Made good sized patties, cooked on the little griddle.

3hrs, 5 stars

35mins, 4 stars

90mins, 5 stars

75mins, 5 stars

There are about a gazillion ways to cook pasta using other pantry staples — things like garlic, bread crumbs, pecorino, capers, olives and especially, canned fish. This recipe, pasta with tuna, anchovies and capers, showered with lots of green herbs and scallions, is one of my family’s household favorites. I like it with a long, thin, twirlable pasta — spaghetti, linguine or bucatini — but you can use whatever pasta you have on hand. Even macaroni works just fine and might even persuade your finicky kid to eat this dish (though, so far, mine abstains).

This simple yet satisfying pasta recipe is made with just a few pantry staples. It comes together quickly and with ease, as angel hair is one of the fastest cooking pastas. The classic combination of olive oil, butter, garlic and herbs is enough to coat the thin, delicate strands of pasta, but the addition of soft, bursting cherry tomatoes really sweetens the deal. Be sure to serve with plenty of freshly grated Parmesan for the ultimate bowl of comfort.

There are a few cool tricks to this recipe, one of which I picked up from an old issue of Bon Appétit, one I learned from Robb Walsh, the great Tex-Mex scholar and restaurateur who runs El Real Tex-Mex in Houston, and a final one I learned by happenstance. First, for the thickening agent in the chile sauce, toast raw all-purpose flour in a pan until it is nutty and golden brown, then reserve it to stir in with the browned beef later in the recipe. Second, if you like truly melty cheese in the classic Tex-Mex tradition, use a mixture of American cheese, like Velveeta, with the Cheddar you use inside and on top of the finished enchiladas. Finally, if you’re fearful that a casserole of cheese, chili and fried tortillas may be a little rich for dinner, serve it with a bowl of tomatillo pineapple salsa on the side. The acidity provides a nice balance. (Note also that as with all recipes, but particularly this one, some planning and practice can get the preparation down to 60 minutes.)

Smoked paprika is the secret weapon in this simple barbecue sauce, which goes beautifully with pork and chicken. If you’re painting the sauce onto cooking meat, thin it out with water to about a one-to-one ratio, which will keep the sugars from burning too quickly over the fire. Serve the full-strength stuff alongside the finished meat.

This simple recipe celebrates a 1980s classic invented by the American pizza genius Ed LaDou (whose fingerprints are also on Wolfgang Puck’s famous smoked-salmon pizza). The pizza matches the flavors of chicken with barbecue sauce, red onion, two kinds of cheese and a little cilantro. Use homemade dough and barbecue sauce, cook it in the hottest setting of your oven, and the classic pie goes from good to great. Want to make the recipe vegetarian? Simply substitute mushrooms for the chicken and sauté until most of their moisture is evaporated. —Tejal Rao

Clean and simple. Eight ingredients — apple cider, cider vinegar, cabbage, mustard seeds, celery seeds, sugar, salt and pepper to taste — combine into what ought to be a staple of your repertoire. You’ll need to cook the cider down by half before using it, but everything else goes in raw, and the combination matures over the course of a few hours into a side dish that can accompany just about anything grilled or roasted, pulled or hacked.

This hands-off path to pulled chicken results in a juicy, saucy tangle of meat for a crowd. The combination of boneless chicken thighs and breasts creates a mix of feathery and hearty shreds, while cooking the meat slowly in barbecue sauce ensures it won’t dry out. To emulate some of the smoke and savoriness created by cooking meat over smoldering coals, chipotle chiles in adobo, Worcestershire sauce and onion powder are also added. Serve the pulled chicken between buns with pickles and slaw, or make a barbecue chicken pizza; leftovers keep well for a few days in the fridge.

Zucchini loves the kiss of heat but can easily turn to mush. Briefly salting and drying half-moons of zucchini before quickly stir-frying them, mostly on one side, maintains their texture while lending so much flavor. An impactful dressing of maple syrup, soy sauce and fish sauce — plus a pinch of concentrated savoriness in the form of garlic powder — seasons both stir-fry and noodle. Ice is the secret ingredient that helps to cool down the noodles for quick eating, as well as to melt down and open up the flavors of the dressing (as water is wont to do) while you eat. The final spritz of citrus is not optional: It finishes the dressing and makes this chill meal taste multidimensional. A tableside sprinkle of toasted sesame seeds, furikake or shichimi togarashi is welcome.

next time: try 4 things bitters. use one glass only - no straining. try adding a cherry at end.

This light, delicate weeknight curry comes together in less than 30 minutes and is defined by its deep miso flavor. Miso is typically whisked into soups toward the end of the recipe, but sweating it directly in the pot with ginger, garlic and a little oil early on helps the paste caramelize, intensifying its earthy sweetness. Adding coconut milk creates a rich broth that works with a wide range of seafood. Salmon is used here, but flaky white fish, shrimp or scallops would all benefit from this quick poaching method. A squeeze of lime and a flurry of fresh herbs keep this curry bright and citrusy. For a hit of heat, garnish with sliced fresh jalapeño or serrano chile peppers.

Here's a hack I performed on a recipe for an appetizer portion of skewered chunked chicken thighs that the great live-fire cooks and cookbook writers Chris Schlesinger and John Willoughby wrote many years ago, and that I have slowly altered into a main-course grilled dinner. The skinless chicken browns nicely over a medium flame, and the sugary soy basting sauce lacquers it beautifully in the final few minutes of cooking. It's terrific with rice, or as a topping for a salad of sturdy greens. You may wish to double the recipe for Sriracha-roasted cashews. Those are addictive, and for them you will find many delicious uses.

This chicken, which is the brainchild of my aunt Sonia, is legendary among our cousins. Until recently, though, no one knew what, exactly, went into it. Whenever my aunt would make it on a family vacation, she’d disappear for a half-hour and reemerge with a Ziploc bag filled with the marinade and the chicken breasts. No one (not even her only daughter, Isha) was allowed to know the contents. The marinating chicken would smell so good, I’d legitimately have thoughts about eating it raw, carpaccio-style (which is disgusting, I know!). Well, folks, I am here to tell you that, after much negotiation, I have finally pried that chicken recipe out of Sonia’s hands. Both the marinade and the cooking method (low and sort of slow) feel ingenious to me, and the payoff is huge: Charred, spicy, slightly funky, juicy chicken that is equally wonderful by itself or rolled up in a roti, taco-style, and served with various salads and chutneys. —Priya Krishna

Eggs “rancher’s style” is a traditional, hearty Mexican breakfast typically enjoyed after a hard morning’s work. But huevos rancheros also makes for a satisfying and comforting weeknight dinner. The simple yet flavorful homemade salsa comes together quickly and is smartly used in three ways: a quick simmer transforms the salsa into the warm ranchero sauce; it adds a zesty flavor that shines through in the smoky refried beans; and it gives a final fresh finish as a tangy topping. Any leftover ranchero sauce and refried beans make for great dips the next day.

So yummy

This is a quick from-scratch mac and cheese ideal for kids — or anyone craving the simple, pure cheesiness of creamy mac and cheese. A standard white sauce comes together with the kitchen staples of butter, flour and milk and can take any blend of cheeses, which should include a large portion of sharp yellow Cheddar for its distinctive mac-and-cheese taste and texture. But this is a great way to use up any odds and ends of cheese in your fridge. A bit of American cheese makes the sauce stretchy and extra smooth, while Gruyère and Swiss add a nice nuttiness and Parmesan and pecorino some deep savory notes.

Homemade biscuits are what take us into the kitchen today to cook: fat, flaky mounds of quick bread, golden brown, with a significant crumb. Composed of flour, baking powder, fat and a liquid, then baked in a hot oven, they are an excellent sop for syrup, molasses or honey. They are marvelous layered with country ham or smothered in white sausage gravy, with eggs, with grits. They make a great Thanksgiving side. And if you've never made them before, you'll be delighted to know that biscuits are easy to make. Really. Tip: Freeze the butter and then grate it. Use a fork to mix up the dough. Works like a charm and no need to wash the bowl of a food processor!

For me, a chocolate cake is the basic unit of celebration. The chocolate Guinness cake here is simple but deeply pleasurable, and has earned its place as a stand-alone treat.

Requiring just one pan, this recipe yields supremely crisp, juicy chicken thighs and hot honey schmaltz, which serves as a warm vinaigrette for sturdy greens and a sauce for your — let’s say it again — supremely crisp, juicy chicken thighs. Squint and the flavors are reminiscent of fried chicken with a side of braised collards: Crackly chicken cozied up next to spicy, tangy and a little-sweet greens fortified by animal fat. Make your honey-schmaltz as spicy as you wish: Green chiles will pack more heat than red.