Claire Saffitz

Did you think a juicy, savory, filling gyro was only something you could find at a Greek restaurant? Think again. Our version has everything you love about the classic—crispy lamb, creamy yogurt, and crunchy vegetables—and serves it up fast using only 10 ingredients. And, if you’re not a lamb person, you can easily make this recipe with ground pork or beef.

Harissa, a spicy North African paste of chiles, garlic, and spices, is available in many large grocery stores and Middle Eastern markets—some brands come in tubes, others are sold in jars. If you can’t find it, though, substitute by mixing together your favorite hot sauce, tomato paste, a pinch or two of ground cumin, and a drizzle of olive oil. Keep playing with the ratios until you have a medium-spicy paste.

This recipe makes just enough salsa verde to coat one bag of chips, but it's so tasty and versatile that we always make a double batch. If you can, choose a heftier chip that will hold up when stirred into the sauce.

Learning how to properly caramelize onions is key. Once you've mastered the basic technique, you’ll use them for everything from French onion soup to onion dip to topping burgers.

Cooking bacon in the oven on a sheet tray is so hands-off, so splatter-free, and so easy, it just might convince you to eat a lot more bacon in the future.

These super-flavorful, no-fry chicken wings turn out best when they’re seasoned ahead of time. You can do this as little as 1 hour in advance, but letting them hang out with salt and those spices overnight is a complete game changer.

These easy crumble bars are the ultimate bring-over dessert. They're incredible when made with blackberries, but any other berries that look good—raspberries, blueberries, strawberries, or a even a combination—make a more than acceptable substitute.

Use one flavor (like pistachio) for this ice cream cookie sandwiches recipe, or mix it up: Each pint will yield enough ice cream for three sandwiches.

These cookies are meant to be eaten frozen, so you might be surprised by the amount of salt. Don't be! Chilling dulls flavors and the extra salt gives them the boost they need.

Skirt steak is the ultimate summer steak for grilling—quick cooking, buttery, and versatile.

This chopped pesto requires nothing more than a cutting board and a knife.

This dressing is creamy, savory, and perfectly balanced. Put it on udon noodles—or just drink it.

This dressing is delicious on a colorful cold noodle salad with shrimp.

Summer dessert should be anything but complicated. These buttery crumbs work on pretty much anything.

This all-purpose sauce will go with any protein and doubles as a great dressing for summer salads.

This savory, addictive dressing will taste good on just about anything, including cold noodle salads.

The two flavors, miso and mustard, make an unlikely but incredibly delicious pair.

Choose dates that are soft and pliable—even if that means pitting them yourself.

Too many morning buns for your crowd? This recipe halves easily.

This colorful cold noodle salad is infinitely riffable.