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TRY SOMETHING NEW 🤯

Pasta alla Genovese

Lifestyle considerations

If you’re tired of making yet another pasta night with marinara sauce, consider leveling up your Italian game with this dish.

This recipe will come naturally to you if you’ve braised meat before — it’s meat that gets stewed with onions and aromatics until it forms a ragu-like sauce.

• This is a great dish to prep ahead of time. Once the braised meat is done, just toss it with pasta for a quick weeknight meal.

Lessons in flavor & technique

This dish teaches you to build flavors in layers. The braise starts with an aromatic base, a flavorful cooking liquid, and spices that infuse the meat with flavor as it stews and breaks down over time.

When it comes to assembling the pasta, the unctuous braised meat and noodles are tossed with grated hard cheese and pasta water to emulsify it into a creamy sauce.

• In theory, you could use the braised meat → pasta technique to create so many dishes. Think cochinita pibil cascatelli or tinga poblana penne…

Not all ragus are the same

Technically, a ragu is any meat-based sauce served over pasta. So how is this similar and different from the classic ragu bolognese?

• Similarities: Both are primarily meat sauces with a small amount of tomato product for color and acidity.

• Differences: Ragu bolognese has a finer texture. It uses ground meat and finely diced aromatics. Pasta alla Genovese is more rustic, leaving larger shreds of meat and longer slices of onions. The very high proportion of onions creates sweetness and caramelized flavors.

Ready to cook? Follow the step-by-step Cook Well recipe here:

THROWBACK TIME 🍳

Soy sauces of the world

You likely saw the soy sauce deep dive on the main channel. If you didn’t it was a really fun video and has received great feedback and traction so far.

In general, soy sauce products fall into these categories:

1) Standard: for seasoning

2) Dark: for color and seasoning

3) Thick: very sweet, more used for balancing a dish

4) Alternatives - e.g. coconut aminos or maggi; for seasoning but have a distinct flavor

Cuisines usually use products from their respective countries, but our testing found that soy sauces are fairly interchangeable and hard to distinguish in blind tests.

Ethan posted this helpful table with notes on different soy sauce brands and categories.

• Scroll through to see which few bottles might be worth picking up for yourself at home.

Find a few you like, and adjust when using them in various recipes (e.g. don’t just use set amounts in a recipe, instead consider the individual flavor properties of your specific soy sauce).

THE LEFTOVER SHELF 🥡

Soy sauce braised daikon

Braised daikon is the perfect way to appreciate soy sauce flavor since the mostly neutral root vegetable soaks up whatever liquid it's cooked in.

• If you have the time, check out Lucas Sin’s full soy braising explanation on the Food52 channel. He’s a great chef to learn from; listen closely to how he describes flavor as a human and cultural practice.

Here are the main talking points & tips for braising radish. We’ve summarized and simplified his tactics here:

Reducing daikon bitterness

To reduce bitterness, buy smaller daikon radishes that are young and firm. Braising them in plain water first, and then draining that liquid helps remove some of their bitter pungency.

• Sweetness also helps balance the bitterness. If you don't have thick, sweet soy sauce, a spoonful of sugar will do the trick.

Dish components

• Whole daikon radish, peeled

• Water

• Soy sauce blend of choice (try equal parts light, dark, and sweet)

• Optional aromatics: chopped ginger, scallion, or garlic

• Corn starch slurry, to thicken

Method

1) Cut & braise the radish

Slice the radish into thick cylinders. Optionally bevel the sharp edges by carefully “turning” the radish along a knife.

Add to a pot and cover with water. Simmer gently to braise for about 30 minutes or until the radish pieces are beginning to go tender, but not completely soft. Drain the water.

2) Season the tender radish

Bloom the aromatics (if using) in a bit of oil. Add the braised radish chunks back to the pot in a single layer. Carefully pour in fresh water until it goes 75% up the side of the radishes. Add your soy sauces into the pot until the radishes are just barely submerged.

Bring the mixture to a simmer and reduce for 15-20 minutes, occasionally basting or flipping the radish pieces so they evenly absorb the color and seasoning.

3) Thicken the sauce & serve

Remove the radish pieces to a serving plate. Continue reducing the sauce to thicken, or add in a spoonful of cornstarch slurry and simmer until the sauce glazes a spoon. Pour the remaining sauce over the braised radishes.

FOOD TRENDS EXPLAINED 🚀

Banned, stinky fruit

Why is durian the most outlawed & controversial fruit?

Durian is a large fruit with a spikey exterior, seed pods, edible meaty flesh, and an overwhelming scent. For people unaccustomed to the aroma, many liken it to funky cheese, gas, sweaty socks, or rotting onions.

Once you get past the smell (which unfortunately is most of our perception of flavor), the taste & texture are pleasant: the soft, creamy flesh supposedly tastes like a blend of vanilla custard, almonds, or even caramel cheesecake.

The unique smell of Durian has led to its prohibition in hotels, public transportation, and airplanes. It's a divisive fruit—some are drawn to its rich taste, while others are repelled by its intense aroma.

• It seems the polarizing nature of the fruit, like many foods, is cultural. If you’re used to it, you’re more likely to enjoy it. Familiarity is a powerful ingredient.

Learn more on Cook Well about how cultural associations of ingredients impacts our perception of Flavor.

READER PHOTO SUBMISSION OF THE WEEK 🏆

Excellent enchiladas

Will H. earned the dinner winner title with a flawless rendition of Ethan's chicken enchiladas.

Reply with your best home-cooked food photos for a chance to win & be featured!

EXTRA HELPINGS 🍽️

A read: Pie dough compilation

In a minute or less: Three reasons Jamaican beef patties hit different

What we’re watching: Homemade chili in under 30 minutes

Food science: Understanding aroma vs. taste

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