Belongs to Bethany Indian Curry 

Serves 4 to 6

Gather and prepare all of your ingredients before you begin. If you don’t have a minichopper for pureeing the garlic and ginger, use a microplane grater.You may substitute a scant half teaspoon of cayenne pepper for the jalapeño, adding it to the skillet with the other ground dried spices. As for choosing combinations of meat or fish with vegetables, we like the following: top sirloin or lamb with potatoes, chicken with zucchini, and shrimp with peas, but fee free to create your own pairings. Serve the curry with basmati rice.

You might need to buy:
  • ground cumin
  • ground coriander
  • ground turmeric
  • water
  • Curry:
  • whole cloves
  • green cardamom pods
  • black peppercorns
  • bay leaf

Serves 4 with rice

If you cannot find blade steaks, use flank steak; because flank steak requires less trimming, you will need only about 1 3/4 pounds. To cut a flank steak into the proper-sized slices for stir-frying, first cut the steak with the grain into 1 1/2-inch strips, then cut the strips against the grain into 1/4-inch-thick slices. White pepper lends this stir-fry a unique flavor; black pepper is not a good substitute. Serve the stir-fry with steamed jasmine rice.

You might need to buy:
  • lime wedges for serving
  • chopped unsalted roasted peanuts
  • fresh cilantro leaves
  • vegetable oil
  • Asian chili-garlic paste
  • Beef and Marinade:
  • ground coriander
  • Ground white pepper
  • light brown sugar
  • fish sauce
  • Stir-Fry:
  • fish sauce
  • rice vinegar
  • water
  • light brown sugar

Serves 4 as a main dish with rice

You can substitute 1 tablespoon white wine or sake mixed with 1 teaspoon sugar for the mirin.

You might need to buy:
  • soy sauce
  • sugar plus an additional 1 teaspoon
  • low-sodium chicken broth
  • mirin
  • red pepper flakes
  • cornstarch
  • minced fresh ginger
  • vegetable oil
  • water

Serves 4

Use a cast-iron skillet for this recipe if you have one—it will help create the best sear on the pork. When shopping for Chinese rice wine, look for one that is amber in color; if not available, sherry wine may be used as a substitute. If no hoisin sauce is available, substitute 1 tablespoon of sugar. If boneless pork ribs are unavailable, substitute 1 1/2 pounds of bone-in country-style ribs, followed by the next best option, pork tenderloin. Liquid smoke provides a flavor reminiscent of the Chinese barbecued pork traditional to this dish. It is important that the noodles are cooked at the last minute to avoid clumping. See below for information on buying noodles.

WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS:
Ordinary takeout pork lo mein invariably disappoints, with greasy flavors and sodden vegetables. We wanted a dish representative of the best that a good Chinese home cook could turn out: chewy noodles tossed in a salty-sweet sauce and accented with bits of smoky, barbecued pork and still-crisp cabbage. First we needed to tackle the char siu, preferably perfecting a stir-fried version since we were already stir-frying the vegetables. Country-style pork ribs won for best cut. Though fatty, these meaty ribs have the same rich flavor of pork shoulder—but don’t need to be cooked for hours since they’re naturally tender. To avoid an overly greasy dish, we trimmed the fat and cut the meat into thin strips that would allow our classic Chinese marinade to penetrate effectively. A few drops of liquid smoke mimicked char siu’s characteristic smoky flavor. Turning to the noodles, only ones labeled “lo mein” at the Asian market won raves. Fortunately, dried linguine, cooked to al dente, worked beautifully. For the vegetables, we opted for traditional choices—cabbage, scallions, and shiitake mushrooms—stir-frying them with garlic and fresh ginger. We used our meat marinade as a sauce base, with a little chicken broth and a teaspoon of cornstarch added for body. A splash of Asian chili-garlic sauce added a little kick.

You might need to buy:
  • vegetable oil
  • grated fresh ginger
  • cornstarch
  • low-sodium chicken broth
  • toasted sesame oil
  • five-spice powder
  • oyster sauce
  • soy sauce
  • Asian chile garlic sauce
Belongs to Bethany Steak Tacos 

Serves 4 to 6

For a less spicy dish, remove some or all of the ribs and seeds from the jalapeños before chopping them for the marinade. In addition to the toppings suggested below, try serving the tacos with Sweet and Spicy Pickled Onions (see related recipe), thinly sliced radishes or cucumber, or salsa.

You might need to buy:
  • Herb Paste:
  • packed fresh cilantro leaves
  • ground cumin
  • vegetable oil
  • fresh lime juice
  • Steak:
  • kosher salt or 1 1/2 teaspoons table salt
  • ground black pepper
  • vegetable oil
  • Tacos:
  • Fresh cilantro leaves
  • Minced white or red onion
  • Lime wedges
Belongs to Bethany Beef Enchiladas 

Serves 4 to 6

Cut back on the pickled jalapeños if you like your enchiladas on the mild side. Sour cream, diced avocado, shredded lettuce, and lime wedges make great enchilada sidekicks—let everyone at the table pick and choose as they wish.

You might need to buy:
  • chili powder
  • ground coriander
  • ground cumin
  • vegetable oil
  • water
  • shredded Monterey Jack cheese or mild cheddar cheese
  • chopped fresh cilantro leaves
  • chopped pickled jalapeño chiles
Belongs to Bethany Beef Empanadas 

Serves 4 to 6 as an entrée

The alcohol in the dough is essential to the texture of the crust and imparts no flavor—do not substitute for it or omit. Masa harina can be found in the international aisle with other Latin foods or in the baking aisle with the flour. If you cannot find masa harina, replace it with additional all-purpose flour (for a total of 4 cups). After step 5, the empanadas can be covered tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerated for up to 2 days.

You might need to buy:
  • Filling:
  • low-sodium chicken broth
  • percent lean ground chuck
  • Table salt and ground black pepper
  • olive oil
  • ground cumin
  • Cayenne
  • ground cloves
  • cider vinegar
  • Dough:
  • cold water

SERVES 8 TO 12

We prefer natural to enhanced pork (pork that has been injected with a salt solution to increase moistness and flavor), though both will work in this recipe. Add more water to the roasting pan as necessary during the last hours of cooking to prevent the fond from burning. Serve the pork with the accompanying peach sauce or cherry sauce (related recipe) or with a sweet-tart chutney.

WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS:
Bone-in pork butt takes longer to cook than boneless but retains more moisture and cooks more evenly. We started our slow-roasted pork shoulder recipe by rubbing our roast’s exterior with brown sugar and salt, then left it to rest overnight. The sugar dried out the exterior and boosted browning. Elevating the pork shoulder on a V-rack and pouring water in the roasting pan kept the slow-roasted pork’s drippings from burning as it roasted. It also created a significant jus with no burning. Finally, a fruity sauce recipe with sweet and sour elements cut the slow-roasted pork shoulder’s richness.

You might need to buy:
  • packed light brown sugar
  • Ground black pepper
  • PEACH SAUCE:
  • dry white wine
  • unseasoned rice vinegar
  • fresh thyme
  • whole-grain mustard
  • kosher salt
  • PORK ROAST:

Makes about 40 dumplings, serving 6 to 8 as an appetizer

Do not trim the excess fat from the ribs; it contributes flavor and moistness. Use any size shrimp except popcorn shrimp; there’s no need to halve shrimp smaller than 26 to 30 per pound before processing. The dumplings may be frozen for up to 3 months; cook them straight from the freezer for about an extra 5 minutes. Read about our favorite steamer basket in related testing. To jury-rig one, follow the instructions in related How to Cook. For more options on wrappers, see related How to Cook. Serve shu mai with store-bought chili oil or make your own (see related recipe).

You might need to buy:
  • soy sauce
  • unflavored powdered gelatin
  • cornstarch
  • minced fresh cilantro leaves
  • toasted sesame oil
  • rice vinegar
  • grated ginger
  • ground black pepper

Serves 4 to 6

The trimmed pork should weigh about 1 1/2 pounds. Tinga is traditionally served on tostadas (crisp fried corn tortillas), but you can also use the meat in tacos and burritos or simply served over rice. Make sure to buy tortillas made only with corn, lime, and salt—preservatives will compromise quality. For tips on baking tostadas, see How to Bake Tostadas (related). Our winning brand of ready-made tostadas, Mission, is also an excellent choice. We prefer the complex flavor of chipotle powder, but two minced canned chipotle chiles can be used in its place. The pork can be prepared through step 1 and refrigerated in an airtight container for 2 days. The tostadas can be made up to a day in advance and stored in an airtight container.

You might need to buy:
  • vegetable oil
  • Tostadas:
  • bay leaves
  • dried oregano
  • olive oil
  • fresh thyme
  • Tinga:
  • Garnishes:
  • Queso fresco or feta cheese
  • Fresh cilantro leaves
  • Diced avocado
  • Lime wedges