Weeknight Meals

Serve with purchased guacamole.

Even lovelier atop coarsely torn escarole.

A satisfying first-course salad with beautifully balanced Asian flavors.

Use small heirloom tomatoes in assorted colors for a pretty presentation.

Be sure to use a dry skillet when browning quesadillas.

Yogurt dressing best complements the flavor of these veggies.

Baby arugula is sold prepackaged in markets. It has a clean, sharp flavor.

Cooking time may vary, depending on the thickness of the chicken. Check for doneness.

Editor's note: The recipe below is from Perfect Parties, by Linnea Johansson.

Serve this yogurt-based Greek staple as a first-course accompaniment to pitas and other breads, or as a light but creamy sauce drizzled over spiced roasted meats.

The tropical relish that tops these chops is a nod to the Caribbean climes and palm-tree breezes that are the stuff Jimmy Buffett songs are practically made of—a veritable paradise in this dish for two.

This soup from Tien Dinh at Pho, in Las Vegas, delivers vitamin A.

Xiao Fan's spicy sauce will transform not only this steamed chicken but also plain rice, noodles, tofu, even grilled steak. The sauce can be doubled and leftovers chilled for a week. To reheat, add a bit of broth or water and simmer for about a minute.

If using dried shrimp, grind to a powder in an electric coffee/spice grinder or use mortar and pestle. Seasoning paste can be made ahead and chilled, covered, up to 1 week or frozen 1 month.

Fiery Buffalo sauce gives buttery salmon tanginess and heat, while a sprinkling of breadcrumbs lends a satisfying crunch.

The glaze, which goes on the asparagus as well as the steak, has a rich sweetness that is transformed into something wonderfully complex once it hits the heat of the grill.

Visually, this dish speaks softly, but it combines quite a number of sensations: a buttery fish, sautéed for a crisp skin, and a broth of such depth you'll never believe it was simmered for just five minutes. The mixture of enoki and shimeji mushrooms looks gorgeous and lends a meatiness, punctuated by an elusive woodsy smokiness, to the sansho-flecked broth.

Travel editor William Sertl took a weeklong boot-camp course at The Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York. For this classic French dish, students were taught how to sauté the chicken on one side—without touching it—until it's golden, before turning it only once. The pan-sauce lesson that followed yielded a simple, elegant cloak for the very juicy chicken.