Easy Recipes: Croutons, Raita, Spice Oil & Sides
Croutons or Breadcrumbs
- bread
- butter or vegetable oil, as needed
- salt and pepper
I am constantly haunted by the hard, several-day-old bread that I have neglected. Luckily there are plenty of delicious solutions that avoid the trash can. Croutons and breadcrumbs will keep for ages in a sealed container on the counter, and when you have them around you’ll find yourself using them everywhere and finding excuses to make a salad.
This is a method more than a recipe since you’ll have a random amount of bread. If making croutons, start by cutting the bread into cubes. If making breadcrumbs, mince the loaf with a knife, or just tear it apart, or throw small chunks of bread into a food processor. If the bread is too hard to cut, wrap it in a kitchen towel, sprinkle some water on the towel, and microwave for 20 to 30 seconds. This will restore just enough moisture to let you cut the bread easily.
Choose a sufficiently large pan for the quantity of bread cubes or crumbs — or work in batches if you have a lot — and place it on the stovetop on medium heat. Add enough butter or vegetable oil to coat the bottom of the pan. I prefer the flavor of butter, but use whatever you have.
Let the butter melt or the oil get hot. Add the bread and toss gently until coated. Let the bread sit for 2 minutes, then flip the pieces over. Keep tossing and turning until the bread is brown all over. Add oil or butter as needed and sprinkle with salt and pepper. It is basically impossible, unless you are very patient (which I am not), to get every side of the cubes browned, so just get them generally looking good and toasty and then take them off the heat.
For breadcrumbs, if you like, you can go oil-free: just toast whole slices and then crush them into small pieces.
Use the breadcrumbs or croutons immediately, or place them in a sealed container after letting them cool off. Later, use them in salads or anything you want to add crunch to.
Caramelized Bananas
For Two
These bananas — cooked in just a bit of caramel — are crispy and gooey on the outside and almost like a soft pudding inside. Sweet, messy, and irresistible.
- 2 bananas, peeled and split in half
- 1 tbsp butter
- 2 tbsp brown sugar
Melt the butter in a non-stick or cast-iron pan on medium-high heat. Add the sugar and let it melt into the butter for about 2 minutes. Place the bananas face down in the butter-sugar mixture, then cook for 2 minutes or until they become brown and sticky. Carefully flip them over and do the same to the other side.
Serve them whole or split them into quarters. Drizzle any caramel left in the pan over the bananas. Serve with ice cream or on their own.
Raita
Raita is a traditional Indian sauce served with all kinds of things. It’s simple and surprisingly tasty. Spoon it onto Chana Masala (p. 93), the potato and kale rolls (p. 84), or anything spicy to cool things down.
- 1 cup cucumber, chopped
- 1/2 cup tomato, chopped
- 1/4 cup red onion, chopped
- 1 cup yogurt
- 1 tsp cumin powder
- 1/2 tsp cayenne powder
- 2 tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped
- salt and pepper
Additions
- 1 tbsp ginger, grated
- 2 tbsp mint
- 1/4 cup chickpeas, cooked
- spinach
This recipe is extremely loose. Basically just stir some of your favorite chopped vegetables into yogurt and add salt and pepper. Use this as a stepping stone to develop your own.
After you stir all the ingredients together, store the raita in a covered container in the fridge until you’re ready to use it.
Spice Oil
Makes One Cup
Use this spice oil on salads, in cold noodle dishes, or on roasted or sautéed vegetables. If you have trouble finding the spices, you can get all of them at most Asian grocery stores.
- 1 clove garlic
- 1 cup olive or vegetable oil
- 2 tbsp chili flakes or dried red chilies
- 1 tsp Sichuan or regular peppercorns
- 1 star anise
- 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
- 1/2 tsp salt
Use the side of a knife to crush the garlic clove until it cracks open. Add all of the ingredients to a small pot.
Warm the mixture over low heat for about 10 minutes, until it starts to bubble gently and you can hear a bit of a sizzle, then turn off the heat. You want to heat it just enough to let the spices infuse into the oil, without getting so hot that the spices start to cook or fry.
Remove the pot from the stovetop and put it in the fridge with a lid. Let the spices infuse for 4 to 8 hours.
Taste the oil. If it isn’t strongly spicy, let it infuse for a few more hours. Once it’s ready, strain through a sieve to remove the spices.
Store in a jar in the fridge for up to a week.
Roasted Potatoes with Chilies
It doesn’t get much simpler or more satisfying than this. You can use any pepper you like — from large, dark poblanos, to Hungarian wax chilies, to bell peppers.
- 4 medium potatoes, chopped into bite-sized pieces
- 4 medium chilies, chopped into bite-sized pieces
- 2 cloves garlic, unpeeled
- 1 tbsp butter, melted
- salt and pepper
In a large roasting pan, tumble together the potatoes, peppers, and garlic. When you chop the peppers, be sure to get rid of the seeds and white placenta inside.
Pour the butter over top and sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper. Potatoes need quite a bit of salt! Use your hands to mix everything up.
Roast for 1 hour, or until you can spear the potatoes easily with a fork and everything is a little crispy. Squish the garlic cloves, discard their skins, and spread the roasted garlic throughout.
In addition to being a great side dish, this makes a delicious taco filling. At left, it’s pictured on a tortilla topped with chopped tomato and queso bianco.
Alternatively, try it alongside some black beans and rice or piled high on a plate with an egg on top.
Cauliflower Cheese
For Four
This is a classic side dish in Great Britain: creamy, cheesy sauce over cauliflower, baked in the oven until the edges get crunchy and bubbly. It’s like a healthier and more flavorful version of macaroni and cheese. Alternatively, try this with broccoli or cooked winter squash — everyone will love it.
- 1 head cauliflower, cut into bite-sized florets
- 2 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp butter
- 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
- 1/2 tsp chili flakes
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 tbsp all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 cups milk
- 6 oz sharp cheddar, grated
- salt and pepper
Additions
- breadcrumbs (p. 146)
- 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
- 4 scallions, finely chopped
- 1 lemon, zested
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1/2 tsp thyme
Set the oven to 400 °F.
Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Add the salt and the cauliflower, then leave it for 4 minutes.
Meanwhile, butter a baking dish large enough to comfortably accommodate all the cauliflower. I usually use a pie dish. Drain the water from the cauliflower and pour it into the baking dish.
Make the Sauce
To make the sauce, melt the butter in a saucepan on medium heat. Add the garlic, chili flakes, and bay leaf, then cook for about 1 minute. Add the flour and stir quickly. The flour-butter mixture is called a roux. You want the roux to get just a little brown; this will probably take another minute. Slowly add the milk to the pot, stirring all the while to incorporate the roux. Bring the sauce to a boil, stirring every now and then to make sure the sauce doesn’t get scorched on the bottom. Once it comes to a boil, turn off the heat and stir in the cheese. Drop in any additions at this point. Taste the sauce and add salt and pepper as needed. You should have a creamy, smooth, savory sauce.
Pour the sauce over the cauliflower. Place the dish in the oven for 40 minutes, or until the top is brown and bubbly. You can also add some breadcrumbs to the top of the dish before baking if you like extra crunch.
Enjoy with a green salad. I also like mine with salsa.