There’s something so special about mom’s cooking (even if she’s not the best cook in the world); the mix of childhood nostalgia blending in with familiar scents and spices to create a dish that is so much more than the sum of its parts. But there’s something to be said about taking a familiar favorite and giving it your own twist, and chefs are the experts at tweaking recipes. Below, five chefs have shared the stories behind their favorite dishes made by their moms and how they’ve updated them.
Credit: Home Appétit
Middle Eastern Lamb Kofta with Yogurt Sauce
Recipe by Lee Wallach, founder and chef of Home Appétit in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
“Our lamb kofta meatballs are my jazzed up version of the ktzitzot (ground meat patties) that my mom used to make for us all the time as kids,” Wallach said. “She would use beef with lots of herbs and spices and then pan fry them in oil. They were absolutely delicious and we would eat them in handfuls.
“The original ktzitzot recipe she used came from my Israeli grandmother (savta), and she made them for my mom and her siblings. They love to tell stories about how the meatballs would come out of the hot oil and they would eat them right away and burn their hands… and of course, my brother and I did the same thing.”
Recipe for Middle Eastern Lamb Kofta with Yogurt Sauce
Yields 4 servings
For the meatballs:
1 1/4 lbs ground lamb
1/2 lb ground pork
1/3 c minced red onion
3 cloves garlic, chopped
Zest of one lemon
2 Tbsp chopped mint
2 Tbsp chopped Italian parsley
1-2 Tbsp harissa paste
2 Tbsp paprika
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
1 Tbsp ground sumac
1 egg
1/2 Tbsp kosher salt
Pepper, to taste
Neutral cooking oil
Combine all ingredients except oil in a large bowl and mix well. Add more harissa if you like spice.
Using your hands, form kofta into diamond shapes, about 2 ounces each. You should get 3 kofta meatballs per person.
Heat a sauté pan over medium-high heat, and add enough oil to cover the bottom of the pan.
Sear kofta until cooked through, flipping halfway; about 4 minutes per side.
For the yogurt sauce:
1 c full fat yogurt (labneh or Greek yogurt recommended)
1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp cumin
1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
Salt and pepper, to taste
Combine all ingredients in a bowl at least 20 minutes prior to serving.
Credit: Indaco
Butter Beans and Parmesan
Recipe by Mark Bolchoz, executive chef of Indaco in Charleston, South Carolina
“Butter beans have always been a part of my life; growing up here in Charleston, we ate them once or twice a week with dinner,” Bolchoz said. “My great grandmother would gather and process all the butterbeans for the whole neighborhood when my mom was a little girl. They would shell them, bag them and give them to everyone around.
“Butter beans, or lima beans, have always been synonymous with community to me, which is why we serve them ‘for the table’ and ‘family-style’ here at Indaco. My great grandma, Gommy, my grandmother, Mémé, and my momma, Ashley, would all cook them in fatback and water, as is tradition. Here, we take it up another level with ham hock stock and smoky bacon, and we always finish with chopped rosemary to emulate the famous cannellini beans served in Tuscany. The base recipe is versatile and can be tailored a thousand ways with different pork products, vegetables added in, and hot sauces and hard cheeses to finish.”
Recipe for Butter Beans and Parmesan
Yields 4 servings
Ingredients:
2 qt (2 lb bag) butter beans
2-2.5 qt chicken stock (store bought or home fortified)
8 strips thick-cut smokey bacon
1 yellow onion, split and peel, leaving root intact
4 leaves fresh bay leaf
3-4 sprigs rosemary, picked and chopped fine
1 small bundle thyme, tied with a string for easy removal
2 Tbsp butter
Parmesan, to taste
3 Tbsp parsley
2 dashes hot sauce
Salt and pepper, to taste
Directions:
Render the strips of bacon in a heavy bottom pot until just about cooked. Reserve 1 or 2 for finished product if you like, but leave the rest in .
Add the split onion, herbs, bay leaf and some salt and black pepper to the pot.
Once the onion has a little color on the cut side, add the beans and stock to the pot.
Season gently once more, and then simmer on low heat for 35 minutes to 1 hour. Start checking the beans at 35 minutes.
When they’re finished cooking, you should be able to smash the butter bean against the roof of your mouth with ease but they should hold their shape. At this point you can serve them, use them as soup base, or cool them down for later use.
To serve them at a later point, prepare them “Indaco Style”: In a skillet or shallow pan add however many beans you want to serve with just barely enough cooking liquid to cover them.
On high heat boil them rather violently allowing the liquid to dissipate, then add hot sauce, butter, salt and pepper, and parsley.
Transfer to a casserole or serving dish and garnish with fresh Parmesan or another hard cheese.
Credit: Qi Ai
Mama Ai’s Pork Belly
Recipe by Qi Ai, chef de cuisine of Travelle at The Langham, Chicago
“My favorite dish that my mom makes is her pork belly with bamboo shoots,” Ai said. “Tender bamboo shoots are a winter delicacy in Beijing; the season is short. I remember rushing home after school, and on the days my mom was cooking the dish, that aroma of caramelized anise and soy mixed with pork and bamboo would be the first thing I smelled in the hallway. This is the dish that comes to mind first when I think of home, and I still ask my mom to make it if I go home for a visit.
“I have made multiple versions of this dish, using slow cookers, Instant Pots and woks (which my mom uses). The best method turns out to be the oven. As I am a classically French trained culinarian, cooking this pork belly dish in the classic French way made lots of sense and oven braising helps the chunk of belly stay juicy and moist. As it cooks in the oven, extra fat is rendered and the fresh herbaceousness from the Chinese mirepoix goes into the belly.
“My French version of my mom’s pork belly has become my husband’s favorite dish when he thinks of Chinese cuisine, and hopefully it will be one of my daughter’s favorites when she thinks of home. Well, maybe she will put her own spin on it.”
Recipe for Mama Ai’s Braised Pork Belly
To cure the pork belly:
3 pounds, whole Holland pork belly
70 g kosher salt
40 g black pepper
4 cloves garlic
2/3 c brown sugar
Mix together the salt, pepper, garlic and sugar in a food processor, blending until mixed together. The pepper might still be in large pieces; this is what we are looking for.
Rub this mixture over both sides of the pork belly, and let cure in the fridge for 2 days, flipping 2 times a day to ensure the cure is absorbed.
To braise the belly:
1/2 carrot, large dice
1/2 onion, large dice
2 stalks celery, large dice
1 knob ginger
1 stalk lemongrass, chopped
1/2 bunch cilantro
4 Chile de árbol
3 star anise
1 Tbsp fennel seeds
2 cloves
1 cinnamon stick
1/2 c soy paste
1 1/2 qt chicken stock
Salt, to taste
After 2 days, wash off the cure, dry and set aside.
In an oven-safe, heavy bottom pot, sear pork belly until golden on both sides. Put aside.
Add all the mirepoix vegetables and all the spices into the pot. Stir and coat them with the lovely fond on the bottom of the pan.
Add in soy paste and chicken stock, add the pork belly back in, and bring the liquid to a simmer and cover with an oven proof lid.
Let braise at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 4.5 hours, or until the pork belly is tender, but not falling apart.
Let chill in the liquid overnight so that the belly can absorb some of the liquid goodness back into the muscle fibers.
The next day, it is ready to be served! Warm up the pork belly in the pot or in the microwave and enjoy.
Credit: Radu Grigore
Lahanodolmades (Stuffed Cabbage)
Recipe by Radu Grigore, executive chef of Elaia Estiatorio in Bridgehampton, New York
“The best dish that my mom makes is called ‘sarmale’ in Romanian,” Grigore said. “Greeks have their own version and it’s called lahanodolmades, which is known in the United States as stuffed cabbage. This dish reminds me of childhood and mostly of Christmas. In Romania, before the winter comes my mom always preserved around 100 heads of cabbage to make sarmale and eat as a side dish all winter long.
“I’ve updated this recipe and simplified it using blanched cabbage leaves. I use fresh cabbage instead of fermented cabbage (which my mom uses) and added a Greek touch by using oregano and dill. On the side, I recommend serving this with warm polenta, a fresh hot pepper and sour cream or Greek yogurt.”
Recipe for Lahanodolmades
Yields 2-3 servings
Ingredients:
2 big green cabbages
8 oz ground pork
8 oz ground beef
4 oz bacon, diced
2 oz short grain rice
6 oz tomato paste (divide 2 oz and 4 oz )
8 oz spring or filtered water
2 oz sautéed brunoise onion
1 Tbsp dill, chopped
1 Tbsp Greek oregano
1 Tbsp parsley, chopped
1 Tbsp thyme, chopped
2 bay leaves
Salt and pepper, to taste
Directions:
Peel off each leaf of cabbage. Pick 10 large nice leaves and remove the core. Blanch in boiling water for 4-5 minutes and set aside.
In a bowl, mix together the ground pork, ground beef, rice, 2 ounces of tomato paste, onion, dill, oregano, parsley and thyme. Season with salt and pepper.
Fill each cabbage leaf with 2 ounces of the mixture and wrap like a mini burrito.
Lay the stuffed cabbages in a deep baking dish. Mix the rest of the tomato paste with the water, diced bacon and bay leaf, and pour this mixture into the baking dish. Use a lid or aluminum foil to cover.
Bake in a preheated oven at 300 degrees Fahrenheit for 60 minutes. Take the lid off and bake another 10 minutes at 420 degrees Fahrenheit.
Credit: Carmine’s
Chicken Cacciatore
Recipe by Glenn Rolnick, director of culinary operations at Carmine’s in New York City
“My mother is a great cook and taught me so much while growing up; to this day she has been a great influence on my career as a chef,” Rolnick said. “She made a wonderful chicken cacciatore over wide egg noodles. Cooking everything in one pot, she would time it perfectly so the chicken was tasty and tender, and the sauce was seasoned to perfection. Her dish was a deep rich tomato color with great texture.”
For his version, Rolnick made a few changes, including adding mushrooms and sautéing the vegetables and herbs for added flavor. The addition of chicken stock and veal stock also adds flavor to the dish. Lastly, he finishes the dish in the oven while his mom cooks the dish over the stovetop exclusively.
“Both ways are excellent, especially over wide noodles,” Rolnick said. “I used my years of training while my mom used her mother’s recipe and teaching, but both are spectacular.”
Recipe for Chicken Cacciatore
Yields 4-6 servings
For the chicken:
1 lb all-purpose flour
1 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp cracked black pepper
1 1/2 c canola oil
2 3-lb whole chickens, cut into 10 pieces each
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a sheet pan with paper towels.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, salt and black pepper. Heat the canola oil in a large cast iron skillet over medium-high heat.
Dredge each piece of chicken in the seasoned flour and shake off any excess.
Working in batches to avoid overcrowding, carefully place the floured chicken in the skillet and fry until nicely browned. Flip each piece and brown the opposite side.
Transfer the fried chicken to the lined sheet pan.
For the sauce:
1/2 c garlic oil
1 1/2 c white onions, sliced
1 c red bell peppers, diced
1 c green bell peppers, diced
1/3 c garlic, sliced
2 dried bay leaves
2 Tbsp fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
2 Tbsp fresh oregano leaves, chopped
2 Tbsp fresh basil, chopped
1 Tbsp fresh rosemary
1 pound cremini mushrooms, cleaned, stems trimmed, mushrooms quartered
1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp cracked black pepper
1 c white wine
4 c canned whole, peeled Italian plum tomatoes
1 c chicken stock
1 c brown sauce (recipe below)
In a separate large pan over high heat, combine the garlic oil, onions and bell peppers. Sauté until the vegetables begin to brown, then add the garlic and cook for 1 to 2 minutes.
Add the bay leaves, parsley, oregano, basil, rosemary and mushrooms and cook for 5 minutes.
Add the salt, black pepper and white wine and cook for 2 to 3 minutes.
Add the tomatoes, chicken stock and brown sauce and bring to a boil. Reduce the liquid by one-quarter.
To serve:
12 ounces wide egg noodles, cooked al dente
In a 4-quart casserole dish, combine the chicken and the sauce. Cover and bake for 35 minutes. When the chicken has almost finished cooking, cook the egg noodles.
Spread the cooked pasta in the center of a large serving platter. Arrange the chicken pieces over the noodles, top with the sauce, and serve.
For the brown sauce:
Makes 4 1/2 cups
4 Tbsp (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
1/2 c celery, finely diced
1/2 c carrots, finely diced
1/2 c white onions, finely diced
1/2 tsp fresh thyme leaves
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/8 tsp cracked black pepper
1/4 c all-purpose flour
6 c beef stock
Heat the butter in a 2-quart or larger pot over medium-high heat. Add the celery, carrots, and onion and sauté until nicely browned, 7 to 10 minutes.
Add the thyme leaves, salt, and pepper and sauté for 1 minute more.
Add the flour to make a roux, and stir until absorbed. Reduce the heat to medium and cook for 3 to 4 minutes, being careful not to burn the roux.
Add the stock, and simmer until thickened.
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