International Flavors

Winter days and nights are perfect for cookbook perusing or catching up on favorite cooking blogs and then trying out fun ideas that catch your eye. Lately we've been all about long braises and hearty vegetarian stews. Moroccan Squash and Chickpea Stew anyone? It was full of huge flavors of Butternut Squash, Saffron, Olives, Preserved Lemon and Garlic. You can find it on one of our favorite blogs smittenkitchen.com. All we changed was to add some sliced dried apricot. Another blog we love is davidlebovitz.com , especially for sweet stuff.

The only thing we love more than trying out other chef's recipes is to come up with some new ones of our own. Sometimes it's just a matter of opening the refrigerator and coming up with the best meal possible with what's on hand. Sometimes it's the happy challenge of a shopping trip to a new ethnic market or neighborhood. But as much as we enjoy the challenge, we've heard that a lot of folks get intimidated at the prospect of approaching the stove without a recipe or cooking without a net as we call it.

To that end, we've made a partial list of flavor "profiles" of many cuisines from near and far. It's a great place to start when putting together an extemporaneous dinner. For example... you've got some chicken breasts, mushrooms, onions & broccoli... and are communing with the spirit of Doctor Zhivago...
Cook off the chicken breast how you wish. Blanch the broccoli, drain and reserve. Bring water to a boil and cook some egg noodles . While noodles are cooking, warm some butter in a skillet to saute the onions and mushrooms, deglaze with a little vodka. Add some sour cream and paprika, toss with cooked noodles and keep warm. Melt a little butter, add saute the blanched broccoli, add some poppy seeds, season and toss. Place noodles on plate, place chicken breast on top and serve with broccoli. Voila, Leningrad Chicken, Romanoff Noodles and Babushka Broccoli.
Well ... you get the idea. Hope this inspires some happy cooking.

France
Anchovy, Artichoke, Asparagus, Bay Leaf, Butter, Caper, Chervil, Cheese, Chive, Cream, Duck, Endive, Eggplant, Foie Gras, Herbes de Provence, Lavender, Marjoram, Mesclun, Mustard, Nutmeg, Nuts, Olives & Olive Oil, Parsley, Pate, Potato, Rabbit, Rosemary, Saffron, Sausage, Shallots, Shellfish, Snails, Sole, Tarragon, Thyme, Trout, Truffle, Zucchini

Italy
Anchovy, Arborio Rice, Artichoke, Basil, Bay Leaf, Beans (Dried), Caper, Cheese, Cinnamon, Clove, Crushed Red Pepper, Eggplant, Fennel, Garlic, Greens, Honey, Lemon, Marjoram, Mint, Mushroom, Nutmeg, Nuts, Orange, Olives & Olive Oil, Pancetta, Parsley, Prosciutto, Oregano, Pasta, Pine Nuts, Polenta, Rosemary, Saffron, Sage, Sausage, Shellfish, Swordfish, Tomato, Truffle, Veal, Vinegar (especially Balsamic)

Spain and Portugal
Almonds, Anchovy, Bay Leaf, Beans (Dried), Chickpeas, Cumin, Fish, Garlic, Ham, Lemon, Olives & Olive Oil, Paprika (Sweet & Smoked), Parsley, Pine Nuts, Pork, Rice, Saffron, Shellfish, Sherry, Thyme, Tomato

Greece
Allspice, Anise, Artichoke, Beans (Dried)Cinnamon, Cloves, Cucumber, Dill, Eggplant, Fennel, Feta, Fruit, Greens, Grilled Fish, Honey, Lamb, Mint, Nutmeg, Octopus, Olives & Olive Oil, Oregano, Phyllo, Pita, Salads, Thyme, Tomato, Yogurt

Levant
Aleppo Pepper, Chickpeas, Chile Pepper, Cinnamon, Cloves, Coriander, Crushed Red Pepper, Cucumber, Cumin, Dill, Feta, Fish, Fruit(dried), Ginger, Goat, Honey, Mint, Nuts, Olives & Olive Oil, Oregano, Parsley, Phyllo, Pita, Pomegranate, Sesame, Sumac, Yogurt

Russia
Beets, Cabbage, Caraway, Caviar, Cinnamon, Cloves, Cumin, Dill, Fish (Smoked & Pickled), Fruit, Garlic, Mint, Mushrooms, Nutmeg, Paprika, Poppy Seeds, Potato, Sour Cream, Tarragon, Vodka, Yogurt

Morocco
Almonds, Chile Pepper, Cilantro, Cilantro, Cinnamon, Coriander, Couscous, Cumin, Fish, Fruit (dried), Ginger, Harissa, Lamb, Mint, Orange Flower Water, Paprika, Phyllo, Preserved Lemon, Ras al hanout, Rosewater, Saffron, Stews (Tagines), Sumac, Turmeric

Germany
Allspice, Bay Leaf, Beer, Caraway, Chives, Cinnamon, Clove, Cream, Dill (Leaf and Seed), Chive, Ginger, Horseradish, Juniper Berry, Mace, Mushrooms, Nutmeg, Paprika, Poppy Seeds, Vinegar

Scandinavian
Allspice, Aquavit, Bay Leaf, Cardamon, Cinnamon, Clove, Cucumbers, Dill, Fish (Pickled), Ginger, Juniper Berry, Meatballs, Mushrooms, Mustard, Nutmeg, Potato, Salmon(Gravlax), Sour Cream, Vinegar

Caribbean
Allspice, Bay Leaf, Chile Peppers, Cilantro, Cinnamon, Cloves, Coconut, Curry Powder, Fish, Fruit (Tropical), Garlic, Ginger, Goat, Lime, Molasses, Nutmeg, Plantains, Rum, Shellfish, Sugar (Brown), Tamarind, Thyme

Mexican
Avocado, Beans, Cilantro, Canela (Mexican or True Cinnamon), Chile Pepper, Chile Powder, Chocolate, Corn, Cumin, Epazote, Fish, Lime, Oregano, Peppers, Plantain, Rice, Sausage, Seeds, Shellfish, Tomato, Tortilla

South America (Brazil, Chile, Peru, Venezuela, Argentina, and others)
Avocado, Cheese (fresh white), Chile Pepper, Chile Pastes, Cilantro, Cinnamon, Cloves, Coconut, Coffee, Corn, Cumin, Garlic, Ginger, Greens, Grilled Meats, Lime, Orange, Oregano, Parsley, Peppers, Plantain, Pork, Potatoes, Pumpkin, Raisins, Rice, Rosemary, Saffron, Sausage

Southeast Asia - (Cambodia, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam)
Distinctive balance of salty, sweet, sour and spicy
Chile Pepper, Cilantro, Cinnamon, Clove, Coconut Milk, Curry Paste, Dried Shrimp, Fish Sauce, Galangal, Ginger, Lemongrass, Kaffir Lime Leaf, Lime, Mint, Shrimp Paste, Peanuts, Rice, Siracha, Soy Sauce, Sugar (Brown), Tamarind, Thai Basil

India
Allspice, Anise, Basmati Rice, Cardamom, Cauliflower, Chile Pepper, Cilantro, Coriander, Cumin, Curry Powder, Curry Leaves, Fenugreek, Ghee, Ginger, Greens, Lamb, Lentils, Mint, Mustard Seed, Mustard Oil, Nutmeg, Onion, Poppy Seeds, Potato, Saffron, Tamarind, Tomato, Turmeric, Yogurt

Chinese
Chile Pepper, Cinnamon, Dried Seafood, Duck, Five Spice Powder, Garlic, Ginger, Hoisin Sauce, Noodles, Nuts, Rice, Scallion, Shellfish, Sesame, Soy Sauce, Star Anise, Szechuan Pepper, Tangerine Peel, Tofu, Vinegar

Japanese
Bonito Flakes, Chile Pepper, Daikon, Dashi, Ginger, Mirin, Miso, Noodles, Pickles, Ponzu, Rice, Sake, Scallion, Seaweed, Sesame, Shellfish, Soy Sauce, Tea, Tofu, Vinegar, Wasabi, Yuzu