Deep Fry

These hors d'oeuvres—a dressed-up version of shrimp toasts—are adapted from a recipe by Chinese cooking authority Nina Simonds, a longtime contributor to our pages.

Active time: 5 min Start to finish: 10 minutes

Also delicious served atop steak.

Pla Phad Phrik Khing The pummelo salad makes a nice first course with this dish.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

A puree of spinach and basil lends color and flavor to this Thai-style main dish.

Flounder Rolls with Herbed Butter Filling

Active time: 20 min Start to finish: 20 min

Collen Healey of Denver, Colorado, writes: "During my visit to the Myrtle Beach area last summer, some locals recommended that I go to Flo's Place for the best shrimp po'boy ever. They were right!" Ground saltine crackers would work in place of cracker meal.

Wemonrat Pok, an immigrant from Thailand, opened Siam House 11 years ago near the campus of Indiana University in the lively college town of Bloomington. It's a family business — Wemonrat is the chef, and her aunt and cousin help out with the cooking. The elegant restaurant with several small dining rooms occupies a lovely old home. Thai sculptures and creaky hardwood floors add to the charm; great food and an accommodating staff keep locals coming back. The batter and bananas can be prepared ahead of time, leaving only the frying to do at the last minute.

This version of a popular Provençal treat has a tender texture. The fried cookies are perfect with a glass of milk (kid style) or with an after-dinner drink (for grown-ups).

These are great served warm for breakfast or even cold with cheese.

Fried artichokes are usually served whole in Rome as a primo piatto, but we found that cutting them into wedges before frying made them a finger-friendly and addictive hors d'oeuvre. Active time: 1 hr Start to finish: 1 hr

Fried green plantains. When making tostones look for unripe plantains that are a deep shade of green: The recipe will not work with ripe plantains. Ideally, the plantains should be fried the day they are purchased, but they can be kept, wrapped well in a plastic bag and chilled, for 2 to 3 days.