I think I owe frozen peas and carrots an apology. I’m always reaching past them for their sibling, frozen peas. My pea-and-carrot associations begin and end with Hungry-Man frozen dinners, chicken potpie (again, frozen) and fried rice. I know what to do with peas. I know what to do with carrots. But somehow I’m stuck when it comes to peas and carrots together in the same bag.
Not Ali Slagle. She puts frozen peas and carrots on a pedestal in her new sheet-pan chicken recipe, which combines a 16-ounce bag with dried herbs and a splash of vinegar (or lemon juice) for a dinner that’s a little tart, a little tangy and very easy. (Not to sound like an infomercial, but if you loved her pan-seared ranch chicken, you’ll love this dish, as the garlic-dill yogurt slathered on the chicken before and after roasting leans very ranch.) The frozen veggies are added partway through roasting, becoming slick and sizzled in the rendered chicken fat.
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Sheet-Pan Herby Roast Chicken With Peas and Carrots
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I do know what to do with asparagus, which is to eat as much of it as possible while it’s in season. It’s great all sorts of ways: blanched and sliced into lemony orzo, roasted with scallions, and stir-fried with shrimp in this new recipe from Genevieve Ko. As per usual with Genevieve’s recipes, there’s a genius twist: A quick dry brine for the shrimp keeps them just as snappy as the asparagus.
While we’re wokking, let’s make sweet and sour pork, a recipe from Brandon Jew and Noah Kopito adapted by Cathy Erway. If pork isn’t your pick, no problem: Swap in chicken or cauliflower. And if you’d rather not deep-fry, this recipe still yields excellent results: “I stir fried the pork rather than deep fried and only used half the sauce,” writes Greg, a reader. “A couple of days later I made it again using chicken. A keeper.”
I can’t think of tacos without thinking of that wonderful Jonathan Gold-ism: “Taco should be a verb.” I would very much like to taco this weekend with Rick Martínez’s new crispy Cheddar chicken tacos, which combine melted and crisped cheese (costras), shredded chicken in adobo sauce and quick-marinated onions. To go with: pickled jalapeños, refried beans, Mexican rice and a six-pack of Sol. I like to taco effusively.
You can also build a meal around Tejal Rao’s khichdi: Add a drizzle of spices bloomed in ghee, a plump swoop of yogurt, a shower of chopped cilantro and a side of lime pickle. But it’s perfect eaten as is, straight from the pot.
I’ll leave you with doolsho, a cardamom sponge cake from Ifrah F. Ahmed. I’m very keen on cardamom, subbing it for cinnamon in all sorts of recipes, so this recipe calls to me: a light, pillowy cake scented with the floral, gently musky and minty spice, ready to accompany a morning coffee or afternoon tea. Do yourself a favor and break out the spice grinder for this one. You won’t be sorry.
