This year, we tried some pretty far-out things in the kitchen. The year found us marinating sleeves of saltines in oil (yes, you read that right), using aluminum foil as a baking vessel, and making 18-egg frittatas. We all took some risks and made some leaps of faith, and it paid off in delicious ways.
Tammie Teclemariam taught us that after a bath in milk and a toss in flour, you can fry chicken livers into something that lands somewhere between a chicken liver mousse and a chicken nugget. Daniel Holzman wrote about the unexpected ways that MSG can punch up the volume on a batch of spicy fluke ceviche. TASTE assistant editor Tatiana Bautista shared a technique for caramelizing scallions in a flavor-packed oil to coat noodles.
As we charge ahead into a new year filled with new kitchen skills to learn, here’s a look at some of our biggest revelations and breakthroughs of 2019. —Anna Hezel, Senior Editor
Top Recipes of 2019
Spain’s Burnt Cheesecake Breaks All the Rules
An underbaked mystery, a fine-dining fable, and the recipe of a famous cheesecake hiding in plain sight. We asked a Los Angeles chef for hints about the recipe he developed. He wouldn’t share. But it led us to the source—San Sebastián chef Santiago Rivera—to unlock the mystery.
Top Recipes of 2019
Don't Throw Out the Leek Greens
The sweet, colorful allium is a perfect starting point for chaotic, hungry dinnertime improvisation.
Top Recipes of 2019
Have You Fried a Chicken Liver Lately?
These little oyster-shaped bites are often overlooked at the grocery store, but when you fry them, they become a party snack, a salad topping, or the filling for a sandwich.
Top Recipes of 2019
Less Mixing, More Resting
It might be messy, and it might be crumbly, but this scone recipe is worth spilling some flour over.
Top Recipes of 2019
How Do I Make Pasta as Good as My Favorite Italian Restaurant?
Top Recipes of 2019
Freeze Your Fried Tofu. You Will Thank Us Later.
It transforms the bean curd into something completely, magically different. Your sauces will thank you, too.
Top Recipes of 2019
Go On, Get the MSG
Padded with plenty of kosher salt, the seasoning can be the wind beneath your dinner’s wings.
Top Recipes of 2019
The Homespun Joy of Coca-Cola Chicken Wings
How an American soda became the heart of Hong Kong’s favorite chicken dish.
Top Recipes of 2019
Foil Yaki Is the Best
With this Japanese technique for cooking vegetables and seafood, aluminum foil acts as both the cookware and the dishware.
Top Recipes of 2019
Big Crisp Energy
Bakers love crisps and crumbles because they come together quickly and can easily feed a crowd. But the easy-to-scale dessert is just as sweet when it’s made for a party of one.
Top Recipes of 2019
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.
Top Recipes of 2019
In Defense of the Chewy Doughnut
Forget cake doughnuts and yeast doughnuts. Mochi doughnuts add some bounce to your bite.
Top Recipes of 2019
Orzotto: When Mac & Cheese Marries Risotto
This silky, starchy orzo, studded with mellow blue cheese, is a crash course in a pasta cooking technique that may sound a little familiar.
Top Recipes of 2019
Show Me a Better Sundae
The classic Thai combination of creamy coconut ice cream and salty peanuts has become a sundae lover’s muse.
Top Recipes of 2019
No Scallions Left Behind
Cook down your scallions like caramelized onions. Your noodles will thank you.
Top Recipes of 2019
300% More Frittata
Baking eggs by the dozen is smart. Using a sheet pan is smarter.
Top Recipes of 2019
Make Your Sourdough Starter Work Harder
Beyond just bread loaves, “mother” adds a sour kick to babka, pancakes, pie crust, and more.
Top Recipes of 2019
Bostock Is the Best Thing Since Sliced Bread
If you’ve got sliced bread, an oven, and some almonds, you can make something even better than French toast.
Top Recipes of 2019
Focaccia Is a Mood
Pile it high with crispy mushrooms, briny anchovies, and creamy, salty cheeses.