Pork

Serve this dish with cornbread and a mixed green salad for a hearty supper.

Transforming cabbage into sauerkraut was one way the Germans preserved summer's crop for the hard winter ahead. A combination of rinsing the kraut of its salty brine and baking it with dried fruit mellows its bite. Smoked pork chops can be substituted; just omit the browning step. Offer some dark and light German beers to drink.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

On the Cycladic islands, homemade salted pork flavors most vegetable dishes. Pancetta makes a good substitute here.

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes.

Pork fillet, or tenderloin, contains about as little fat and cholesterol as chicken. Available now in most supermarkets, it is tender and moist. In this recipe, the pork is marinated in honey, jalapeño peppers, and nuoc mam, the fish sauce of the Vietnamese, then grilled.

One hundred and fifty years ago, home cooks and commercial food processors relied on brining (along with salting and smoking) to prevent meats, fish, and vegetables from spoiling. Today, brining is making a comeback. Brined chicken and pork dishes appear on upscale restaurant menus. Cooks are rediscovering that brining is a simple way of improving texture and flavor. Since brining causes meat to absorb liquid, a seasoned brining solution makes meat juicier and tastier than it would be otherwise, a godsend for ultra-lean American pork and even for turkey. My friend Nancy Oakes, chef-owner of the San Francisco restaurant Boulevard, gave me her recipe for brining , which I've adapted for this easy dish. I like to serve these pork chops with Versatile Buttermilk Mashed Potatoes and Fiery Garlicky Greens. If there are leftovers, cooked chops will keep for several days in the refrigerator. Their low fat content makes it too easy to dry them out during reheating, so I prefer to use them cold. Trim the meat off the bone, remove any fat remaining along the outer edge, and then slice the meat as thin as possible. Use in a sandwich or a salad, or as part of a cold meat plate, with Roasted Pear Chutney or Herbal Mayonnaise. (All these recipes mentioned can be found in the book). Twelve hours is the optimal time for brining the chops, so plan on making the brine and marinating the chops the night before you intend to grill them. Brining them for slightly less time is fine, but longer than 12 hours, and the chops will start to take on the texture and flavor of ham. Once brined, however, they can be refrigerated for several days before cooking.

Active time: 40 min Start to finish: 50 min

Brining the pork makes it especially juicy.

Maple syrup brings sweetness and warm color to the pork. Wild rice pilaf, brussels sprouts and a Gewürztraminer would be nice accompaniments.

Tamales are traditionally served in the southwestern United States and in Mexico at Christmas. In this easy do-ahead version, corn husks are wrapped around spicy pieces of pork tenderloin. The husks keep the pork tender and juicy as it cooks. What to drink: Pinot Noir.

This technique works best with a charcoal grill, but you can also use a gas grill as long as it has a built-in thermometer or a hole in the top for inserting the candy thermometer.

The pork is marinated overnight in a salt-water brine, making it tender and flavorful. After marinating, the pork can be cooked a day ahead so that St. Patrick's Day, which falls on a Monday this year, will be stress-free.

Frances Driesbach, Maui, Hawaii
"This chili was inspired by Southern Calif., where I grew up. Red, green, and yellow peppers represent the Mexican fiesta."

I didn't grow up eating pork, so I was pleased to find out how lean and flavorful it was when I made this roast loin of pork. I cooked it the way I cook lots of meats — roasted with carrots, potatoes, and fennel. It's important to let meat rest after it's cooked; you'll find that all meats become juicier and more tender after 15 to 20 minutes. The rub on this comes from my dear friend Anna Pump and her wonderful Loaves and Fishes Cookbook.

Serve with: Spinach salad topped with toasted almonds, and sesame breadsticks.

Serve with: Red-skinned potatoes roasted with thyme, and steamed green beans.