Sukoyaka Brown Genmai Rice
If you are tired of tasteless white rice, let me introduce you to Genmai Rice. When I first tasted genmai two years ago, my first thought was that this rice was a miracle—it cooks quickly, just like white rice, but has the rich, earthy flavor and satisfying chewiness of great brown rice. Once you taste Sukoyaka Genmai, you will never go back. How is this possible? It is an American-grown short-grain brown rice that has had a portion of the outer bran layer is scrubbed away, allowing the grains to hydrate faster while retaining most of their nutritional properties. The nutty, earthy-tasting grains are distinct and just a touch sticky, making the rice perfect for accompanying stir-fries, curries, soups and stews, although I make it two or three times a week as a starter, for any sort of topping from steamed vegetables to quickly grilled chicken or steak. Matt, Card, our food editor, also swears by it for fried rice. He keeps a batch frozen in the freezer for a quick batch: Just defrost on the countertop, and it's ready to go for a virtually instant meal. Buy as much as you can afford, since genmai will become your go-to rice after the first bite.
Grand Noodle Five Colored Noodles
Handcrafted by a master noodle maker, these multicolored guksu, or Korean noodles, are infused with clean vegetable flavor. Guksu Master Kim Hyun Kyu started his noodle operation in 1987, wanting to add flavor to basic, bland wheat noodles that only supplemented other recipe components. After years of experimenting with ratios, recipes and aging, Kyu developed vibrant, vegetable-forward twists on the classic noodle. These guksu get their distinctive color-true hues and flavor from garlic chives, sweet pumpkin, beets, and white and black rice. And the ingredients are more than natural food coloring; when cooked, the aromatic noodles impart a subtle but noticeable flavor to dishes and retain a pleasant chew. Try them in pasta dishes, Korean preparations—like bibim-guksu, a spicy noodle stir-fry, or kong-guksu, a cold soy milk soup—or boiled and tossed with oil and sea salt.
Rancho Gordo Marcella Beans
Grown in California and named after Italian culinary icon Marcella Hazan, these creamy white beans are from Italian Sorana seedstock. Sorana is a cannellini bean with incredibly thin skin and super-creamy texture. They cook up buttery soft and silky without falling apart. Their superior texture and quality make them a definite favorite for us. We especially like Rancho Gordo as a purveyor, as they’ve made it a priority to preserve culinary traditions and re-introduce indigenous beans from the Americas to the U.S. marketplace.
Rancho Gordo Domingo Rojo Beans
More diminutive than common kidney beans, these small to medium size red beans from Napa, California, have a soft and silky texture and deep, sweetish bean flavor. They’re a great choice for New Orleans Red Beans and Rice and a staple for many Caribbean cuisines. Domingo Rojo Beans really hold their shape when cooked, and the thick bean broth they give off enriches any sauce that coats rice and noodles. All of Rancho Gordo’s beans stand out due to their high quality, as they are sold fresher than most dried beans that can sit on the supermarket shelf for years. We especially like Rancho Gordo, as they’ve made it a priority to preserve culinary traditions and re-introduce indigenous beans from the Americas to the U.S. marketplace.
Rancho Gordo Midnight Black Bean
These black beans from Napa, California, have a rich flavor and creamy center, while still holding their shape after cooking. They cook up quickly, soaked or unsoaked, and have a lovely dark purple-black color. Try using the savory bean broth as a base for all kinds of soups or bean dishes. These beans can be eaten as a simple accompaniment to rice, or as an essential part of salads, soups, dips and side dishes. We especially like Rancho Gordo as a purveyor, as they’ve made it a priority to preserve culinary traditions and re-introduce indigenous beans from the Americas to the U.S. marketplace.
Rancho Gordo Pinto Beans
This heirloom variety of pinto bean is fast-cooking, creamy and versatile. With their soft skins and smooth texture, these California-grown beans are so much better than typical supermarket varieties. All of Rancho Gordo’s beans stand out due to their high quality, as they are sold fresher than most dried beans that can sit on the supermarket shelf for years. We especially like Rancho Gordo as a purveyor, as they’ve made it a priority to preserve culinary traditions and re-introduce indigenous beans from the Americas to the U.S. marketplace.
Rancho Gordo Yellow Eye Beans
A favorite in Maine, and hard to find outside the state, yellow eye beans are a must-have for New Englanders in the know. These sweet and silky beans make the absolute best baked beans, and they’re perfect for soups, stews and braises. Similar in appearance to black-eyed peas, these beans are creamy white with a molasses-colored eye and cook up round and full. As Rancho Gordo says on their website, “The flavor and texture make regular Navy beans seem sad.” They stand out due to their high quality, as they are sold fresher than most dried beans that can sit on the supermarket shelf for years. We especially like Rancho Gordo as a purveyor, as they’ve made it a priority to preserve culinary traditions and re-introduce indigenous beans from the Americas to the U.S. marketplace.
Tartana Bomba Rice
An essential in making great paella, pearl-shaped bomba rice absorbs both broth and flavor easily without risk of turning to mush. This bomba rice by Tartana, made in Spain, cooks up tender yet firm, with a sweet, rich flavor that pairs beautifully with aromatic saffron, heavier proteins and bright vegetables. And though less creamy than other paella rice varieties, it’s a great beginner paella grain, thanks to the short grain and starchy structure—which makes it much harder to overcook.
Izumo Soba Noodles
These soft, fresh noodles are made from equal parts buckwheat flour and wheat flour, which yield an especially springy, yet tender texture and full flavor compared to other soba we’ve tried. The flour is milled in-house and no preservatives or other binding agents are used in the noodles—just a dash of salt to round out the flavors. We love the subtle nuttiness of buckwheat and how it plays up the overall umami flavor of soba. Plus, the wider surface area of these noodles allows them to sop up even more sauce.
Gobun Handmade Inaniwa Udon Noodles
These handmade noodles stand out from the pack. With a versatile thinness unlike traditional udon, yet with the same slurpy, chewy texture that’s distinctive of the noodle, Inaniwa udon has been handmade by artisans for over 300 years. The process takes four whole days: The noodles are kneaded on a starched surface before drying, followed by a series of hand kneading sessions before they’re shaped into their final form and left to sit. The resulting noodles are silky smooth with a mild taste, with a lovely kick of salt that makes the flavor come alive.
Sfoglini x Sporkful Cascatelli
Otherwise known as “little waterfalls” in Italian, cascatelli was created to be an accessible pasta option that enhances the eating experience with maximized “forkability,” “sauceability” and “toothsinkability.” Made from high-quality North American wheats and slow-dried for over nine hours, Pashman’s succeeds in hitting all three categories. We love that it has a good toothsomeness and clean pasta flavor, plus there are no eggs in the dough which keeps it from being too rich and tender. The thing that really sets apart this experimental pasta shape though is the texture. Not only do the ruffles, frills, right turns and curved shape keep sauce clinging on, but each bite becomes a sensory experience for your mouth too. This pasta is the perfect form to serve with a chunky sauce, Rather than finding bits of sauce at the bottom of your bowl like you would with other kinds of pasta, cascatelli will hold on effortlessly.
Wa Imports Ramen Noodles
Made in China with wheat flour and egg, these ramen noodles from Wa Imports are delicate and soft, with a perfect tender chew. Requiring only a few minutes in boiling, these noodles absorb the flavor of whatever they are added to beautifully, adding a springy texture to any dish. Plus, their flat shape offers more surface area for ingredients to cling to and makes them easy to pick up.
Milk Street Noodles Cookbook
Nearly every culture serves some sort of noodle, from fettuccine, ramen and spaetzle to lo mein, gnocchi and udon. So we traveled the world to learn the secrets to the best pad Thai, Italian ragù, spicy North African couscous and buttery Turkish noodles flecked with feta cheese. In Italy, we were taught the real fettuccine Alfredo—so much lighter, simpler and satisfying than what we knew. In Sapporo, Japan, we learned to develop the deep umami flavors of miso ramen with minimal time and effort. And from Ho Chi Minh to Lima, we learned the art of the quick noodle stir-fry, from Vietnamese shrimp noodles to Peruvian chicken and pasta. Noodles are a perfect canvas for spring and summer vegetables, as well as hearty wintertime baked casseroles. And if speed is the need, try hoisin-ginger noodles or our cheesy one-pan cacio e pepe, both ready in 20 minutes. What’s for dinner? Use your noodle.
Pars 5-Cup Persian Rice Cooker
We’ll be the first to admit that tahdig, the traditional Persian rice dish with a crispy top, can be intimidating to make at home. The combination of fluffy rice in the middle and a crunchy top layer is challenging to achieve and requires a treacherous pot flip. So we were thrilled to try out the Pars Rice Cooker, designed specifically to take the complexity out of crispy rice dishes like tahdig. Featuring a customizable timer, measuring lines for better precision, a nonstick pot and an easy to follow manual, this appliance takes all of the guesswork out of rice-cooking. Just add your rice, water and spices, then let the Pars do the rest. Plus, it’s easy to clean and stores away compactly when not in use.
Milk Street Digital Class: Hand-Formed Homemade Pastas with Meryl Feinstein
Cavatelli. Orecchiette. Gnocchi. Capunti. What do all of these Italian pastas have in common? You can make them by hand with no need for a pasta maker or any special tools. What you do need is a bit of know-how and some expert support. Thankfully, guest chef and Pasta Social Club founder Meryl Feinstein is here to show you the way. With this pre-recorded Zoom livestream class, you’ll learn a single pasta dough recipe that lends itself particularly well to hand shaping. You’ll learn why semolina flour, which is high in gluten and has a slightly nutty flavor, is ideal for these types of pastas. This dough doesn’t include any eggs, meaning that it’s a snap to replicate perfectly time and time again. With our dough ready to go, we turn to the art of shaping. We’ll try our hands at cavatelli, which looks like miniature hot dog buns. You’ll practice orecchiette, the “little ear”pasta of Puglia, perfecting the pressure you need to achieve their concave shape. You’ll get familiar with capunti, the pasta that looks somewhat like a pea pod. Plus,Meryl provides sauce recipes and suggestions so you can dress your hand-formed pastas however you please. If you like playing with your food, this workshop is for you
Sfoglini x Sporkful Vesuvio
Taking shape inspiration from Mount Vesuvius, Sfoglini x Sporkful’s Vesuvio pasta enhances the eating experience with maximized “forkability,” “sauceability” and “toothsinkability.” Made from high-quality North American wheat and slow-dried for over nine hours, the toothsome pasta has a clean flavor—plus, there are no eggs in the dough, which keeps it from being too rich and tender. The thing that really sets apart this experimental pasta shape, though, is the unique spirals. Sauces of all consistencies cling to the many spiraled ridges of the shape flawlessly, from bolognese and pesto to creamy béchamel for mac and cheese. And unlike fusilli, which is hard to keep on your fork, Vesuvio stays put—sauce and all.
Sfoglini x Sporkful Quattrotini
An upgraded version of the cinque buchi, a Sicilian pasta shape that translates to “five holes,” Sfoglini x Sporkful’s Quattrotini pasta enhances the eating experience with maximized “forkability,” “sauceability” and “toothsinkability.” Made from high-quality North American wheat and slow-dried for over nine hours, it has a good toothsomeness and clean pasta flavor—plus, there are no eggs in the dough, which keeps it from being too rich and tender. The thing that really sets apart this experimental pasta though is the unique combination of two pasta shapes put together. The center tube is similar to rigatoni while the four outer tubes are like bucatini but with ridges—creating the perfect vehicle to hold on to more sauce. And unlike other shapes, which are hard to keep on your fork, Quattrotini’s excellent texture helps each noodle stay put—sauce and all.
Milk Street Digital Class: Herb-Laminated Pastas with Meryl Feinstein
In springtime, we all get excited by leafy herbs, some of the first signs of the warming weather. So what if we told you that fresh herbs don’t have to just be a finishing flourish on your favorite pasta dishes—they can be inside the pasta dough itself? Guest chef and founder of Pasta Social Club Meryl Feinstein is the teacher of this pre-recorded Zoom livestream class where you’ll learn to make visually stunning handmade pasta that puts the flavors of spring right into the dough. You’ll learn how to pick the right herbs for the job: fan-shaped parsley is visually stunning, as are frilly dill fronds and aromatic sage. And speaking of dough, you’ll learn Meryl’s go-to recipe, which has just three ingredients. As with most short-ingredient-list recipes, though, you’ll benefit from a professional’s tips and tricks to get it just right. You’ll learn how to transform the dough into flat noodles—like linguine or lasagna sheets—that put the laminated herbs at center stage. Plus, we provide tips for great sauce pairings and advice on how to store and save your homemade pasta.