Weeknight Meals

Diane Brown Savahge of Los Angeles, California, writes: "I'm a part-time restaurant manager and food writer, and occasionally I teach cooking classes. One piece of advice I always share with my students is to keep the ingredients list short — you don't need to empty out your refrigerator to make a great meal. You just need a few quality ingredients with bold flavors."

A Vietnamese-inspired soup for using up your Thanksgiving leftovers.

This pan-Asian tofu gets brilliant color and lively flavor from an easy cilantro pesto. To make this dish vegetarian, you can simply replace the fish sauce with soy sauce.

This simple Chinese preparation enhances the briny flavor of cockles. If cockles are hard to find in your area, you can substitute other small hard-shelled clams (though steaming time will vary with the type and size).

A butcher may have to cut these impressive, extra-thick steaks for you.

What to drink: Syrah (or Shiraz, as it's called if Australian), or any medium-bodied, fruity red wine.