Notes about Recipes in this book

• Apple-cabbage slaw

  • bwhip on January 11, 2020

    Excellent slaw. Really bright and fresh. Lots of great flavors.

• Pan-roasted pork tenderloin with sorghum and roasted apples

  • Barb_N on March 15, 2017

    I made this with some changes- no apples, and no sorghum. I used maple syrup in the gastrique and diced instead of minced the veg to make up for the lack of apples. I will never look back- this method of roasting pork loin gave us the most tender and flavorful meal.

  • TrishaCP on January 01, 2018

    I followed the recipe to the letter, and it was amazing. The pork was perfect. Served with braised cabbage on the side as recommended, which was a perfect complement with the pork and apples.

  • Frogcake on January 06, 2018

    As others have reported, the pork tenderloin was delicious and moist using this cooking method. I used date molasses in place of sorghum. Served with braised cabbage and roasted baby potatoes.

• Pressure cooker chicken stock

  • Totallywired on October 01, 2018

    Great aroma and flavour, Medium dark with good gelatin. Lighter and less concentrated than Modernist Cuisine pressure cooker stock. Use poached chicken to make polpettone.

• Dashi

  • Totallywired on October 14, 2018

    Takes a lot of bonito and yield was less than suggested. Make in large batches.

• Roasted eggplant with boiled peanut sauce

  • Rinshin on December 03, 2017

    I made this with what I had on hand so herbs were total mismatch of Japanese/Asian and western. Used mint and oregano for western herbs and mitsuba and rau ram. Had to reduce the amount of jalapeno but it was still a very good drizzle sauce. 15 min baking time was perfect. Instead of making peanut sauce, I used small drizzle of sesame/soy sauce I always have on hand and that was perfect for this. I make something similar to this using Japanese eggplants cooked in frying pan, but I like this method of baking better for simplicity. Excellent recipe. Recipe at https://hughacheson.blogspot.com/2011/08/eggplant-ideas.html

• Kohlrabi puree

  • rmardel on August 29, 2025

    This is absolutely fabulous! I've loved Kohlrabi in salads, and have occasionally made a gratin, but this was far more than I expected. The kohlrabi takes on a depth of flavor that was unanticipated. My kohlrabi were pretty hard and took longer to cook, and I am sure the quality of the dish depends also on the quality of the stock, but this is a dish I already dream of cooking again.

• Foil-roasted sunchokes

  • sarahawker on February 01, 2021

    Sunchokes were new in my CSA box so this was a first taste for my family who kept referring to them as the "bunch of ginger".... anyway. This was so simple and fast to prepare and absolutely delicious. I did not have marjoram and substituted with sage. The resulting "sauce" in the packet was so good not a drop went to waste and the sunchokes were a wonderful tasty surprise.

• Sautéed sweet potato greens

  • rmardel on October 04, 2021

    I have been seeing sweet potato greens in my local farmer's market and wanted to try them so I opted for this recipe. The technique worked fine but I didn't like the greens. This is odd because I have rarely met a green leafy vegetable I did not like, and I suspect here that the problem was with the technique rather than the greens themselves. First of all it is quite possible that the greens Acheson uses are much younger and more tender than the greens that came home with me. I suspect that is the case because they were still rather thick, and almost leathery. I thought they needed braising in a soup or a stew. Acheson also mentions that he cooks them in a Chinese stir-fry fashion (high heat in a wok) but uses distinctly Southern American seasonings. Upon tasting the greens I think I might have liked them better hand I gone with something more Vietnamese or Chinese in the seasonings department. Not a complete failure, because the results intrigued me, but a miss nonetheless.

• Broccoli soup with roasted chicken

  • Lnbrittain on May 19, 2020

    Used unsweetened soy milk and only 4 oz of earth balance instead of heavy cream and 1.5 cups butter. Tasted very healing, was delicious. Whole milk Greek yogurt made it. I think the 2 tbsp salt may be an error in the recipe. 1 tbsp Diamond kosher salt was plenty!

• Seared scallops with creamed mustard greens and mustard

  • TrishaCP on December 03, 2017

    This was absolutely incredible. High quality scallops are a must, as Hugh amusingly notes in the head notes. I had more mature mustard greens, so chose to blanch them for 10 minutes in salted boiling water to remove the bitterness. I loved them with the sweet onions and nutmeg. This was plenty for us for a light dinner because it was quite rich, but you may need a starch if you have bigger appetites to serve.

• Vegetarian collard greens

  • Barb_N on March 15, 2017

    A straightforward prep for collards. I like the hint of sweet sour. I used maple syrup instead of honey as I served this with the pork tenderloin with (apples and sorghum), also using maple in that sauce.

• Kimchi creamed collard greens

  • Rinshin on November 29, 2018

    A stepped up pot likker worth making and eating when looking for something a little different than the typical pot likker. I only added half kimchi to tone down the heat. A repeat for sure.

  • Rinshin on July 26, 2019

    I keep coming back to this recipe when I want pot likker because it is perfect. I use commercial kimchi instead of making one per this recipe and greatly reduce the kimchi for spice-averse family member, but aroma and the slight funk of kimchi still comes through nicely. I use whatever greens I have and this time, used Japanese komatsuna and various lettuce mix from my garden. Milk in place of cream works fine here. Photo added.

  • fred_twbdh5 on February 23, 2026

    Love this! Used store bought Mother In Laws kimchi instead of making own. I also cook my greens way longer than the recipe.

• Kale salad with crisp shallots and caper dressing

  • foodgloriousfood on May 22, 2022

    I LOVE this kale salad. Have made it for Christmas Eve for a huge group holding the fried shallots until just before serving (warming them up in the oven when read to serve) and it was a winner!

• Red Russian kale salad with roasted sweet potato and apple

  • TrishaCP on October 22, 2017

    This really is a perfect autumn salad. Since we were grilling anyway, we grilled the kale just to soften it a bit, rather than using the massage technique. The smoke only added to the deliciousness. A winner!

• Lamb meatballs with kale, cumin yogurt, and rice

  • TrishaCP on October 08, 2018

    This was very delicious, even without any of the optional toppings (except for the delicious cumin yogurt sauce). The cumin lamb combination is wonderful. This would work on a weeknight if you made the meatballs in advance- nice to have a solid kale recipe that cooks quickly. I served this with brown rice, which went really well with the other ingredients,

  • AlyssafromRhody on July 26, 2020

    Fantastic. I used rainbow chard for the braise and lacinato kale for the chips. The kale chips were delicious on their own but maybe unnecessary for this dish?

  • sarahawker on July 01, 2021

    This is a delicious way to use the Kale from our CSA. I only had beef but the flavor of the meatballs worked beautifully. Entire family loved this so much, it did take quite awhile for a weekday meal but they liked it so much next time I would just double the meatballs and freeze them. Yogurt sauce is a must.

  • Acarroll on October 14, 2022

    Great but will make a few changes next time. We found the meatballs bland, I would double the spices. And we chopped the preserved lemon too large and thr taste was harsh. The kale is absolutely necessary and delicious. Added to the rotation!

• Pan-roasted cod, shiitakes, butternut squash, and soy broth

  • Totallywired on October 14, 2018

    Terrific recipe. Varied the mushroom mix based on availability. Cod was perfect protein.

• Soy broth

  • Totallywired on October 14, 2018

    Stellar. Subbed leeks for scallions.

• Butter-roasted turnips

  • TrishaCP on September 16, 2017

    This was very easy, and I did have small turnips like suggested, but I think I prefer my turnips either fully raw or more cooked. I suspect that maybe my pan and/or oven (using the specified temperature) didn't get as hot as intended by the recipe.

  • jhallen on September 06, 2024

    This was very good. My turnips were larger than most hakurei, so I sliced them into wedges. Turned out very well. I don't have a huge passion for turnips necessarily but these were good and made for a good side dish and certainly a good way to use up some turnips.

• Turnips and their greens risotto

  • TrishaCP on June 26, 2017

    This was very, very, good. I used homemade chicken stock for this recipe, and it just made it all the better! The risotto is cooked with turnip greens (pretty standard prep), and then the risotto is garnished with thin slices of raw turnip. This works very well because the hakurei turnips are so sweet- it would NOT work for regular turnips. This doesn't use up many turnips or greens- so if you get a big bunch you will have plenty more turnips to enjoy!

• Southern artichoke dip

  • Barb_N on January 01, 2022

    We borrowed the use of kale but simplified with canned artichoke hearts. The best of both worlds.

• Spaghetti with arugula pesto, salami, and Parmigiano-Reggiano

  • TrishaCP on June 02, 2018

    This was my first time using arugula in a pesto, and we liked it. The pesto tastes almost too peppery on its own, but combined with the spaghetti and salami, it was very nice.

• Griddled asparagus, pipérade, poached eggs, and grits

  • Dcampos on March 03, 2024

    This was a lot of work but the end result was delicious. I wish this dish didn't require 4 pans. I added some parmesan to the grits and a lot less heavy cream. It only needed 2 tsp sherry vinegar perhaps because it is not peak tomato season. The poached egg recipe came out perfect. I am sure the piperade could be made ahead if making for company. I accidentally used 3 T olive oil to cook the garlic slowly and realized that I only should have used 2 T. I scooped out a tablespoon of the oil for the asparagus. The asparagus was so tasty with the garlic infused olive oil.

• Roasted poblano and pecan guacamole

  • Totallywired on October 22, 2018

    Show-stopper guac. The only problem with this recipe is once you make it you really miss the complexity when eating traditional versions.

• Grilled corn salad with chiles, basil, and lime

  • Breadcrumbs on August 11, 2015

    p. 275 - I’ve tabbed so many recipes in this book and thankfully it’s now indexed in EYB so this dish came up in my search today. First use of this book. This was delicious! The chiles in this dish are jalapenos and unfortunately mine were green as no red ones were to be found. The red would have been a nice contrasting colour in this otherwise green & yellow dish. I tossed a few tiny sweet tomatoes in just to give the dish a visual pop. Flavour-wise, no help was required, this dish delivered on all counts. The heat of the chilies played perfectly with the smoky, sweet corn and the tang of the lime juice. The fresh basil just perked everything up and screamed summertime! Next time I’ll use my absolute favourite, Thai bird chilies and Thai basil. Photo here: http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/1020820?commentId=9677843#9677843

  • Barb_N on June 02, 2019

    I have made much better charred corn salads. I could not discern the various flavors and found it bland.

  • imaluckyducky on August 28, 2020

    5 stars. Simple, bold flavors and better the next day. Will make again!

  • Acarroll on September 08, 2022

    Solid and super easy to put together! I used one large jalapeño and removed the seeds, which was a good decision. It's pretty spicy. This would be a great side for literally any protein. Omitted the oil except for grilling.

• Green garlic soup with poached egg and crisp croutons

  • joanhuguet on May 08, 2016

    I keep meaning to spend more time cooking from this beautiful book, and this recipe certainly encourages me to do so! A perfect spring dinner, using all of the early May farmer's market finds.

  • meggan on May 25, 2023

    I doubled the broth. Otherwise a good vegetable soup.

• Roasted pork tenderloin with bok choy, curried tomatoes, and avocado

  • ksg518 on July 08, 2016

    I wondered if this odd group of ingredients would come together in the final dish but decided to plunge ahead anyway. Next time I'll trust my intuition. The tomato and avocado mixture is barely OK although not necessarily what I would label as curried. (It also doesn't keep because the avocado gets mushy and turns brown, so this is not a dish to count on for leftovers.) But with the bok choy you have a dish that mixes vaguely Indian flavors with far eastern flavors and not in a good fusion way. It just doesn't work and I can't think of anyway to fix it.

  • meggan on May 21, 2023

    Subbed cilantro for mint which made more sense in this recipe. Easy and tasty.

• Perfect pan-roasted chicken breasts with creamed corn, lemongrass, and crisp shallots

  • ksg518 on August 03, 2016

    The creamed corn was wonderful. Lemongrass is a great idea to balance the sweetness of the corn. Acheson is right - his method of pan roasting the chicken breasts (first a sear on the cooktop and then finish in the oven) is good. Odd thing about the recipe, though -- despite the "crisp shallots" in the title, there is no mention of shallots in the ingredient list or the recipe itself.

• Steamed new potatoes with green garlic

  • TrishaCP on May 10, 2017

    Simple but really delicious (even though my potatoes boiled just as much as steamed). Great use of green garlic. And love Hugh's note for this recipe on how to properly treat green garlic!

  • bching on June 09, 2019

    This recipe gave me my first taste of green garlic. It was delicious and the tender and mild new potatoes supported the sweet and savory green garlic perfectly. I didn't want to thaw out a quart of frozen chicken stock to have 3/4 cup for the recipe so I substituted dry vermouth and water. I will continue to do so. I might finish the dish with a squeeze of lemon next time, too.

• Spaghetti with green garlic, speck, and basil

  • TrishaCP on May 19, 2017

    This was ok for me, but I don't think I would repeat it. I found the pasta to sauce ratio a little too pasta heavy for my preferences- it was a bit bland as I made it. Also, I think overall I just prefer green garlic with potatoes if I'm serving that ingredient with a carb.

• Crisp flounder with field pea ragout and herb salad

  • TrishaCP on September 16, 2017

    I was bummed that they didn't have flounder at the store (I had to sub sea bass), but this was delicious. Because of my fish sub, with the thicker fish, I didn't get the promised crispiness. However, the peas (I used purple hull peas) were delicious and went really well with the fish. The one thing I would change is to more finely chop the herbs rather than make an herb salad. I didn't have the pea shoots, so maybe that's why, but I felt like the herbs were a little tough to be in the large pieces on top of the dish.

• Salmon with ramps and peas

  • meggan on May 06, 2018

    Easy and delicious. Added cherry tomatoes and served with rice. Used Arctic char instead of salmon.

  • Barb_N on March 26, 2019

    I modified this using asparagus, English peas and snap peas (don’t really care for ramps) and arctic char. Served with Nik Sharma’s Twice-cooked potatoes with pepita chutney.

• Cantaloupe with prosciutto, purslane, and Vidalia vinaigrette

  • bching on July 31, 2018

    Very good. I cut the melon thicker than instructed and also cut the prosciutto in strips--and would do it this way again. Delicious dressing and a great way to use purslane.

  • rmardel on August 29, 2021

    This is very good. The first time I made it I followed Acheson's instructions for the most part, but like bching I cut the prosciutto in strips. The next time I just cut the melon in cubes and tossed the melon and prosciutto with the purslane. Both work for me and perhaps I am just lazy but I would opt for the salad version more often.

• Buttered, roasted summer squash with basil

  • Totallywired on September 28, 2018

    Simple and terrific. Variation - mint for basil, pickled red onion.

• Leek fonduta

  • Totallywired on September 28, 2018

    Terrific, indulgent recipe. Variation in a pinch: full fat yogurt for creme fraiche

• Chicken breasts over ragout of leeks and Sea Island red peas

  • TrishaCP on October 06, 2018

    We liked this dish. We only had boneless skinless chicken breasts, so followed our own cooking for that product, but the chicken with the peas and leeks worked well together. To make this do-able for a weeknight, I pressure-cooked the peas (straight from the freezer) for 15 minutes the night before.

• Curried okra over Carolina gold rice

  • Tweedles81 on October 13, 2018

    This recipe was incredibly disappointing. We made it as written. First, it used up a lot of pans, which was annoying. But in the end, the flavors were bland and not appealing. It was almost like a wannabe peanut curry. No one wanted seconds. This was very disappointing, especially since I have loved all of the other recipes that I have tried from this book thus far.

• Fennel salad with anchovies, lemon, and roasted tomatoes

  • Totallywired on February 21, 2019

    Simple and delicious. Up the anchovies.

• Seared scallops with corn, spinach, and bacon

  • Kduncan on July 30, 2019

    Such a simple but amazing recipe. The flavors all play off each other. Though, I always cook the scallops in brown butter instead of just oil.

  • Resip on April 04, 2026

    Cooked the scallops as recommended, served with a pesto salad.

• Ramp scrambled eggs

  • TrishaCP on May 24, 2020

    Simple and perfect.

• Peach salad with prosciutto, arugula, mint, pickled peppers, pine nuts, and balsamic vinegar

  • babyfork on June 24, 2020

    Made this for Father's Day first course. Freestone peaches weren't available at the farmer's market yet, but I used ripe yellow peaches and they were great in it. Delicious and pretty summer salad. Would make again.

• Roasted potatoes with yogurt, dill, lemon, and garlic

  • TrishaCP on June 30, 2021

    This recipe was not up to the standard of others that I have tried from this book. I had gorgeous creamer potatoes from the farmer’s market- and the roasting was just fine. But if you follow the recipe, the sauce is much thinner than what is shown in the picture, and not to good effect. I think the recipe could be wrong in terms of the quantity of lemon juice required.

• Chile-mint sautéed cucumbers

  • rmardel on August 31, 2021

    very good, quick and easy recipe. The flavors are somewhat more subtle than a raw cucumber but the taste remains refreshing and the balance of flavors is quite good. Will make again.

• Grilled venison with blackberry gastrique

  • Barb_N on December 24, 2022

    Locally sourced venison. I did not read the recipe far enough in advance to marinate the meat for any length of time but the flavor was excellent. The blackberry gastrique was delicious and came together more quickly than the hour+ indicated in the recipe. I used frozen blackberries and skipped the rum. We did not miss it. I pan seared in cast iron and oven finished like the technique used for the pork loin with sorghum and apple.

• Kitchn

  It’s organized by ingredient, with the idea that you could flip to the chapter on carrots when you ended up with a stunning bunch in your weekly box. You won’t find old rehashed recipes here...

  Full review

• Associated Press by J. M. Hirsch

  Best cookbooks of 2015: ...seriously inspiring. As in, the man makes a bowl of kohlrabi puree look (and taste) decadent, and that's no easy task...This is a prime contender for best cookbook of year.

  Full review