Garlic

Upgrade the old-school party staple with this colorful 2011 mix. It can be made up to 1 week ahead.

This one is Italy, pure and simple. Which is precisely what Italian cuisine is all about: Get yourself fresh, pure ingredients in season, plus some fine, real condiments and seasonings, and put it all together without a lot of fuss, and ecco! A simply superb meal, as healthy as they come and as good as eating gets. It's also beautiful on the plate. Note that scampi does not, in fact, mean shrimp, as many people think, but rather refers to the popular lemon, garlic, and oil preparation for shrimp in so many red-sauce Italian joints.

The acidity of the tomatillos beautifully balances the fat of the pork shoulder, so when serving the tacos there is no need for lime wedges. The onion and additional cilantro provide crunch and fragrance.

Editor's note: Use this recipe to make Black Rice with Squid .

• Picada is an aromatic sauce traditionally used in Catalan cuisine as a base flavoring for many dishes. It is also often added toward the end of cooking.
• Picada will keep for 1 week in the fridge or 6 months in the freezer.

Editor's note: Use this recipe to make Black Rice with Squid . -Sofrito is a basic preparation of tomatoes, garlic, oil, and onions that forms the base of many traditional Spanish dishes.
-The sauce will keep for 5 days in the fridge or 6 months in the freezer.

Look for shichimi togarashi, a Japanese seasoning mix, at Japanese markets and savoryspiceshop.com.

In most parts of Texas, enchiladas are rolled tortillas stuffed with a filling and covered in sauce. But often in West Texas (and also New Mexico) the filling and sauce are instead layered between flat tortillas. They look a bit different, but the end taste is the same, not to mention stacked enchiladas are a heck of a lot easier to make. Another feature of stacked enchiladas is the inclusion of a fried egg on top. I don't know how this tradition came about, but it's a brilliant addition. When the yolk mixes with the sauce, its creamy transformation takes the sauce from merely delicious to truly decadent. I was born and raised a rolled-enchilada girl, but I can appreciate a plate of stacked ones, especially those made with an ancho chile sauce. And if I squint, I can see in the stack the rugged terrain of West Texas, with the egg standing in for clouds and the sun. It's West Texas on a plate.

Lan Pham was 2 years old when she immigrated to the United States from Vietnam with her family. Her father became a State Department official assigned to various posts in Asia and Africa and she lived in the Philippines during an earthquake and during a political uprising that closed her school. During civil unrest in Ethiopia, U.S. Marines escorted her to class. Yearly monsoons punctuated the relative calm of her high school years in Thailand. When she serves these herb-roasted allium, she tells her guests: "to taste, just one taste, and they are surprised by the sweet flavor and rich aroma. I tell them everybody knows that slow-cooked onions don't give bad breath."

Annie Lau is ethnically Chinese, born in Malaysia. Her husband is ethnically Chinese, and born in Hawaii. The couple moved to San Jose in the late 1990s and their kitchen is a laboratory where their regional and ethnic influences meet local ingredients. Neither had seen to Brussels sprouts before moving to California, but after numerous attempts, they devised a recipe to bring out the nutty sweetness in the little cabbages. The final recipe, Ms. Lau says, "is an experiment in laziness. The less you do, the better." Try to pick similar size sprouts.

Braising the pork belly yields crisp-tender nuggets ready to mingle with caramelized sweet potatoes. "It's a very American profile, sweet potato and pork," says Jared Wentworth, the chef at Chicago's Longman & Eagle, who gave us this recipe.

This herb-scented, brined bird packs more flavor than a basic roast chicken.

Lemon and oil is a magical marriage that stumps our companions whenever we serve it. "Sumac?" they guess. "Pickled plum? Verjus?" Beautiful in its simplicity, this vinaigrette is our most-oft served, as it is the one most likely to improve any salad it meets.

Our lighter take on the Gilroy Garlic Fries at the San Francisco Giants' AT&T Park forgoes the deep fryer in favor of a hot oven.

Infuse lemony, garlicky chicken with even more flavor by basting it with rosemary branches dipped in olive oil.

An aromatic broth of garlic, scallions, and ginger infuses the fish and helps keep it incredibly moist.

Soy Free Tabbouleh, tabouli, tabouleh, taboolee . . . however you wanna spell it, it spells YUM! It has a clean, light flavor that just tastes healthy. If you have a food processor, now is the time to use it.

This dish is truly indestructible because the cutlets marinate in lots of yogurt, olive oil, and salt. That way they stay juicy, briny, and flavorful. Because they're pounded thin, they cook quickly and evenly, so there's not a lot of time spent poking and prodding and stressing about whether they're done.