Notes about Recipes in this book

• Soft-boiled eggs with pickled chiles

  • ethedens on August 13, 2022

    So simple. So good.

• Buttery kimchi shrimp

  • jennicakes on January 11, 2026

    Had a hard time getting kimchi to paste texture, so I may try a food processor next time. More like 3.5 stars. Very easy and a good use for a smaller amount of kimchi.

• Ricotta, ‘nduja and mint on toast

  • Astrid5555 on May 05, 2022

    This is a delicious flavor combination with the spicyness of the ‘nduja being perfectly tamed by the ricotta.

• Spicy sauce with cilantro, mint, ginger, and lime (yes, it’s also green)

  • cookbookdestinations on January 23, 2024

    Very good, very fresh, very easy. It lasted well in the fridge and is relatively easy to implement in other recipes. Would definitely make again, plus I love cilantro.

• Roasted mushrooms with sour cream, herbs, and lemon

  • ethedens on August 13, 2022

    We enjoyed this one!

• Cauliflower with anchovy oil and crispy capers

  • Nancy402 on December 06, 2023

    This came together quickly and delivered complex punchy flavours. The anchovies make this quite salty so bear that in mind. Will make again.

  • SpatulaCity on February 24, 2025

    Great and delivered on big flavors. I didn’t have a full 3TB of capers so subbed in some Kalamata olives for the variance - not the same, I know! But it was still very tasty! Deglazed the pan at the end with some watered down caper juice to pour over the top and that was an extra kick of flavor. Only roasted cauliflower for 20 min and broiled a few min longer to give the cauliflower color but retain some crunch. Saved seasoning for the end given all the salty elements included in the recipe. Would make again!

• Pork larb with crispy shallots

  • Soulkitchenjen on February 07, 2023

    Soooo good. Only sub I made was a jalapeño for the chili. The directions are kind of unclear at the end. All the stuff you retain half of, add at the end. Not just the green onions. Also, save yourself a whole lot of grief and do the rice in a spice grinder.

  • ellwell on June 07, 2023

    We really enjoyed this. I compared her recipe to Andy Baraghani’s and decided to add a tad of lemongrass paste and to serve in a cabbage leaf —kind of Asian taco style. A winning combination! We also added cucumber and rice for serving. Yummy!

  • cookbookdestinations on January 23, 2024

    Made this, it was good. Perhaps user error but my pork let out a lot of fat/water and I couldn't get a good char on my meat. At the end, it came together with ease. I replaced the serrano with chili flakes and didn't make the toasted rice addition but thought everything was tasty but the flavors didn't wow me.

• A summer corn salad with shrimp

  • bwhip on September 08, 2022

    This was a great summer salad, quite easy and very tasty. I couldn’t find the Italian Pepper in the ingredients, so I thought I’d use an Anaheim Chile instead. The store didn’t have that, so I used a Hatch Chile, which definitely brought some heat, but it was still a very nice dish.

• Chicories with tuna, fennel, and old-school Italian dressing

  • Lepa on May 08, 2022

    I thought this salad was pretty good but my husband, who made it, complained that the recipe was ambiguous and fussy (it's not clear how much tuna should be added but I think this is pretty flexible).

• Almost scallop chowder

  • Zoosie on October 16, 2023

    I used more thyme and a couple of bay leaves. Did not use scallops but neslted cod loins into the broth for 5 minutes. Delicious. Thank you for the recipe.

• Cumin, ginger, and citrus roasted salmon with cabbage, dates, and creamy tahini dressing

  • Lepa on May 26, 2022

    I loved this meal. The salmon was good but the salad was DELICIOUS.

  • Soulkitchenjen on February 07, 2023

    Surprising and delicious. Came together in about 20 minutes. My Napa cabbage came in bad shape, so I made it with regular old green cabbage. A very nice, light dinner.

  • tarae1204 on March 13, 2023

    This was easy and delicious, with a fair amount of prep (not surprising given the long ingredient list). We loved it. Small quibble: We found the cumin overpowering next to the other aromatics in the fish’s dressing. I added small segments of clementine to the salad which added to our overall enjoyment. The dates in the salad are SO good, and restrained in quantity, so plan to serve extra on the side or for dessert.

  • ellwell on June 07, 2023

    This was a lovely weeknight salmon. We did not find the cumin overwhelming at all. As others have said, the salad was the standout and I am looking forward to the leftovers tomorrow.

  • SpatulaCity on December 06, 2024

    Not our favorite salmon preparation, though we enjoyed the salad! Used regular old green cabbage and subbed walnuts in place of the almonds.

• A pot of beans

  • SpatulaCity on December 04, 2024

    Made with gigante beans to accompany the Fennel roasted pork shoulder also from this book. We liked the results! Took approx 2.5 hours to simmer to bean heaven.

• Sausage, peppers, and onions with melty Caprese

  • Soulkitchenjen on February 08, 2023

    Very delicious, but not exactly revolutionary. I guess that’s Italian food for you. Not exactly unexpected combos, but always good. I used parsley instead of basil, as it’s February in Pittsburgh.

• Crispy lamb with cumin, leeks, and celery

  • amandaeats on July 06, 2022

    Very good! I didn’t have fresh chiles, so I subbed 2-3 whole, dried Thai peppers. Rounded out with a spoonful of chili crisp.

• Gnocchi with mushrooms and butter

  • Astrid5555 on March 25, 2023

    Delicious, rave reviews by the whole family! Needed 90 gramms of flour instead of 30gramms to form a cohesive dough, used my smallest cookie scoop to portion the gnocchi directly into the boiling water to save time, worked beautifully. Lots of butter in the sauce but oh so good! Will go into our regular weeknight dinner rotation.

  • SpatulaCity on January 17, 2025

    I incorrectly measured my ricotta for the gnocchi, so they fell apart into delicious little mush mounds. Realized my error after the fact! Doh! For mushrooms, used a mix of Cremini, King Oyster, and Brown Beech shrooms. Delicious mix! The butter is a lot and makes it quite rich! Could be reduced for a slightly less decadent dish

• My cec

  • Soulkitchenjen on February 10, 2023

    Very good. I used spinach and elbow mac. Use homemade stock.

  • Lepa on October 10, 2024

    This was okay but not my favorite type/version of this soup. I used the entire can of tomatoes and also the liquid from the chickpeas.

• Pan-roasted chicken thighs with asparagus and charred scallion-sesame salsa

  • ethedens on July 02, 2022

    Absolutely delicious and very easy. Would absolutely make again.

  • bwhip on February 18, 2023

    Very delicious dish. Easy to prepare, and the scallion salsa is the star of the show for sure. We’ll make this again.

  • cookbookdestinations on January 23, 2024

    The scallion salsa is the major player in the recipe, the chicken is very simply seasoned to let the salsa shine so I can imagine that you can replace the chicken with any protein with ease. A definite weeknight dinner that will be on repeat. As long as you still have some scallion salsa leftover, you can have dinner on the table in 10-15 minutes.

  • SpatulaCity on November 13, 2024

    Yes, the salsa is everything. You may want to make extra! I started my chicken thighs, skin side down, in a cold cast iron pan and then cranked the heat. I’ve found that this method yields the crispiest skin. Used broccoli instead of asparagus, and it was a little too done for my liking after 20 minutes. But with everything so tasty, a little soft broccoli couldn’t dissuade us from finishing every bite.

• Indian spiced yogurt chicken with quick pickled onion and herbs

  • Soulkitchenjen on February 04, 2023

    Very, very good. If I made it again, I’d marinate for longer. I used a combo of parsley, cilantro, and green onions for the herbs. Very easy and satisfying.

  • ellwell on December 26, 2023

    I marinated my for 6 hours. I didn’t think it was a flavorful as I anticipated. In fairness, I had to use some boneless, skinless, breasts along with the thighs and they got dried out. Probably not a repeat for me.

  • cookbookdestinations on January 23, 2024

    Very good but found the recipe lacked depth and flavor. I only marinated for an hour so I would try again and marinade longer to see if the flavor can penetrate the chicken more. The acid in the pickled onions is needed to lift the chicken. Overall very easy to make and put together, not interested in making it again as it wasn't memorable.

• Chicken Quintiliano

  • tarae1204 on March 11, 2023

    Supremely easy, and delicious recipe for boneless skinless chicken thighs. I used a 14” sautée pan but 12” would’ve been fine. We strained the sauce before serving (not suggested in recipe)

  • cookbookdestinations on January 23, 2024

    Another name for this dish is vinegar chicken. I thought the vinegar overpowered the dish as that is the only liquid in the sauce. While easy, I would not make it again; it needed something more to balance out the acidity.

• Spatchcocked lime pickle roasted chicken

  • jennicakes on January 12, 2026

    The only downside is that the skin doesn’t get very crispy.

• It’s almost spring stew with chicken and farro

  • tarae1204 on March 11, 2023

    I didn’t follow the recipe very closely except for the combination of vegetables called for, which was delicious! Poached a whole chicken first, then used the cooled shredded meat and broth for this stew. Used precooked white rice instead of farro. The lemon mint relish couldn’t be easier or more delicious here.

• More shrimp than you think pasta

  • djnielsen64 on February 01, 2024

    Delicious and refreshing!

• Just pork Bolognese

  • SpatulaCity on December 03, 2024

    For being such a simple Bolognese, we thought this was quite good. It definitely needed the full two hours of simmering to start to meld. I let the leftovers go for another hour. I added some fish sauce at the very end for some Umami and to balance the acid from the tomatoes a touch. Served over simple polenta

  • LadyDaga on January 05, 2026

    Added fish sauce for depth and a tiny amount of sugar

• Braised lamb shanks with gingery Meyer lemon relish

  • tarae1204 on March 16, 2023

    The recipe worked very well as written, and was easy as promised although it does take a few hours start to finish. If I were to make this again, I'd strive to use fresher ingredients in the quick relish as I felt like my Meyer lemon was a little bitter, my grated ginger was from a jar, and my cilantro was a little faded. I love how Colu Henry calls for using all the Meyer lemon in many of her recipes in this book! The combination of spices: garam masala, coriander, and cardamom, is sweet and rich.

• Fennel-rubbed pork shoulder with creamy white beans and herb oil

  • Lepa on December 23, 2022

    This dish was probably the best thing we made/ate all year. Really extraordinary. I made it for a dinner party and it was very hands off so keep it in mind for gatherings. One of our guests said it may be the best pork roast she has ever had. The beans and green sauce were also wonderful. I highly recommend this dish! We are it with a fennel and apple salad, which was a nice contrast to the rich flavors here.

  • ellwell on September 27, 2023

    Lepa is right! This is delicious comfort food. I cooked mine for four hours since it had the bone in and that was perfect. Broiling the meat afterward gave it a wonderful texture. I used Jovial beans that were already cooked but tossed them in some chicken stock and added all the elements of the bean recipe and they were delightful. The green sauce at the end plus the Maldon salt really take this over the top. Will definitely repeat for company!

  • SpatulaCity on December 04, 2024

    Easy and delicious. Would like more fennel rub as it melts off the sides of the roast whilst cooking. Our 3lb shoulder took approx 4 hours to roast to tenderness. Forgot to buy basil so made a parsley cilantro herb oil instead and it was still delicious! Served over gigante beans from this book

• Cultured butter & tahini cookies [Rebekah Peppler]

  • Nancy402 on October 12, 2022

    These were excellent cookies, that tasted delicious and looked beautiful. Next time I will make them a bit smaller, as they are quite rich.

• Peach tart with five-spice honey [Peter Som]

  • Nancy402 on September 19, 2022

    Impressive and super easy, as advertised. Also delicious. The honey Chinese Five Spice combination is a winner with peaches.