Jalapeño

Steamed jasmine rice is all that's needed to turn this into a meal.

Serve with jicama sticks, radish slices, peeled cooked shrimp, and corn tortilla chips.

Serve this Indian condiment with grilled chicken, curries or sliced tomatoes.

(Layered Corn Tortillas, Tomato Sauce, and Cheese)

This recipe is an accompaniment for Panfried Pressed Poussins .

Carnitas is a traditional Mexican dish of fried pork. In this version, the meat is braised with vegetables and spices. For best results, use large, meaty ham hocks.

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Janet and Travis Kuhl of Cranford, New Jersey, writes: "We recently went to chef Ming Tsai's Blue Ginger restaurant in Wellesley, Massachusetts. Our entire meal was top-notch, but the shrimp cocktail was our favorite." Poured carefully side by side into a cocktail glass, tomato puree and avocado puree make a colorful dip for the lightly battered and quickly deep-fried shrimp.

This delicious salad is from Johannes.

This would be nice with any roasted meat.

The signature dish at Américas in Houston. Achiote paste adds earthy flavor and deep red color to the shrimp.

Peg Isherwood of Libertyville, Illinois, writes: "While in Christiansted, St. Croix, we dined at Kendrick's and had the most interesting gazpacho — it was spicy but not too hot, with lots of chopped vegetables. I met the owner, David Kendrick, the next morning and found him delightful. Would you ask him for the recipe?" This gazpacho has a chunkier texture than most (almost like a salsa). To chop the vegetables in a processor, cut them into quarters and process in batches, using on/off turns.

Gulisa's Ajika This lively condiment goes nicely with grilled meats and fish as well as with pork stew.

Gaeng Pah Muu Most curries from southern Thailand use coconut milk. This one, from the mountainous north, doesn't, because the climate is too temperate for coconut palms to survive. Don't be intimidated by the start-to-finish time; the curry paste and chicken stock can be made days ahead. Once you have those components at hand, the recipe only takes about 1 hour to put together. If you prefer your food less spicy, use the smaller amounts of curry paste and vegetable oil. Active time: 3 1/4 hr Start to finish: 7 1/4 hr (includes making curry paste and stock)