Some heat, some spice and plenty of citrus are the building blocks of many North African fish dishes.
Miso makes a soup loaded with flavour that saves you the hassle of making stock.
Chermoula is a potent North African spice paste that is ideal for smearing on your favourite vegetables for roasting.
Fish cakes are perceived as being quite British, and they're always a bit brown and a little dull.
There are many reasons I feel at home in the U.K., but if I were asked to pinpoint the moment I knew I'd arrived, it might well be when I realised the British shared my love of fritters.
Like brown rice, black rice is unmilled, and it is the dark outer husk that makes it so nutty and chewy. It's also why it takes longer to cook than many other rices.
Manouri is a Greek ewes' milk cheese that's light in colour and texture. It's fresh and milky, and goes well with other subtle flavours.
The natural sweetness of leeks, with their soft, oniony aroma, makes them the perfect winter comfort food.
I love the way soft white cheese such as ricotta or the creamier mascarpone reflect the milieu in which an animal has been raised.
I adore recipes that make use of one cut of meat or a whole animal to create a complex dish, loaded with flavour.
The tang of tamarind is a great way both to flavour and lighten up slow-cooked savoury dishes.
My secret with kale is to add lots of sweet or sharp flavours to offset some of that grassy intensity.
When I was a kid, there was always food to be had on the street in Jerusalem, but anything above a falafel stand was mediocre or worse.
The combination of olive oil, garlic and lemon juice lifts the spirits in winter.
One Indian-inspired favourite of mine is mashed potato mixed with lemon juice, breadcrumbs, coriander and chilli, shaped into patties, fried and served with chutney and yoghurt.
Rice and vermicelli is a common combination in Arab and Turkish cooking - it has a lighter texture than rice on its own.
There are tons of wonderful places to eat in London.
Barley and mushroom is a soothing combination. It's mainly a textural thing, with the barley both gently breaking and enhancing the mushroomy gloopiness.
For people who think of chicken as the meat choice of those-who-don't-really-like-meat, brining a bird will be a revelation.
Verjuice may not be the easiest thing in the world to find, but you should be able to track some down in good delis and online.
Almost every culture has its own variation on chicken soup, and rightly so - it's one of the most gratifying dishes on the face of the Earth.
There is nothing like a good old recipe. If it has lasted, then it is good.
Normally, when congee is served, the different condiments and garnishes are placed in little bowls on the side so diners can make their own personal creations.
Most of my recipes start life in the domestic kitchen, and even those that start out in the restaurant kitchen have to go through the domestic kitchen.
The range of ingredients available to home cooks has expanded dramatically. People are incorporating herbs and spices like lemongrass, smoked Mexican chile, sumac, and za'atar mix.
Stereotypical vegetarian food looks gray and brown.
Popping broad beans out of their skins can be therapeutic, but it isn't everybody's favourite waste of time.
My maternal grandmother made fantastic ox tongue with velvety roasted potatoes. She cooked sweet red cabbage and lovely cauliflower with butter and bread crumbs.
Date syrup is a natural sweetener that has wonderful richness and treacly depth; I drizzle it over semolina porridge.
People don't know how good cauliflower is, because they always have this image of cauliflower cheese - awful, sticky, creamy and rich.
My father always cooks more polenta than he needs for a meal. The excess he spreads on an oiled surface and chills. Next day, he cuts out chunks, fries them in olive oil and serves with salad.
Poaching white fish in moderately hot oil guarantees soft-textured flesh and allows you to prepare a sauce calmly, without the usual panic about overcooking the fish.
As for pineapple, it's far more versatile than you might think, and certainly merits wider use than in Hawaiian pizzas and pina coladas and on cheesy cocktail sticks.
Polenta is to northern Italy what bread is to Tuscany, what pasta is to Emilia-Romagna and what rice is to the Veneto: easy to make, hungry to absorb other flavours, and hugely versatile.
Good-quality nuts, toasted in a little butter and salt, make a magical addition to many salads.
I have to admit that I can't take a whole fig and eat it on its own as I would a peach or mango. It's just too much.