Perfect for the grill, beef ribs are more readily available in summer - when the demand for boneless steaks increases. I actually prefer them to a steak, because there's a bit of meat and all that bone to chew on. They are sold in racks or cut into individual ribs; ask your butcher for meaty ones. This is serious finger food. Grill them rare or medium-rare, but don't go past that.
For Vietnamese living abroad, a trip to Saigon would be incomplete without a visit to Ben Thanh Market, a huge maze of fresh food and sundries. Near the center is a food court where vendors hawk popular Viet treats. As you sample their wares, you are apt to strike up conversations with other gluttonous Viet kieu (Vietnamese expats). On one occasion, a man from Texas visiting his family for Tet told me part of his daily routine while in Vietnam included eating mien gá, which was so deliciously light that it allowed him to order more dishes from other vendors.
This extravagantly rich, dry-braised beef curry is a signature dish of the Minangkabau highlands of West Sumatra, Indonesia. It's a triumph of flavor, with lime leaves, nutmeg, and cloves. The dish is cooked by a process that inverts normal braising. The beef is slowly simmered in a spiced coconut-milk broth until the broth evaporates and the meat is left to sauté in the intensely flavored rendered coconut and beef oils left in the pot.
Honey is the edge in this recipe. Once cooked, you taste only the barest hint of sweetness, yet honey or sugar opens up all the meat's bold beefiness. Each mouthful delivers fabulous crustiness, and a hum of black pepper.
This meat loaf started life as a meatball recipe in the Times.
In this brasserie's simple and fabulous choucroute, the slab bacon gives some of the smokiness and fattiness of a classic choucroute garnie to a salmon version.
Cocido is a big multi-ingredient feast that will feed an army—soup, meat, vegetables—and still leave leftovers. The ingredients list and instructions might look involved, but there's not much more to it than throwing a bunch of stuff in a pot.
Chinese cinnamon, or cassia, has been used by Asian doctors for thousands of years. It is considered to be especially soothing to the stomach. Ayurvedic doctors believe cinnamon harmonizes the flow of circulation in the body, aids digestion, and reduces nausea.
Tender chunks of pork ribs are a wintery specialty from Ferrara. Tomato, olives, and basil add especially rich flavors to the meaty ribs. A thick beef chuck blade roast can be substituted with great success. With either meat, this dish evokes snug evenings in Ferrara farmhouses, when everyone gathers around the big kitchen table for hours of good talk and good food. Serve this on the first really cold night of winter, if possible in front of an open fire.