Leave the shrimp ring in the freezer and go for these hot, savoury and crispy Thai shrimp cakes instead. These perfect umami-bursting bites are really easy to make; just throw everything into the food processor, blitz into a paste, coat with breadcrumbs, and fry. Served with a sweet chili sauce, these will probably become one of your go-to appetizers.

Try this recipe from One World Kitchen for shrimp cakes using red curry paste or this recipe from Serious Eats without curry paste.

You can’t really go wrong with bringing a salad to a potluck, especially if it’s a flavour bomb like this one. Unlike with avocados, for which you almost need a baby monitor to see when it’s ready before it goes bad, green mangoes are easy to find because, well, they are usually sold underripe already. The mangoes soak up all the juices from the tomatoes, along with the zesty dressing. You can also make a similar salad with green papaya. This salad is the perfect balance of sweet, savoury, tart and salty.  

Try this recipe from Saveur.

You can still have porky goodness without the traditional Christmas ham. These sticky ribs have the appeal of sweet and sour pork, but they are a hundred times better. The beauty of these ribs is that they don’t take as long to prepare as oven roasted or barbecue ribs, only an hour or so, but the flavour gets right into the meat, not just the outside. Even better, they only require a handful of ingredients or so, most of which you already have.

Try this recipe from the Asian Grandmothers Cookbook blog.

 

A photo posted by Serious Eats (@seriouseats) on Mar 9, 2016 at 8:09am PST

Yes, tofu can be absolutely delicious despite its soft texture (depending on the type you get) and lack of flavour. It can soak up whatever you add to it--stocks, sauces and seasonings--and firm tofu holds up to frying for a crispy addition to any stir-fry. Toss it with other crunchy vegetables and salty, thick sauce, and you have a side dish that you can easily adapt to any diet and preference.

Try this recipe from Serious Eats and learn how to get the best texture for the tofu.

It was a food “trend” last year in New York City, but it has always been a popular and common dish in Chinese cuisine. It’s garlicky, refreshing and bold, and it’s as simple to make as it gets. The raw garlic and optional chilis give it bite, so it’s not really a thing you’d make again on Valentine’s Day.

Try this recipe from Serious Eats.

We already mentioned that turnips are especially great to have in the winter, now here’s how you can make a simple but flavourful salad using daikon radish with a rich miso dressing with only a few ingredients. The kelp flavours the daikon itself to add complexity to the dish.

Try this recipe from One World Kitchen.