Truly delicious, truly simple
Some recipes announce themselves as weeknight-friendly in warm, breezy tones, only to reveal their true nature when you’re already in deep. That’s the moment you realize the spices are supposed to be toasted and hand-ground. The tomatoes are cut into 64ths. The process requires a pot, three pans, a rolling pin and a blender. You deflate, just a little.
Let’s not even talk about those recipes. Instead, let’s devote ourselves anew to finding the brilliant ingredients and methods that make it possible to get something delicious on the table in a reasonable amount of time – because dinner really should be delicious, and because it shouldn’t take all night to do that and the dishes. (When are you supposed to watch premium TV?)
Here are just a few examples, smart recipes that are easy to execute, with electric flavors and no hidden fussiness.
Our bruschetta pasta, for instance, calls for you to cook the pasta directly in the sauce, with results that are appealingly mussed, casual and just a touch vinegary. Both the salmon and beans rely on herby sauces to finish, which are spiky and bright and worth doubling for later. Those gorgeous carrot curls with the flank steak can be done with a vegetable peeler, and the chicken is cloaked in a sauce made with harissa, the North African pepper paste, a fantastic shortcut to midweek flavor – which, of course, is always our destination.
One-pan bruschetta spaghetti
Yield: 4 servings
Total time: 35 minutes.
Recipe by Sarah Copeland
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 yellow onion, thinly sliced
4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
Pinch of red-pepper flakes, to taste
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
12 ounces thin spaghetti or linguine, broken in half
2 pounds Roma or Campari tomatoes, chopped (about 8 to 12 tomatoes)
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 / 2teaspoon black pepper
2 ounces finely grated Parmesan (about 1 / 2cup), plus more for serving
About 1 cup basil leaves, for serving
Heat oil in a very large, deep cast-iron skillet (or a Dutch oven) over medium-low. Add onion and cook until softening, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, 3 to 5 minutes more. Add red-pepper flakes and vinegar, and stir until the vinegar evaporates.
Add pasta, followed by the tomatoes, and pour the 2 3/4cup water over the top. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cover with a lid and bring to a boil. Simmer over medium-low heat until the pasta is just tender, about 10 minutes, stirring as needed so the pasta doesn’t stick. Uncover, and continue cooking until the liquid has evaporated to a loose sauce, just enough to coat your noodles with flavor, 5 to 8 minutes more. (If there’s still too much liquid at the bottom of your pan for your tastes, simmer a little longer.)
Taste and add more salt and pepper as needed. Toss with cheese and basil to melt the cheese. Serve warm.
Cumin-roasted salmon with cilantro sauce
Yield: 3 to 4 servings
Total time: 30 minutes
Recipe by Alison Roman
For the sauce:
1 cup cilantro, leaves and tender stems, chopped
1 / 4cup finely chopped chives (from about 1 / 2bunch)
1 garlic clove, very finely chopped
1 tablespoon distilled white vinegar
1 / 4cup olive oil
Kosher salt and black pepper
For the salmon:
1 3 / 4teaspoons ground cumin
1 / 2teaspoon smoked paprika
2 tablespoons olive oil
Kosher salt and ground black pepper
1 1 / 4pounds skin-on salmon fillet
1 lemon, cut into wedges, for serving
Make the sauce: Combine cilantro, chives, garlic, vinegar and olive oil in a medium bowl. (Alternatively, pulse the ingredients in a food processor until you’ve reached the desired consistency.) Season with salt and pepper, and set aside.
Roast the salmon: Heat oven to 350 degrees. Combine cumin, paprika and olive oil in a small bowl, and season with salt and pepper.
Season salmon with salt and pepper and place in a baking dish or on a rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle salmon with spiced olive oil mixture, transfer to the oven, and roast until fish is opaque and just cooked through, 15 to 18 minutes.
Remove salmon from oven and spoon cilantro sauce over the top. Serve with lemon wedges on the side.
Garlicky steak with carrot, walnut and dill salad
Yield: 4 servings
Total time: 20 minutes, plus marinating
Recipe by Sarah Copeland
1 lemon
1 1 / 2teaspoons kosher salt
1 / 2teaspoon black pepper
4 garlic cloves, pressed or minced
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 / 2cup full-fat plain Greek yogurt
1/3 cup olive oil
1 1 / 4pounds flank steak
4 large carrots
1/3 cup walnuts, toasted
1 / 4cup roughly chopped dill
Zest the lemon and combine zest in a bowl with 1 teaspoon salt, the pepper, garlic and coriander, and rub with your fingers to make an even paste. Stir 1 teaspoon mixture into yogurt, and set aside. Pour 3 tablespoons olive oil over the remaining mixture. Rub on both sides of the steak; place the steak in a bowl or a large resealable bag and set aside for 30 minutes, or refrigerate up to overnight.
Meanwhile, make the salad: Juice the lemon into a large bowl, and whisk together with the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil and 1 / 2teaspoon salt. Shave the carrots into the bowl with a vegetable peeler or a mandoline, making long, thin shavings (like ribbons). Toss together with the dressing and walnuts and set aside while you grill the steak.
Light the grill or heat the broiler. Remove the steak from the marinade and brush off any excess. (A dry steak yields a better, crisper sear.) Grill the meat over direct heat until char lines appear and meat is done to taste, 5 minutes per side for medium-rare, or broil until charred, 3 to 5 minutes per side.
Let the meat rest for 5 minutes before slicing against the grain. Toss the dill with the carrot salad. Spread a thin layer or a dollop of lemon-garlic yogurt on each plate, and top with the steak and salad.
Creamy white beans with herb oil
Yield: 2 to 4 servings
Total time: 15 minutes
Recipe by Colu Henry
For the herb oil:
1 / 2cup roughly chopped chives
1 / 2cup roughly chopped cilantro leaves and tender stems
1 / 2cup tightly packed basil leaves
1 / 2cup olive oil
Squeeze of lemon
Kosher salt, to taste
For the beans:
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
2 (15-ounce) cans white beans, like butter beans or cannellini, rinsed and drained
Kosher salt and black pepper
1 / 2cup chicken stock, vegetable stock or water
Flaky salt, for serving (optional)
Make the oil: In a food processor, combine chives, cilantro and basil, and pulse until finely chopped. Add olive oil, and pulse again until mixture is silky and emulsified. Transfer to a small bowl, stir in lemon juice and salt to taste. Set aside.
Prepare the beans: In a 10-inch skillet, heat olive oil over medium-low heat. Add garlic and cook until translucent, about 1 minute. Add beans to the skillet and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the flavors have melded, about 2 to 3 minutes. With the back of a spoon or spatula, smash about 1/3 to 1 / 2cup of the beans and stir until they are incorporated into the rest of the bean mixture. A good portion of the remaining beans should maintain their structure.
Add stock or water and bring to a gentle simmer. Cook until sauce becomes creamy and is reduced by about half, about 1 to 2 minutes more. Smash additional beans and add a few more tablespoons of water, if needed, to reach desired consistency and stir again to combined.
Transfer beans to a bowl and swirl with herb oil on top. Season with flaky salt, if desired.
Harissa chicken thighs with shallots
Yield: 4 servings
Total time: 40 minutes
Recipe by Colu Henry
1 1 / 2pounds bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
Kosher salt and black pepper
2 tablespoons grapeseed or canola oil
4 to 5 small shallots, ends trimmed, quartered, root to stem, and peeled
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
3 tablespoons harissa
1 / 2teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 to 1 1 / 2cups chicken stock, plus more as needed
1 / 4cup roughly chopped cilantro, leaves and tender stems
2 scallions, thinly sliced
1 lime, cut into wedges, for serving
Flaky salt, for serving (optional)
Season chicken thighs well with salt and pepper. In a heavy-bottomed skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add chicken thighs skin-side down and cook undisturbed until nicely browned, about 5 to 6 minutes. Flip and brown the other side, about 4 to 5 minutes more. Transfer to a plate and set aside.
Pour off all but 2 tablespoons of fat from the pan and return to medium-low heat. Add shallots and cook, stirring often, until they begin to soften, about 2 to 3 minutes. Add garlic and cook 30 seconds more.
Stir in harissa and cinnamon, and add back in the chicken and any residual juices. Pour in enough of the stock to come up to the chicken about halfway, and bring to a simmer. Partly cover and allow the chicken to finish cooking through, about 15 minutes more.
Toss the chicken in the sauce until it’s nicely coated. Plate and top with the cilantro and the scallions. Serve, spooning braising liquid on top and with lime wedges on the side. Finish with flaky salt, if desired.
This story was originally published October 9, 2018 at 11:02 AM.