Everybody’s Wrong About These Dishes

Fettuccine Alfredo

In Rome, fettuccine alfredo is totally unlike gloopy American versions—silky-smooth, buttery, and light.

By Diane UngerJune 11, 2021

Thai Cashew Chicken

[T]his not only is unlike any cashew chicken I’ve ever eaten,” writes J.M. Hirsch, “it’s also wildly better.”

By Courtney HillDecember 6, 2022

Toss-Your-Garlic Tomato Sauce

This two-ingredient (not including oil and salt), 15-minute tomato sauce requires a can opener but no knifework and is super easy to make. It mirrors the technique used by the many Italian home cooks and chefs with whom we’ve spent time in the kitchen

By Milk StreetJune 25, 2024

Beef Bulgogi

Korea’s tender, succulent strips of thin-sliced beef aren’t just a special occasion restaurant order—bulgogi comes together quickly with a blender marinade.

By Courtney HillAugust 9, 2023

Fried Eggs

For the best fried eggs, we cook them covered so the surface of the whites sets quickly and without risk of overcooking the yolks. Runny-yolked fried eggs can make a complete meal out of a simple salad. They also are excellent over fried rice, soft po

By Milk StreetApril 10, 2024

Cacio e Pepe

Cacio e pepe is the simplest of dishes, but achieving creamy, silky perfection took us years of attempts. We did it. And you will too.

By Rose HattabaughFebruary 12, 2024

“Creamed” Corn with Scallions

This rich and velvety side dish relies on corn’s starchy “milk” to deliver supreme creaminess without diluting its flavor. OR Creamed corn, without the cream. Rather than dilute corn’s grassy sweetness with heavy cream, we rely the corn “milk” from th

Homemade Vegetable Broth

Store-bought vegetable broth tends to be watery, sweet and lacking freshness. This homemade version has savoriness and depth of flavor, as well as body. In addition to the aromatics that are foundational, we coax umami out of cremini mushrooms and tom

By Diane UngerMarch 17, 2024

1-2-3 Frosting

American-style buttercream, made by beating butter with powdered sugar and a little milk, is one of the easiest frostings to make, but it tends to be cloyingly sweet, with a noticeable granularity from the sugar. This 1-2-3 formula—1 cup cream, 2 stic

By Rose HattabaughFebruary 9, 2024

Milk-Simmered Mashed Potatoes

By cooking your potatoes in a little milk, which doubles as your mashing liquid, you get natural, creamy lusciousness—no cream needed.

By Diane UngerJanuary 21, 2024

Hard-Cooked Eggs

There are many ways to hard-cook an egg, but after much testing, we found no better method than the one used by Chris Edwards, chef at Le Saint Sebastien in Paris’ 11th arrondissement and vice-champion of the 2021 Oeuf Mayo World Championship (oeuf ma

By Milk StreetMarch 20, 2024

Broccoli with Garlic, Pepper Flakes and Basil

In this recipe, we cook broccoli florets and stems in a scant amount of well-seasoned water into which a little butter has melted. Once the broccoli is just tender, we uncover the pan and allow the water to reduce over high heat, concentrating the sea

By Diane UngerAugust 5, 2019

Crisp Oven-Fried Cauliflower with Tahini-Yogurt Sauce

Corn starch and oven frying mimics crispy-creamy Lebanese fried cauliflower, for the home kitchen.

Herbed Egg Salad with Pickled Red Onion

This egg salad, inspired by a recipe from “In My Kitchen” by Deborah Madison, is made without mayonnaise. Instead, three of the 12 cooked egg yolks are mashed to a paste with onion-infused vinegar, then mixed into coarsely chopped eggs to lightly bind

Quick Creamy Hummus

A quick simmer and bit of baking soda render canned chickpeas super creamy.

By Diane UngerNovember 8, 2022

Grilled Corn

The best way to grill corn is husks-on.

By Calvin CoxNovember 10, 2021

Spaghetti Puttanesca

We think of puttanesca as a saucy dish built on anchovies. But in Naples, where it originates, two varieties of briny olives and pungent capers, not anchovies, give the dish bold savoriness that balances the sweetness of the tomatoes. We got a lesson

By Diane UngerFebruary 4, 2019

Austrian Potato Salad (Erdäpfelsalat)

The best potato salads come from outside the US, still creamy, yet made without mayo.