• Choose a category
• All
• Classic-Fiction

Makes about 4 cups

2 cups Greek yogurt

1 cucumber

Kosher salt

Juice of 2 lemons

3 tablespoons chopped fresh mint

1 tablespoon minced garlic

1 tablespoon minced shallot

Freshly ground black pepper

Put the yogurt in a cheesecloth-lined strainer set over a bowl and let drain for 24 hours in the refrigerator. Peel and dice the cucumber. Sprinkle it with salt and place in a strainer at room temperature for 2 to 3 hours to drain.

Stir together the yogurt, cucumber, lemon juice, mint, garlic, and shallot in a medium bowl until thoroughly combined. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

OHIO CREAMED CORN WITH BACON

PEAS AND PANCETTA

CRISPY CAULIFLOWER WITH ANCHOVY AIOLI

BRAISED ENDIVE WITH CITRUS

BRAISED GREENS WITH SMOKY BACON

FRIED BRUSSELS SPROUTS WITH WALNUTS AND CAPERS

CHICKPEAS AND SKORDALIA

GRILLED RADICCHIO WITH ORANGE AND BALSAMIC

SEARED WILD MUSHROOMS

SOFT POLENTA WITH MASCARPONE

WHIPPED ROOT VEGETABLES

RED POTATOES WITH ARUGULA

DAD’S POTATO PANCAKES

CRAB TATER TOTS

LOLA FRIES WITH ROSEMARY

Sides take a meal over the top. The main course, a big roast or a grilled meat, can be—should usually be—simple and straightforward, and when it’s combined with a couple of great sides, the whole meal gets better. So try every now and then to think of the sides first: Pick one or two that you think work well together and then choose a main course.

Like soups, they’re very seasonal. Let the ingredients at your local market inspire you. Buy what’s fresh and in season, and let that guide your choice of side dishes.

These are some of my favorite sides that I serve at the restaurant and at home. They’re great as they are but they’re even better combined. Side dishes are fun, and the more fun you have with them, the better the whole meal will be.

OHIO CREAMED CORN WITH BACON

Ohio sweet corn is the best in the world and I like to feature it in a dish that to me is about childhood comforts. This has great flavors not only from the corn, but also from bacon and, importantly, from a stock I make from the cobs. Cobs release a lot of sweetness from the corn that remains attached after the kernels are cut—flavor that’s an important part of the dish. I also add onion, garlic, coriander, and a bay leaf to the stock, which I then use to cook the corn and bacon. The stock is reduced, then thickened and enriched with crème fraîche and finished with lime zest. I can’t think of a dish that this doesn’t go with—pork, chicken, beef, fish, grilled, roasted, or sautéed—but my favorite match is sautéed scallops.

Serves 4 to 6

5 ears of corn

1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil

¼ pound thick-cut bacon, cut into 1-inch strips

1 medium yellow onion, diced

1 garlic clove, minced

1 teaspoon kosher salt, or more to taste

½ recipe Corn Cob Stock

½ cup crème fraîche

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

½ cup chopped fresh cilantro

Grated zest of 1 lime

Cut the kernels from the cobs and set the kernels aside. (Use the cobs to make the stock.)

Heat a large saucepan over medium heat and glaze the bottom with the olive oil. Add the bacon and cook, stirring as needed, to render the fat and brown the pieces, 5 minutes. Add the onion and sweat it for about 45 seconds. Add the garlic and continue to cook, stirring, for another 30 seconds. Add the reserved corn and the salt and cook for 2 minutes.

Pour in the corn cob stock and bring to a simmer. Cook until the liquid reduces to approximately 1 cup, 10 minutes. Add the crème fraîche and simmer until the mixture begins to thicken, about 3 minutes. Stir in the butter. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the cilantro and lime zest. Season with salt if needed before serving.

PEAS AND PANCETTA

I make this dish when peas are at the height of their season and I love to serve it with simply cooked fish such as grilled halibut or grilled salmon. It needs some acidity because of the richness of the pancetta and rendered fat.