Kwanzaa

You can use any firm white fish, such as cod, bream, hake, or haddock, for this Algerian couscous.

This Algerian couscous is like a fish soup served over the grain. Small fish are left whole and large ones are cut into steaks, but I prefer to use fillets, because it is unpleasant to deal with fish bones here. Use firm white fish such as turbot, bream, cod, haddock, and monkfish.

The special feature of this dish is the exquisite mix of honeyed caramelized onions and raisins called tfaya which is served as a topping of the long-cooked, deliciously tender meat. The broth which moistens the grain is the meat broth. A sprinkling of fried or toasted almonds is an optional garnish.

This is the most famous Moroccan couscous, which you can improvise around. It can be made with lamb or chicken or with a mix of the two. In local lore, the number seven has mystical qualities. It brings good luck. Choose seven vegetables out of those listed—onions and tomatoes do not count as vegetables but as flavorings, so choose seven more. It is a long list of ingredients, but the making of the dish is simple—a matter of throwing things into a pot—and it feeds a big party. The soup or stew can be prepared well in advance, and so can the grain.

A North African way of cooking carrots.

This is elegant and tasty party fare. The pastries are called briouats in Morocco, where they are made with the paper-thin pancakes called ouarka. Fillo makes an easy and perfect substitute. You can keep the prepared rolls uncooked in the freezer. In Morocco they are fried, but it is much easier to bake them, and the results are very good.

For this North African salad, use a firm white fish such as cod, haddock, or monkfish.

Make this fiery Tunisian salad with old carrots, which taste better, and add the flavorings gradually, to taste. The color is beautiful. Serve as a dip with bread or bits of raw vegetables.

Editor's note: Chef, nutritionist, and cooking teacher Lourdes Castro shared this recipe from her cookbook, Latin Grilling. It's part of a festive Cuban party menu she created for Epicurious. Plantains, ripe or unripe, are a staple of Cuban cooking. And while everyone loves the ripe ones (maduros), no one ever wants to make them. Typically deep-fried, they are a mess to make and never seem to come out with that candylike coating you get at good restaurants. This recipe solves the problem: simply grilling very ripe plantains and basting them with a butter-sugar glaze is all it takes to re-create the good stuff. These are a must at all my family cookouts.

The saucy mixture of Parmesan, cheddar, bell pepper, and sweet-tangy Peppadew peppers coats the pasta perfectly—and the panko topping adds just enough crunch.

In Morocco every meal is a special occasion, and almond-paste sweets are always part of the menu. M'hanncha (snake) is made from rolled phyllo pastry coiled to look like a serpent. The orange-flower water and cinnamon flavorings are very North African, revealing the Persian influences in the region.

Piri-piri chicken is a spicy dish with roots in both Africa and Portugal. The dish was created in Angola and Mozambique when Portuguese settlers arrived with chile peppers (known as piri-piri in Swahili). Timing note: The chicken needs to marinate for at least four hours before being grilled.

These skewers of marinated barbecued shrimp are pure cocktail fun because you can eat the sugarcane skewers as well. The cane gives the shrimp a subtle sweetness and everyone loves to suck on the skewers after the shrimp are but a memory.

Editor's note: The recipe and introductory text below are from A Kwanzaa Keepsake by Jessica B. Harris. The traditional roast pork is given a southern accent with a crust of well–seasoned crushed pecans. Thinly sliced pork loin with a slathering of chutney makes perfect sandwiches to take to work or school.

Andouille, the heavily spiced and smoked sausage that is a linchpin of so many Cajun dishes, adds its inimitable heat to an able stuffing stand-in. A swirl of cream gravy (above) can help quell the spice.

This North African-inspired stew is lighter than traditional stews because there's less meat and more vegetables. Shell beans add to the brightness and freshness of the dish. Start the stew a day in advance—the lamb needs to marinate overnight.

The area in Harlem where I live is known as Little West Africa because of the huge concentration of immigrants from Senegal, Mali, and Nigeria who keep their heritage alive in the neighborhood's shops and restaurants. At the heart of this vibrant community is Les Embassades, our local bakery and café, where my neighbors gather to eat, visit, and hang out. The café is owned by my friend Abe and his wife, who came to America from Senegal in the 1980s. Abe is truly living the American dream: Not only does he own his own successful business, he helps newcomers find a place where they can feel at home in a strange new country. This Senegalese-style stew is inspired by the many meals I've had at Les Embassades and features the typical flavors of West Africa—yams, peanuts, coconut milk, and morning glory, a green vegetable also known as water spinach or swamp cabbage.

A restaurant kitchen can be a virtual United Nations, with a staff made up of people from around the world. A dishwasher at Aquavit who comes from Mali told me about the typical midday meal he had growing up: peanut stew made with onion, tomatoes, and spinach served over rice. His description was the starting point for this peanutty stew, an elegant interpretation of a dish eaten throughout West Africa every day.