East Asian

The two-pronged cooking method used for these wings —incorporating both braising and deep-frying — is a takeoff on the Chinese technique of steaming, then frying. We think it keeps the meat unbelievably tender while getting the skin supercrispy. Be sure to allow 2 hours for the wings to marinate.

Serve the salmon with steamed rice tossed with shelled edamame (fresh green soybeans). Market tip: Choose wild Alaskan salmon, which is abundant and well regulated. Farmed salmon is controversial; salmon farms pollute wild salmon habitats and spread disease to wild salmon stocks.

The salsa has a nice balance of sweet and spicy flvaors and is a perfect compliment to purchased frozen spring rolls or egg rolls.

Homemade taro root cake is unsurpassed if the home cook doesn't skimp on the ingredients. Thick slices of taro cake, richly flavored with scallops, mushrooms, shrimp, Chinese bacon, and creamy taro are pan-fried until golden brown and fragrant. My Auntie Ivy's mother, Che Chung Ng, makes such a recipe and is famous in the family for both her Turnip Cake and Taro Root Cake. Every New Year, she cooks several cakes and gives them away as gifts to close family members. Nothing is measured exactly, and it is impressive to see her produce cake after cake, especially because she is over eighty years old. Spry and agile, she cooks with full energy and total intuition, never missing a beat. She kindly taught me this recipe and the one for Turnip Cake. Wear rubber gloves when handling taro, as some people can have an allergic reaction to touching it. Also use rice flour, not glutinous flour! See the introduction to Turnip Cake for how to serve and store this New Year's cake.

Active time: 30 min Start to finish: 1 1/2 hr

At Aqua, the sea bass is presented with shrimp tortellini in lobster consommé.

A mildly sweet and pungent dish. No soy sauce is used in the sauce, so it is lighter in color than other sweet and pungent dishes.

When we were children, shrimp dumplings were our favorite dim sum dish. The classic filling is shrimp and bamboo shoots. The dough is not difficult to make, but it is very important that the water be boiling hot. If it is not hot enough, the wheat starch will not cook and the dough will not work. Wheat starch _(dung fun)_is only available in Chinatown; regular white flour is not a substitute. The tortilla press used here is excellent for making the dough into thin, uniform rounds, but you can also make the dumplings by hand: Roll the dough into scant 1-inch balls. Place one ball between your lightly floured hands and press to form a circle. Press the dough evenly with your fingertips to make it as thin as possible, about 3 inches in diameter and a scant 1/8-inch thick.

"Recently, I had dinner at the super-romantic Shadowbrook Restaurant in nearby Capitola," writes Holly M. Sharps of Menlo Park, California. "To get to Shadowbrook, you have to take a cable car down a hill. The restaurant is on several levels and has spectacular views of the ocean — not to mention great food. The salmon was absolutely delicious." The sake- and soy-based ponzu sauce is traditionally a Japanese dipping sauce. Here, it’s used to baste the fish as it cooks.

Can be prepared in less than 45 minutes.

Tingly, salty, and irresistibly crunchy, this salt-and-pepper shrimp with cubes of crispy polenta (yes, from those tubes!) is a weeknight MVP.

This classic Japanese comfort food is a combination of chicken and egg (oyako means “parent and child”) simmered in sweet-savory broth and served over rice.

Freezer-friendly—and always a big hit with family and friends.

Spicy tinned salmon (or tuna!) is a fast track to flavor in these simple hand rolls—particularly when mashed with some oil from the can and a slick of mayo.

Bouncy rice cakes turn this spicy Korean classic into a perfect weeknight dinner.

This gingery stir-fry comes together in under 30 minutes.

This gentle take on Korean soondubu jjigae will soothe adults and little ones alike.

This quick and crunchy dish relies on high heat and malty black vinegar.