Pork

You can form the patties a day ahead, leaving only a quick frying job for the morning.

You can fry this sausage in patties, stuff it into casings, or use it as an ingredient in other recipes that call for sausage. I use it in stuffings, in biscuits, smoked in links for gumbos, and as a breakfast meat. Use the recipe as a guide only. The wonderful thing about making your own sausage is that you can season it to taste.

A pork tenderloin is too much meat for one person, but you'll be happy to have leftovers for the fried rice with pork and kale .

For the best results, these tender ribs need to marinate for at least 12 hours, so plan ahead. Offer a selection of bottled ales and lagers.

At the restaurant, the burritos are filled with smoked pork, but this version, using roasted pork, also works well.

Greens boiled with pork have been part of the southern table since the beginning. Some of the flavorful cooking liquid, called pot likker, is spooned over the greens before serving.

Larry's inspiration for this soup was a dish that he enjoyed while vacationing in Japan. Look for the oriental sesame oil in the Asian foods section of the supermarket.

Before using the cherry cola, pour it into a bowl and allow it to stand at room temperature until no longer effervescent, about four hours. Start with a relish platter, then serve the spareribs with the State Fair Potato Salad and corn on the cob. What to drink: Tall glasses of iced tea or frosty mugs of lager.

I discovered Pot Stickers at about the same time I was introduced to Scallion Cakes. Pan-fried on only one side, the dough for these dumplings is at once crisp and chewy. When I was about eleven years old, I could sometimes devour a dozen of these fried dumplings at one sitting. It was such a sweet pleasure to eat as much as you wanted and still be a skinny child. Filled with pork, cabbage, and a rich broth, every bite was heavenly. The secret of these pot stickers is to reduce the Homemade Chicken Broth until it is concentrated enough to jell when refrigerated. The broth should then be roughly chopped and stirred into the filling mixture right before the dumplings are formed. The Pot Stickers are pan-fried only on one side a few minutes until golden. A little water is added, the lid is placed on the pan, and then, as the dumplings steam-cook, the broth melts. To eat, place a pot sticker in a deep spoon (traditionally, a Chinese porcelain spoon) and sprinkle with a few ginger shreds and a little red rice vinegar. Gently bite into the dumpling and the delicious broth that has now melded with the flavors of the pork filling will burst forth.