Kwanzaa

Here's how to get that deep caramelization and custardy interior.

You’ll need seven to eight limes to make all that juice.

Green mangoes would be ideal, but slightly unripe mangoes are an imperfect but successful substitute.

Classic jerk chicken is grilled over pimento wood. If you don't happen to own any, hardwood or briquettes will have to do.

If you opt for canned instead of dried beans in this recipe, they won’t be quite as creamy, but you’ll save yourself some time.

You can do the first fry ahead of time, then soak the plantains in garlic water, dry, and hold at room temperature until closer to mealtime.

These biscuits are more sturdy than flaky, which means they won’t crumble on the way to your mouth.

Cornmeal thickens this soup and gives it a silky texture, and the combination of smoky andouille and greens packs in more flavor than you could imagine from a one-hour recipe cook time.

Quaker brand grits work really well in this recipe, and they are distributed very widely. If you can’t find them, use any other white, medium-grind, long-cooking grits.

Cook the collards until they completely surrender themselves to the rich, spicy, lip-smacking braising liquid. This recipe is from Buxton Hall, one of the Hot 10, America's Best New Restaurants 2016.

The pieces of butter in the batter melt as the hushpuppies fry, making them extra moist and luscious. This recipe is from Buxton Hall, one of the Hot 10, America's Best New Restaurants 2016.

Bob’s Red Mill makes a coarse cornmeal that’s perfect for these, but don’t stress if you can’t find it. A finer grind will just have less crunch.

Homemade stock made from a whole bird has two upsides: You get a rich, balanced liquid for the gumbo, and plenty of tender poached chicken meat.

Shortening makes for the flakiest pie crust. But you won’t miss the buttery flavor—there’s plenty in the filling.

Liquid from the grated corn enriches and helps thicken the grits; fresh corn added at the end makes for nice bites.

The flavor of this salad deepens as it sits, and we’d use the vinaigrette on any bean salad, including green beans.

Putting fatback in the frying oil adds flavor, but we find it's a bit too salty to eat on its own.

In this classic coconut layer cake, coconut makes an appearance three different ways.