It seems I’ve been neglecting grapefruits lately, what with all those eye-catching blood oranges, kumquats and bergamots hanging about. Then in walks Ali Slagle with her stunning new recipe for miso-butter chicken with grapefruit — a timely reminder to gather the last of the season’s roseate citrus fruit while ye may.
Ali’s colorful dish is another of her minimalist masterworks. She roasts boneless, skinless chicken thighs in a sauce of miso, mirin and grapefruit zest until the natural sugars condense and char at the edges. Then she tosses juicy grapefruit segments into the hot pan so they absorb the rich and brawny drippings. Served up on a mound of arugula, it’s a hearty, salad-like entry for the savory-citrusy hall of fame.
Featured Recipe
Miso-Butter Chicken With Grapefruit
So maybe I’ve been on and off with grapefruit (don’t worry, we’re good now), but cabbage and I have been tight all winter long. To add to the long list of cabbage favorites I’ve been revisiting, now there’s Kay Chun’s stir-fried cabbage and pork in fish butter sauce. Seasoning butter with a dash of fish sauce is one of those alchemical pro moves: The mellowness of the dairy helps smooth out the marine pungency of the fish sauce. After quickly searing some ground pork, you sauté the cabbage only briefly so it stays crisp-tender, with a few soft bits that melt on your tongue. Serve it over rice and with a squeeze of lime to bring out the deep flavors even more.
For another easy skillet meal, Eric “Abracarbonara” Kim’s orzotto alla carbonara magically swaps out the spaghetti for orzo, the tiny rice-shaped pasta. He deftly cooks the orzo in chicken broth until it achieves the glossy look and porridge-like texture of risotto, before it’s threaded with bits of guanciale (or bacon), pecorino cheese and black pepper. For his grand finale he mixes in a couple of eggs to add silkiness and heft, though you could certainly omit that step if eggs keep doing their disappearing act from the shelves.
We know we can always count on Hetty Lui McKinnon for meatless, thrifty marvels. Her crispy potato tacos, adapted from her 2023 cookbook “Tenderheart,” make brilliant use of a package of tortillas and a handful of potatoes from the pantry (or leftover mashed potatoes). Hetty seasons the potatoes with cheese, cilantro, cumin and garlic, and then stuffs the mixture in between tortillas before frying them until they’re crisp on the outside and gooey within.
For dessert, Samantha Seneviratne shrinks a famous cake into petite, fudgy German chocolate cookies. They keep well, so you could nibble them all week long, if you’re disciplined like that. Or double your chocoholic pleasure and dunk them in a mug of coconut hot chocolate. This might be the last mug you make before hot beverages give way to iced ones, so there’s no time to dally.
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One last thing: I’m on vacation for the next week, eating my way through Taipei and Seoul (come along for the ride and check out my Instagram stories @clarkbar). I know you’ll be in very good hands! See you soon.
