Honkman

Chinese inspired Thanksgiving dinner with “Taste of Sichuan” Beef Shanks from ATK’s “A Very Chinese Cookbook” - diced beef shank get first braised in water with plenty of ginger and star anise and then a second, shorter braise in a mixture of ginger, garlic, rock sugar, doubanjiang, shaoxing wine, chinese black vinegar and soy sauce. Finished with some toasted sesame oil. Served with some stir-fried choy sum and rice

Savory Dutch Baby with Portobellos, Roasted Red Peppers, Walnuts, and Feta from Cook’s Illustrated - dutch baby made with flour, sugar, salt, milk, eggs and butter starting in a cold oven. The topping is a mix of sautéed portobello mushrooms, roasted red peppers, toasted walnuts, feta, parsley, lemon juice and zest and olive oil

Tofu and Bacon (from a German cooking magazine) with Stir-Fried Chopped Choy Sum (from Every Grain of Rice) - for the tofu and bacon part you cook diced bacon and than consecutively add diced extra firm tofu, red pepper and scallions and finish with soy sauce, fish sauce, roasted sesame oil and red pepper flakes. Topped with cilantro and peanuts. Choy sum gets first briefly blanched before finely chopped. First a quick dry woking to elimate all water, then stir-fried with chili, garlic and ginger before finishing with some roasted sesame and chili oil.

Variation on Feijoadinha - vaquero beans from Rancho Gordo are cooked with kielbasa, linguica and garlic. Green pepper, carrot and onions are sautéed before added to the beans and cooked a bit more. Finished with some cumin and parsley. Served over rice and with braised kale (simple longer braise with torn kale and plenty of garlic)

Phanaeng Curry with Chicken and Kabocha Squash from Simple Thai Food by Leela Puunyaratabandhu - the curry is made by cooking chicken breast and diced kabocha squash in a mixture of coconut milk and cream, chicken broth, coconut oil, red curry paste, fish sauce, light brown sugar, fresno chili, makrut lime leaves and thai basil. Served over rice

Potato Salad with Pears and Radicchio - potatoes, peas, shallots, pears, radicchio and manchego are mixed with vegetable broth, olive oil, white wine vinegar, dijon mustard and lemon juice. Served with the obligatory wiener wuerstchen

Cottage Pie - ground beef, onion, garlic, carrots, mushrooms, Worcestershire sauce, tomato paste, marsala wine, thyme, bay leaf, flour, cornstarch are cooked in beef broth and get topped with mashed potatoes (made with butter, milk, egg, scallions) and heated under the broiler.

Pasta with Gorgonzola Sauce - Fusilli with a sauce made from ground beef, shallots, garlic, gorgonzola dolce, white wine, heavy cream and vegetable broth.

Spanish Tortilla with Chorizo and Scallions - Rather classic preparation with thinly sliced potatoes, chorizo, scallions, onion and eggs. Served with some japanese kewpie mayo for the extra umami kick

Cheesy Beans and Kale - kale and beans (cannellini and great northern) are braised with garlic, rosemary and red pepper flakes in diluted aquafaba. After cooking, parmesan is added and some beans are mashed to get some creaminess. Finished with more parmesan and served with wiener wuerstchen.

Red Lentil Curry - red lentils are cooked with diced red kuri squash, shallots, garlic, fresno chili, ginger and curry powder. Quarter of it gets pureed before finished with lime zest, honey and cilantro. Served with lime-yoghurt.

Variation on Stifado - Cubed leg of lamb stewed with romano beans, potatoes, tomatoes, onions, garlic, thyme, tomato paste and finished with some feta.

Sausage and Lentils with Mustard Sour Creme - First recipe from Ottolenghi’s new book “Comfort”. Sear a few sausages. Sauté some celery, green pepper, onion, swiss chard stalks, garlic, thyme, bay leaf, cumin and tomato paste before cooking it with puy lentils in chicken broth. Once the lentils are cooked, puree a small amount to add some body and briefly warm up swiss chard leaves and sausages. Finish with some parsley and serve with mustard (dijon and whole grain) sour creme and crispy onions.

Cantonese Pork Belly Fried Rice from The Woks of Life - pork belly gets marinated with shaoxing wine, rice vinegar, sugar and five-spice powder and stir-fried jasmine rice, napa cabbage, scallions and dark soy sauce

Arroz con Pollo - Braised chicken thighs with calrose rice, green peppers, onion, garlic, olives, capers, pimentos, cilantro, white wine vinegar, red pepper flakes, tomato sauce and chicken broth