Time is a key ingredient in cooking, as essential to a recipe as the flour in a loaf of bread. For instance, the hours of simmer time in stews and braises build flavor in the pan, creating intensity and nuance you can’t get any other way.
But there are a few cheats: ingredients like Parmesan rinds, miso and fish sauce that can hint at that long-cooked depth but in an amount of time that makes sense for a Tuesday night after piano lessons or a trip to the gym. Genevieve Ko’s new recipe for spicy, creamy weeknight Bolognese — a shortcut version of a pasta sauce that normally simmers for an afternoon — uses red curry paste as its instant flavor deepener, a brilliant secret ingredient. Dinner won’t actually taste like red curry; the paste just quietly helps make the sauce whole.
Los Angeles! You can show love for Genevieve, New York Times Cooking and our new cookbook, “Easy Weeknight Dinners,” by joining us this Sunday, Feb. 9. for a free event. Genevieve, Eric Kim and I are appearing together at Central Library in downtown L.A. at 2 p.m. Reserve your (free!) spot here. You’ll also be able to livestream the event here.
Bay Area! I’m coming up right afterward for an event with City Arts & Lectures on Monday, Feb. 10, at 7:30 p.m. with Melissa Clark and MacKenzie Chung Fegan, restaurant critic for The San Francisco Chronicle. Get your tickets here. Please come say hi!
2. Blackened Salmon
Crack the window and turn on the exhaust fan: It gets a little smoky in the kitchen when you sear this spice-coated salmon, cooked Cajun style. It’s worth it. I’d serve this recipe, by Naz Deravian, with rice and a salad.
3. Lemony Chicken With Potatoes and Oregano
Make this easy Melissa recipe on a night when you can do a little prep upfront, put the pan in the oven and then have dinner 45 minutes later. In return, you get golden roasted chicken thighs and potatoes — a meal that, to me, feels like a leisurely weekend thing — smack in the middle of the week.
4. Spanakorizo With Jammy Eggs
I love herby, bright green dinners like this — they offer hope in deep winter in the Northeast. This Greek rice dish, which Hetty Lui McKinnon tops with eggs, is a reminder and even a promise that spring is going to come.
5. Coconut Black Bean Soup
Wherever you are, your winter needs black bean soup, and that soup needs coconut milk. Melissa’s recipe is satisfying enough to be dinner pretty much on its own.
