East Asian

For authentic flavor and texture in this dish, the meat should be sliced very thinly. To firm up the steak and make it easier to slice, place it in the freezer for 30 minutes to 1 hour first, and use a very sharp knife.

Cumin makes this easy stir-fry exceptionally fragrant, while the last-minute addition of celery leaves creates a counterpoint of aromatic freshness.

This classic Mandarin Chinese recipe can be made with either ground beef or pork.

This simple, delicious dish hails from China's Shanghai region. It's a great way to use up leftover rice—if your rice is already cooked, you'll need 3 cups of it.

This spicy Sichuan dish gets its layers of flavor from two different types of heat: fiery chiles and mildly numbing Sichuan peppercorns.

The spirit of Japan comes through in this dish: It is lovely to behold and has a delicate, light quality, yet the extraordinary flavors will seize your attention with the culinary equivalent of surround sound.

The Lisu are one of many distinctive cultural groups who live in the mountains of southwestern Yunnan province.

Knowing that every Japanese cook would have strong opinions on the preparation of white rice, Ruggiero counted on her friend Ryuji Inoue, originally from Kyushu, Japan, for guidance. The result is fluffy and slightly stickier than Chinese rice. Even without a rice cooker, the rice comes out just perfect.

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.

You'll want to have plenty of white rice on hand to soak up the incredibly complex sweet-and-sour sauce that adorns these ribs.

The Japanese are wild about pickles, pickling practically every vegetable and root they come across—and in sweet, salty, sour, and bitter incarnations to boot. In this classic, a hit of wasabi powder adds a subtle heat to these savory quick pickles.

These candies are very chewy. The combination of dates and nuts is classically Middle Eastern, as in Turkish delight, but Chinese confectioners have adopted the combination as their own. You will often see versions of this easy-to-make candy around the Chinese New Year. A celebratory gift, they are traditionally wrapped in thin rice paper, but plastic wrap works just as well. CHEF'S TIP: Maltose gives this candy its distinctive subtle sweetness and chewy texture. It can be found in most Asian or natural food markets.

These classic pleated Chinese dumplings are delicious either steamed or fried. When fried, they're called "pot stickers." Though the dough is easy to make, if you're short on time you can use premade round gyoza wrappers (also called dumpling or pot sticker wrappers) instead. Look for them in Asian markets and the refrigerated section of many grocery stores.

This would be great with take-out sushi.

It may sound like the kind of bogus claim made on late-night infomercials, but trust us when we say it's true: You really can have juicy ribs ready in an hour! Finishing the ribs under the broiler is the secret to getting a perfectly crisp-moist texture.

If you've never had pale-fleshed Japanese sweet potatoes before, you'll be surprised by their subtler, drier flesh, which tastes unmistakably of chestnut. A bit of miso mixed into the scallion butter stealthily rounds out the interplay of sweet and umami that will have you eating all the way through to the last flaky remnants of skin.

Beware—once you've had a few bites of this rice, you'll surely be back for seconds and thirds. Loaded with bits of treasure—smoked oysters, meaty mushrooms, Chinese sausage that tastes almost candied—the rice itself has an amazing chew that exemplifies the Chinese genius for varying textures in a meal. Though the lotus-leaf wrapping is optional, the rice gains a beguiling aroma, suggestive of tea, if you do use it—and the drama of unwrapping the stuffing at the table, like a lovely present, shouldn't be underestimated.

Use any seasonal squash you like in this comforting and creamy soup.