Recipes

The 10 Most Popular Recipes of 2020

All the one-pot meal, slurpable noodles, and loaf cakes we obsessed over this year.
OnePot Gingery Chicken with rice and peanut sauce
Photo by David Malosh, food styling by Rebecca Jurkevich, prop styling by Cindy Diprima

Our most popular recipes of the year all fit neatly into one category: comfort food. And is anyone surprised? These recipes all served as one small way we helped get ourselves through 2020—the meals we turned to again and again for sustenance and support. There was that buttery, umami-packed, and tonkotsu-like ramen you simply wouldn’t believe was vegetarian. The cider loaf cake so crumby and apple-y it tastes like something straight from your local orchard’s farmstand. The whole-head of caramelized cabbage so silky and tender it’s cozier than a wool blanket. The weeknight-friendly one-pot chicken and rice with a put-it-on-everything peanut sauce, inspired by the Hainanese staple. And we’re just getting started. Here, find all 10 of our most popular recipes of the year, starting with No. 1.

  • easy focaccia recipe
    Photo by Laura Murray, Food Styling by Susan Spungen 
    1/10

    Shockingly Easy No-Knead Focaccia

    This recipe requires exactly zero skill and provides ample opportunity to be amazed by yourself and the wonders of yeast.

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  • FallApart Caramelized Cabbage recipe Bon Appetit
    Photo by Emma Fishman, Food Styling by Yekaterina Boytsova
    2/10

    Fall-Apart Caramelized Cabbage

    This is one of the easiest, most delicious ways to cook down a whole head of cabbage until it's falling-apart tender. If the spiced tomato paste has reduced and the pan starts getting dry and dark before the cabbage is ready, just add a splash of water to loosen and let it keep going.

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  • Slices of apple cider doughnut loaf
    Photo by Laura Murray, food styling by Susie Theodorou
    3/10

    Apple Cider Doughnut Loaf Cake

    This cake is ideal for baking on the weekend and then eating a slice every evening (or morning) throughout the week. Oh, and thanks to the reduced cider that’s incorporated into the batter and soaked into the warm cake, it actually tastes just like a farmstand cider doughnut.

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  • earl grey yogurt cake
    Photo by Laura Murray, Food Styling by Susan Spungen 
    4/10

    Earl Grey Yogurt Cake

    A tea cake that's true to its name, this loaf harnesses the power of citrusy Earl Grey tea for its distinct flavor. Lemon poppyseed can't hold a candle. 

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  • A bowl of vegetarian ramen with noodles bok choy a halved egg and chile garlic oil garnish.
    Photo by Emma Fishman, Food Styling by Pearl Jones
    5/10

    I-Can’t-Believe-It’s-Vegetarian Ramen

    This comforting noodle soup mimics the umami of tonkotsu with none of the meat.

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  • Image may contain Food Bread and Bun
    Photo by Laura Murray, Food Styling by Susan Spungen 
    6/10

    Sour Cream and Onion Biscuits

    If you've ever had trouble making biscuits in the past, consider this recipe your saving grace. While many other methods count on pockets of butter and an angel’s touch for pull-apart flakiness, we weren't willing to leave it to chance. Our simple folding technique manually multiplies the number of layers for guaranteed, no-risk success. 

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  • OnePot Gingery Chicken with rice and peanut sauce
    Photo by David Malosh, food styling by Rebecca Jurkevich, prop styling by Cindy Diprima
    7/10

    One-Pot Gingery Chicken and Rice With Peanut Sauce

    We took loose inspiration from Hainanese chicken rice to create this weeknight-friendly dish that retains the comforting and fragrant qualities of the beloved original. Seek out the highest-quality basmati rice you can find (we recommend Daawat brand)—it will make a world of difference in yielding supremely fluffy, evenly cooked rice.

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  • Bowl of Amiel Stanek's French Onion Noodle Soup
    Photo by Emma Fishman, food styling by Yekaterina Boystova
    8/10

    French Onion Beef Noodle Soup

    This super-savory dish draws inspiration from Taiwanese beef noodle soup, then gilds the lily with a Dutch oven’s worth of sweet, slow-simmered onions.

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  • classic chicken noodle soup
    Photo by Alex Lau, Food Styling by Yekaterina Boytsova
    9/10

    Classic Chicken Noodle Soup

    There are tons of shortcuts for chicken noodle soup, but this time we're not cutting corners—this is the long game! This version is about as classic (and as comforting) as they come, using a whole chicken—bones, skin, and all—to lend flavor and body to the broth.

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  • Pantry Pasta With Vegan Cream Sauce recipe
    Photo by Laura Murray, Food Styling by Kat Boytsova
    10/10

    Pantry Pasta With Vegan Cream Sauce

    Many vegan cream sauces rely on blended nuts or steamed cauliflower, but this sauce is made of beans and pasta water alone—no soaking or blending necessary. It’s important that the beans are adequately hydrated: Once you start mashing, make sure there’s plenty of pasta cooking liquid in the pot and don’t let it evaporate.

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Ali is a writer and editor at Bon Appétit whose culture and lifestyle work includes reporting on the health claims behind fake meats, interviews with opinionated chefs about the evolution of restaurants, personal essays on the intersection of work and identity, and subtle attempts to propagate her favorite Australian foods. ... Read More
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