Gourmet

Chinese viceroy Li Hung Chang, visiting San Francisco's Palace Hotel in the 1890s, requested vegetables with a bit of meat "job suey," or "in fine pieces," and chef Joseph Herder obliged.

Chef Laurent Manrique is a big fan of Laura Chenel goat cheese in Sonoma, which is available at many cheese shops across the country.

Active time: 1 hr Start to finish: 9 1/2 hr (includes chilling) The potatoes in this recipe are chilled after boiling to get them very firm so they won't fall apart when you slice and sauté them. Some of our editors think chilling also helps the potatoes develop a better-browned crust when sautéing.

Active time: 45 min Start to finish: 1 1/4 hr

Active time: 1 hr Start to finish: 4 hr We think all turkeys are improved by brining (soaking in salted water), but it's a cumbersome process that few holiday schedules can accommodate. We found kosher turkeys, which are salted during the koshering process, to be just as flavorful and succulent as brined ones, without all the fuss. However, if you'd like to try brining, just stir together 8 quarts water with 2 cups kosher salt in a 5-gallon bucket lined with a large heavy-duty garbage bag, and soak turkey, covered and chilled, 10 hours. If you don't have room in your refrigerator, executive editor John Willoughby recommends brining in a large plastic cooler, using freezer packs to keep the water cool and replacing them as needed.

Active time: 50 min Start to finish: 50 min Goodale's, on Second Avenue in New York City, became a favorite watering hole of Gourmet's staff after the magazine moved into its new headquarters at 777 Third Avenue in 1965. Goodale's owner, Perce, was renowned for wearing Bermuda shorts all year round. He also gave his name to this popular appetizer. Baked clams were a favorite first course in the '60s, but were often disappointing mushy mounds with nary a minced clam to be found. Goodale's version, which features whole clams and uses packaged stuffing, is the best and most straightforward we've tasted.

Active time: 15 min Start to finish: 30 min

"My wife, Jean, and I run a coffee farm on the Big Island of Hawaii," writes George Fike of Keauhou Mauka, Hawaii. "I really love to cook, so we entertain a lot, and I enjoy planning the dinners as much as I do making them. I tell people the best restaurant in town is our house! Since I do most of the cooking, recipes must either be relatively fast or look after themselves." This recipe is an accompaniment for Hawaiian-Style Braised Pork with Stir-Fried Cabbage .

Top blade steaks — great for a weeknight supper — are inexpensive and cook in just minutes.

Active time: 30 min Start to finish: 45 min

Mrouzia Mrouzia is a dish traditionally made after the celebration of Aid el Kebir ("Feast of the Slaughter of the Lamb"), an occasion when, historically, a family would have large amounts of meat on hand. In the days before refrigeration, the lamb was cooked in copious amounts of fat and spices to preserve it. Don't worry — this version has much less butter and less intense spicing than the original. Active time: 20 min Start to finish: 3 hr

The sautéed fennel and carrots is an excellent accompaniment to these chops. Boiled potatoes and sautéed greens would also be a good match.

Active time: 40 min Start to finish: 40 min

In a large menu, the salad is often served after a number of hearty dishes, so the portions are scaled down. For a smaller meal, this amount would serve 4 to 5 hearty salad eaters.

If you want to make the scallions but not the rest of the menu (Grilled Pork Kebabs with Ginger Molasses Barbecue Sauce), see recipe for creamed grilled corn for instructions on preparing a charcoal grill. Active time: 10 min Start to finish: 40 min (includes soaking skewers)

Active time: 25 min Start to finish: 35 min

Active time: 20 min Start to finish: 20 min