Hi, it’s Emily, and I have five weeknight dishes for you, starting with one of my personal favorites, this garlicky chicken with lemon-anchovy sauce. I realized I was maybe not alone in this when I saw this tweet by the writer Hannah Giorgis: “I make this chicken so much that I truly look forward to passing the recipe down to my future children while pretending it’s an old family secret.” Same. (Also, while I’m not sure anyone ever tried to conceal this, my nana’s special matzo ball soup was almost certainly made from the mix in the box.)
If (a) this kind of culinary deception exists in your family or (b) you feel this way about another recipe, either on NYT Cooking or another website, then tell me at dearemily@nytimes.com.
Here are five recipes for the week:
Melissa Clark’s garlic chicken with lemon-anchovy sauce.CreditDavid Malosh for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.
2. Stir-Fried Beef With Sugar Snap Peas
I’m drawn to this combination of beef, sauce and something bright green, but you can use another quick-cooking vegetable instead of the sugar snaps, or add more vegetables if you like. The recipe calls for Madeira or sweet sherry; if you, like me, don’t have any on hand, Melissa (who wrote this one, too) says you can use white wine, sake or more chicken broth, plus a drizzle of honey. Serve over a big heap of white rice.
4. Vietnamese-Style Pork Meatballs
I’m making my way through Kay Chun’s fast, brilliant meatball recipes, three of which use Ritz crackers instead of bread crumbs for tender, juicy results. (A big box of crackers will keep you in meatballs for a long time.) I double the recipe so we have enough for three dinners and for my daughter to munch on them throughout the week. (Have you seen a baby eat a meatball? Adorable.) Serve these in bowls over rice, with soy sauce, chile sauce, scallions and piles of mint and cilantro. You could sneak more vegetables in yours by adding cauliflower rice.
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Shakshuka was a reader craving from Paula Z., and I immediately thought “yes” when I saw her email — toast a lot of good bread to go alongside and you’ve got a very good, cozy, meatless dinner. Note that this beloved recipe serves three for supper without other sides, which I don’t think you need. That said, roasted cauliflower or broccoli florets would make excellent ones, as would sautéed chickpeas. All told this takes close to an hour, but it’s worth it if you have the time.
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