Good morning… Today's edition marks the 1 year anniversary of this newsletter. We’ve come a long way — early readers might recall when this was called Sunday Cooking Club and there weren’t even illustrations….

Thanks for all the committed readership, kind words, and photo/question submissions that have gotten us here.

And we’re just getting started! There’s a lot of great planned content coming your way. — Ethan Chlebowski, Keith McBrayer, & Pat Tammaro

TRY SOMETHING NEW 🤯

Aloo gobi

Aloo gobi (meaning “potato cauliflower”) is enjoyed in many different variations throughout the Indian subcontinent.

Some versions are tossed with curry gravy, while others are simply cooked with aromatics and spices until coated, like this variation:

Ingredients

2 parts cauliflower: 1 head, cut into small florets
1 part potato: 2-3 medium-large potatoes, cut into 1” cubes
1/4 part aromatics: 1/2 onion or shallot, diced + 1 tbsp each: minced ginger, garlic, and chilies
1/4 tomato: 1 diced medium tomato or a few spoonfuls of tomato puree
1/8 part spices: A sprinkle each of cumin seeds, turmeric, paprika, & garam masala
Garnishes: Chopped cilantro
Plus cooking oil, water, & salt as needed

Instructions:

1) Toast aromatics & spices: In a large pot, add some cooking oil over medium heat and saute all aromatics until softened and fragrant. Add in all ground spices and a pinch of salt, and toast for 1 minute longer.

2) Cook down tomato: Add the tomato and cook until softened. If the mixture is dry and the spices or aromatics are at risk of burning, deglaze with a splash of water.

3) Coat vegetables: Once the tomatoes have broken down, add in the cauliflower and potatoes. Add a generous sprinkle of salt to season. Toss until everything is well coated in the spice/sauce mixture.

Add in a heavy splash of water — just enough to create steam to cook the mixture.

4)Steam: Cover and let the vegetables steam until softened. Check and mix frequently. Once they have reached your desired doneness — remove the cover and evaporate any excess moisture.

5) Finish: Cut the heat and toss with chopped cilantro. Taste and adjust with more salt or spices, if needed.

THROWBACK TIME 🍳

Batching braised meat

If you’ve been following the channel for any amount of time, you’re probably familiar with the Sunday braise framework as a solution to meal prep.

If you’re not, start with the video for all the details.

Batch cooking a large amount of meat for the week means:

You can easily throw together fresh and varied meals because the protein is already cooked.
You get to use up any pantry or fridge ingredients to reduce food waste.

Braising a large cut of meat is also a fantastic way to feed a crowd. Here’s one of the best family-style dishes out there that centers around a large chunk of tender, cooked meat:

THE LEFTOVER SHELF 🥡

Bossam

Bossam (sometimes written bo saam) is a Korean family-style dish that refers to enjoying tender meat with leafy vegetables to “wrap” or “package” each bite.

Pork belly is the most common protein found in bossam recipes, but the dish is a great opportunity to use up any leftover braised meats.

Bossam components

Leftover braised, tender meat: cooked pork belly, poached chicken, roasted beef or pork shoulder, etc.
Lettuce or cabbage leaves, cleaned
Kimchi or other fermented/pickled vegetables
Sauces of choice: spicy chili sauce, scallion ginger oil
Extra garnishes: herbs, extra garlic, sliced chilies
Optional: cooked rice

To assemble

Warm up the meat. Set on a table all other components in serving vessels, ready to go.

Enjoy family style, tearing off desired amounts of meat into lettuce or cabbage wraps and topping with desired garnishes.

FOOD TRENDS EXPLAINED 🚀

Fresh masa

📸: *Epicurious* on The Golden Age of Masa

Q: Why am I seeing more masa on restaurant menus?

Masa is dough made from ground nixtamalized corn, and used in countless Latin American dishes such as gorditas, pupusas, tlacoyos, and of course, tacos.

While commercial corn tortillas and commodity masa harina have been around for decades, specialty masa and freshly made products are becoming the new standard.

How did fresh masa become mainstream?

Masa is surging in popularity due to two things: the availability of landrace heirloom maíz from Mexico and a growing awareness and popular desire to preserve the cultural heritage of masa.

Thanks to purveyors like Masienda in Los Angeles and Tamoa in Mexico City, landrace heirloom corns and preground masa harina are now easily available to restaurants and home consumers alike.

Similar to how coffee has undergone a transformation in the last century from a commodity product to now widespread availability of specialty, single-origin sourced beans, heirloom corn offerings are following suit with an emphasis on quality and sustainability.

If you want to read more on the topic, check out Jorge Gaviria’s Masa, which is an amazing book that covers masa history, culture, and recipes.

READER Q&A 🧠

Mayo marinades?

Question: “Do you still prefer to use the mayo marinade technique when searing meats?” - Declan M

Answer: Yes! Longtime Ethan fans know what Declan is referring to here. For anyone new, marinating meats in a mayo mixture before searing is a common theme in Ethan’s recipe videos.

Three reasons why:

1) Mayonaise promotes browning and even cooking on pieces of meat.

Because mayo is about 80% oil, you don’t have to add any extra oil to the pan or grill when using the technique (bonus: this reduces oil splatter too).

2) Mayonnaise transports, enhances, and unlocks flavors of any added spices.

Spices contain both water and fat-soluble compounds. Mayo’s makeup of both water and oil unlocks all the flavors in the marinade.

3) Mayo's thick texture holds onto spices really well, so you don’t get uneven seasoning or burning spices that fall off like with dry rubs.

Fat also carries and enhances our perception of flavors to our taste buds on our tongues.

Btw…If you’re looking for a lower calorie method to ensure browning on a cut of meat (like pork chops, salmon, or chicken breast), you can lightly dust it with flour instead before searing which will get you great crust and color without the extra fat.

READER PHOTO SUBMISSION OF THE WEEK 🏆

Hummus platter

This week’s dinner winner is Matthew M., who made Ethan’s hummus plate while catching up on the garlic deep dive. Extra brownie points for you, Matthew!

Reply with a picture of the best meal you made this week for a chance to be featured in a future email.

The Mouthful 🍳

The better solution to meal prepping?