Turmeric

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

This recipe is an accompaniment for Moroccan Lamb Kebabs.

Serve this fiery entrée with <epi:recipeLink id"100959">Five-Vegetable Stir-fry</epi:recipeLink>, and pour tall glasses of herbal iced tea to cool things down.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

This light soup makes a lovely first course.

Jeera Aloo This is one of the most popular everyday techniques for cooking vegetables in North India. It's so simple: cooked vegetables are pan-seared in a spice-infused oil. Any seasonal vegetable will work although starchy vegetables like potatoes, sweet potatoes, taro root, and plantains are preferred. The potatoes are great at breakfast or with grilled meats. For a vegetarian meal, roll them in a flatbread or stuff them in pita pockets with lettuce and tomato slices.

Aromatic spice and herb blends can quickly turn an ordinary soup recipe into something extraordinary. Here they transform a basic carrot soup into a special concoction you'll crave again and again. So start utilizing the "cook once, eat twice" theory; just freeze half of the recipe or make a double batch whenever possible.

This chicken is incredibly crispy and intensely flavorful, making it an exciting alternative to milder roast chicken recipes. Weighting the chicken ensures that each piece is of the same thickness, so they cook quickly and evenly. The weight also causes the fat under the skin to render, melting out and leaving the skin deliciously crisp. When you buy the chicken for this recipe, ask your butcher to remove the back and breast bones and halve the bird so that there is a drumstick and wing on each side.

In this recipe, matzo meal binds a delicious stuffing that features ground lamb, pine nuts, fresh mint and turmeric.

The acidity of the vinegar and grapefruit is balanced by the quince, apple, and pear flavors in this French-style chutney. Bananas add creaminess. Use ripe fruit for best results.

Creamy fresh cheese meets spinach in this Indian classic.

In Indian cooking, tikka refers to chunks of meat cooked on skewers.

Rupa De of West Lafayette, Indiana, writes: "Since I am originally from India, many of my non-Indian friends have asked me for a chicken curry recipe, and this is the one I give them. I hope your readers will enjoy it, too."

Mensaf This recipe, adapted from Kathy Sullivan and Janine El Tal, international educators and longtime residents of Jordan, is a scaled-down version of that country's national dish, which is usually served in large quantities at important gatherings. Mensaf is eaten standing up, using the right hand to form a little ball of rice and meat. Traditionally, jameed, a ball of reconstituted sun-dried yogurt, is used to make the sauce, but it is replaced here by regular plain yogurt that has been stabilized (with egg white and cornstarch) for cooking. Buy the richest, tangiest yogurt you can find. Active time: 55 min Start to finish: 3 1/2 hr

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less but requires additional unattended time.

Causa Limena Editor's Note: This recipe and introductory text are excerpted from The Exotic Kitchens of Peru, by Copeland Marks. We've also added some tips of our own below. For a complete guide to Peruvian cuisine, click here. This appetizer, a popular national dish, is from Lima, the capital city of Peru, which has metropolitan and modern ideas. The dictionary does not reveal how the word "causa” came to be applied to a concoction, albeit a delicious one, that features cold mashed potatoes. A causa is considered a light lunch or snack, a most appealing dish that is often served at weddings or other celebrations.