Go for the gold: What to Cook Right Now

June 13, 2022

Chris Simpson for The New York Times. Food stylist: Maggie Ruggiero. Prop stylist: Sophia Pappas.

What to Cook Right Now

By Sam Sifton

Good morning. Korokke (above) is a Japanese take on the French croquette: a golden-fried patty of mashed potatoes, simmered vegetables and, sometimes, a protein. "You could eat one or two or 10 on their own," Bryan Washington wrote in The New York Times Magazine this weekend. "You could pair them with shredded cabbage. And, with the croquettes nestled between slices of milk bread and lavished in kewpie mayo, a korokke sandwich is a revelation."

Korokke isn't fast food. "You're scrubbing and mashing the potatoes," Bryan wrote. "You're washing and chopping the vegetables. You're molding each croquette one by one, rounding the edges with your palms. The croquettes are chilled afterward — they'll come undone in the oil if you cook them at room temperature — and you're left to fill the time with everything else you've been putting off, until it's time to finally fry them in batches. It's a dish that requires many different skills — all of them approachable."

Korokke rewards patience and practice. It delivers, in Bryan's view, a taste and feeling of home. I hope you'll take on the labor, and enjoy the results.

But if that's not for you on a weeknight, save the recipe for later and make some spiced grilled halloumi instead. (Employ a stovetop griddle or grill pan if you don't have a grill.) Served over tomatoes, with warm pita on the side, it makes for a delightful summertime meal, done in about 20 minutes.

I like this country panzanella with watermelon dressing as well, an American take on the Italian classic, which pairs really nicely with simply roasted chicken thighs, or pan-fried pork chops. Or maybe an herby three-bean salad? A tuna salad sandwich? Add a handful of potato chips to that number, for crunch and salt? I believe I will.

It'd be good to make khao soi gai this week, Northern Thai coconut curry noodles with chicken. Also: tofu and green beans with chile crisp; an asparagus salad with soy-mustard dressing; and vegan chocolate chip cookies, just because.

There are many thousands more recipes to cook right now waiting for you on New York Times Cooking. Yes, you need a subscription to access them. Subscriptions support our work. I hope, if you haven't already, that you will subscribe today. Thank you. (Write cookingcare@nytimes.com for help with that.)

You can visit us on TikTok, Instagram and YouTube, while you're at it. (Genevieve Ko recently took to YouTube to show us how to make butter mochi.) And you can drop me a line if you'd like to, say, lodge a complaint or deliver a compliment: foodeditor@nytimes.com.

Now, it's nothing to do with induction ranges or propane hobs, but tomorrow is Flag Day. If you're going to take part, it's important to follow the rules. (Bookmark that site for the Fourth of July while you're at it. Flag etiquette! )

Eli Saslow wrote a searing story about Suna Karabay, a Denver bus driver dealing with a reeling city, for the Washington Post. That is a must-read.

Here's a deep cut from the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, a study of the origins of domesticated chickens that suggests they arrived soon after we started farming rice. Grows together, goes together.

Finally, Jim Seals of Seals & Crofts died last week at 79. Here's the band's hit "Summer Breeze," recorded live back in the hippie days. Enjoy that and I'll return on Wednesday.

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