Herbs

This easy vegan number won't wilt like more fragile salads.

Everything I know about cornbread dressing — and Thanksgiving — I learned from my mother, which she in turn learned from her mother. It is a long line of resourceful Southern cooks, and I trust them with this important meal completely. The secret? It’s all about the butter! My very wise nanna once said, “Whatever the amount of butter called for in a dressing recipe, double it, triple it, heck, even quadruple it!

The secret to the best-ever (and way easier) bacon wrapped turkey? A simple herb butter to act as the glue.

On Thanksgiving, I don’t think any dish inspires quite as much love and jealousy as classic stuffing. Or, for that matter, technical debate over stuffing vs. dressing. Sure, if it’s baked inside the turkey it’s stuffing, and if it’s not, it’s dressing. But to me, it will always be stuffing — it sounds so much more satisfying than dressing, which brings to mind vinaigrette. And on my table, the stuffing is always some version of this classic sage and onion mix.

It's key to the juiciest Thanksgiving bird.

Plus, there's little to no clean up.

Like the boxed stuff, but so much better.

It’s all about the fresh herbs.

Cool, briny pickles straight from the fridge are one of the simplest pleasures of summer. Quick pickling is also a brilliant solution for preserving a plethora of summer vegetables from the market or your garden. Quick pickling doesn’t require canning or a bushel of vegetables. Best of all, you can adapt this simple formula for any fresh vegetables; try a mixture of vinegars and spices for a truly custom pickle pleasure. Here’s how to make these easy quick pickles in just 20 minutes.

If there’s a food that’s not improved by grilling, I’ve yet to find it. The open flame and sizzling grill grates add flavor, complexity, and gorgeous grill marks to meat, veggies, fruit, and extra-firm tofu (what we’re talking about today!). With just a few smart steps — including dredging the planks in a simple spice rub and finishing them with a punchy herb sauce — tofu can be one of the most flavorful foods to come off the grill.

My grandmother kept a tidy little vegetable garden outside her New England home. While she did a decent job of growing summer squash, cucumbers, and some tomatoes, her best results always came out of her snap bean plants. This also meant my annual August trips to visit her were filled by snapping beans on her porch (a job reserved strictly for grandchildren) and putting jars of quick-pickled green beans in her refrigerator.

When the sun is shining and you’re contemplating grilling outside, don’t forget that easy grilled sweet potatoes can be a delicious addition to the summer dinner plate. All you have to do is toss thick slices with some oil and salt, and after just 10 minutes on the grill they’ll be sweet and tender with a hint of smokiness from the flames. To up the ante, toss the still-warm grilled sweet potatoes in a sweet-and-spicy dressing. Heat the grill.

Keep this summer minty fresh.

Whether you’re a first-time fryer or a seasoned chef, this step-by-step guide for making the very best fried chicken at home will create the most honest-to-goodness, crispy, juicy, finger-licking delicious chicken — a fried chicken with a glistening coating so full of crunchy ripples, herbs, and spices that it is hard to stop eating it once you start.

Just 7 ingredients come together for big flavor.

Where once I’d pounce on a chef-made bowl of al dente pasta and crisp-tender spring vegetables, now it’s a dish I prefer to make at home. Using what’s fresh and new at the market, I slice and dice carrots, bell peppers, peas, spring onions, and baby Broccolini before tossing them into a pot to quickly cook with penne pasta. Finished with bright and citrusy lemon butter and a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese, this warm-weather supper is perfection. And the best part?

It’s easy to think of fresh parsley as a just a garnish to sprinkle over dinner, but it’s such a versatile herb! Chop it up and add it to your favorite salads; blitz it into a sauce, like fresh chimichurri or mojo verde (Spanish green sauce); or stir it into a hearty grain bowl or marinated bean salad.You can make a flavorful compound butter to use on grilled salmon or roasted summer vegetables.

I have to admit an unpopular opinion: I am just not into mayonnaise-based summer salads. When it is hot out, I want to eat light and refreshing salads, not thick and creamy ones. So when I say this is the best pasta salad ever, it’s with that opinion in mind. But a mayo-free pasta salad can still come with a degree of creaminess. In this case it’s by way of an olive oil-rich vinaigrette and a sprinkling of flavorful soft cheese.

Is there a more quintessential warm-weather side dish than cold pasta salad? This cool salad keeps well, and it’s the perfect make-ahead lunch that you can pack throughout the week. Just about everyone in your family, from your kids to your mother-in-law, will eat it! This recipe is truly as simple as boiling water and tossing in a few key pasta salad ingredients.

When a small amount of fresh dill is added to things like crunchy salads, salad dressings, and comforting soups, the dish is instantly brightened with its herby freshness. A little goes a long way for maximum flavor.If you love cucumber salads, we’ve got you covered with tangy, vinegar-based cucumber salads and creamy cucumber salads. Dill pairs perfectly with lemon in creamy lemon-dill salmon and lemony Greek potato salad.

It's the easiest dinner you'll ever make.

It’s true that a sprig of fresh mint makes a lovely garnish for almost anything you serve, but we’re here to remind you that’s it’s capable of so much more. Mint is a terrific herb to keep around the kitchen — or to grow on your own! (Just keep it away from other herbs you’re growing, because it’ll overtake them.) As a kitchen herb, it pairs wonderfully with a variety of dishes.

Do you love a mint julep as much as I do? This classic cocktail always seems to have the right amount of minty sweetness, just enough fizz, and a strong bourbon flavor. It’s a near-perfect sip on a hot porch in summertime. Kentuckians in particular have strong opinions about what should and should not go into a julep cup. Most would agree that a classic julep should start with mint muddled with a bit of sugar.

Meet your new favorite side.

Sliced cucumbers can't be boring when they're made to be bright and tangy.

It's amazing on fish tacos.

Summer rolls, also known as fresh spring rolls, are one of my favorite things to order at a restaurant. They are made from rice paper wrappers rolled around fresh crunchy vegetables partnered with cold proteins, fresh herbs, and sometimes noodles. Gỏi cuốn are Vietnamese in origin (along with chả giò, which are fried spring rolls) but there are countless variations of fillings made with an assortment of veggies and proteins.Summer rolls are also easy to make at home!

If pork chops and beef steaks are the only chops you sear, it’s time to try lamb chops. Lamb chops have a distinctively rich and savory flavor, and while they’re fancy enough for a dinner party, quick-cooking lamb chops also add variety to weeknight meals. These easy lamb chops are rubbed with fresh thyme, seared in a hot skillet, and topped with a decadent (and oh-so-simple!) pan sauce flavored with dry white wine, a squeeze of lemon juice, and a knob of butter.

There are a lot of ways to cook up a hearty, comforting pot of beef stew, but if you ask me, absolutely nothing compares to Guinness beef stew. It also happens to be my favorite dinner to cook for St. Patrick’s Day. In this version, thick chunks of chuck roast are seared and then simmered low and slow in a Guinness-spiked sauce on the stovetop.

You might adore Olive Garden for the unlimited salad and garlic breadsticks (our copycat recipe is seriously legit!) or the ultra-comforting creamy pastas, but for me, it’s all about the luxuriously creamy chicken gnocchi soup. Just thinking about it, I can smell the herb and black pepper-flecked broth and feel the warm, satisfying comfort it brings to my belly.

After I scraped my bowl clean, I immediately wanted more.

Two words: garlic butter.

It's an easy and impressive way to feed a crowd.

Happy soup season, everyone!

It's liquid gold, y'all.

Busting conventional steak-cooking wisdom to make a better, faster steak at home.

Don't mess with a classic — unless you can improve it.

It tastes like a big hug.

A zesty, vibrant herb-packed sauce for everything from meat to potatoes.

It's the fastest, fanciest dinner around.

Learn how to make old-school meatballs just like an Italian nonna.

We tried every method out there to come up with the very best.

Further proof that there's nothing butter can't make better!

Everything you love about the classic, but even more comforting — and way, way easier.

If you think you detect a hint of chocolate in your chili, you're not wrong.

Memorize this surprising yet super-simple technique and you'll forever be rewarded with the crispiest skin and juiciest meat.

Here’s the easiest way to cook mahi mahi, yielding flaky pan-seared fillets with a lemon butter sauce.

One bite and you'll wonder why you haven't been making fruit salad this way all along.