Hot peppers are most popular in hot areas of the world where they say the spice helps you cool down. This seems counter-intuitive to me but from Mexico to Thailand, India to Spain you find peppers a key part of the cuisine. I’m somewhat of a wuss when it comes to heat and consider these recipes medium-hot, but it you’re a chile-head you can easily bump up the heat by adding fresh or dried peppers or even cayenne. And aside from the Jerked Mahi-mahi, they are slow-braised meals so a great choice on a chilly Saturday or Sunday afternoon.

Mexican Pot Roast: Deeply, Darkly, Delicious

I'm not sure what prompted this Mexican Pot Roast. Although I like Mexican food very much, I don’t make it very often, but as I was trying to decide how to cook a chuck roast I'd bought this recipe leapt to mind and, in my mind's mouth, it tasted absolutely delicious. So of course I had to make it. I also decided to steal a couple of licks from other Mexican/Southwestern dishes and shredded the beef before serving it on corn tortillas.More »

Chicken Tikka Masala: Made in Britain

Tikka Masala is reportedly the most popular restaurant dish in England (the Brits do love their Indian restaurants). But just as General Tso's Chicken is an American invention, Tikka Masala is a British invention - not that it matters. It's an easy dish to make and if you discount the time it spends marinating in the refrigerator it's also quick to make, meaning you can serve it within 30 minutes.More »

Jerked Mahi-Mahi: Pacific Fish, Atlantic Spice

This jerked mahi-mahi turned out beautifully. My neighbor took a six-week vacation a couple of months ago and before leaving he passed on a couple of frozen mahi-mahi filets to me. I broiled one filet using a favorite recipe but wanted something a bit different for the second. I recently made a jerked pork tenderloin and decided to try jerking the fish. Very good. And easy.More »

9-boy Chicken Curry Recipe

During the British colonial period curry was served with an array of condiments such as bananas, peanuts, and chutney. Each condiment was served by a different servant: a "boy." Consequently the more condiments you offered the more boys you could afford and the higher your status so a 10-boy curry was more prestigious than a 5-boy curry. The condiments can be anything that appeals to you and the idea is that each bite of curry is different from the last providing a kaleidoscope of flavors and tastes. I find that sweet flavors are particularly good with curry, but salty and savory flavors are also delicious. Like many such dishes, it's better the second day so make leftovers.More »

Grilled Moorish Pork Kabobs (Pinchos Morunos)

Although these Moorish pork kebabs aren't the most memorable meal I've eaten in my entire life (that was roast suckling pig in Spain at a café perched on the edge of the abyss in Rhonda (image, the café is in the upper right-hand corner). This is nevertheless an astoundingly good recipe - the Spaniards really know (and love) their pork. The combination of Moroccan (Moorish) spices and pork is amazing.More »

Gumbo: Caribbean Savor

I adore gumbo and when I lived in Sacramento I discovered a Jamaican restaurant, Celestine's, that specialized in gumbo. It was a different style of gumbo than I knew from New Orleans but absolutely excellent. Gumbo is distinguished by the roux - a combination of oil or fat and flour. But while in traditional French cooking roux is a thickening agent, in Creole and Cajun cuisine it is a flavoring agent - the roux is often cooked to the point that it has almost no thickening power - just flavor power. In gumbo thickening comes from okra or file.More »