Recipes with olive oil

Prep 12min Cook 18min 2 servings

Kimchi Garlic Butter Shrimp Spaghetti

The sauce has no cream, just butter and starchy pasta water tossed hard until they come together, and the sourness of kimchi plus a squeeze of lemon keeps it lighter than most garlic butter pastas. Sliced garlic fries alongside the kimchi so both flavors spread through the fat, and chopped scallion is scattered over after the heat is off.

Dallae Shrimp Citrus Millet Salad

Spring dallae, a wild Korean chive with a pungent bite, meets tangerine segments, blanched shrimp and fluffy cooked millet, with a yuja marmalade (Korean citron preserve) and white wine vinegar dressing that tames the shrimp's faint fishiness and brings the chive aroma forward. Rinse the dallae and use it right away; a long soak washes out its scent.

Prep 20min Cook 12min 2 servings

Western Medium

Ricotta-Stuffed Eggplant Rolls

Thin lengthwise strips of eggplant get roasted before rolling, which makes them bend around the ricotta filling without cracking. Keep the filling thick and use less than seems right; overstuffed rolls split or unravel in the oven.

Prep 30min Cook 35min 4 servings

Pasta Medium

Kimchi Lentil Ragu Tagliatelle

Lentils simmered for about 30 minutes in tomato and vegetable stock stand in for ground meat, giving the ragu a similar small, chewy grain without any meat at all. Finely chopped onion, carrot and celery are sweated rather than browned, and the kimchi only joins in the final minutes so its sour bite stays distinct. Broad tagliatelle carries the thick sauce.

Prep 20min Cook 35min 4 servings

Deodeok Citrus Chicken Salad

Deodeok, a Korean mountain root, has an earthy smell and a gentle bitterness, and orange segments and arugula answer it with acidity and a peppery bitterness. The root is pounded and seared in the same pan as the chicken tenders, glazed with soy sauce, and a light dressing of lemon juice, soy sauce, olive oil and honey lands somewhere between Korean and Italian.

Prep 20min Cook 12min 2 servings

Western Medium

Fabada Asturiana (White Bean and Chorizo Stew)

Red, paprika-tinted fat from the chorizo slowly colors the broth while the large white beans of this Asturian stew soften all the way through without splitting. Bean starch and pork fat thicken it with no flour, and a shake of the pot rather than hard stirring keeps the bean skins whole.

Prep 15min Cook 120min 4 servings

Prep 10min Cook 15min 2 servings

Kimchi Tofu Alfredo Farfalle (Creamy Kimchi Bow-Tie Pasta)

Cubes of firm tofu, browned at the edges, do the job meat usually does, while kimchi squeezed of its juice lends a sour, spicy note to a Parmigiano cream sauce. Left mostly unturned while it fries, the tofu colors at the corners without breaking apart. Bow-tie farfalle holds pockets of sauce in its pinched centers.

Bellflower Root, Chestnut & Perilla Salad

Bellflower root and chestnuts both come into season in autumn, and this salad puts the lingering bitterness of lightly blanched root next to the soft, crumbly sweetness of cooked chestnut. Julienned Korean pear adds cool juice, and a cider vinegar dressing thickened with plenty of ground perilla seed ties everything together with a nutty, toasty aroma. Quartering the chestnuts lengthwise keeps them in chunky pieces that stand out, yellow against the white root and pear.

Prep 25min Cook 5min 4 servings

Western Medium

Feijoada (Black Bean and Pork Stew)

Served over rice with orange slices on the side, this Brazilian black bean and pork stew gets its smoky depth from thick-cut smoked sausage. The orange's acidity cuts through the richness of the pork shoulder, and cutting the sausage thick keeps some bite through the long simmer.

Prep 20min Cook 120min 4 servings

Prep 15min Cook 20min 2 servings

Kkaennip Mushroom Cream Farfalle

Kkaennip, the Korean perilla leaf, smells nothing like basil or mint, and its grassy herb note is what sets this mushroom cream sauce apart from other cream pastas. Its aroma fades with long simmering, so only part of the shredded leaves cooks in the sauce and the rest is scattered raw on top, layering the scent twice. Thick-sliced button mushrooms are cooked until their water is gone, so their flavor holds up against the cream. Parmesan brings salt to the sauce, and the pinched folds of farfalle trap it. If the sauce tightens, a tablespoon of pasta water at a time loosens it again.

Salads Easy

Tofu Salad (Pan-Seared Tofu on Fresh Greens)

Pressed for 20 minutes and seared until golden on each side, the tofu goes onto the salad still warm, a crisp-edged contrast to cool baby greens, cucumber and cherry tomatoes. The soy sauce, lemon and sesame oil dressing brings enough salt and acidity that the tofu itself needs no separate seasoning. Only the vegetables get dressed, with the tofu sitting on top so its browned surface stays dry until the first bite.

Prep 15min Cook 8min 2 servings

Prep 15min Cook 20min 4 servings

Frittata

With eight eggs the frittata is thick: the edges set on the stovetop, and the oven finishes the center without scorching the base. Shake excess water off the spinach, or it thins the eggs, and beat them gently: lots of air bubbles leave a coarse texture when sliced. The center is ready when a light press springs back. Leftover wedges work cold as a sandwich filling.

Prep 10min Cook 35min 4 servings

Lasagna Soup

Instead of baking layers, this soup puts the flavors of lasagna into a bowl: sausage and tomato broth, broken pasta sheets, and a soft cheese topping. The broth gets its base from raw pork sausage, skinned and crumbled as it browns, with tomato paste cooked in alongside. The noodles are broken into 3 to 4 cm pieces and boiled in a separate pot, then placed in the bowls before the soup is ladled over. That way they never sit in the pot soaking up broth. The ricotta, mozzarella, and Parmesan mixture warms on top and loosens into the broth as you eat. With salt coming from both sausage and cheese, the soup is seasoned last, a little at a time.

Salads Easy

Korean Tofu Yuja Salad (Pan-Fried Tofu Citrus Dressing)

Firm tofu is seared in a dry pan until golden, then dressed with yuja-cheong, a Korean citron marmalade, mixed with soy sauce, vinegar and olive oil. The citron peel gives a faint bitterness and a fragrance that soy sauce alone never brings to plain tofu. Yuja has been grown on Korea's southern coast, around Goheung and Namhae, since the Joseon era. Tofu that still holds water thins the dressing and mutes that fragrance. Thinly sliced onion and baby greens add crunch on top. Serve it within 2 hours, while the tofu still holds its firm shape.

⚡ 20-Minute Recipes 🥗 Lighter Meals

Prep 12min Cook 5min 2 servings

Prep 10min Cook 10min 2 servings

Gambas al Ajillo (Garlic Shrimp)

Garlic and dried chili warm slowly in olive oil until fragrant, the shrimp cook in that oil, and whatever is left gets mopped up with baguette. The garlic should only reach pale gold at the edges when the shrimp are added, because browned garlic turns the whole pan bitter.

⚡ 20-Minute Recipes

Prep 10min Cook 30min 2 servings

Meat Sauce Pasta

Most of the flavor comes from spreading the ground beef across a hot pan and letting the moisture cook off until brown bits form. Left in a heap, the meat steams pale instead. Tomato paste worked in between the meat without lumps, then a low simmer, gives a thick sauce that clings to the beef rather than pooling under the spaghetti. As it thickens it catches on the bottom easily and needs an occasional stir. There is no wine or milk, just beef, tomato, onion and garlic, finished with Parmesan and a few basil leaves.

Mexican Cactus Salad (Lime-Dressed Nopal Cactus Pad)

Nopales, flat cactus pads from Mexico, release a slippery juice like okra when boiled, yet keep a pleasantly chewy, crisp bite once cooked. Sharp lime juice and grassy cilantro play against the cactus's mild green flavor, with tomato and onion tossed through. Prep starts with gloves and a knife, scraping the tiny spines off both faces and the edges. In Mexico it goes alongside tacos, grilled meat or beans.

Prep 20min Cook 12min 2 servings

Prep 15min Cook 12min 2 servings

Garlic Butter Mussels

White wine, butter, and the juices the mussels release become one broth in the same pot, and baguette is there to soak it up. Opening shells tell you the mussels are done, so watch under the lid rather than the timer, and discard any that stay shut.

Pasta Medium

Minari Pesto Chicken Gemelli

Minari, a Korean water dropwort, takes the place of basil, blended with walnuts and Parmesan into a pesto that tastes green, cool and faintly bitter. Lemon juice keeps the oil-rich sauce from feeling heavy, and browned chicken thigh makes it a full meal. Crown daisy (ssukgat) can stand in when minari is hard to find, though the aroma shifts.

Prep 20min Cook 20min 4 servings

Farro Harvest Salad

Chewy farro, an old Italian wheat that holds its shape when boiled, carries oven-roasted pumpkin and red onion browned at the edges. Bitter arugula keeps the roasted sweetness from going one-note, and roughly crushed almonds add crunch. Balsamic vinegar and olive oil make up the whole dressing, light enough to leave each ingredient tasting like itself.

Prep 15min Cook 25min 2 servings

Prep 15min Cook 55min 4 servings

Crispy Fan-Cut Potatoes (Garlic Butter Accordion Bake)

Cut almost all the way through and roasted, these potatoes fan open in the oven: thin, chip-crisp edges outside, soft flesh in the center. Laying chopsticks on either side of each potato stops the knife before it slices through the base.

Prep 12min Cook 15min 2 servings

Orecchiette with Broccoli Rabe

The orecchiette boil in the same water the broccoli rabe was blanched in, so the little ear-shaped pasta picks up the greens' bitterness too. If that is too much, blanch the rabe a bit longer.

Freekeh Herb Salad (Smoky Roasted Wheat & Fresh Herbs)

Freekeh starts as young green wheat that is fire-roasted on the stalk, then threshed and dried, which leaves a faint smoky note in every grain. Boiled, it stays chewy and keeps its shape among the vegetables. Parsley and cilantro, chopped down to their tender stems, lift the smoke with fresh green aroma, and lemon juice with olive oil forms the only dressing. Herbs stirred into hot grain lose their scent, so the freekeh is spread out to cool until just lukewarm first. An hour's rest after mixing lets the dressing soak into the grains.