Rice

Using a vanilla bean makes this creamy pudding extra special and aromatic. But if you don’t have one on hand, just stir 1 tablespoon vanilla extract into the pudding along with the egg yolks. Although rice pudding is traditionally served cold, I also like this when it’s still warm and a little runny, poured over sliced strawberries and raspberries, which add both juiciness and acidity.

Based on a Middle Eastern mujaddara, a homey mix of spiced simmered lentils and rice, this easy, meatless dish is rich with allspice, cinnamon, and sweet browned leeks. The handful of baby spinach stirred in toward the end turns it into a one-pot meal, and adds a bit of welcome color, too. If you don’t have leeks, use an onion or two instead.

We took loose inspiration from Hainanese chicken rice to create this weeknight-friendly dish that retains the comforting and fragrant qualities of the beloved original.

The transformative power of our new favorite seedy, spicy, crunchy, garlicky oil is on full display in this dinner of simply seared scallops. A couple of drizzles adds a spice drawer’s worth of flavor in seconds.

With its crinkly texture, savoy cabbage is our go-to for stuffed cabbage, but the regular ol’ green variety also works. Both will become meltingly tender.

This Northern Iranian dish traditionally features wild greens. This version is made with braised spinach, herbs, and eggs—and gets a vibrant boost of flavor from lime juice.

Frozen fava beans make easy work of this fragrant rice dish, and you could also replace them with shelled lima beans or edamame instead.

This is a very simple way to make wonderful rice in under an hour. It is a technique favored around the Caspian, where rice is eaten for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

The Italian word for the ideal risotto texture is all’onda—literally, “like a wave.” Risotto should spread and move and undulate. If you can stand a spoon up in it, it needs more liquid.

Gluten-free meatballs are as easy as adding cooled cooked rice instead of bread to ground meat.

It’s a humble combination of two everyday ingredients, but Kiribath has enormous significance in Sri Lanka—it’s cooked by the Sinhalese to mark the new year in April, and on other special occasions that celebrate new beginnings.

Miso and a paprika-packed squash purée makes this dairy-free risotto hearty and satisfying. Double or triple the squash purée, and use it in other meals throughout the week.

You can fold all the toppings into the rice and it’ll still be delicious—but you’ll get maximum wow factor if you create a pattern with them on top.