Cook's Illustrated

When Sam Gendel of Venice, Calif., brings home a paper shopping bag from the grocery store, he doesn’t recycle it right away: He uses it to line his recycling bin. When the bag is full, he puts the whole package out to be recycled. (Extra bags can be

Back in the late ’80s, my parents and their friends gathered at each other’s homes and cooked dishes from Julia Child’s Mastering the Art of French Cooking (1961) and the latest issues of Gourmet. They called it Gourmet Group. One night when we were

Like many cooks, I find deep joy in treating those I love to a memorable holiday meal. This year, I’m excited to wow my family and friends with glazed short ribs. These ribs ooze gorgeousness, with rich, velvety meat that cuts easily with a fork and

Spatchcocking a turkey involves cutting out the backbone so that the bird can be laid flat for roasting. Yes, it’s that simple! After this minor surgery, the white and dark meat, freed from the spheroid geometry of a whole bird, will both cook to per

The charms of curry rice are as multivarious as the dish itself, but first on the list might be how purely comforting it is. On one side of the bowl sits the stew: a pool of velvety brown gravy as deeply savory as it is fragrantly spiced, enveloping

You’d never know that curry, which is everywhere in Japan, wasn’t always part of the cuisine. Less than 200 years ago, spices such as turmeric and cinnamon, today fundamental to any Japanese curry powder, were kept only for medicinal purposes. Only o

In early Ireland, the weeks before the November 1 celebration of Samhain, the Celtic new year, were the time to harvest the season’s crops, butcher the livestock—and ward off malevolent spirits. Legends say that the line dividing the human and spirit

Shrimp cocktail is a splurge, whether you’re popping crustaceans at a raw bar or poaching a batch yourself. Each bite should feel like luxury: plump, snappy, well-chilled meat with clean, oceanic sweetness that gleams on your palate. Nailing that pro

Long before Claudette Zepeda became a chef, restaurateur, and culinary anthropologist, she was her Aunt Lorenza’s helper in her Guadalajara restaurant. The restaurant’s origins were humble—a pair of Coca-Cola red tables and plastic chairs—but it quic

CHOCOLATE-ESPRESSO DACQUOISE SERVES 10 TO 12 TOTAL TIME: 3¾ HOURS, PLUS 8½ HOURS COOLING AND CHILLING Dacquoise, an elaborate stack of light, nutty meringue and silky buttercream enrobed in glossy chocolate, looks admittedly daunting. But the compone

Happy pasta-and-bean season—that cold-weather gravitational pull toward belly-warming, low-fuss meals that can be mostly thrown together from pantry staples such as dried pasta and canned beans. In my kitchen, a lot of that cooking leans Northern Ita

When you’re tasked with bringing a side dish to a holiday dinner, it pays to be a little strategic. The ideal dish ticks a few boxes: It must be sturdy and stress-free to transport. It should require minimal-to-no further prep work once you’ve reache

Split Seconds. That was the name of the winning cookie entry in 1954’s Pillsbury Bake-Off cookie category, and it lured me in immediately. They are like jam thumb-prints but, as the name implies, they are quick to make. Instead of molding dozens of t

Six years ago, I developed a recipe that—much to my surprise—turned into a sensation. It was for an uncomplicated, unassuming cake, albeit one with a twist: Instead of butter, the batter was enriched with extra-virgin olive oil, the fruitiness of whi

A stand mixer is essential for serious home bakers. It should be able to do tasks large and small, from whipping two egg whites to kneading double batches of dough. But deciding which to buy has never been more complicated. KitchenAid dominates the m

Fish sauce is salty, tangy, and bursting with umami, but one can’t capture its personality without mentioning its distinct funk. The result of fermentation, funk is a complex family of aromas, and its presence in fish sauce is unmistakable. Fish sauc

Baking spray is a fast and convenient one-step product that lets you skip the tedious process of greasing and flouring pans. We specifically call for baking spray in recipes that are particularly sticky and when we use a pan with lots of nooks and cr

The dense, meaty texture of hominy and its rich corn flavor can be had from a can, but the vegetable is even more satisfying when you cook the nixtamalized dried kernels yourself. You’ll also be left with a nutty-sweet cooking liquid to enrich soups

Swedish winters are frigid and dark, but the tradition of fika, the daily break to enjoy a comforting beverage and a baked good or two, provides a jovial bright spot. KANELBULLAR (cinnamon buns) and KARDEMUMMABULLAR (cardamom buns) are commonly baked