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what-to-cook
Cook anyway, for the benefit of others and yourself.
Good morning. What are we to do, in these moments of unsettling, upsetting news? We scroll our feeds, read endlessly, watch media people talk and talk and talk, listen to them opine. We attend to the children, to our parents, our friends. We consider history, ponder the future. We anger and worry, mourn and resolve, and then return to the scrolling, the reading, the listening. We try to understand: where we are; where we’re going; what it all means.
And eventually, we get something to eat. It’s weird to write that. Food doesn’t obviously have a role in our understanding of events playing out on the world stage.
Except that it does. We process news together, around tables, in the presence of those we feed, with whom we eat. And when the food on those tables is made with care and served with affection, it has a palliative effect on the psyches of all who consume it.
For those who make that meal — that’s you — it’s a balm as well. There is so much that cannot be controlled in our world, so much that happens that we can only react to, so much that drives us to despair. But you can roast a chicken and serve it to people you love. Listen to them while you eat together.
Featured Recipe
Salt-and-Pepper Roast Chicken
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As for the rest of the week. …
Monday
I like this new recipe for tomato, basil and prosciutto pasta by Christian Reynoso for its utter simplicity: fresh tomatoes sizzled with garlic in oil, with freshly torn basil, melting prosciutto and a few dollops of ricotta on top. It’s barely cooked. Just sprinkle with red-pepper flakes and serve.
Tuesday
Here’s a taste of the Midwest for a weeknight win: Melissa Knific’s recipe for turkey meatloaf moistened with grated apple. With a glaze of ketchup, vinegar, Worcestershire sauce and loads of black pepper, it makes for a lovely dinner alongside puréed potatoes or buttered noodles, and for a superior sandwich the following day.
Wednesday
Ali Slagle’s new recipe for chile-crisp marinated tofu and tomatoes is a lovely riff on Chinese smashed-cucumber salads, with a combination of hot, cold, juicy and crisp that makes for a refreshing midweek meal. It’s great with rice, and you wouldn’t be wrong to augment the whole thing with slivered snap peas and a handful of cilantro leaves.
Thursday
I’ve been cooking Craig Claiborne’s recipe for smothered chicken since high school, and used it to introduce New York Times Cooking to the world a decade ago. It’s simple home cooking that I hope will become part of your repertoire if it isn’t happily sitting there already.
Friday
Finally, David Tanis’s recipe for cold spicy kimchi noodles is one of the great summer meals, a fiery antidote to high temperatures and higher humidity. I like mine with extra lime, but either way, it’ll take you into the weekend nicely. I’ll be back next week.
Sam Sifton is an assistant managing editor, responsible for culture and lifestyle coverage, and the founding editor of New York Times Cooking. More about Sam Sifton