Herbs & Spices

You’ll find Korean rice cakes in all kinds of shapes and sizes—from long cylinders to thin, oblong rounds. While their flavor does not change according to shape, textures do. Thin rice cakes work well for this stir-fry, as they quickly absorb flavors and soften into crispy, chewy coins.

This dish of tender spiced goat layered with saffron rice, cashews, and golden raisins is a celebratory meal ideal for birthdays and holidays of all kinds.

This aromatic rice pudding is flavored with cinnamon and cardamom, and gets a topping of pistachios and edible flowers.

This creamy, frozen Indian dessert gets its flavor from finely ground pistachios and a pinch of floral, earthy saffron.

These milky little doughnuts are a burnished bronze on the outside, white and cakey inside, and soaked to the core with delicately flavored rose syrup.

These crispy fritters are made with grated carrots, onions, and ginger, plus garam masala and chile. The dipping sauce has a hefty pour of bourbon, which adds warming depth.

This golden-hued turmeric hot toddy from Claire Sprouse of Brooklyn’s Hunky Dory is wonderfully savory from the combination of nutty Amontillado sherry and earthy turmeric.

Pakistani haleem is a warmly spiced, satisfyingly thick stew made from long-simmered lentils, barley, and bone-in chunks of lamb or goat.

The thought of making homemade caramel sauce is daunting for many cooks, but there’s no reason to be intimidated. It’s simple to prepare and, start to finish, takes only 15 to 20 minutes, after which you have a luscious, full-bodied sauce to drizzle on apple and peach pies, use in and on cream pies, and top off pie à la mode. No fancy equipment needed: just a 3-quart stainless steel saucepan and a candy thermometer.

My classic salted caramel, enriched with butter and a touch of cream for a thick, smooth sauce, is perfect as a pie topping, or served alongside à la mode slices.

It’s never a bad idea to serve pie with plenty of whipped cream. Think your pie is sweet enough? You can leave the sugar out—ain’t nothin’ wrong with plain ol’ whipped cream. For a luxurious twist, try the mascarpone variation below.

This one-skillet dinner gets deep oniony flavor from lots of leeks cooked down to jammy tenderness.

The combination of beets and ginger gives you a great spectrum of flavors, while crunchy toasted cashews and a mess of crispy sunchoke chips lend contrasting texture.

Hot pepper is notably absent from this mixture—unlike curry powder from Madras. Trinidadians like to add fresh hot pepper to dishes, according to taste.

Green seasoning is one of those herb mixtures that is unique to the Caribbean and differs slightly from island to island.

I love the flavor of orange zest and spices in a café de olla, so I created a concentrated syrup that is ready on demand to flavor any cold brew. Coconuts are grown all along the Pacific coast of Mexico; use coconut milk to add richness and even more tropical flavor.

This super-flavorful dish spins the flavors of shish barak—lamb and pine nut dumplings from the Levant—in a pasta direction.

Fresh salmon makes these ginger and scallion-laced burgers luscious and flavorful. Pile them high with peppery watercress, crunchy cucumber quick pickles, fragrant mint, and cilantro.