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The Spruce Eats

American Cooking Basics

Master the basics of American cooking, from techniques, like how to cook the perfect burger, to the equipment and terms you should know.
The Recipe Finder

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Grilled beets in a bowl
Grilled Beets
30 mins
Spicy Mango Hot Sauce Recipe
Mango Hot Sauce
15 mins
Ripe Tomatoes in a cardboard box
How To Preserve Tomatoes
Bowl of Cherries
How to Remove Cherry Pits Without a Pitter
Plate of Oysters
How to Shuck Oysters
roasted beets
How to Roast Beets
Grill Peaches
How to Grill Peaches
18 mins
illustration with steps on how to make mayo
How to Make Mayonnaise
Toll House Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe
How to Make Soft or Crispy Cookies
grilled halloumi cheese served on a plate with lemon wedges and herbs
What Is Halloumi Cheese?
Burgers
10 Tips for Perfect Burgers
Goose Eggs
Using Goose Eggs in Your Recipes
Barley risotto with champignon, feta cheese and coriander
Arborio Rice Substitutes for Risotto
Fresh Peaches
How to Peel Peaches
freezing cherries
How to Freeze Fresh Cherries
Grill Skirt Steak
How to Grill Skirt Steak
38 mins
An oxtail on parchment paper with text describing what oxtail is
What Is Oxtail?
A pair of fried white fish
How to Pan-Fry Fish Fillets
Plated smoked salmon
How to Smoke Salmon
Halved avocado on tabletop
How to Keep Avocados From Turning Brown
Strawberries in a colander
Washing Strawberries
peaches on plate with knife
How to Store Peaches Perfectly After Buying Them
Sun-dried tomatoes
Sun-Dried Tomato Cooking Tips
Mashed Potatoes
Choosing the Best Potatoes for Mashing
Grilled swordfish
Cooking Swordfish
illustration depicting reasons to go pescatarian
What Is a Pescatarian?
Illustration depicting three methods to steam green beans
Three Easy Ways to Steam Green Beans
cutting strawberries and placing them into boxes
The Best Ways to Store Strawberries
Walnuts on a foil-covered pan
How to Toast Walnuts
Illustration depicting how to steam broccoli
Three Simple Ways to Steam Broccoli
Turkey Gravy
How to Make a Roux Gravy Rich With Flavor
Chart illustrating various substitutions for sour cream in recipes
Sour Cream Substitutions
Mussels In a Bowl
How to Cook Mussels
Braiding a 3-Strand Challah
Braiding a 3-Strand Challah
eggs and bean salad
A Vegan's Guide to the Slow-Carb Diet
Family with toddler baking
Butter Substitution Baking Tips
rinse the pinto beans and pick them over
How to Cook Dried Beans
illustration showing simple fig recipes
22 Tasty Fig Recipes to Enjoy This Luscious Fruit
Raw vegan food preparation
What Is the Raw Vegan Diet?
Frying fish
The Best Oil For Frying Fish
Raw Kernels of Wild Rice
How to Cook Wild Rice
illustration showing foods that contain hidden dairy
Foods that Contain "Hidden" Dairy
Herbs and spices
The Essential Pantry Spices List
Sliced peaches
Learn How to Perfectly Slice Peaches
Fresh Steamed Crab on the Table
How to Make a Crab Boil
Bacon Fat Grilled Cheese
How to Macgyver a Grilled Cheese Sandwich in Any Situation
Morel mushrooms
How to Clean Morel Mushrooms
Selection of wines to go with seafood
Pairing Wine With Fish and Seafood
Fresh Head-On Carolina Brown on plateShrimp
How to Remove the Heads From Shrimp
How to Humanely Kill a Lobster for Cooking
Almonds
How to Toast Almonds at Home
Smoothie
Vegetarian and Vegan Hangover Cure Foods
red snapper fish
What Is Red Snapper?
Vegan Banana Bread
How to Convert a Loaf Recipe Into Muffins (and Vice Versa)
George Washington Carver writing
George Washington Carver
Monticello
James Hemings: America's First Chef
Crab meat on marble slab
How to Eat Crab
Turkey cutlet and stuffing casserole
Turkey Basics: Safe Handling of Food and Leftovers
Ground beef draining
Ground Beef Cooking Tips
almond nuts food cooking recipe receipt
How to Select and Store Almonds