The 10 Most Popular Recipes of May 2020
After a long stint indoors, who isn't missing the outside world? This month, we all embraced the longer days and warmer weather that unfolded over these last 31 days, and our 10 most popular recipes show it: They're the type of bright and vibrant recipes that taste as good as sunshine and gentle breezes feel. We're talking a fresh chicken salad you could eat by the plateful without feeling like you've just downed a gallon of mayo. A vibrant green curry with mushrooms that transforms a can of coconut milk into a fast and filling dinner. A saucy, tomato-y quick-cooking seared paneer that’s your new back-pocket dinner. A spring panzanella with peak-season asparagus and other crispy veg. And how could we gloss over this May's crowd favorite: Molly Baz's lovingly (and painstakingly) developed Chicken Parm. Here, the rest of month’s new favorite recipes, starting with No. 1.
Photo by Emma Fishman, Bowl by Meilen Ceramics4/10Black Pepper Tofu and Asparagus
In this 30-minute dish, which is inspired by Yotam Ottolenghi's recipe in his 2011 book Plenty, black pepper is the star, not the sidekick: When bloomed in oil, the coarsely ground peppercorns become piquant and fragrant enough to flavor the entire sauce, no red pepper flakes, dried chiles, or hot sauce needed. Take care not to burn the peppercorns as you toast them or the flavor could swing from spicy to bitter.
Photo by Carla Lalli Music5/10Buttermilk Spring Chicken
People have been brining chicken in buttermilk since forever, often as the first step in a dredged and fried chicken situation. But we have chef and cookbook author Samin Nosrat to credit for the idea of roasting poultry straight out of a buttermilk bath, which not only imparts delicious tangy flavor, but also helps the skin achieve a walnut-colored hue when roasted at high heat.
Photo and Food Styling by Andy Baraghani6/10Coconut Green Curry With Mushrooms and Chickpeas
This vegetarian Thai curry comes together in about 30 minutes—and you don't need store-bought curry paste to make it. Our streamlined version is fresh-tasting and easy to throw together—just blitz cilantro stems (the most flavorful part of the herb!), ginger, garlic, shallots, and green chiles in a food processor or blender.
Photo and Food Styling by Sohla El-Waylly7/10Pork and Scallion Dumplings With Crispy Skirt
If the words crispy dumpling skirt don't send you running to your stove, we don't know what will. Instead of steaming these dumplings in water, we simmer them in a vinegary cornstarch and flour slurry that creates a lacy, crunchy golden crust as the water evaporates and the dumplings brown. The vinegar adds tang, but also creates the lightest and crispiest skirt, a pro move we borrowed from Dumpling Galaxy in Flushing, Queens.
Photo and Food Styling by Sohla El-Waylly10/10Paneer With Burst Cherry Tomato Sauce
This dish of saucy, seared paneer channels the flavors traditionally found in matar paneer—coriander, cumin, chile, and ginger—into a quick-cooking cherry tomato sauce that's packed with bright spring-y sugar snap peas. If you can’t find paneer, give this a try with another sturdy non-melty cheese like Halloumi or queso fresco. Or think of it as a simple sauce you can serve over any protein, like a crispy-skinned salmon fillet, seared shell-on shrimp, sliced feta, or even just a bed of salted yogurt.
