatively light, this North Indian combination of flavors is so delicious and beyond a bit of chopping a cinch to make. You you can adjust the level of heat with more or less cayenne and by using/omitting the seeds of the fresh pepper. You can adapt the ratio of potatoes to tomatoes to suit your needs just be sure to keep enough liquid in the pan to keep it a just a little saucy.  ... Read more »

  This is a delicious way to prepare bok choy. And the sauce works beautifully for any other quick vegetable stir fries as well. The Sichuan peppercorns are pretty key here--it's worth getting a jar of them and they keep well. They're more floral and flavorful than black pepper though you could use 1/4 teaspoon crushed black pepper corns in a pinch here.  ... Read more »

--slightly adapted from Kitchen Diaries II by Nigel Slater   Chinese five-spice powder is a spice mix often made with fennel, star anise, cloves, cinnamon and Sichuan pepper.   This stir fry comes together quickly and is fresh, spicy and delicious.   If you don't have Chinese five spice do your best to make your own with spices in your pantry that include some of the above--use black pepper instead of Sichuan, skip the anise or add some coriander. . .   Serves 2... Read more »

You don’t need a recipe for this but it’s a good combination. Peel and core one small apple and and dice about 2 cups of melon. Add a squeeze of lemon juice and/or a bit of freshly grated ginger and blend it all up well. You could also add a little mint.    Yields about 2 1/2 cups... Read more »

Skirt steak is a very flavorful cut that is best cooked briefly, over high heat. You could alternatively use flank steak/bavette. Cutting the vegetables into matchsticks, more or less, takes a bit of time but makes for a really nice texture and quick cooking. And the vegetables are actually delicious on their own with rice and an egg if you don't have any meat! You can substitute turnips or rutabaga for the kohlrabi. ... Read more »

This is a smooth, complex and rich soup. Feel free to double this recipe if you have a crowd to feed or want to freeze half for future use.... Read more »

This is a template for utilizing whatever bits and pieces you have on hand. Quantities are all approximations and you can vary them as you like. You just want to be sure you cut the vegetables small and fairly uniformly and you don’t want to crowd your skillet or wok. To avoid a soggy dish you need to be brave with the heat.   I recommend making twice (or more) as much rice as you need for any given dish and freezing the remainder to have on hand for fried rice, rice pudding, to add to soups, etc.  ... Read more »

This is just a touch richer than the Simplest Bok Choy Stir-Fry and the fish sauce and ginger gives it a nice depth. ... Read more »