More than a dozen cooking projects built for winter.
As the days get shorter and shorter, and you find yourself drifting into the kitchen more and more (if only to hover near the heat of the oven), it’s time to ask yourself an important question: What are your winter cooking goals?
Forget about New Year’s resolutions, the beginning of winter—officially December 21, but most of us are there pretty much now—is the best time to look ahead at the many cold months that await and come up with a plan. This is not a survival plan, per se, but a plan to come out on the other side of the season with a new, proudly earned skill set. Maybe that plan is to tackle cooking a dish you thought you’d only ever order in restaurants, like beef Wellington. Or maybe it’s just to bake enough loaves of babka that you become a semi-expert.
Whether it’s figuring out how to nail a fresh pasta lasagna, or making a silky, savory soy milk from scratch, it’s the best time of the year to sink your teeth into something new. These are a few of our favorite projects that thrive in winter, when it’s especially tempting to cook, eat, and entertain at home.
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Guisados: The Stewy King of All Tacos
Though they may not have charred edges from a plancha or the crispy coating of a beer batter, guisados leave a lasting impression.
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Beef Wellington Isn’t Scary
No, you’re not going to destroy an entire tenderloin. Yes, everything is better wrapped in puff pastry.
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The Bo Ssäm Decade
How Momofuku’s slow-roasted pork became David Chang’s signature “fajita moment.”
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Make Your Sourdough Starter Work Harder
Beyond just bread loaves, “mother” adds a sour kick to babka, pancakes, pie crust, and more.
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The Salty, Savory Side of Soy Milk
This Taiwanese approach to breakfast will sell you on homemade soy milk.
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The Bugatti of Rice Pudding
Mastering riz à l’impératrice is a rite of passage for modern pastry chefs. That doesn’t mean you can’t make it at home.
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In Defense of the Chewy Doughnut
Forget cake doughnuts and yeast doughnuts. Mochi doughnuts add some bounce to your bite.
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The Republic of Georgia Has a Family of Cheesy Breads
If you can roll out pizza dough, you can make khachapuri—Georgia’s famous cheese- and egg-filled bread canoes.
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Steamed Whole Fish and the Ginger, Garlic, Scallion Trifecta
It turns out, steaming a whole fish isn’t all that hard or intimidating.
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Suman: A Meal for Between Meals
Dipped in sugar, this sticky rice snack becomes dessert. Sprinkled with dried fish flakes, it’s a bite to tide you over until dinner.
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For Unusually Good Butter, Just Add Skyr
Making cultured butter at home is a three-ingredient party trick.
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Focaccia Is a Mood
Pile it high with crispy mushrooms, briny anchovies, and creamy, salty cheeses.
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Coq au Vin at a Crossroads
Traditionally an old rooster braised in Burgundy, the classic French dish has many faces. Braise the roof!
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Watch YouTube, Make Black Garlic
When you cook garlic very slowly for a very long time, it becomes milder, sweeter, and looks really cool.