10 enchiladas, serving 4 or 5

If you prefer, Monterey Jack can be used instead of cheddar, or, for a mellower flavor and creamier texture, try substituting an equal amount of farmers’ cheese.

WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS:
Chicken enchiladas are a complete meal that offers a rich and complex combination of flavors, textures, and ingredients. The problem with preparing enchiladas at home is that traditional cooking methods require a whole day of preparation. We wanted a recipe for an Americanized version of chicken enchiladas that could be made in 90 minutes from start to finish. To save time preparing the tortillas, we sprayed them with vegetable oil spray and warmed them on a baking sheet in the oven. We created a quick chili sauce with onions, garlic, spices, and tomato sauce, and to further enhance the sauce’s flavor, we poached the chicken right in the sauce. This step also made for moist, flavorful meat. And cheddar cheese spiked with canned jalapeños and fresh cilantro made a rich, flavorful filling.

This serves a crowd and should receive rave reviews. You may freeze parts of it to have on hand later for a quick easy dinner. It freezes and lasts well. Although many ingredients, it is very easy to make. A crowd pleaser and best part is you can make it ahead and heat it up at the last minute.

Serves 4

You will need 4 sturdy, uncolored toothpicks for this recipe. We prefer the taste and texture of homemade bread crumbs (simply tear 1 slice of white sandwich bread into pieces, grind in a food processor, and toast in a dry skillet until golden), but store-bought bread crumbs are acceptable here.

WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS:
For the stuffing in our Greek-Style Grilled Stuffed Chicken Breasts, herb purees made with garlic and olive oil packed the most flavor and came together quickly, but oozed out of the chicken when cooked. We found that binding the herb puree with creamy and strong-flavored cheeses like fontina, pepper Jack, and feta worked better, especially when combined with just a few tablespoons of bread crumbs (or crushed corn chips).

To stuff, we sliced a pocket into the thickest part of the breast, spooned the filling into the pocket, and sealed the breast back up with a toothpick. Because of the added bulk from the stuffing, these chicken breasts needed extra time on the grill, so gently grilling the chicken with indirect heat worked better. A soak in oil, lemon juice, and garlic gave the chicken added protection against drying out on the grill, plus an extra boost of flavor to complement the stuffing.

Serves 4

WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS:
We captured the flavors of Morocco without buying out the spice aisle by rubbing bone-in chicken breasts with ground cumin and pumpkin pie spice, a blend of warm spices such as cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and allspice. While the spice-scented chicken baked, we prepared a hearty five-minute couscous studded with fruit, chickpeas, and olives.

SERVES 4

Bone-in chicken parts can be substituted for the whole chicken. For best results, use four chicken thighs and two chicken breasts, each breast split in half; the dark meat contributes valuable flavor to the broth and should not be omitted. Use a vegetable peeler to remove wide strips of zest from the lemon before juicing it. Make sure to trim any white pith from the zest, as it can impart bitter flavor. Serve with couscous (see related recipe).

WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS:
For the depth and flavor of an authentic tagine in about one hour, we developed a Moroccan chicken recipe that followed our standard braised chicken procedure: browning the skin-on pieces to give the braising liquid deep flavor; removing the chicken from the pot; sautéing onion, strips of lemon zest, garlic, and a spice blend (paprika, cumin, cayenne, ginger, coriander, and cinnamon) in a little oil; adding chicken broth and honey; and finally returning the chicken to the pot.

SERVES 4

Use a vegetable peeler to remove wide strips of zest from the lemon before juicing it. Make sure to trim any white pith from the zest, as it can impart bitter flavor. If the olives are particularly salty, give them a rinse. Serve with couscous.

WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS:
For the depth and flavor of an authentic tagine in about one hour, we developed a Moroccan chicken breast recipe that followed our standard braised chicken procedure: browning the skin-on pieces to give the braising liquid deep flavor; removing the chicken from the pot; sautéing onion, strips of lemon zest, garlic, and a spice blend (paprika, cumin, cayenne, ginger, coriander, and cinnamon) in a little oil; adding chicken broth and honey; and finally returning the chicken to the pot.

Serves 4
For a milder dish, use one seeded chile. If you prefer your food very hot, use up to all three chiles including their seeds and ribs. Scotch bonnet chiles can be used in place of the habaneros. Wear gloves when working with the chiles.

WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS:
Traditional Jamaican jerk recipes rely on island ingredients for both marinade and cooking technique. Fortunately, we were able to achieve the characteristic spicy-sweet-fresh-smoky balance with the right combination of stateside staples. Keeping the marinade paste-like and cooking the meat first over indirect heat prevented the jerk flavors from dripping or peeling off during grilling. Enhancing our hickory chip packet with a few spice-cabinet ingredients allowed our jerk chicken recipe to mimic the unique smoke of authentic pimento wood.

Serves 4

WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS:
To cut down on the cooking time for our Roast Chicken Pita Panini with Cucumber-Olive Salad, we used a whole, cooked rotisserie chicken instead of cooking the chicken ourselves. Weighing down the sandwiches with a Dutch oven created a makeshift panini press. For easy cleanup, we covered the bottom of the Dutch oven with aluminum foil.

Serves 4

A whole 4-pound chicken, cut into 8 pieces, can be used instead of the chicken parts. Skinless chicken pieces are also an acceptable substitute, but the meat will come out slightly drier. A Dutch oven with an 11-inch diameter can be used in place of the straight-sided sauté pan.

WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS:
Crackling-crisp, golden-brown, and juicy—what’s not to love about fried chicken? In a word, frying. Heating—and then cleaning up—more than a quart of fat on the stovetop is more trouble than most home cooks care to bother with. We wanted to find a way to prepare fried chicken—golden brown and crisp with a buttermilk- and flour-based coating—without having to heat up a pot full of fat.

To season the meat and ensure it turned out juicy, we soaked chicken parts in a buttermilk brine (buttermilk heavily seasoned with salt). We also incorporated baking powder, an unconventional ingredient in fried chicken, into our dredging mixture (flour seasoned with garlic powder, paprika, and cayenne pepper). As the chicken fries, the baking powder releases carbon dioxide gas, leavening the crust and increasing its surface area, keeping it light and crisp. And while most dredging mixtures contain purely dry ingredients, we added a little buttermilk to our mixture because the small clumps of batter it forms turn ultra-crisp once fried.

To streamline frying the chicken, we turned to a hybrid method where we fried the chicken until just lightly browned on both sides in less than half the amount of oil we’d typically use. Then we transferred the chicken to a wire rack set over a baking sheet and slid it into the oven to finish cooking through. Setting the chicken on a rack promoted air circulation all around the meat for an evenly crisp crust. And with a lot less oil to deal with post-frying, cleanup was a breeze.