PITTSBURGH — Elected “ingredient of the year” by The New York Times, vinegar can have many uses and personalities far beyond its generic role in a salad dressing or as a decorative balsamic reduction.

You can use a splash as a finish to lentil soup or chili to add depth. Some bartenders are throwing it into mocktails. There are folks who use raw vinegar for its supposed health benefits. It can even be lightly sprayed onto cookies.

Long before its current moment in the spotlight, Filipinos used vinegar as an integral element in their cooking. But chef Rafael Vencio, who was born in Quezon City in the Philippines, points out that Filipinos use a variety of sources to get that acidic hit.

“Filipinos have a deep love for three main flavor profiles, particularly sweet, salty and sour,” said Vencio, who is slated to open his Filipino restaurant, AmBoy, in late spring on Pittsburgh’s North Side. “Sour is just ingrained in our palate.”

A love of acidity

Filipinos use not only vinegars from different sources but also underripe fruits, such as tamarind, to add acidity. Some will make their own condiments to add to foods, Vencio said, usually using some type of vinegar.

Filipino vinegar can be made from cane, coconut or palm. The type employed depends largely on regional custom and personal taste.

Spanish colonizers expanded the Philippines’ indigenous sugarcane plantations, and sugarcane remains an economically significant crop in the country. Cane vinegar is the most common type used.

For their condiment or dipping sauce — called suka sawsawan — Filipinos up the acid ante by adding the native citrus fruit calamansi, also known as a Philippine lemon or lime. Fish sauce, soy sauce, garlic, peppercorns, onion and chiles are also common components.

“Essentially what we do is we’re compounding acidity,” Vencio said. “That’s how we make the sour flavor profile more robust and more complex.”

Personal condiments are used to adapt all types of dishes but especially seafood. They can be a dipping sauce for crab, for instance, or fried fish or pork.

‘The original fusion cuisine’

Kimberley Ashlee Haugh, of Kimberley Ashlee & Co. catering, calls Filipino cooking “the original fusion cuisine” because it integrates influences from Chinese, Spanish, Indo-Malay and American cultures.

However, adobo, considered the unofficial Filipino national dish, is uniquely Filipino and has indigenous roots. Although the name comes from the Spanish world adobar, meaning “to marinate,” the dish — chicken or pork braised in vinegar — predates the arrival of Spanish colonizers.

Vinegar is essential to adobo, Vencio said. “It’s not noticeable, but it’s there.”

With cooking, vinegar’s sharpness mellows.

Vencio said vinegar’s role in the dish was partly to preserve the meat, especially back in times when refrigeration was not available. It also balances adobo’s saltiness.

Cane vinegar, which Haugh describes as “clean” and “bright,” is most commonly used for adobo, as well as for a dish called paksiw, fish or pork cooked in a sour and savory broth containing vinegar.

Coconut vinegar — which can be made from fermented coconut juice, sap or blossoms — is “softer” and “rounder” than cane vinegar, Haugh said, and is traditionally used often in the southern Philippines.

Haugh recalls a vinegar drink her grandmother made, both to quench thirst and aid digestion. Haugh compares it to the apple cider vinegar craze in the U.S. or to Filipino-style kombucha.

“I remember my grandmother, when she would have these vinegar drinks, you would put things in it like green mango, pineapple or guava,” Haugh said, “and you would mix it with a little bit of water and sugar.”

Cane or coconut vinegar is used to make a Filipino ceviche, called kinilaw; fish is “cooked” in vinegar rather than Latin-style citrus. It is often mixed with calamansi, ginger, chile and coconut milk.

Haugh described palm vinegar as “earthy.”

“It’s got a subtle sweetness to it,” she said.

‘Going for it’

As someone who grew up in Toronto, being slightly ashamed of bringing her aromatic Filipino lunches to school, Haugh finds it gratifying that Filipino cuisine is finding acceptance.

“If you were to tell the 10-year-old me that Filipino food would actually be something that people are interested in, I wouldn’t have believed it,” she said.

Her ultimate moment of sharing Filipino cuisine with an American audience came at a charity dinner for the O’Noir Foundation featuring local chefs cooking black-colored food. She decided to make one of her favorite dishes, dinuguan — various cuts of pork stewed in pig’s blood and vinegar, among other ingredients.

“I was like, ‘I’m going to do it. I’m going to go for it. I’m going to serve a bunch of non-Filipinos a stew made of pig, cooked in pig’s blood with a splash of vinegar.’”

The 10-year-old Haugh would have been amazed.

Traditional Chicken Adobo sa Gata

2-2 1/2 pounds chicken (bone-in thighs, drumsticks or mixed)

1 whole head garlic, cloves smashed

1/4 cup soy sauce

1/3 cup cane vinegar (or white vinegar), divided

1 or 2 tablespoons neutral oil

2 or 3 dried bay leaves

1 1/2 teaspoons whole black peppercorns, lightly crushed

1/2 cup water

1 cup coconut milk (first press, if available)

Optional (regional):

2 or 3 Thai chiles (common in the Bicol region)

1 small onion, sliced (not always traditional but common in home kitchens)

Combine chicken, garlic, soy sauce and half the vinegar.

Marinate 30 minutes to 2 hours (or cook immediately — both are authentic).

Heat oil in a heavy pot over medium heat.

Remove chicken from marinade and brown on all sides.

Add garlic from marinade and saute until fragrant.

Pour in marinade, remaining vinegar, bay leaves, peppercorns and water.

Do not stir for the first 5 minutes — this allows the vinegar to mellow. Simmer uncovered 20-25 minutes until chicken is tender and sauce reduces.

Lower heat and stir in coconut milk.

Simmer gently 10-15 minutes until sauce thickens and coats the chicken.

Taste and adjust saltiness with a splash of soy or water — not sugar.

Optional: Let oil slightly separate for a richer, traditional finish.

Remove bay leaves before serving.

Serves 4-6.

— Kimberley Ashlee Haugh

Using bone-in chicken thighs adds rich flavor and keeps the meat tender and juicy in this Spanish-inspired dinner.

The chicken simmers with rice, tomatoes, peppers, onion and garlic, all brought together by the bold, smoky flavor of chorizo. Chorizo is a highly seasoned pork sausage. Look for Spanish chorizo that is fully cooked and ready to eat, typically flavored with garlic, chili powder and smoked paprika.

Everything cooks in one pot, creating a deeply satisfying, quick meal with classic Spanish flair.

HELPFUL HINTS:

Diced onion from the produce department can be used to save preparation time.

Any type of chorizo can be used. Or ham cubes can be used instead.

COUNTDOWN:

Prepare ingredients.

Cook recipe.

SHOPPING LIST:

To buy: 1 pound skinless on the bone chicken thighs, 1 green bell pepper, 1 small container long-grain white rice, 1 small chorizo sausage, 1 can reduced sodium chopped tomatoes, 1 carton no-salt-added chicken broth, 1 bunch fresh cilantro.

Staples: olive oil, onion, garlic, salt and black peppercorns

Spanish Style Chicken (Tender Chicken and Savory Rice)

Recipe by Linda Gassenheimer

2 teaspoons olive oil

1 pound skinless on the bone chicken thighs

1 cup diced onion

3 crushed garlic cloves

1 cup green bell pepper cubes (about 1/2 inch each)

1 cup chopped reduced sodium canned tomatoes

1/2 cup chorizo sausage cut into 1/2-inch cubes

1/2 cup long-grain white rice

2 cups no-salt-added chicken broth

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 tablespoons cilantro leaves

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken and onion. Cook 3 minutes. Turn chicken over and add garlic and green bell pepper to the skillet. Cook 3 more minutes. Add tomatoes, chorizo, rice and chicken broth. Stir to combine all ingredients. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, cover with a lid and cook 20 minutes. Liquid should be absorbed and rice soft. Cook a few more minutes uncovered if needed. A meat thermometer should read 165 degrees. Add salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste. Divide in half and serve on two dinner plates. Sprinkle cilantro leaves on top.

Yield 2 servings.

Per serving: 624 calories (33 percent from fat), 22.9 g fat (6.4 g saturated, 9.3 g monounsaturated), 181 mg cholesterol, 47.7 g protein, 53.1 g carbohydrates, 5.2g fiber, 562 mg sodium.

People choose to eat less meat for a variety of reasons, from religious and cultural to health benefits. But don’t forget: Meat-free dishes taste good, too.

With a run of springlike weather and the beginning of Lent, now is a great time to try a new batch of recipes that are lighter in preparation but not in flavor. (We’re following the Lenten rule and allowing fish.)

Give tuna salad a mayo-free makeover by infusing the pantry staple with Southwestern flavors and serving it on a tostada. Or combine a can of oil-packed tuna with vegetables, olives and hard-boiled eggs, then stuff them into empanadas for a portable Spanish-inspired meal.

Marinate salmon in an Asian sauce before mixing it up with noodles, baby bok choy and peanuts. Try your hand at salmon escabeche, a traditional Spanish preparation that’s ceviche-adjacent, and serve it atop a bed of fresh greens for a lighter meal that evokes warmer weather.

Or try a pasta dish that gets its protein from walnuts, funk from Gorgonzola and a side of bitterness from radicchio. It’s a flavor powerhouse.

As a bonus, tuna, salmon and walnuts are all high in protein and omega-3s, adding a nutrient boost as well as a flavor boost. The recipes are also malleable — swap in other proteins, cheeses, spices and vegetables to keep it fresh. You’ll want to keep them in your rotation all year long.

Tuna Salad Tostada

Serves 4 to 5.

From the new Native cookbook “Rooted in Fire” by Pyet Despain, who writes: “I did not have access to fresh tuna in the Midwest, or any other type of fresh fish; in our low-income family, fish was considered a luxury and not a mainstay of our diet. Nevertheless, there wasn’t a week where we didn’t reach into the cabinet for a can of tuna to make Tuna Helper. … Our tuna salad didn’t involve celery or mayo. We’d drain a can of tuna, scrape the fatty flakes into a bowl, add some pico de gallo, put it on a few crackers with a dash of Tapatío, and call it a day. I still reach for this salad today.” (HarperOne, 2025).

• 1 lb. fresh tuna (or canned tuna, drained and shredded with a fork)
• ¼ medium white onion, diced
• 1 c. diced tomato
• 1 c. diced red bell pepper
• 1 c. cilantro leaves
• 1 tsp. sesame seeds
• Juice of 2 limes
• ½ tsp. sea salt, plus more for salting the fish
• 1 tsp. chipotle powder
• Tostadas, for serving
• 2 to 3 avocados, thinly sliced
• Chili oil, for serving, optional

Directions

If using fresh tuna, salt it. In a medium skillet over medium heat, sear the fresh tuna for 4 minutes on each side until it is no longer pink. Remove the skillet from the heat, and let the fish cool to room temperature. Shred it with a fork.

In a medium bowl, combine the onion, tomato, red bell pepper, cilantro, sesame seeds, lime juice, salt and chipotle powder. Mix well, and add the shredded fresh or canned tuna.

Serve with tostadas, avocado slices and a sprinkle of chili oil, if desired.

Salmon Escabeche

Serves 4.

Escabeche is a traditional Spanish dish that originated in Persia, where fish or seafood is cooked or pickled in an acidic sauce. The tangy, bright flavors of the marinade perfectly balance the richness of the fish or seafood. It can be served chilled or at room temperature, but be sure to start it the day before; it needs at least 12 hours to marinate. From “Tapas Espana: 70 Easy Recipes for Gathering and Sharing,” by Catherine Cogliandro Alioto (Weldon Owen, 2026).

• 1 lb. wild-caught salmon fillet, cut crosswise into 1-in.-wide slices
• 1 ½ tsp. kosher salt
• 2 tsp. freshly ground pepper
• 1 shallot, thinly sliced
• ½ fennel bulb, trimmed and thinly sliced
• 4 sprigs fresh parsley, coarsely chopped
• ¼ c. extra-virgin olive oil
• ⅔ c. dry white wine, such as Albarino
• 4 c. mixed greens
• 2 tbsp. finely chopped fresh tarragon, for garnish

Directions

In a glass dish, place the salmon slices and season well with salt and pepper. Add the shallot, fennel and parsley.

In a small saucepan, heat the oil and wine over medium-high heat and boil for 1 minute. Immediately remove from heat and pour the mixture over the salmon. Cover and set aside until cool. Transfer to the refrigerator and let the salmon marinate for at least 12 hours.

To serve, gently toss the greens with the vinaigrette from the marinade. Place the salmon pieces on top of the greens. Garnish with tarragon and serve.

Salmon Satay Noodles

Serves 2.

You can swap the salmon for prawns, chicken or pork tenderloin, or use any sort of noodles you wish. To get ahead, make the dual-purpose satay sauce/marinade the day before or in the morning. From “Clodagh’s Happy Cooking,” by Clodagh McKenna (Kyle, 2026).

For the sauce:

• ⅔ c. (5 ½ oz.) soy sauce
• Finely grated zest and juice of 2 limes
• ½ c. (4 oz.) toasted sesame oil
• 2 tbsp. honey
• 2 tbsp. rice wine vinegar
• 3 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 (2-in.) piece of ginger root,
peeled and finely sliced or grated
• 2 tbsp. hoisin sauce
• 2 tbsp. peanut butter, preferably smooth
• 2 tbsp. water

For the noodles:

• 2 salmon fillets with skins
• 2 tsp. olive oil
• 2 egg noodle nests
• 1 large red pepper, finely sliced
• 2 heads of baby bok choy, halved
• 1 tbsp. chopped roasted peanuts
• 1 green onion, finely sliced
• 1 tbsp. chopped cilantro leaves
• 1 lime, halved, for serving

Directions

To make the satay sauce: Place all the ingredients in a blender, or use an immersion blender, and blitz until you reach a smooth consistency.

To make the salmon: Place the salmon fillets in a bowl, pour over half the sauce and turn to coat all over. Cover and place in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes, or up to overnight.

Set a frying pan over medium heat and add the olive oil. Remove the salmon fillets from the marinade, shaking off the excess, and place them in the hot pan, skin-side down. Sear for 5 minutes, or until the skin has browned, then turn and cook until opaque, 1 to 2 minutes. Transfer the salmon to a plate, cover and allow to rest.

Cook the noodles according to the package instructions, then drain and set aside.

Add the red pepper and bok choy to the frying pan and cook, stirring constantly, for 2 to 3 minutes, or until crisp-tender. Add the rest of the satay sauce to the frying pan and heat through. Finally, tip in the noodles and toss to coat with the sauce.

Distribute the noodles and vegetables between warmed bowls and top with a salmon fillet. Sprinkle with peanuts, green onion and cilantro and serve with lime halves.

Strozzapreti with Radicchio, Walnuts and Gorgonzola

Serves 4 to 6.

This recipe can only be made better by using local products. But to take this dish to the next level, drizzle some aged balsamic on top. From ” The Pasta Book, ” by Marc Vetri (Clarkson Potter, 2026).

• Kosher salt, to taste
• 12 oz. strozzapreti (see Tip)
• 10 tbsp. (5 oz.) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
• ⅓ c. extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 medium heads Treviso or the more common Chioggia radicchio, cut into ribbons ½ in. wide
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled
• Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• Leaves from 2 sprigs fresh rosemary, chopped if large
• ½ tsp. red wine vinegar, plus more as needed
• ½ c. finely grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for garnish
• 6 tbsp. chopped toasted walnuts, preferably black walnuts, plus more for garnish
• ¾ c. crumbled Gorgonzola cheese

Directions

Cook the strozzapreti: Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add salt until it tastes like well-seasoned broth. Drop in the strozzapreti, give it a stir, and cover the pot to quickly return the water to a boil. Uncover or partially cover to maintain the boil and boil the pasta, stirring occasionally, until it is tender but still a little chewy when bitten, 10 to 12 minutes.

Meanwhile, start the sauce: In a deep 12-inch sauté pan, melt the butter and olive oil over medium heat. Add the radicchio and garlic and sauté, stirring now and then, until the radicchio is tender, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. If the pasta isn’t ready yet, remove the pan from the heat.

When the pasta is ready, return the pan with the radicchio to high heat and add 1 cup of the hot pasta water and the rosemary. Bring to a simmer and use a spider strainer or large slotted spoon to scoop the cooked pasta from the water and transfer it straight to the pan. Shake and swirl the pan until the sauce reduces a bit more and begins to hug the pasta, 1 to 2 minutes (keep the pasta moving, adding a little more pasta water if necessary to create a loose, creamy sauce). Taste the sauce and season with the red wine vinegar, adding more to taste. Toss everything until the pasta and sauce begin to marry.

Remove from the heat, add the Parmesan and toasted walnuts, and keep tossing until the sauce thickens further and the pasta and sauce marry, leaving little to no sauce in the pan. Remove the garlic cloves before serving.

Dish out the pasta in mounds onto warmed plates. Garnish with the Gorgonzola, some more toasted walnuts and some Parmesan.

Tip: Strozzapretti is a hand-rolled pasta that looks like a short, twisted rope. Feel free to substitute a pasta with a similar shape, or more common shapes like penne, fusilli or campanelle.

Galician Empanadas

Makes 4 empanadas.

The Galician empanada is distinguished by its shape and filling. Traditionally made as one large, round pie with crimped edges, this empanada is filled with tuna and a sofrito of vegetables; it is cooked whole and served in wedges. Alternatively, as we do here, the empanada can be cooked in individual round tartlet pans. From “Tapas Espana: 70 Easy Recipes for Gathering and Sharing,” by Catherine Cogliandro Alioto (Weldon Owen, 2026).

For the pastry:

• 2 ½ c. all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp. kosher salt
• 1 c. (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
• ½ c. ice-cold water

For the sofrito:

• 3 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 onion, diced
• 1 green bell pepper, seeded and diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 Roma tomatoes, chopped
• ½ tsp. kosher salt
• ½ tsp. freshly ground pepper
• 1 (5-oz.) can tuna, packed in oil, drained and flaked
• ¼ c. green olives, pitted and coarsely chopped
• 1 hard-boiled egg, sliced
• 2 tbsp. fresh parsley, chopped
• 2 tsp. smoked paprika
• 1 large egg
• 1 tbsp. cream

Directions

To make the pastry: Combine the flour, salt and butter in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade. Process the mixture for about 10 seconds, or until it resembles fine breadcrumbs. With the motor running, slowly drizzle in the water until the dough starts to come together, about 30 seconds. Turn the dough onto a board and shape it into two equal rounds. Wrap each in plastic and chill for at least 1 hour.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

To make the sofrito: Warm the oil in a large sauté pan or skillet over medium-low heat and add the onion, bell pepper and garlic. Cook for 3 to 5 minutes until translucent. Add the tomatoes and season with salt and pepper. Continue to cook for 5 minutes until the tomatoes release their juices. Set aside to cool.

Once cool, in a large bowl, combine the sofrito with the tuna, olives, hard-boiled egg, parsley and paprika. Stir gently to combine. In a small bowl, whisk together the raw egg and cream.

Roll out the dough and cut out eight 3-inch rounds. Press four of the rounds into the bottom of four tartlet molds. Divide the vegetables and tuna mixture among the molds and top each with another round of dough. Seal the edges and, using a paring knife, make two small vents in the top of each empanada. Brush the empanadas with the egg wash. Place the tartlets on a baking sheet and bake for 30 minutes until golden brown.

Store wrapped or in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

People choose to eat less meat for a variety of reasons, from religious and cultural to health benefits. But don’t forget: Meat-free dishes taste good, too.

With a run of springlike weather and the beginning of Lent, now is a great time to try a new batch of recipes that are lighter in preparation but not in flavor. (We’re following the Lenten rule and allowing fish.)

Give tuna salad a mayo-free makeover by infusing the pantry staple with Southwestern flavors and serving it on a tostada. Or combine a can of oil-packed tuna with vegetables, olives and hard-boiled eggs, then stuff them into empanadas for a portable Spanish-inspired meal.

Marinate salmon in an Asian sauce before mixing it up with noodles, baby bok choy and peanuts. Try your hand at salmon escabeche, a traditional Spanish preparation that’s ceviche-adjacent, and serve it atop a bed of fresh greens for a lighter meal that evokes warmer weather.

Or try a pasta dish that gets its protein from walnuts, funk from Gorgonzola and a side of bitterness from radicchio. It’s a flavor powerhouse.

As a bonus, tuna, salmon and walnuts are all high in protein and omega-3s, adding a nutrient boost as well as a flavor boost. The recipes are also malleable — swap in other proteins, cheeses, spices and vegetables to keep it fresh. You’ll want to keep them in your rotation all year long.

Tuna Salad Tostada

Serves 4 to 5.

From the new Native cookbook “Rooted in Fire” by Pyet Despain, who writes: “I did not have access to fresh tuna in the Midwest, or any other type of fresh fish; in our low-income family, fish was considered a luxury and not a mainstay of our diet. Nevertheless, there wasn’t a week where we didn’t reach into the cabinet for a can of tuna to make Tuna Helper. … Our tuna salad didn’t involve celery or mayo. We’d drain a can of tuna, scrape the fatty flakes into a bowl, add some pico de gallo, put it on a few crackers with a dash of Tapatío, and call it a day. I still reach for this salad today.” (HarperOne, 2025).

• 1 lb. fresh tuna (or canned tuna, drained and shredded with a fork)
• ¼ medium white onion, diced
• 1 c. diced tomato
• 1 c. diced red bell pepper
• 1 c. cilantro leaves
• 1 tsp. sesame seeds
• Juice of 2 limes
• ½ tsp. sea salt, plus more for salting the fish
• 1 tsp. chipotle powder
• Tostadas, for serving
• 2 to 3 avocados, thinly sliced
• Chili oil, for serving, optional

Directions

If using fresh tuna, salt it. In a medium skillet over medium heat, sear the fresh tuna for 4 minutes on each side until it is no longer pink. Remove the skillet from the heat, and let the fish cool to room temperature. Shred it with a fork.

In a medium bowl, combine the onion, tomato, red bell pepper, cilantro, sesame seeds, lime juice, salt and chipotle powder. Mix well, and add the shredded fresh or canned tuna.

Serve with tostadas, avocado slices and a sprinkle of chili oil, if desired.

Salmon Escabeche

Serves 4.

Escabeche is a traditional Spanish dish that originated in Persia, where fish or seafood is cooked or pickled in an acidic sauce. The tangy, bright flavors of the marinade perfectly balance the richness of the fish or seafood. It can be served chilled or at room temperature, but be sure to start it the day before; it needs at least 12 hours to marinate. From “Tapas Espana: 70 Easy Recipes for Gathering and Sharing,” by Catherine Cogliandro Alioto (Weldon Owen, 2026).

• 1 lb. wild-caught salmon fillet, cut crosswise into 1-in.-wide slices
• 1 ½ tsp. kosher salt
• 2 tsp. freshly ground pepper
• 1 shallot, thinly sliced
• ½ fennel bulb, trimmed and thinly sliced
• 4 sprigs fresh parsley, coarsely chopped
• ¼ c. extra-virgin olive oil
• ⅔ c. dry white wine, such as Albarino
• 4 c. mixed greens
• 2 tbsp. finely chopped fresh tarragon, for garnish

Directions

In a glass dish, place the salmon slices and season well with salt and pepper. Add the shallot, fennel and parsley.

In a small saucepan, heat the oil and wine over medium-high heat and boil for 1 minute. Immediately remove from heat and pour the mixture over the salmon. Cover and set aside until cool. Transfer to the refrigerator and let the salmon marinate for at least 12 hours.

To serve, gently toss the greens with the vinaigrette from the marinade. Place the salmon pieces on top of the greens. Garnish with tarragon and serve.

Salmon Satay Noodles

Serves 2.

You can swap the salmon for prawns, chicken or pork tenderloin, or use any sort of noodles you wish. To get ahead, make the dual-purpose satay sauce/marinade the day before or in the morning. From “Clodagh’s Happy Cooking,” by Clodagh McKenna (Kyle, 2026).

For the sauce:

• ⅔ c. (5 ½ oz.) soy sauce
• Finely grated zest and juice of 2 limes
• ½ c. (4 oz.) toasted sesame oil
• 2 tbsp. honey
• 2 tbsp. rice wine vinegar
• 3 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 (2-in.) piece of ginger root,
peeled and finely sliced or grated
• 2 tbsp. hoisin sauce
• 2 tbsp. peanut butter, preferably smooth
• 2 tbsp. water

For the noodles:

• 2 salmon fillets with skins
• 2 tsp. olive oil
• 2 egg noodle nests
• 1 large red pepper, finely sliced
• 2 heads of baby bok choy, halved
• 1 tbsp. chopped roasted peanuts
• 1 green onion, finely sliced
• 1 tbsp. chopped cilantro leaves
• 1 lime, halved, for serving

Directions

To make the satay sauce: Place all the ingredients in a blender, or use an immersion blender, and blitz until you reach a smooth consistency.

To make the salmon: Place the salmon fillets in a bowl, pour over half the sauce and turn to coat all over. Cover and place in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes, or up to overnight.

Set a frying pan over medium heat and add the olive oil. Remove the salmon fillets from the marinade, shaking off the excess, and place them in the hot pan, skin-side down. Sear for 5 minutes, or until the skin has browned, then turn and cook until opaque, 1 to 2 minutes. Transfer the salmon to a plate, cover and allow to rest.

Cook the noodles according to the package instructions, then drain and set aside.

Add the red pepper and bok choy to the frying pan and cook, stirring constantly, for 2 to 3 minutes, or until crisp-tender. Add the rest of the satay sauce to the frying pan and heat through. Finally, tip in the noodles and toss to coat with the sauce.

Distribute the noodles and vegetables between warmed bowls and top with a salmon fillet. Sprinkle with peanuts, green onion and cilantro and serve with lime halves.

Strozzapreti with Radicchio, Walnuts and Gorgonzola

Serves 4 to 6.

This recipe can only be made better by using local products. But to take this dish to the next level, drizzle some aged balsamic on top. From ” The Pasta Book, ” by Marc Vetri (Clarkson Potter, 2026).

• Kosher salt, to taste
• 12 oz. strozzapreti (see Tip)
• 10 tbsp. (5 oz.) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
• ⅓ c. extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 medium heads Treviso or the more common Chioggia radicchio, cut into ribbons ½ in. wide
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled
• Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• Leaves from 2 sprigs fresh rosemary, chopped if large
• ½ tsp. red wine vinegar, plus more as needed
• ½ c. finely grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for garnish
• 6 tbsp. chopped toasted walnuts, preferably black walnuts, plus more for garnish
• ¾ c. crumbled Gorgonzola cheese

Directions

Cook the strozzapreti: Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add salt until it tastes like well-seasoned broth. Drop in the strozzapreti, give it a stir, and cover the pot to quickly return the water to a boil. Uncover or partially cover to maintain the boil and boil the pasta, stirring occasionally, until it is tender but still a little chewy when bitten, 10 to 12 minutes.

Meanwhile, start the sauce: In a deep 12-inch sauté pan, melt the butter and olive oil over medium heat. Add the radicchio and garlic and sauté, stirring now and then, until the radicchio is tender, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. If the pasta isn’t ready yet, remove the pan from the heat.

When the pasta is ready, return the pan with the radicchio to high heat and add 1 cup of the hot pasta water and the rosemary. Bring to a simmer and use a spider strainer or large slotted spoon to scoop the cooked pasta from the water and transfer it straight to the pan. Shake and swirl the pan until the sauce reduces a bit more and begins to hug the pasta, 1 to 2 minutes (keep the pasta moving, adding a little more pasta water if necessary to create a loose, creamy sauce). Taste the sauce and season with the red wine vinegar, adding more to taste. Toss everything until the pasta and sauce begin to marry.

Remove from the heat, add the Parmesan and toasted walnuts, and keep tossing until the sauce thickens further and the pasta and sauce marry, leaving little to no sauce in the pan. Remove the garlic cloves before serving.

Dish out the pasta in mounds onto warmed plates. Garnish with the Gorgonzola, some more toasted walnuts and some Parmesan.

Tip: Strozzapretti is a hand-rolled pasta that looks like a short, twisted rope. Feel free to substitute a pasta with a similar shape, or more common shapes like penne, fusilli or campanelle.

Galician Empanadas

Makes 4 empanadas.

The Galician empanada is distinguished by its shape and filling. Traditionally made as one large, round pie with crimped edges, this empanada is filled with tuna and a sofrito of vegetables; it is cooked whole and served in wedges. Alternatively, as we do here, the empanada can be cooked in individual round tartlet pans. From “Tapas Espana: 70 Easy Recipes for Gathering and Sharing,” by Catherine Cogliandro Alioto (Weldon Owen, 2026).

For the pastry:

• 2 ½ c. all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp. kosher salt
• 1 c. (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
• ½ c. ice-cold water

For the sofrito:

• 3 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 onion, diced
• 1 green bell pepper, seeded and diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 Roma tomatoes, chopped
• ½ tsp. kosher salt
• ½ tsp. freshly ground pepper
• 1 (5-oz.) can tuna, packed in oil, drained and flaked
• ¼ c. green olives, pitted and coarsely chopped
• 1 hard-boiled egg, sliced
• 2 tbsp. fresh parsley, chopped
• 2 tsp. smoked paprika
• 1 large egg
• 1 tbsp. cream

Directions

To make the pastry: Combine the flour, salt and butter in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade. Process the mixture for about 10 seconds, or until it resembles fine breadcrumbs. With the motor running, slowly drizzle in the water until the dough starts to come together, about 30 seconds. Turn the dough onto a board and shape it into two equal rounds. Wrap each in plastic and chill for at least 1 hour.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

To make the sofrito: Warm the oil in a large sauté pan or skillet over medium-low heat and add the onion, bell pepper and garlic. Cook for 3 to 5 minutes until translucent. Add the tomatoes and season with salt and pepper. Continue to cook for 5 minutes until the tomatoes release their juices. Set aside to cool.

Once cool, in a large bowl, combine the sofrito with the tuna, olives, hard-boiled egg, parsley and paprika. Stir gently to combine. In a small bowl, whisk together the raw egg and cream.

Roll out the dough and cut out eight 3-inch rounds. Press four of the rounds into the bottom of four tartlet molds. Divide the vegetables and tuna mixture among the molds and top each with another round of dough. Seal the edges and, using a paring knife, make two small vents in the top of each empanada. Brush the empanadas with the egg wash. Place the tartlets on a baking sheet and bake for 30 minutes until golden brown.

Store wrapped or in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

©2026 The Minnesota Star Tribune. Visit at startribune.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

This recipe is from the “I Love Sandwiches” chapter in my cookbook “Eat to Hustle.” The chapter is basically my love letter to road-trip food made healthier — inspired by fast-food classics, gas-station gems, and deli-counter staples that I thought I’d never get to eat again after going vegan.

My versions hit just as hard, especially because they’re loaded with plant-based protein, so your body enjoys them just as much as you do.

Traditional sloppy joes are way too sweet and ketchup-y for my taste. I like to think my version is a little more refined — still hearty and meaty from the lentils, with a smoky, savory sauce that’s just the right amount of tangy. Serve the hearty filling on high-protein buns and watch them disappear.

Napkins definitely required.

Lentil Sloppy Joes

Servings: 4 sandwiches

2 tablespoons avocado oil

Ingredients

½ medium white onion, diced

½ green bell pepper, seeded and diced

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 (15-ounce) can tomato sauce

2 tablespoons coconut sugar

2 tablespoons vegan Worcestershire sauce or coconut aminos

1 tablespoon chili powder

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 teaspoon smoked paprika

½ teaspoon red pepper flakes

½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

2 cups cooked lentils

4 high-protein burger buns, such as Hero

Directions

Preheat the oven to 200°F. In a large skillet, heat the avocado oil over medium heat. When the oil is shimmering, add the onion, bell pepper and garlic. Cook, stirring often, until the pepper is soft, about 4 minutes.

Stir in the tomato sauce, coconut sugar, Worcestershire sauce, chili powder, salt, paprika, red pepper and black pepper. Let the mixture come to a simmer, then stir in the lentils to coat. Simmer until the lentils are warmed through and the sauce is thickened, about 5 minutes.

While the lentils are simmering, split the burger buns and arrange on the oven rack to toast. Divide the sloppy joes mixture among the toasted buns and serve immediately.

Robin Arzón is head instructor and vice president of fitness and programming at Peloton. She’s also a bestselling author. She lives in New York City with her husband, Drew, and their children Athena Amelia and Atlas Sage.

Excerpted from “Eat to Hustle” by Robin Arzón. Copyright (copyright) 2026 by Robin Arzón. Used with permission of Voracious, an imprint of Little, Brown and Company. New York, NY. All rights reserved.

Online influencers claim the secret to low-calorie rice, pasta and potatoes may be as simple as chilling out.

Are they right? Not quite. But a small yet solid body of science does suggest that chilling these carbohydrate-rich foods after cooking them still could help people slim down.

For several years, wellness and nutrition influencers have promoted a process called retrogradation, urging people to cook, chill, then reheat carbohydrate-rich foods. They say doing so can cut the calories.

Retrogradation is real, but it isn’t quite that simple.

Two kinds of starch

Most of the carbohydrates in these foods — as well as most of the calories — come from starch, of which there are two types: hard-to-digest amylose and easily digested amylopectin. The latter is processed quickly and spikes blood sugar. The former is processed slowly and moderates blood sugar.

Most raw carbohydrates (think uncooked potatoes) are made mostly of the hard-to-digest starch (also called resistant starch), but cooking converts it into the easily digested one. This is why diabetics need to be mindful when eating starchy foods.

Here’s where the influencers get excited. Chilling those cooked foods triggers “retrogradation,” a process that converts easily digested starch back into resistant starch, making it harder to digest even if the food is then reheated.

What does that mean for calories and blood sugar? Here’s what we know:

Studies of how retrogradation influences diet mostly have been small and focused on how consumption of resistant starches influences blood sugar, particularly for diabetics.

Multiple studies since 2015 have found that people who ate rice that was cooked and then cooled had sometimes significantly lower blood glucose levels after eating compared to people who ate freshly cooked rice. Those findings are generally well-accepted.

Less studied is whether retrogradation also reduces the calories available from these foods.

Kind of, says Dr. David Ludwig, an endocrinologist and researcher at Boston Children’s Hospital. “It doesn’t appreciably change the calorie content of that food,” he explained. “(But) it may well affect your hormones and metabolism in a way that makes controlling calories a lot easier.”

Though retrogradation’s effects on calories is neither as direct nor as dramatic as some suggest, it nonetheless has promise as part of healthier eating, Ludwig said.

Reducing blood sugar spikes and cravings

Eating foods high in resistant starch reduces the surge in blood sugar typically seen after consuming cooked carbohydrates, he explained. And that’s key not only for diabetics.

Studies have shown that those sugar spikes activate the brain’s reward mechanism and trigger cravings, making overeating at snacks and later meals more likely.

Also, those blood sugar surges increase the body’s production of insulin, which not only makes us feel hungry but also prompts the body’s metabolism to store more calories as fat, Ludwig said.

“When the food retrogrades, it digests more slowly,” he said. “It’s going to keep your blood sugar more stable. You’ll have less insulin to drive fat storage and likely have an easier time avoiding overeating.”

So is chilling your pasta, rice and potatoes worth it?

If you eat a diet high in refined starches, chilling can technically mitigate some of their negative impacts. But Dr. Walter Willett, professor of epidemiology and nutrition at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, says that to be effective, it would have to be done consistently, and he questions whether that’s practical for most people.

It also isn’t plug-and-play simple. Retrogradation works better with some grain varieties than others. Some food manufacturers favor varieties of rice, for example, that are naturally low in resistant starch because they cook more quickly. But this information rarely is available to the consumer, so it’s hard to know when chilling makes a difference.

Willett also noted that retrogradation only helps with blood-sugar effects.

“Chilling does not restore the losses of fiber, minerals and vitamins that have been removed in the refining process,” he said.

Better, he said, would be to keep it simple: Substitute minimally processed whole grains cooked as one normally would.

J.M. Hirsch is a food and travel journalist, and the former food editor for The Associated Press.

The result is a plate of curved rigatoni with soft edges, made glossy with emulsified butter and stock, and peppered with the ferments and pickles. Lupton praises the dish’s brightness and acidity from the preserves — but as spring approaches, Lupton is preparing to create dishes with their fresh counterparts.

Although spring officially begins on Friday, March 20, spring menus at Maryland restaurants won’t often hit the tables until the end of March through early May. As the weather begins to warm, chefs and diners alike are eager to see and taste a seasonal shakeup.

“We’re tired of root vegetables right now,” Lupton said. “Whenever those fresh veggies start to come into season, we’re always excited to see them.”

For some restaurateurs, the spring menu ideation process has already begun —  and, for others, such as Aveley Farms Coffee Roasters’ founder Corey Voelkel, the menus are already complete. Voelkel’s cafe, with locations in Towson and Timonium, will serve springtime specials including honey-lavender lattes, hibiscus tea lemonades and sweet toasts topped with Brie cheese, mixed berries, honey and orange zest.

“We like to keep it fresh. It’s fun for us, and we love creating,” Voelkel said. “It also makes people want something that’s finite. It’s overall good for us as a company and for the customer base.”

While creating and maintaining a rotating menu of seasonal dishes might seem more expensive and labor intensive, several Marylsnd chefs argue that staying seasonal allows them to be more pragmatic. Scott Bacon, chef at Ivy Hotel bistro Magdalena in Baltimore’s Mid-Town Belvedere, said “it’s more cost effective to be hyper-seasonal and adaptable.”

“Say you’re going to run out of something. You’re not trying to buy it from whoever has it. You’re not paying top dollar for things that are out of season,” said Bacon, whose previous spring menus at Magdalena have included dishes such as tilefish with English pea puree and lamb with fava beans and house-made sausage. “Especially with scarcity as we go forward, and the way that costs are, this is just the way that we have to cook.”

In the same breath, however, Bacon and other Maryland chefs admitted that cooking with spring ingredients is just as fun as it is economical. Chefs diverge slightly on their favorites: Bacon’s eyes light up when he talks about radishes and morel mushrooms, while Lupton is ready to replenish his supply of fiddlehead ferns. Matthew Lego, chef of locavore restaurant Leo in Annapolis, looks forward to being reunited with asparagus — his favorite vegetable and “a hallmark of the changing seasons,” he said. He estimated that he works with at least a dozen different local purveyors to ensure seasonality and freshness.

“Being able to be a part of the community might not necessarily reflect in the bottom line, but it is a very important aspect of our business, and for me as a chef, to support our farmers,” he said. “They’re the ones out in the fields, growing all this stuff that I get to play around with.”

At Gunther & Co., a globally inspired restaurant in Brewers Hill, seasonal menus are also a byproduct of their reliance on local farms.

“We don’t have an evil Sysco rep that says, ‘You should put this on your menu, and I can guarantee it at this price 365 days a year.’ That takes all the creativity out of it,” Trice said, referring to the wholesale restaurant food distributor. “Farm asparagus and produce asparagus don’t taste the same. Farm asparagus hits different.”

But creating spring menus is not always about sourcing seasonal ingredients — many Maryland chefs argue that it’s also about capturing the ethos of the season with fresh, floral, sweet and light flavors. At Aveley Farms, the upcoming seasonal menu features several summer ingredients, including raspberries on sweet toast and pistachios infused into lattes and cold foam.

Similarly, JINYA Ramen Bar, which has a location in North Bethesda, has already released its two spring specials: an iced oat milk matcha latte and the “Hokuriku Cabba-Chick”: a bowl of ramen with a clear chicken broth base with pork back fat and toppings of cabbage, bean sprouts, green onions and chili threads. Although cabbage, green onions and matcha are quintessential spring ingredients, bean sprouts and chicken broth are not. Founder and CEO Tomo Takahashi said that he is interested in selecting flavors that “pair well with the lighter feel of spring.”

“In spring, we look for ingredients that feel fresh and vibrant and think about how those flavors can complement ramen’s rich, layered broths,” Takahashi wrote. “Our culinary team experiments with seasonal vegetables and lighter flavor profiles, refining combinations until we find something that feels both exciting and true to JINYA’s style.”

Sister restaurants The Food Market and La Food Marketa, with locations in Columbia, Pikesville and Baltimore’s Hampden, are known for their creative and ever-changing specials — from “Dirty Martini Focaccia” and grilled cheese rangoons to spaghetti with crab meatballs and Fruity Pebbles tres leches cake. But while chef Johntay Bedingfield said that specials “transition with the seasons naturally,” he and his team “don’t like to ’86’ ingredients.”

“I feel like there’s nothing worse than you go into a restaurant and they’re like, ‘Oh, sorry, we’re out of this,’ ” Bedingfield said. “We’re always adding and taking stuff off the menu. I think that’s the beauty behind Food Market.”

Although diners might have to be patient for menu drops at their favorite restaurants, chefs across the state assure diners that offerings — featuring both ingredients that peak in the spring and those that simply complement the sweet smells and warm weather of the season — will be worth the wait.

“All winter, you’ve been just using these hard, woody, kind of boring vegetables,” said Magdalena’s Bacon. “Spring is probably the one that I get the most excited about.”

Have a news tip? Contact Jane Godiner at jgodiner@baltsun.com or on Instagram as @Jane.Craves.

Canton’s Café Dear Leon, Remington’s Pink Flamingo, Fells Point’s Southpaw and Upper Fells Point’s Marta Fine Food and Spirits announced in a Friday Instagram post that they will host a James Beard Semifinalist Dinner on Monday, March 30. The dinner will be held at Marta Fine Food and Spirits, 2127 E. Pratt St.

The event is priced at $250 per ticket, with proceeds benefiting the childhood hunger prevention charity No Kid Hungry. Details about the menu and ticket availability will be released closer to the event, the restaurants said in the Friday post.

Pink Flamingo Executive Chef Blaine Welsh said in an interview with The Baltimore Sun that the event will feature an amuse bouche and four courses, including dessert. Dishes will feature cooking from Marta and Pink Flamingo, dessert and bites from Café Dear Leon, and cocktails from both Pink Flamingo and Southpaw.

“We were all just sitting around one day, and I think [Pink Flamingo co-owner Brendan Dorr] just kind of threw it into our group chat: ‘What do you guys think about doing a James Beard dinner with everybody from Baltimore?'” said Welsh. “I was like, ‘I think it’s great.’ It’s a great accomplishment for everybody who’s involved.”

The event idea “started off as a happy hour to just kind of celebrate each other and what this means for the Baltimore community,” said Marta’s Matthew Oetting, who confirmed in an interview with The Sun that he will be preparing a pasta course and entrée for the meal. “Of course, with hospitality professionals, it spins out of control. Now, we have to pair cocktails with five courses, and we’re going to lay out all of our best things.”

The event, said Welsh, will be intimate by design — the one-time, single-night seating will be capped at 40 guests.

“We wanted to do something that was fun, but also didn’t put so much pressure on us,” he said. “We want to be able to celebrate our accomplishments as well, while sharing them with the community.”

In January, the James Beard Foundation, a nonprofit that recognizes excellence across the food and beverage industry, named four Baltimore restaurants as semifinalists for its annual Restaurant and Chef Awards: Café Dear Leon for Outstanding Bakery, Pink Flamingo for Best New Bar, Doug Atwell of Southpaw for Outstanding Professional in Cocktail Service and Oetting of Marta Fine Food and Spirits for Best Chef: Mid-Atlantic.

““I was definitely shocked,” Pink Flamingo Bar Manager Nick Pikounis said in a previous interview with The Baltimore Sun directly after the announcement. “I feel like I tell myself I don’t deserve things like this, but with all the hard work I put in, getting recognition like that is awesome.”

In the 2026 awards cycle to come, Oetting said in an previous interview that “the goal is bringing more of a focus to the amazing culinary community that’s blossoming here in Baltimore.”

“We always challenge ourselves,” he added on Friday about himself and Baltimore’s other semifinalists. “I couldn’t be happier about it.”

Have a news tip? Contact Jane Godiner at jgodiner@baltsun.com or on Instagram as @Jane.Craves.

The Wine Collective, at 1700 W. 41st St., will have its last day on Sunday, March 15. A Friday message to The Baltimore Sun from founders John Levenberg, Lea Loizos, Enrique Pallares and Laura Sanchez Pallares chronicled the highlights and challenges of its run at the complex.

“With full hearts — and with the kind of bittersweet clarity that only comes after years of doing something you love — we’re writing to share that The Wine Collective will be closing,” the founders wrote. “A cycle closes, and we can proudly say that we did something great together.”

“In a sense, we were wounded from the start,” the founders’ message adds.

In a follow-up interview, Enrique said that The Wine Collective’s financial challenges are a symptom of their rocky start, after opening during the pandemic.

“During the pandemic was not even the issue,” he said. “You will only really start seeing the consequences years after the pandemic, because people’s habits were deeply affected, and because people’s finances were deeply affected.”

In spite of this, the winery gained popularity for its spacious tasting room, live music, eclectic wine list and house-made vermouths, as well as its tapas, pintxos and custom charcuterie boards. Several of The Wine Collective’s products received national critical acclaim from publications such as Imbibe, Wine & Spirits and Forbes.

“We really did so much, especially putting vermouth on the map for a lot of people that didn’t really know what it was before,” said Enrique. “We worked as an incubator … and we really set up all these wonderful things.”

After the closure, Enrique said that the four founders will continue their work in the wine industry through their individual ventures: husband-and-wife duo Levenberg and Loizos will focus efforts on their winemaking and consulting businesses, while the Pallareses will focus on their preexisting winery, Casa Carmen.

“We are definitely still in the wine world and doing these different projects,” Enrique said. “We can never really rule anything out, you know, in life, but I don’t have any plans to do something like [The Wine Collective] in this era.”

In the meantime, The Wine Collective will continue to pour glasses and sell bottles of its craft wine and vermouth. Enrique and his cofounders encourage fans to “stock up” on their favorites, and to say goodbye to the space, staff and wines in person.

“If The Wine Collective has ever been your place — if you’ve ever raised a glass here, brought someone you love here, discovered vermouth here, or simply found a little hope here — we have one favor to ask: Come see us before we go,” the founders wrote in their message. “Come for one more glass. Come for one more plate. Come to say goodbye the way we’ve always done it — by gathering and feasting!”

Have a news tip? Contact Jane Godiner at jgodiner@baltsun.com or on Instagram as @Jane.Craves.

Taco Love Grill, which boasts locations at both Cross Street Market and in White Marsh, will begin the “soft opening” phase for its new brick-and-mortar spot in the McHenry Row apartment complex at 1724 Whetstone Way next week on March 15. Seven months later, the business’ lease at Cross Street Market will conclude and the location will close. Co-owner Gelmin Portillo said in an interview with The Baltimore Sun that he will not renew the lease in an effort to “concentrate” on the new location.

“As we are coming to the end of our lease agreement with Cross Street Market, we wanted to have a presence in the city,” he said. “We wanted to bring more of what we’re known for to the city. Opening in McHenry Row is an exciting milestone for us.”

In Locust Point, Portillo and his wife, Jimena, hope to offer many of the same bestseller at the two existing Taco Love locations — including signature tacos piled high with chicken, chorizo and tofu, as well as margaritas flavored with jalapeño and prickly pear — but they also will be bringing some undisclosed “staple dishes” from the business’ Parkville sister restaurant Birria Love.

Founded in 2011, Taco Love Grill aims to serve “high-quality Mexican street food with a modern twist,” Portillo said. The concept is the “brainchild” of his wife, who was born in Mexico City and hoped to bring some of its regional cuisine to Maryland. Many of the dishes on Taco Love’s menu emerged from family recipes. Portillo said he hopes that the new location will be an extension of Taco Love’s original culinary and business philosophies.

“After 15 years of being in this industry, I think what gets me most excited is to create those connections with the guests,” Portillo said. “We have created so many friendships and connections with the community. That’s why we do it.”

Have a news tip? Contact Jane Godiner at jgodiner@baltsun.com or on Instagram as @Jane.Craves.