A look at some of the year’s greatest hits, from baking buttermilk bread, frying crispy cutlets, sheet panning panzanella, and always confiting your tuna.
In 2020, we all got an intensive crash course in cooking, whether we liked it or not. We tackled the advanced dishes we couldn’t travel to our favorite restaurants to eat, like perfectly bouncy biang biang noodles, or pillowy Parker House rolls. We played Chopped with the weird combinations of ingredients that remained in the refrigerator between grocery runs—the stray potato buns, eggs, and wilting stalks of celery that lingered past their prime. And we figured out how to get food on the table, even when that meant a seated dinner of…cheese and crackers.
At various points in the year, we all got burned out from cooking. But we also found ways to reconnect with the enjoyment that comes from trying something new in the kitchen and being pleasantly surprised by the outcome. For Cathy Erway, that meant mashing up two chicken marinades from her youth and finding that somehow, strangely, they tasted perfect mixed together. For Leslie Pariseau, it meant taking a chance on an enormous pot of sauerkraut cooked with half a bottle of champagne.
Moments of discovery like this kept us cooking through it all. Now that I’ve learned Christian David Reynoso’s trick for desliming nopales, I’ll never look at the green paddles the same way again. And now that I know about mozzarella in carrozza, no aperitivo hour will ever be the same. These are a few of our favorite recipes from over the course of the year that changed the way we think about cooking. —Anna Hezel
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The Champagne of Stews
Braise your sauerkraut the Chez Panisse way—with seven types of pork and lots of bubbly.
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Put the Tea in Tiramisu
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Potatoes: They’re Better as Ribbons
Thinly sliced and accordioned in a skillet, this technique gives hasselbacking a run for its money.
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The Plantain Has Your Back
Mash, fry, and steam your way through the whole spectrum of ripeness.
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The Buttermilk Miracle Dough
Use up the entire pint in one go for better bread, buns, cinnamon rolls, and more.
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Figs and Feta Forever
Laurie Ellen Pellicano’s fig tart is a salty, jammy celebration of the fruit’s savory side.
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My Two Marinades
Cornell sauce and soy sauce play similar roles in infusing chicken with flavor. But combine the two and something special will happen.
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Give Nopales the Milanesa Treatment
After a quick salt cure, these cactus paddles are ready to bread and fry.
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Butter It, Tofu It, Dip It. But Don’t Boil It.
Corn, off the cob and into a world of possibilities.
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The Grilled Cheese Gets Regal
Encased in fried bread crumbs, carrozza makes the most out of mozzarella.
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Bring Back Brick Chicken
The “perfect roast chicken” is nice. But the brick chicken is superior in all the ways that matter to a home cook.
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A Seafood Stew, a Study in Contrasts
Moqueca, a stew from the Brazilian state of Bahia, is a finessed union of sweet and savory.
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Country Captain Deserved a Comeback
The lowcountry curried chicken dish was a favorite of FDR, but a bakery in Savannah, Georgia, has given it new life between bread.
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These Canned Tomatoes Don't Need Cooking
A quick cure in olive oil, citrus peel, and chile flake is a shortcut to summer.
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Tuna Confit Is Samin's Sleeper Hit
Poaching fish low and slow in olive oil is the key to better flavor, texture, and a superior tuna sandwich.
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The Cookie of the Season
The Neapolitan cookie has marbled itself into a baked internet sensation.
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Boost Your Butter Cake With Chai
In Sri Lanka, the way to a more flavorful butter cake begins with a homemade chai blend.
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Sheet Pan Your Panzanella
A roasted take on the classic Italian bread salad turns the summertime classic into a year-round affair.
