Tamarind

On the eastern side of the Indian peninsula, fronting the Bay of Bengal, is Madras, the capital of Tamil Nadu state. This recipe from that cosmopolitan city is typically made with sardines, mackerel, and crab, but we have substituted orange roughy for a more delicately flavored dish.

Active time: 15 min Start to finish: 1 1/4 hr

Tamarind seasoning paste Smoky, earthy, and with a sweet-and-sour tang, this recado is also delicious on pork, beef, and venison.

Editor's note: The recipe and introductory text below are excerpted from chef Neil Perry's book Rockpool. Neil also shared some helpful cooking tips exclusively with Epicurious, which we've added at the bottom of the page. For your convenience, we've converted the measures — with as much accuracy as possible — from Australian to American. For those who have metric equipment and wish to follow Neil's recipe to the milliliter, we've included the original measures too. This dish is a blend of both Asian and Western techniques and flavours, and has been refined over a period of time. My objective was to end up with a layering of textures and flavours that built up from firm and sweet to soft and creamy. If there is one thing Eastern cooking has taught me, it is the balance and interplay of flavours from strong to subtle. This recipe also uses extra-virgin olive oil alongside tamarind, soy sauce and palm sugar to achieve a full-flavoured dressing that melds all parts of the composite salad together. When cooking Thai and Chinese food it is imperative not to use olive oil as it masks the authentic flavours, but once you understand the balance of these flavours you can start to blend with sympathy, and to create dishes that are in harmony with both their roots. The key to this salad is the same as for any composite salad; all the parts must be of the highest quality. The mangoes should be ripe but not overly sweet and soft. The chicken cannot be compromised, it must be fresh to achieve the right texture. Ensure that all the ingredients are at room temperature. It is ideal if all the preparation is done on the same day, but if that's impossible make sure you take everything out of the fridge well beforehand.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

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Toasty, nutty fried tempeh coated in a caramelized spice paste—plus lots of vegetables for good measure.

Roasting, then grinding masala adds a depth of flavor to these chicken wings from chef Preeti Mistry.

Chaat masala adds salty-tangy flavor to this pan-fried fish, and balances the sweet and herby tamarind sauce and cilantro chutney.

Tamarind concentrate gives this chicken its sticky, glossy quality, not to mention its sweet-and-sour flavor.

Indian grocers sell prepared tamarind chutney, which you can easily substitute for the homemade version here.

Proof that fried onions are good on anything—even a slaw. (This recipe was developed with IBM's Chef Watson.)