Reset Your Routine – The New York Times

Hello, Five Weeknight Dishes readers! I’m replacing Emily today; she will come back to it next week, like many of us.

This week has been a time to hibernate, braise and simmer, with wild weather across the country in addition to the usual lull between the holidays. (We won’t soon forget the couple from Williamsville, NY, who cooked for nine unexpected guests from South Korea.)

But next week marks the start of 2023 and, for most, a return to routine. It’s time for easy food and recipes that help clear your kitchen and your head. If you’ve been stocking up on root vegetables, alliums, herbs, greens and more for holiday cooking, the recipes below will help you prepare for the future. Cheers!

1. Smoked Lentil Stew with Leeks and Potatoes

To adapt this winter vegetarian dinner from David Tanis to whatever you have on hand, you can use roasted squash or sweet potato in place of the white one, and any combination of scallions, onions and shallots instead of leeks.

2. Chicken and Herb Salad with Nuoc Cham

Yewande Kolomafe’s Five Minute Dinner Salad is a weeknight classic for people who are tired and craving flavor. I like it with dried rice noodles, which I simply soak in water, drain and then sear in a little peanut oil, with crushed peanuts on top.

See this recipe.

4. Fried eggs in chili oil with green vegetables and yogurt

If you already have chili oil in the pantry, this brunch plate from the late MeMe’s Diner, which closed in Brooklyn in 2020, makes for a quick and spectacular dinner with warmed flatbread or toast. with whole grains. (You can skip the seeds or use a sesame-based mix like gomasio or all-bagel seasoning.)

See this recipe.