Let’s get sauced! (Friday food links for food lovers, November 2023)

Sauces are the way to take a simple and maybe even boring dish and transform it into a great one. If you agree, here’s dozens of sauce recipes I’ve been collecting that can help with that. Grab a pan and let’s start in.

Pan sauces are a great way to sauce up your dish. Here’s something on the perfect pan sauce. If you want to make restaurant quality pan sauce, read this. Maybe you want to know how to make an easy pan sauce in minutes? That can help.

Do you eat a lot of chicken? Here’s 3 variations on pan sauce for weeknight chicken. Want something lighter? Here’s 3 Great (and Easy) Pan Sauces for Chicken from Cooking Light. Finally here’s one more pan sauce recipe for chicken to add to your repertoire.

if you’re cooking beef or pork, here’s how to make a basic red wine reduction sauce to go with it. Or make one of my favorite sauces: Supreme. I am a fan of veloute, too.

Bechamel is a useful sauce. Here’s how to make a perfect bechamel according to the chefs of Food & Wine. More on that. sauce here and  here and  here.

Here’s how to make a roux and use it right. Relatedly: this is a basic white sauce recipe.

More on the French mother sauces here and here: month and daughter sauces. Speaking of that, here’s how to make mayonnaise. Last, this is supposedly essential sauces for the home cook.

Not even meal needs a sauce from France. For instance, here’s some great sauce recipes for guacamole,  sofrito, aioli, pine nut free pesto, Peruvian-Style Green Sauce, more peruvian style green sauce, homemade ketchup, and fresh chili harissa.

I would be remiss if I didn’t include some tomato sauces. Here’s a good marinara sauce recipe. Though this one from the New York Times is my all time favorite.

This piece argues this heidi swanson 5 minute tomato sauce is genius. Who am I to argue?

Speaking of genius, check out this piece: Adding Oyster Sauce to My Spaghetti Was Probably the Best Thing I’ve Ever Done. The folks at Bon Appetit like to be dramatic. Speaking of dramatic, the Guardian argues that this sauce will change your life.

Let’s dial it back and take a look at these marinades from Food and Wine. Not sauces, but related.

Happy Cooking!

 

11 Easy Pesto And Salad Dressing Recipes | Chatelaine


If you find yourself in a cooking rut, steaming or sauteing the same basic meals, then here’s a suggestion. Make some of the pestos and dressing here (11 Easy Pesto And Salad Dressing Recipes | Chatelaine) and add them to whatever it is you are about to eat. A bowl of steamed vegetables or a plain pork chop transforms into a better meal. Later, you can mix some with mayo or yogurt and add it to a sandwich of your preference. Even a plain green salad is elevated.

(Image: Eric Putz, from a link to their web site)

Thinking about sriracha


This is a great piece: Not So Hot: How I Fell Out of Love With Sriracha | TASTE  by David Farley. Sriracha is starting to reach the level of ubiquity that we associate with ketchup and it’s been so readily adopted that I doubt people think too much about it. If you have feelings about it — love or hate — then you want to read Farley’s piece.

Some recipes for late summer, early autumn, and more

Chicken Bulgogi
Mostly good recipes, but some pieces lower down on food

  1. Sauces made simple: The Five Mother Sauces Every Cook Should Know, Five Sauces Everyone Should Know How to Make for Endless Meal Options,  and 5 Sauces You Can Use on Everything – Cook Smarts.
  2. Good for fall:
  3. An Authentic, Maritime Fish Chowder | Laura Calder
  4. Lots of summer dishes here: Summer Express: 101 Simple Meals Ready in 10 Minutes or Less – NYTimes.com, here Caribbean Herb Grilled Fish and here 27 Summer Pasta Recipes
  5. Easy but great: Skillet roast chicken with veggies – The Globe and Mail
  6. A classic pasta recipe:  Sicilian pasta – Chatelaine
  7. These look yummyBaked Vegetable Chips – Hither & Thither
  8. From David Lebovitz, Chicken bulgogi
  9. For vegetarian or those that want to be: 21 Vegetarian Burgers, Wraps, and Sandwiches to Make for Meatless Monday | Kitchn
  10. More cool weather food: Classic French Cassoulet Recipe – Bacon is Magic – The Best Food Around the World
  11. More soups! Sweet Potato Minestrone | A Cup of Jo
  12. These look fantastic: belgian brownie cakelets – smitten kitchen
  13. More D.L.: Tangerine Sorbet Recipe
  14. Easy but looks professional. Also tasty: Stacey Snacks: Healthy & Delicious: Cod Provencal
  15. For fall and winter too: Easy French Hot Chocolate | Chocolate & Zucchini
  16. Eat more greens with better vingaigrettes:  An Easy Template for Citrus Vinaigrette, 5 Ways | Kitchn
  17. More Caribbean food from Chris: Roasted Tomato And Bacon Soup Recipe.
  18. Eat more grains: Apple Cider–Cooked Farro Recipe | Bon Appetit
  19. Make those herbs last: Why Freezing Is the Best Way to Preserve Cilantro | Kitchn

And now for some non-recipe related food links:

  1. What I learned not drinking for two years – Medium
  2. I hate food: For some of us, eating is just about sustenance – The Globe and Mail
  3. How to Start Cooking (Even If You Feel Doomed)

I have been fascinated by the idea of povera cucina. Here’s too links on it.

  1. POVERA CUCINA
  2. La Cucina Povera or the Kitchen of the Poor

(Image linked to is of chicken bulgogi from David Lebovitz.)