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So while my patented technique for washing, sorting, and storing produce might prove titillating, I’ve kept such drivel to a minimum. Here, in as few words as possible, is my cooking philosophy. You’re on your own if you need advice about organizing your canned beans.

• I buy organic. Reducing pesticides is better for my family and the environment.

• I buy local as much as possible. Supporting local businesses is better for my community and the environment, and therefore my family.

• I buy whole foods: the dairy, produce, meats, and grains found mostly along the outer aisles of the grocer. Processed foods are exactly what they sound like. So is real food. Not enough children know the difference. It’s important that they do.

• I value convenience and shortcuts where and when they make sense. Packaged, processed meals don’t fly for me, but canned beans, bottled lemon juice, and frozen fruit make total sense for time-pressed cooks.

• I shop broadly, trying ethnic and unusual items even when I haven’t a clue what to do with them. This is often. This keeps cooking and eating interesting.

• I stock my pantry and freezer with stuff that keeps—beans, pasta, rice, meats, seafood, seasonings—because that makes it easy to prepare good dinners on otherwise bad nights.

• I involve my son in the shopping and cooking. It isn’t always easy or fun, but nothing about raising children is always easy or fun.

• I let high-flavor ingredients do most of the work for me. Foods that taste great going into the pot need less work from me to taste great when they come out.

THE BASIC STUFF

In this book, ease and flavor rule. Even recipes that seem unfamiliar don’t stray far from the everyday comfort cooking you know and need. Each recipe is either an easier, more flavorful rethinking of a familiar dish or an introduction to one that has lots in common with those you already love.

As in Doro Wat Chicken. Unless you’re a fan of Ethiopian food, you’ve probably never had it. But it’s just a well-seasoned one-pot chicken dinner. Likewise, the Deep-Dish Pesto and Prosciutto Tortilla Pizza has everything you love about heavyweight pies, but with more flavor and less effort.

Not only won’t blunt force cooking take you outside your comfort zone, it probably won’t even take you outside your favorite grocer. Start in the international aisle. Nearly anything you grab is going to be jammed with flavor.

TECHNIQUES

I’m not big on fancy techniques, mostly because I don’t know any. But there are some that are so ridiculously easy anybody can use them. These are the six I rely on regularly to amplify flavor.

Blooming and Toasting

These are fancy terms for heating your herbs and spices. It works because seasonings contain highly flavorful oils and heat draws out the oils. There are two ways to do this. The first is to toast spices, especially whole ones, in a dry skillet over medium heat for up to a minute.

The second, called blooming, is to briefly heat them in oil, butter, or another fat before adding other ingredients. This is good for ground and dried seasonings used in soups, chili, and sautés, such as my Bacon, Beans, and Beer Chili.

Hot liquids also can be used to bloom ingredients. Coffee often is used to bloom cocoa powder. This is great for cranking up the flavor of chili, mole, or brownies.

Broiling

Intense heat brings out tremendous flavor in vegetables and meat. And we are talking intense. The flame in a gas broiler burns at about 3,000°F; an electric coil reaches a relatively mild 2,000°F. Both are perfect for browning meats and caramelizing the sugars in vegetables.

But all that heat also can be a challenge. I’ve broiled to oblivion so many things that the folks in the AP test kitchen laugh every time I turn it on. And getting the inside cooked without torching the outside takes practice. That’s why broiling works best with thinly cut meats and produce.

Deglazing

Another fancy term for a simple trick. When