Chile

A briny, spicy salsa brightens up simple fish dishes, such as Broiled Salmon Steaks (click for recipe)

A low-fuss soup like this spicy, hearty number is great for a crowd.

When is it done? Try this test: When the liquid has reduced by two-thirds, drop a spoonful onto a chilled plate and drag your finger through; if the jelly holds a trail that doesn't fill back in, it's ready. Learn more in this video.

Choose a country-style sourdough, preferably not too tangy, and if you prefer hot Italian links, go for it. Learn how to make this stuffing in this video.

Just a little bit of spicy, salty chile bean paste is the reason this dish packs such an insane flavor punch.

Use this smoky bread powder as your new crouton: Put it on salads, roasted veggies, and oil-and-garlic pasta.

You will fight your own relatives for the bits of cheesy goodness stuck to the bottom of the pan. Learn how to make this recipe in this video.

Vietnamese pho is built on a long-simmered and aromatic stock infused with charred ginger and onion, spices, and fish sauce, ladled over rice noodles and most commonly served with thin slices of beef. This is not that. We borrowed the technique of charring the onion and toasting the spices to give a quick, weeknight-friendly boost to store-bought chicken stock for this pork and noodle soup.

When using preserved lemons, scoop out the insides and only use the peel.

Brining the nuts with herbs and some spice infuses them from the inside out, and the long roasting time gives them extra toasty flavor.

Loaded with fresh herbs and sturdy kale and then set off by a bright and spicy dressing, this salad from Hot Joy is an ideal counterpoint to the more decadent dishes on the table.

Jaew is a tart, smoky dipping sauce from Thailand, usually served with grilled meats and sausages. Hot Joy chef Quealy Watson takes it to a Tex-Mex place in this eggy, cheesy rice dish that might remind you of nachos (it works). Watch the step-by-step video here.

In search of a classic tuna melt? This is the best we’ve tried. Palace Diner makes its own pickles, but of course you can start with store-bought.

Not that this pulled chicken recipe is hard, but you can make it even easier by using a store-bought rotisserie chicken instead of the breasts called for here.

Think of this pasta from Tosca as a carbonara, but with tomatoes in place of the eggs.

The more chiles you use, the closer you’ll come to the tear-inducing flavor of the dish as it’s served at Thai-Khun.

Is it hot? Sure, it’s hot. But the bracing pickled cabbage, cooling fresh herbs, and sweet-tasting rice will help keep the flames in check in this incendiary dish from Thai-Kun.

This recipe from Thai-Kun makes a generous amount of sauce, which you may find yourself finishing (we won’t judge). Any leftover would be great on everything from white rice to noodles to…well, more bread.

Hot Joy chef Quealy Watson, who’s from Louisiana, grew up on his mom’s dirty rice; that dish helped inspire this bastardized fried version. The chicken-liver base tastes very concentrated and intense on its own, but becomes nicely balanced in the finished dish. Watch the step-by-step video here.

We know, this pork dish from Rose's Luxury sounds nuts. It’s meant to be mixed together so you get some garlicky pork, floral lychees, sweet coconut, sharp onions, and crisp salty accents in each bite.

“When I was getting married, I couldn’t think of a caterer I wanted to use,” says chef Naomi Pomeroy, Expatriate, Portland, OR, “and I didn’t want to ask my staff.” Her solution? Cook for her guests herself. She went with super-simple chicken, powered by a throw-together marinade.

Celery is the perfect vehicle for a salty, assertive dressing like this one. Chiles and peanuts make this dish that much more addictive. —Alison Roman, senior associate food editor

“A lighter, spicier version I could get down with on even the hottest of days.” —Alison Roman, senior associate food editor