501 bay leaf recipes

Grandma's chicken and dumpling soup with hand-made broth, cream of chicken and mushroom soups, vegetables, and feathery drop dumplings. A Midwestern comfort-food classic built for big gatherings.

Mad Mike's chili: a no-beans, all-meat Texas-style red made with cubed round steak, V8, enchilada sauce, and a mountain of chili powder. Slow simmered three hours until thick and deep.

New Orleans-style red beans and rice slow-simmered with salt pork, the holy trinity, hot sauce, and Worcestershire. A Cajun Monday tradition from dried beans.

Ribollita is a Tuscan bread soup layered with vegetables, chicken, kidney beans, spinach, stale bread, and Parmesan, then baked until thick and crusty. A hearty Italian peasant soup that improves overnight.

Pressure cooker black bean soup made from dried beans with no soaking, ready in well under an hour. Smoky or vegetarian, thickened with bulgur, and finished with cilantro and a splash of sherry.

Bean chili built from scratch with toasted cumin and oregano, ground dried ancho or negro chilies, smoky chipotle, and a splash of red wine for depth. A meatless chili with serious heat and layered spice.

This is an authentic family recipe that my mother taught me in 1950 in New Orleans. It makes a great dinner party main dish. Like chinese food, it is long on chopping and assembling, but goes together and cooks rather quickly.

Hearty pinto bean and ham soup simmered low and slow with a bold herb blend of cumin, oregano, rosemary, and chili powder. A splash of sherry at the end adds warmth and depth. Pure comfort in a bowl.

Hearty black bean soup with cubed ham, cumin, oregano, tomatoes, and a splash of dry sherry. Simmers in 30 minutes and freezes beautifully for meal prep.

Seafood gumbo built on a butter-flour roux with shrimp, okra, tomatoes, chili powder, and Worcestershire, served over rice with filé powder. Where Louisiana bayou meets Texas ranch country.

Lamb vindaloo, the fiery Goan curry with vinegar-marinated lamb, toasted whole spice paste, and 14 cloves of garlic. Punchy, tangy, and intensely aromatic.

Cincinnati-style chili with ground beef, cinnamon, allspice, cumin, and tomato paste simmered 2 to 4 hours, served over vermicelli with cheddar and raw onion.

Old-fashioned homemade chili sauce simmered for hours from fresh tomatoes, bell peppers, brown sugar, and warm spices including cinnamon, cloves, and ginger. A classic American canned condiment recipe.

Restaurant-style spaghetti and meatballs inspired by Little Joe's in L.A. Three-meat meatballs in a simmered tomato sauce with red wine, basil, and oregano. Worth every minute.

A classic rustic french dish. Slow cooked pork shoulder.

Meatless Cajun jambalaya with black-eyed peas, bell peppers, zucchini, and rice simmered in a smoky paprika-thyme tomato broth. One pot, big Louisiana flavor, no meat required.