Recipe Archive

Side Dishes

Side dishes should earn their place at the table. These recipes focus on contrast, seasoning, and supporting flavors that make the whole meal better.

736 recipes

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Recipes

Pirão Capixaba de Caldo de Peixe

Chef Juliana

Pirão Capixaba de Caldo de Peixe

You thought the good part was already gone. Wrong. Save the moqueca broth, whisk in farinha slowly, and you've got the spoonful that makes the plate make sense.

Pirão de Açaí

Chef Juliana

Pirão de Açaí

You don't need a special hand for this. You need thick unsweetened açaí, the right farinha, and the patience to add it slowly until the spoon drags.

Pirão de Peixe com Tucupi e Jambu

Chef Juliana

Pirão de Peixe com Tucupi e Jambu

You think pirão is the part you can't get right. Wrong. Good broth, real farinha, steady stirring, and a gente turns fish dinner into comida de verdade.

Pirão de Tucupi

Chef Juliana

Pirão de Tucupi

You don't need mystery here. You need real bottled tucupi, good farinha, and the patience to sprinkle slowly. Anota aí: the point is glossy, spoonable, and unmistakably Pará.

Pisang Goreng (Indo-Dutch Fried Bananas)

Chef Joost

Pisang Goreng (Indo-Dutch Fried Bananas)

Pisang means banana, goreng means fried, and on the Indo-Dutch table this small golden side dish does the clever work of sweetness among sambal, rice, and ketjap.

Piselli alla Romana

Chef Graziella

Piselli alla Romana

Rome's spring celebration in a bowl: tender peas braised with prosciutto and butter until they become something far greater than their humble ingredients suggest.

Plátano Macho Asado al Comal

Chef Lupita

Plátano Macho Asado al Comal

Veracruz's coastal plantain, roasted whole on the comal until the peel blackens and the flesh turns soft, caramel-dark, and ready for frijoles negros or fish.

Plátano Macho Frito Colimense

Chef Lupita

Plátano Macho Frito Colimense

Colima's ripe plátano macho, fried in shallow oil until the edges caramelize, then finished with Mexican crema and cotija for the sweet-salty side that belongs beside beans, rice, and fish.

Plátano Macho Frito Maduro

Chef Lupita

Plátano Macho Frito Maduro

Guerrero's Costa Chica side of ripe plátano macho, cut thick and fried in manteca de cerdo until the edges caramelize and the centers turn soft, sweet, and almost custardy.

Plátano Macho Hervido Costeño

Chef Lupita

Plátano Macho Hervido Costeño

Guerrero's Costa Chica side of ripe plátano macho, boiled gently with salt until tender and sweet, then served beside beef caldo, barbacoa, or black beans.

Plátano Machuco de Tuxtepec

Chef Lupita

Plátano Machuco de Tuxtepec

Oaxaca's Papaloapan plantain mash from Tuxtepec, green plátano macho pounded hot with manteca de cerdo and salt, built to sit beside black beans before the meat reaches the table.

Plátano Tatemado Jarocho

Chef Lupita

Plátano Tatemado Jarocho

Veracruz's Sotavento plantain, tatemado whole on a blackened comal until the peel chars and the flesh turns syrupy, then served with crema de rancho, sal de grano, and sharp achiote garlic mojo.

Plátanos al Horno con Naranja Agria

Chef Lupita

Plátanos al Horno con Naranja Agria

Yucatecan ripe plantains baked whole in their blackened skins, split open and glazed with naranja agria, manteca, and piloncillo. The sweet, sour answer to a plate of cochinita pibil.

Plátanos Fritos al Estilo Oaxaqueño

Chef Lupita

Plátanos Fritos al Estilo Oaxaqueño

Oaxaca's daily plate of ripe plantains fried thick in lard until the edges go mahogany and the centers turn jammy. Served with black beans, queso fresco, and a thread of Oaxacan crema.

Plátanos Fritos con Crema Veracruzanos

Chef Lupita

Plátanos Fritos con Crema Veracruzanos

Veracruz's Gulf-side plantains, fried until the edges turn dark gold, then covered with thick crema and queso fresco for the sweet-savory bite that belongs beside rice, beans, or fish.

Plátanos Machos Fritos Tabasqueños

Chef Lupita

Plátanos Machos Fritos Tabasqueños

Tabasco's ripe plantain side, sliced thick and fried in manteca de cerdo until the edges caramelize dark, made to sit beside frijol negro, rice, and any salty guisado from the lowlands.

Plátanos Machos Fritos Yucatecos

Chef Lupita

Plátanos Machos Fritos Yucatecos

Yucatán's sweet counterpoint: ripe black plátano macho sliced on the bias and pan-fried in pork lard until the edges caramelize into mahogany and the centers turn custardy. The plate is not complete without it.

Plátanos Rellenos de Frijol Guerrerenses

Chef Lupita

Plátanos Rellenos de Frijol Guerrerenses

Guerrero's Costa Grande turns ripe plátano macho and refried beans into a sweet-savory fried side, crisp at the edges, soft inside, and built from mercado economy.

Platanos Rellenos de Picadillo Veracruzanos

Chef Lupita

Platanos Rellenos de Picadillo Veracruzanos

Veracruz's Sotavento kitchen puts sweet platano macho around picadillo with olives, capers, raisins, tomato, and chile ancho, then fries it until the outside turns dark and crisp at the edges.

Plátanos Rellenos de Queso Veracruzanos

Chef Lupita

Plátanos Rellenos de Queso Veracruzanos

Veracruz's Gulf-side plantain croquettes, boiled ripe plátano macho mashed while warm, stuffed with queso de hebra, and fried in manteca until the outside turns gold.

Poi ʻAwaʻawa (Hawaiian Sour Poi)

Chef Makoa

Poi ʻAwaʻawa (Hawaiian Sour Poi)

Fresh Hawaiian poi left to turn ʻawaʻawa, sour, over a few days, tangy and clean from its own kalo life, ready beside fish, kālua puaʻa, laulau, or tomorrow's plate lunch.

Poi (Hawaiian Pounded Taro)

Chef Makoa

Poi (Hawaiian Pounded Taro)

Steamed Hawaiian kalo pounded warm with water until it turns from stubborn pieces into smooth, living poi, fresh and sweet today, tangy tomorrow, always eaten like kin.

Poi ʻUala (Hawaiian Sweet Potato Poi)

Chef Makoa

Poi ʻUala (Hawaiian Sweet Potato Poi)

Hawaiʻi's sweet potato poi, pounded from ʻuala instead of kalo, smooth and faintly sweet, a canoe-crop starch for the table when the loʻi isn't the only teacher.

Polenta Brustolada

Chef Juliana

Polenta Brustolada

You don't need a special hand for polenta. Cook it thick, let it set, slice it, and give it time on the grill until the crust does the talking.

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