Go for the gold: What to Cook Right Now

January 10, 2022

Kate Sears for The New York Times

What to Cook Right Now

By Sam Sifton

Good morning. It takes a special kind of optimist to believe that the microwave bean and cheese burrito at the gas station might actually be good. And that's me six times a year, even if I know deep down that it won't satisfy, and that I'll regret my decision to eat it by the third bite. The thrill is in the possibility: What if this one is great?

That's why I'm so excited by Kay Chun's new recipe for bean and cheese burritos (above). It's an actually great dinnertime burrito: vegetarian refried beans with caramelized onions, bell peppers, garlic and smoked paprika, cloaked in cheese and swaddled in a big tortilla for a deeply satisfying meal. I want to make that tonight and on coming Monday nights until I never glance at the frozen burritos at the convenience store ever again.

I'm eager, too, to try Sarah DiGregorio's new recipes for the savory, sweet, spicy Korean stew known as dakdori tang, one made in an Instant Pot and the other in a slow cooker. (I also love this stove-top version from the Brooklyn chef Sohui Kim.)

And check out this new Ali Slagle recipe for vegan avocado ranch dressing. It's not everyone's use case, but I bet that sauce would be great with buffalo cauliflower. (Or even Buffalo chicken wings.) Also in the vegan aisle, Ali's got a fine recipe for a grain bowl with roasted brassicas and a sauce made with nutritional yeast. Will try!

You might consider Kay's vegetable yakisoba while you're giving new recipes a go, with chewy noodles and a remarkably simple pantry sauce. And absolutely Samantha Seneviratne's recipe for brookies, a real treat for the depths of winter, with cookie and brownie batters swirled together and baked into comforting bars.

Many thousands more recipes to cook right now are waiting for you on New York Times Cooking. (One of my brothers brought me a haunch of venison the other day, and I used it to make a version of Mississippi Roast that was incredibly good. Try that if you've got some wild game.) Yes, you need a subscription to access those recipes and to use our features and tools. Subscriptions support our work! If you have one already, I offer my thanks. And if you don't have one, would you please consider subscribing today? Thanks there, too.

Social media? We're out there, posting on Instagram, TikTok, YouTube and Twitter. And we are standing by to assist, should anything go sideways while you're cooking or using our site and apps. Just write cookingcare@nytimes.com. Someone will get back to you.

Now, it's about as far from measuring cups and sauté pans as I can imagine, but, as Livia Gershon reports for Smithsonian, a lot of cool works entered the public domain on Jan. 1. May they inspire you to make something old new again.

In The New Yorker, Jeanie Riess introduced me to Louis Michot, a founder of the Lost Bayou Ramblers, a Cajun punk band. Here they are with "Blue Moon Special," live in Stockholm.

(It's no joke down there in Louisiana. Did you see these dudes dragging an alligator out from under a car in their driveway the other day?)

Finally, here's a poem for you from Olena Kalytiak Davis, "SONNET (silenced)." Enjoy that, and I'll be back on Wednesday.

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