Vegan

Try to buy ripe tomatoes or let them ripen in a paper bag with an apple for two days.

In this recipe, the potatoes are boiled, gently flattened in a kitchen towel, brushed with oil, and grilled. The result? Potatoes that are creamy on the inside and crispy on the outside.

Tomatoes at the peak of flavor need only fresh herbs, a drizzle of olive oil, and a few minutes on a hot grill.

All the flavors of the cold Spanish soup—in a chunky salsa. The secret ingredient here is smoked paprika, which is now available in the spice section of many supermarkets. That variety is slightly sweet, but a hot version (available at specialty foods stores) can be used instead, if you want more heat.

Six ingredients yield big dividends. Be sure to use a good-quality fruity olive oil.

The chutney is macerated in vinegar and sugar, creating a syrupy sauce that also softens the fruit.

Cooking cruciferous vegetables without boiling them, as in this recipe, seems to make them more fragrant and heady—just the way the robust Romans like their food.

For a healthier alternative to french fries, try this baked version.

This recipe originally accompanied Ratatouille .

This recipe calls for a thin, freshly made tomato sauce. Using this sauce will produce the best flavor and texture, but in a pinch you could substitute any plain canned sauce.

In Morocco, toasted cumin is served right beside salt and pepper as a standard seasoning at every meal. Judging by the way it amplifies the taste of the roasted eggplant in this dish, the Moroccans have got the right idea.

Instead of the often-leaden, mayo-heavy supermarket slaw, why not try this wonderfully crisp version? The ginger and rice vinegar provide a fresh, clean flavor, and the serrano gives it just the right spark of heat.

You might run across purslane, with its glossy, plump leaves, at a farmers market—and you might even find it growing in the cracks of your sidewalk or in your yard. Luckily, this incredibly nutritious and juicy green is a weed, which means it pops up wild nearly everywhere. Lots of chopped parsley and a simple vinaigrette flatter its herbal, lemony crunch.

As a wake-up call to his taste buds, food editor Ian Knauer adds a dollop of this vibrant, garlicky hot sauce to his egg sandwich (it often finds its way onto his lunch and dinner plates, too). Its versatility is the key—any variety or combination of chiles will produce a different yet full-flavored, lip-tingling sauce.

This pretty salad gets its name from the long slices of zucchini, which resemble tagliatelle pasta. I like to mix in some fresh mint and lemon for a nice zip, cucumber and sweet onion for crunch, and pistachio oil for fabulous depth of flavor.

Bright, fresh, and vinegary-tart, this is a fun play on Sicilian caponata, a dish made with eggplant, tomatoes, onions, and olives. For a twist on the classic, I like to serve slices of eggplant topped with chunky tomato salsa. The dish can be a first course or part of an easy buffet lunch.