The most popular recipes of August 2025 once again included a combination of recipes for all-time reader favourites – from my richly spiced Russian beef Stroganoff and Cambodian rice noodles with curried coconut broth to Terence’s Moroccan lamb tagine with prunes and almonds and his sticky Asian pork ribs. ‘Newer’ recipes of recent years also landed on the list for the first time, including my chicken salad with spring vegetables, and fried gnocchi with broccoli and bacon recipe.
As usual, this collection of our most popular recipes of August 2025 features a real mix of recipes. There were long-time reader favourites that top these lists month after month, and were on our compilations of most popular July recipes, including my authentic beef Stroganoff, fragrant Cambodian curried rice noodles, and our aromatic Middle Eastern spiced rice with dried fruit and nuts.
The list also included recipes that I think are landing on one of ‘our most popular recipes’ round-ups for the first time, such as this recipe for easy baked meatballs infused with Middle Eastern spices (one of my favourite Middle Eastern recipes one of our best meatball recipes) and this recipe for crispy pan fried gnocchi with broccoli and bacon (a must-try if you’re a lover of fried pasta or fried dumplings such as potstickers or fried pelmeni and vareniki, and if you’re a fan of the broccoli-bacon pairing.
Once again, I wish I could say it’s the start of the month when we scan our site stats to see what recipes our readers searched for, spent time on, and (we hope!) cooked last month – which is when I would have liked to have shared this compilation of our most popular August recipes. Unfortunately I’m sharing it a week later than planned as I’m still supporting my elderly mum through her cancer recovery and we’ve had a lot of medical appointments. Apologies.
Now before you browse our most popular recipes of August 2025, I have a favour to ask. Grantourismo is reader-supported. If you’ve enjoyed our recipes, please consider supporting Grantourismo. There are myriad ways, but you could support our epic, original Cambodian cookbook and culinary history project on Patreon; buy a handcrafted KROK, the best mortar and pestle ever; book a cooking class or a meal with locals on EatWith; or buy something on Amazon, such as these cookbooks for culinary travellers or classic cookbooks for serious cooks.
Looking for more cooking inspo? Our archives are brimming with hundreds of recipes from around the world from places we’ve lived, worked, travelled and loved. And you can save your favourite recipes in your own private account by clicking on the heart on the right of any post. Now let me tell you more about the recipes readers cooked in August.
Most Popular Recipes of August 2025 – Recipes Our Readers Cooked Last Month
These were our most popular recipes of August 2025 – the recipes that you all searched for, spent time on, and hopefully cooked in August.
Richly Spiced Russian Beef Stroganoff Recipe
One of my Russian-Ukrainian family recipes, which my mother used to cook regularly, this classic beef Stroganoff recipe topped the list of most popular recipes of August 2025 on Grantourismo. Once again, it’s no surprise, as it’s long been one of our most searched for recipes, and is one of my best Stroganoff recipes. I also have recipes for chicken Stroganoff, mushroom Stroganoff, meatball Stroganoff and pork Stroganoff.
An old aristocratic Russian dish with a long rich history, beef Stroganoff was democratised and popularised in canteens during the Soviet era, and travelled the world with Russian exiles, émigrés and World War 2 refugees like my Russian-Ukrainian grandparents, becoming popular everywhere from Australia to the Americas.
Serve it with classic Stroganoff sides: crunchy shoestring fries or mashed potatoes and a crisp garden salad, plus homemade dill pickles and sour cream. For a proper Sunday meal of the kind my baboushka prepared, serve it at the centre of a spread of dishes, with plates of piroshki, borscht, Russian pelmeni, Ukrainian vareniki, cabbage rolls, a beet potato salad, and chicken kotleti.
Russian Beef Stroganoff Recipe for a Retro Classic from a Palace Kitchen
Aromatic Cambodian Rice Noodles with Curried Coconut Broth
Cambodian food has such a special place in our hearts, having lived in Siem Reap since 2013, researching and writing our epic Cambodian cookbook and culinary history. So I love seeing readers searching for our Cambodian recipes and am thrilled to see this nom banh chok recipe high on the list of our most popular recipes of August 2025.
Nom banh chok, also written as nom banhchok, is both the name of the fresh daily-made rice noodles and the noodle soup itself. Nom banh chok is thought to be an ancient Khmer dish that has influenced many other noodle soup dishes around Southeast Asia, from Thailand’s khanom jeen to a Southern Vietnam Khmer dish from the Mekong Delta called bún kèn.
There are a handful of types of nom banh chok, but our traditional nom banh chok recipe for Cambodia’s beloved ‘Khmer Noodles’ will make you nom banh chok samlor proher, a popular Siem Reap breakfast of the rice noodles served with a yellow-green coconut-based fish curry, fragrant with fresh herbs, seasonal greens, edible flowers, and foraged herbs.
Authentic Nom Banh Chok Recipe for Cambodia’s Beloved Khmer Noodles
Spiced Middle Eastern Rice Recipe with Dried Fruit and Nuts
This quick and easy Middle Eastern rice recipe with spices, nuts and raisins will make you an aromatic rice dish infused with Middle Eastern spices and textured with nuts and raisins. It’s fantastic with smoky kofta kebab or the garlicky chicken called shish tawook, Middle Eastern vegetable sides, such as these spicy potatoes from Lebanon, and salads such as fatoush and tabbouleh. It’s one of our best Middle Eastern recipes.
While my Middle Eastern rice recipe is authentic in taste – there are few more quintessential Middle Eastern spice blends than the ‘seven spice’ mix known as ‘baharat’ and nuts such as pistachios and cashews – the technique I use is inauthentic. Instead of the pilaf method, I use the Asian stir-fry method to use up leftover rice.
The next day, I combine any leftover Middle Eastern spiced rice with kofta kebab meat or garlicky chicken leftovers, such as chicken shawarma, which I break up into bite-sized pieces and quickly stir-fry again. The result is a wonderful rice dish that makes an easy yet comforting meal for a filling lunch or casual dinner.
Middle Eastern Rice Recipe with Spices, Pistachios, Cashews and Raisins
How to Boil Eggs Perfectly Every Single Time
Not so much a recipe, but rather a guide to how to boil eggs perfectly every time, this was another of our most popular recipes for August 2025. Terence shared this guide in his 15 year old Weekend Eggs recipes series on breakfast egg dishes from around the world, which we started way back in 2010 when we launched Grantourismo.
It was a response to one of the questions most often asked from home cooks, including our egg-loving readers. Our readers wanted to know exactly how long to boil eggs for perfect soft boiled eggs and how long to boil eggs for hard boiled eggs.
Even if you’re not a breakfast eggs person and prefer to slurp a noodle soup or tuck into a plate of pancakes, it’s still handy to learn how to boil eggs perfectly. We use soft-boiled eggs in our creamy curried egg sandwiches and semi hard-boiled eggs in our ohn no khao swe recipe for the wonderful Burmese chicken coconut noodle soup.
Terence’s tips include everything from starting with room temperature eggs and beginning boiling the eggs in boiling water to using old eggs rather than fresh eggs. And he has lots more tips in the post. If you’re a lover of boiled eggs, we have more boiled eggs recipes here.
How to Boil Eggs Perfectly Every Time for Perfect Soft and Hard Boiled Eggs
Easy Baked Meatballs Recipe with Middle Eastern Baharat Seven Spices
This easy baked meatballs recipe with Middle Eastern baharat or seven spice blend makes moist, melt-in-the-mouth, tender meatballs. Gently spiced with the classic Arabic sabaa baharat or seven spice mix, these meatballs are fragrant and flavourful. The small size ensures they cook quickly and baking instead of frying makes them healthier.
It’s one of my favourite Middle Eastern recipes, one of our best meatball recipes. If you enjoyed our beef kofta recipe but find squeezing the mince around a skewer fiddly (some do), you’ll love these little meatballs. Formed in minutes, due to their small size the meatballs bake quickly in the oven, remaining moist.
They’re also versatile. Serve them with toothpicks at a social gathering or eat them as an appetiser or a main with Middle Eastern dips hummus and baba ganoush and salads such as fattoush and tabbouleh. I love to roll the meatballs up in soft warm pita bread spread with carrot ‘hummus’ or beetroot ‘hummus’ and sprinkled with loads of fresh mint and parsley.
Easy Baked Meatballs Recipe with Middle Eastern Baharat Seven Spices
Spicy Southern Italian Sausage Pasta Recipe from Calabria
I was so chuffed to see that this spicy Italian sausage pasta recipe was another one of the most popular recipes in August 2025, as it’s one of our best pasta recipes. We fell in love with this pasta dish many years ago, on one of our most memorable culinary adventures, a months-long road trip criss-crossing Calabria, Italy’s southernmost mainland region, researching and writing the first English-language Calabria travel guidebook.
It was on that Calabria trip that we fell in love with Calabrian cuisine, some of Italy’s spiciest food, courtesy of Peperoncino Calabrese or Calabrian chilli used in everything from bomba Calabrese, a spicy chilli relish, and Calabrian soppressata, a spicy salami, to Calabria’s fiery spreadable chilli pepper and pork sausage, ’nduja, which you can read more about in our guide to ’nduja and how to use it.
Traditionally, this recipe calls for ’nduja, although you’ll also find Southern Italian pastas made with Italian sausage at restaurants in Calabria, especially the mushroom capital of Camigliatello Silano, that don’t feature ’nduja, such as my mushroom and sausage pasta recipe.
These days it’s easy to buy ’nduja online and if you are a fan, see our recipes for Calabria’s version of eggs in purgatory; an easy nduja bruschetta with goat’s cheese and sweet red capsicum, which makes a perfect snack, brunch, lunch or finger food; our take on Australian chef Christine Manfield’s legendary eggplant ‘sandwich’ with ’nduja (instead of basil pesto); and our ’nduja pizza made in a Dutch oven.
Spicy Italian Sausage Pasta Recipe from Calabria in Southern Italy
Deeply Flavoured Russian Beef Stew Recipe for Solyanka
This traditional Russian beef stew recipe makes solyanka, a delicious hearty stew or heavy soup that’s a little sour, a little sweet, and was a whole lot saltier back in its day.
First mentioned in print in the 15th century, solyanka is an ancient dish made for modern times: it’s a one-pot dish that is filling and comforting. Based on my baboushka’s recipe, which I grew up eating in the 1970s and 1980s, it’s one of my favourite beef stew recipes.
Solyanka has long been thought to have been invented to use up leftovers, which explains all the bits and pieces, and why some solyanka recipes call for several kinds of meats and sausages, and ingredients such as dill pickle juice.
Traditional Russian Beef Stew Recipe for Solyanka, a Medieval Dish for Modern Times
Chinese American Crispy Egg Foo Young with Gravy Recipe
This egg foo young with gravy recipe makes the Chinese American restaurant specialty of crispy omelettes doused in gravy and sprinkled with scallions, sesame seeds and bean sprouts. Served with steamed rice, the fantastic and filling omelette can be eaten for breakfast, brunch, lunch, or dinner and is just as delicious as the Cantonese original.
The original Cantonese-style egg foo young, also called Cantonese fu yong dan or fuyong dan, is a delightfully crispy omelette filled with pork, spring onions and bean sprouts, with provenance in Southern China dating back to the 18th century Ching Dynasty. It was another of our most popular recipes of August 2025.
Now if you love a good omelette, try our recipes for two classic omelettes, ourThai omelette recipe, my Russian sour cream omelette with broccoli and bacon, Terence’s luxurious Southeast Asian crab omelette, or our herby Cambodian sa’om omelette, or just browse our collection of best omelette recipes.
Egg Foo Young with Gravy Recipe for the Chinese American Crispy Omelettes
Gently Spiced Burmese Chicken Curry Recipe
Our authentic Burmese chicken curry recipe makes a fragrant gently-spiced curry that is perfumed with turmeric, ginger, garlic, chilli, and lemongrass. A rich curry with a moreish tomato-based gravy and a layer of aromatic oil that’s soaked up by coconut rice, it’s meant to be served with zingy salads, such as this Burmese raw cabbage salad, Burmese potato salad and Shan tomato salad, and a relish or two.
This classic Burmese chicken curry recipe, and this Burmese Indian style chicken curry recipe, are recipes I’ve adapted from my favourite Burmese cookbook, Mi Mi Khaing’s Cook and Entertain the Burmese Way, dating to 1978. It’s a delightful little booklet I bought in a dusty bookshop near the Strand Hotel, where we stayed in Yangon, that is as much a historical document as it is a practical cookbook.
If you’re a lover of curries, you’re going to adore these Burmese curries. And if you do, make sure to browse some of our other Myanmar recipes, including Mi Mi Khaing’s recipe for homemade curry powder, and these recipes for Burmese street food-style fried chicken and Burmese coconut rice.
Classic Burmese Chicken Curry Recipe for an Aromatic Tomato Based Curry
Breakfast Buckwheat Kasha with Bacon, Eggs and Mushrooms
Despite the rustic appearance, this is perhaps the least traditional of my Russian-Ukrainian family recipes. Although I have to confess that of all the Russian breakfasts my baboushka used to make – French toast, blini, potato cakes, and buckwheat pancakes – kasha was my least favourite breakfast as a child. The nutty flavour and strong smell put me off. It wasn’t until I was an adult that I finally became smitten with kasha.
This comforting Russian buckwheat kasha recipe with caramelised onions, bacon lardons, pan-fried mushrooms, and soft-boiled eggs makes my heartier take on my grandmother’s traditional Russian breakfast and it was another of our most popular recipes of August 2025 on Grantourismo.
The key ingredient of this savoury porridge (kasha) is buckwheat groats (grechka). While based on my Russian grandmother’s recipe, I’ve spiced things up. My baboushka kept things simple and sprinkled chopped-up hard-boiled eggs on top, whereas I use soft-boiled eggs, and also garnish it with diced gherkins, plenty of fresh fragrant dill, and a generous dollop of sour cream. If you enjoy this, try our spiced pumpkin kasha rcipe for cossack comfort food.
Comforting Russian Buckwheat Kasha Recipe with Bacon, Caramelised Onions, Mushrooms and Eggs
Perfumed Khmer Yellow Kroeung Herb and Spice Paste
This Khmer yellow kroeung recipe makes the Cambodian herb and spice paste called kroeung, which is an irreplaceable ingredient in Khmer cooking. The yellow kroeung is the foundational kroeung and the most versatile of the five main herb and spice pastes used in so many classic Cambodian dishes, especially soups such as samlor machou kroeung sach ko.
The Khmer yellow kroeung paste is the basic kroeung or freshly-pounded herb and spice paste in Cambodian cooking. The other main four pastes are the green kroeung (kroeung prâhoeur), the red kroeung (kroeung samlor kari), ‘k’tis kroeung’ (kroeung samlor k’tis), and the saraman kroeung (kroeung samlor saraman), used to make the Cambodian Saraman curry.
The yellow kroeung is used for many classic Khmer and Cambodian dishes, including fish amok (amok trei), a steamed fish curry, and soups such as samlor machou kroeung sach ko, sour beef soup with morning glory, which is why the paste is commonly called kroeung samlor machou.
The Khmer yellow paste is also used as a marinade for the popular street food snack, charcoal-grilled beef skewers, and in prahok k’tis, the ubiquitous Khmer dip made with prahok (fermented fish), minced pork, coconut milk, and pea eggplants that is eaten with crunchy vegetable crudites.
Khmer Yellow Kroeung Recipe for Kroeung Samlor Machou, Cambodia’s Essential Spice Paste
Chicken Schnitzel Burger Recipe with Pickle Mayo and Bacon, Cabbage and Tomato
This chicken schnitzel burger recipe will make you our crunchy chicken schnitzel with panko breadcrumbs, parmesan and lemon zest, spread with creamy pickle mayo and topped with bacon, cabbage and tomato between soft burger buns. Served with spicy potato wedges, it is home-cooked fast food at its finest.
Terence’s chicken schnitzel burger recipe with creamy pickle mayo, bacon, cabbage and tomato has come straight from our Siem Reap test kitchen to you and it makes one of our best chicken cutlet recipes and one of our favourite take-out dishes (the burger) to eat in. When we finally bit the bullet some years ago and made chicken schnitzel for the first time in years in a bout of homesickness we were very pleasantly surprised.
Served with my amazing warm potato salad recipe with anchovies, capers, chives and celery leaves, we thought it was damn good. It was so good that Terence made it a couple more times for “testing purposes” using both shallow and deep frying. Crispy on the outside and moist and flavourful to bite into, the chicken schnitzel and potato salad made a very hearty and yet simple dish. We were so thrilled to see it was another of our most popular July recipes.
Chicken Schnitzel Burger Recipe with Creamy Pickle Mayo and Bacon, Cabbage and Tomato
Roasted Broccoli Recipe with Zucchini, Green Beans and Sesame Seeds
If you’re a lover of broccoli, you need to make my broccoli soup with cheddar, potato, crispy bacon and crunchy croutons, which I’m completely addicted to, but I think you’ll also enjoy this easy roast broccoli recipe. Broccoli, zucchini and green beans are quickly roasted on high heat in seasoned extra virgin olive oil, piled onto a creamy butter bean spread, and showered with sesame seeds. I also like to sprinkle on some chilli flakes.
We love to serve this with succulent braised chicken with olives and capers and a salad, such as this radish cucumber salad with feta, rucola and fresh herbs or sides of roasted cauliflower on hummus with crispy chickpeas and pickled shallots, and either Hassleback potatoes or creamy mashed potatoes.
This roast broccoli recipe is nothing if not versatile and if you’re reluctant to go East-West and prefer more European flavours, use ground paprika instead of chilli flakes, skip the sesame seeds, and sprinkle the vegetables with crispy bacon, toasted breadcrumbs or homemade croutons, and even a little grated Parmigiano Reggiano.
Roasted Broccoli Recipe with Zucchini, Green Beans and Sesame Seeds
Russian Dill Pickles Recipe for Homemade Gherkins Like My Grandmother Made
One of our best pickles recipes, our Russian dill pickles recipe makes my take on the homemade pickled cucumbers or gherkins my Russian-Ukrainian grandparents used to make. They used the water bath canning process but I use the quick and easy refrigerator pickles method, which must be kept in the fridge and don’t last as long, but they taste very similar, are still incredibly delicious, and are still super healthy and brilliant for your gut health.
Baboushka would serve dishes of dill pickles with every meal, and for Sunday family feasts whole jars of the things would go on the dining table, alongside baba’s pink beetroot potato salad; casserole pots full of hot boiled Russian dumplings, pelmeni and vareniki, coated in melted butter; the savoury mince filled hand-pies called piroshki, kept warm under tea-towels; baked stuffed cabbage rolls, swimming in a rich tomato sauce; and juicy Russian kotleti.
I do the same. I also include finely-diced dill pickles in Russian devilled eggs and potato salad, also known as the Olivier salad or ensalada Rusa. I sprinkle them on top of blini with smoked salmon, sour cream and dill and buckwheat kasha with soft-boiled eggs, bacon and mushrooms. There’s a layer of pickled cucumbers in my mini mimosa salads, and they also feature in this traditional Russian beef stew and Russian barley and pickle soup called rassolnik.
Russian Dill Pickles Recipe for Homemade Gherkins Like My Grandmother Made
Cambodian Amok Trei Recipe for a Rich Steamed Fish Curry
One of our best Cambodian recipes, our authentic traditional fish amok recipe makes a steamed fish curry to a classic recipe from an older generation of cooks who believe that if it’s not properly steamed, then it’s not amok trei. ‘Amok’ means to steam in banana leaves and ‘trei’ means fish in Cambodia’s Khmer language.
While the dish is eaten by all Cambodians on all kinds of occasions – the firm consistency and banana leaf wrapping made it convenient for farmers to take it out to the rice paddies for a midday deal, while the sumptuous texture and rich taste made it a wedding party favourite – it’s thought that this refined dish is a Royal Khmer specialty dating as far back as the Khmer Empire.
Our traditional Cambodian fish amok recipe was one of our most popular recipes of August 2025 on Grantourismo, which thrills me no end, after spending so many years researching Cambodian cuisine and working on our epic Cambodian cookbook.
Cambodian Fish Amok Recipe for an Authentic Steamed Fish Curry in the Old Style
Creamy Cauliflower and Cabbage Potato Soup Recipe
One of our most popular winter soup recipes, one of our best potato soup recipes, and one of our favourite cabbage recipes, our easy cauliflower cabbage potato soup recipe makes a creamy vegetable soup that’s incredibly rich and comforting and it was another of our most popular recipes of August 2025 on Grantourismo.
You could enjoyably slurp it as is on a chilly autumn or fall evening, dunking toast into the silky broth, or add texture and make it a bit fancy by sprinkling crushed croutons, fresh fragrant dill sprigs, and cracked black pepper on top.
This creamy cauliflower cabbage potato soup recipe will make you a comforting vegetable soup textured with homemade croutons that tastes so rich and creamy you’d think there was cream in it (there isn’t!) and while you could happily tuck into a bowl on the sofa in your PJs, you could also make it a bit fancy.
Cauliflower Cabbage Potato Soup Recipe for a Comforting Creamy Vegetable Soup
Cambodian Chicken Rice Porridge Recipe for Borbor Sach Moan
One of our best breakfast rice recipes, best Asian breakfast recipes, and one my favourite Cambodian recipes, this Cambodian chicken rice porridge recipe for borbor sach moan makes a Cambodian congee that I’ve been making since we first moved to Cambodia‘s Siem Reap back in 2013. If you enjoy this, you’ll also love this borbor sor with pork meatballs.
The Cambodian take on Chinese congee or jok is a classic Cambodian comfort food favourite eaten at any time these days. Cambodians tuck into big bowls of borbor for breakfast, brunch, lunch, an afternoon snack, dinner (particularly if someone isn’t feeling well), and a late night supper (and hangover cure).
Called borbor sach moan in Khmer, this chicken congee is thought to be a dish of Chinese origin and part of the Cambodian-Chinese culinary heritage rather than a Khmer dish, but whatever its provenance, over many centuries it’s become a comfort food staple for all Cambodians – as well as Cambodian residents, including ourselves.
Cambodians have really made the classic Chinese rice porridge their own. Here in Siem Reap you’ll find anything from chicken, pork, fish, dried fish, seafood, snails, and frog legs in borbor and you’ll also see an array of condiments, from dried fish floss and pickled vegetables to the condiments we love to use: fish sauce, chilli flakes, chilli oil, and fresh fragrant herbs.
Cambodian Chicken Rice Porridge Recipe for Borbor Sach Moan, Cambodia’s Congee
Cambodian Green Papaya Salad Recipe for a Khmer Bok Lahong
This green papaya salad recipe makes Cambodia’s Bok Lahong or Nhoam Lahong, a fragrant, crunchy salad that’s a little funky, spicy, sour, salty, and a tad sweet. Typically eaten as a late afternoon snack, this bespoke Cambodian salad is made to order, and has cousins in Laos (Tum Som), Thailand (Som Tam), and Vietnam (Gỏi Đủ Đủ).
One of Cambodia’s favourite salads, it’s a fresh, aromatic, crunchy salad that is a little funky, a little spicy, a little sour, a little salty, and a little sweet. It’s a well-balanced salad and this is arguably what sets it apart from its bolder cousins in Laos (where pounded salads are called Tum Som), Thailand (Som Tam), and Vietnam (Gỏi Đủ Đủ), which are, respectively, a lot funkier, more fiery, and more fragrant.
We first shared this recipe as part of a series on classic Cambodian salad recipes, which included an addictive Cambodian minced pork larb, an aromatic grilled beef salad, and, some of my favourites right now, a light and tasty pork and jicama salad, a wonderful Cambodian banana flower chicken salad, and a green mango and smoked fish salad.
Cambodian Green Papaya Salad Recipe for Cambodia’s Bok Lahong
Easy Crunchy Korean Coleslaw recipe for a Classic Salad Side
This Korean coleslaw recipe makes a zingy Korean cabbage salad that’s next in my series of Korean small plate dishes we love – Korean street food, Korean sides called banchan, and Korean dishes served as drinking food called anju – which I’ve been sharing and has included recipes for Korean corn cheese, Korean meatballs, Korean potato salad, and Korean cucumber salad.
If you’re a lover of cabbage dishes, especially coleslaw and cabbage salads, such as my colourful coleslaw made with purple cabbage and pickled pink shallots, this Burmese raw cabbage salad, and this Japanese style cabbage and cucumber salad, you’re also going to enjoy this classic Korean cabbage salad recipe for Korean coleslaw.
We love to serve this Korean slaw as a side to Korean fried chicken – or any fried chicken for that matter! – as one of an array of banchan, Korean sides or starters for Korean barbecue dishes, with Korean-style burgers like this Japanese chicken katsu burger, or tucked into a Korean-inspired gourmet hotdog.
If you’re a fan of Korean food and have made and enjoyed our Korean recipes for Korean spicy udon noodles, Korean japchae (glass noodles), and bokkeumbap (kimchi fried rice), you will love this Korean coleslaw. It’s another easy, speedy recipe.
Classic Korean Coleslaw Recipe for a Korean Cabbage Salad Side Dish
Cambodian Fried Rice Recipe for the Best Bai Cha
This Cambodian fried rice recipe makes the best Cambodian bai cha (fried rice), a lighter version of the popular Chinese stir-fry rice dish. Thanks to many centuries of Chinese trade and migration, Chinese fried rice is found across Southeast Asia. In Cambodia, there are many variations, bai char being the most ubiquitous.
Bai cha (also written as bai tcha, bai char, bai chaa, bay cha) or fried rice – ‘bai’ is rice and ‘cha’ is to stir-fry – is the most popular Chinese-style fried rice in Cambodia. It’s distinguished by two quintessential breakfast ingredients, sausage and eggs, and Siem Reap sausage in particular, the local take on lap cheong, the Cantonese name for a smoked, sweetened, red Chinese sausage.
There seems to be as many Cambodian fried rice recipes as there are versions of Chinese-style fried rice across Southeast Asia. Bai cha is the most common fried rice cooked in local homes and sold at street food stalls and simple local eateries. Try it and you’ll know why!
Chebureki Recipe for a Popular Crimean Tatar Street Food Snack
My traditional chebureki recipe makes deliciously-crunchy fried pastries filled with savoury minced beef and sautéed onions that were long a beloved Black Sea beach holiday snack of Crimean Tatar cuisine. Chebureki (чебуреки) are now a popular street food all over Russia, Ukraine, Eastern Europe, Central Asia, and the Crimean Tartar diaspora.
These are so big you need to hold the crispy crescent-shaped savoury turnovers in two hands to bite into their crunchy exteriors. Whenever I make these, I can’t help but imagine the cheeky grin and sparkle in the eyes of the little girl who became my grandmother, as she munched into these fried treats on the rare seaside holidays she used to fondly recall when she was still alive.
If you make these classic Crimean chebureki and enjoy them, please try my mini chebureki recipe, which makes smaller, more manageable and spicier versions of these ground beef turnovers. And if you’re a fan of Slavic food and Eastern European food, do browse my Russian-Ukrainian family recipes.
Chebureki Recipe for a Crimean Beach Holiday Treat and Popular Street Food Snack
Hummus with Spiced Ground Beef Recipe for Hummus bil Lahme
Our hummus with spiced beef recipe for hummus bil lahme makes an addictively delicious hummus drizzled with extra virgin olive oil, sprinkled with cumin powder, and topped with a generous layer of richly-spiced ground beef and roasted pine nuts. It’s one of my favourite Middle Eastern dishes and one of our best hummus recipes.
You can tuck into a plate of hummus bil lahme on its own, scooping it up with crispy homemade pita chips – which are a cinch to make in the oven from rounds of pita bread (recipe on previous link) – or serve with pickles and olives and an array of Arabic mezze or starters, such as baba ghanoush and muhammara.
Hummus bil lahme also makes a fantastic side dish to beef kofta, mixed grilled meats, roasted chicken, grilled lamb chops, Arabic sausages, and salads, such as fattoush and tabbouleh, if you’re cooking up a Middle Eastern feast for a group of friends or family.
Spanish Chorizo and Potato Croquettes Recipe for Croquetas de Patata y Chorizo
Our traditional Spanish chorizo and potato croquettes recipe will make you the tasty croquetas de patata y chorizo, which you’ll spot on small plates in Spanish tapas bars in Spain and abroad. Bite into the light crispy shell and you’ll find creamy mashed potatoes flecked with spicy pieces of chorizo. One of our best Spanish tapas recipes, make a big batch as they’re addictive.
This recipe for croquetas de patata y chorizo is one of our favourite recipes with chorizo and we shared it as part of a series on Spanish tapas bar recipes that included a Spanish meatballs recipe for albondigas, a chorizo in red wine recipe for chorizo al vino tinto, Spanish style garlic shrimp for gambas al ajillo, and calamari al plancha for smoky squid cooked on a griddle, a potato tortilla, and more.
For a tapas bar spread at home, serve the lot with crusty sourdough bread and this Spanish tomato salad with red onion and sardines. You could also make a batch of Southern Spain-style gazpacho (in warm weather) or a Basque garlic soup if it’s cold, and a big plate of ‘poor man’s potatoes’.
Spanish Chorizo and Potato Croquettes Recipe for Croquetas de Patata y Chorizo
Moroccan Lamb Tagine with Prunes and Almonds Recipe from Marrakech
We shared this Moroccan lamb tagine with prunes and almonds recipe from our Marrakech riad kitchen in Morocco, where Terence learnt to make this deliciously rich tagine from Jamila, our riad cook, and Essaouria, where we made it again for this recipe. A Moroccan tagine is a slow-cooked stew made from meat, generally lamb or chicken, but can contain anything from duck to fish. It’s quintessential Moroccan comfort food.
Morocco was the first stop on our year-long grand tour of the world, which launched Grantourismo, with the aim of inspiring you all to travel more slowly, locally and experientially, forms of travel we’d long believed were more immersive, engaging and interactive, and therefore more meaningful and more memorable. Cooking food, and slow food, was a big part of that project.
Terence watched Jamila, the lovely cook at our Marrakech riad make this Moroccan lamb tagine with prunes and almonds and while he loved the results, there are a couple of things that he wanted to do a little differently to Jamila, so he tweaked the recipe accordingly. Just don’t tell Jamila – she’s a force of nature!
In his Moroccan edition of Weekend Eggs he wrote about how there were many different versions of chakchouka. Well, that’s nothing compared to the variations of tagine in Morocco. You won’t find two cooks who’ll agree on exactly what should go into a tagine as most follow their own family’s recipes, finely tuned in their ancestors kitchens over many generations. If you enjoy this, try our classic chicken tagine with preserved lemons and olives.
Moroccan Lamb Tagine with Prunes and Almonds Recipe from Marrakech
Russian Salmon Potato Salad Recipe with Soft-Boiled Eggs, Gherkins, Capers and Dill
My Russian salmon potato salad recipe with soft-boiled eggs, capers, gherkins and dill makes a filling salad that you can eat year-round. In the cool season, you can serve it with warm potatoes and seared salmon straight from the pan, while it can be refrigerated for warm weather meals, such as summer barbecues and spring picnics.
My Russian-Ukrainian family loved their salads, from this classic garden salad and this pink beetroot potato salad to this Soviet-era crab salad. I ate a lot of salad as a child, but potato salads were my favourite salads. My Australian grandmother made a typical Aussie style potato salad for Sunday family dinners, while my Russian baboushka made a few Russian potato salads.
Salmon lover? Browse our best salmon recipes collection, which includes recipes for Russian blini with smoked salmon and caviar, a twist on that: buckwheat pancakes with smoked salmon and ‘caviar’ of gherkin and radish, creamy smoked salmon dip, elegant devilled eggs with smoked salmon and caviar, Cambodian salmon ‘ceviche’, smoked salmon ‘carpaccio’, fish soup with salmon, smoked salmon pasta with capers and dill pickles, Vietnamese caramelised salmon, an easy salmon tray bake, salmon fillets with crispy skin, and scrambled eggs with smoked salmon and caviar.
Russian Salmon Potato Salad Recipe with Soft-Boiled Eggs, Gherkins, Capers and Dill
Japanese Style Cabbage and Cucumber Salad Recipe with Sesame Seeds
We’ve long adored Japanese food, especially Japanese comfort food, and the Japanese comfort food we enjoyed on our first trip to Tokyo, the first place we ever travelled overseas. When we lived in Sydney, we’d go out regularly for Japanese, but at home in Siem Reap, where we’ll go out for sushi or izakaya-style food, we tend to cook Japanese food at home.
I love making this Japanese style cabbage and cucumber salad with sesame seeds as much as I love eating it, as it’s such a breeze to make and can be made within ten minutes. Although let it sit longer and it tastes even better as the cabbage softens and the flavours meld together. It’s one of our best cucumber salad recipes. Serve this cucumber and cabbage salad with Terence’s Japanese fried chicken and this Japanese potato salad and you’ll have a very satisfying meal.
But note that you’ll have to have a pantry full of Japanese ingredients before you start. You’ll need Shichimi Togarashi Japanese Seven Spice (we recommend the S&B brand), Japanese sesame oil, Japanese soy sauce, Japanese rice vinegar, and mirin, as well as roasted seaweed or nori sheets, and black sesame seeds and white sesame seeds.
Japanese Style Cabbage and Cucumber Salad Recipe with Sesame Seeds
Sourdough Crumpets Recipe for Your Sourdough Starter Discard
This sourdough crumpets recipe puts your sourdough starter discard to use, so that it doesn’t go to waste, to make authentic English crumpets. They’re absolutely delicious with lashings of butter and dollops of homemade jam. They don’t take long to make, so like our sourdough scallion pancakes recipe will hppefully inspire you to try more sourdough starter discard recipes.
Now if you haven’t begun your sourdough journey yet and are in two minds as to whether you want to commit, see Terence’s simple sourdough starter recipe, his beginner’s guide to easy sourdough baking and his post on how deeply satisfying he finds sourdough baking, a response to the sourdough backlash.
Sourdough Crumpets Recipe for Your Sourdough Starter Discard
Cambodian Grilled Corn with a Tangy Coconut Milk Sauce
This Cambodian grilled corn recipe makes poat dot, a Cambodian street food snack of smoky barbecued corn on the cob brushed with a delightfully sweet and salty sauce made from coconut milk, fish sauce and spring onions. While I love eating this on the street I prefer making it at home. It’s super easy.
This Cambodian street food treat is hugely popular during corn season. Corn on the cob is continually brushed with the creamy salty-sweet coconut sauce as it’s being barbecued. It drips with umami and is deliciously addictive and it’s one of our best summer corn recipes and one of our best coconut milk recipes.
When you make this street food favourite yourself, you can not only cook the corn to your liking – we prefer our corn cobs more charred than it’s sold on the street – but you can also make sure you get the sauce balanced to your taste (it’s often too sweet for me when done on the street) and you can serve extra sauce on the side.
Cambodian Grilled Corn Recipe for Poat Dot with a Delicious Coconut Milk Sauce
Sticky Asian Pork Ribs Recipe for Chinese Style Baked Ribs with Sesame
This sticky Asian pork ribs recipe makes deliciously addictive, finger-licking Chinese style baked ribs. Brining the pork helps tenderise the meat and keeps the pork succulent, while also making the cooking time over a grill quite short. Plates of pork ribs are fantastic for feeding a crowd – whether it’s a casual get-together or backyard barbecue.
Serve the ribs with Chinese leafy greens and rice or alongside your favourite barbecued meats and salads. Here in Southeast Asia we often eat the pork ribs simply with stir-fried morning glory and steamed rice but typically they’d form one of an array of dishes as part of a shared family-style meal.
But you could also serve the ribs with fried spring rolls, some dumplings, fried rice, and a stir-fry or braise, such as Cambodian cashew chicken or Vietnamese braised pork belly.
Sticky Asian Pork Ribs Recipe for Chinese Style Baked Ribs with Sesame
Crispy Pan Fried Gnocchi Recipe with Broccoli and Crunchy Bacon
This recipe for crispy pan fried gnocchi with broccoli and bacon makes an addictively delicious pasta with store-bought gnocchi that comes together in minutes. Pan frying shelf-stable gnocchi results in a golden-brown exterior and soft spongy interior, while the just-cooked broccoli provides a freshness that contrasts nicely with the crunch and umami of the bacon.
You’ll love this recipe for crispy pan fried gnocchi with broccoli and bacon if you’re a lover of fried pasta or fried dumplings such as potstickers or fried pelmeni and vareniki, and if you’re a fan of the broccoli-bacon pairing. It’s a great flavour match in the way melon and prosciutto or tomato and mozzarella are. If you’re a fan, try my Russian sour cream omelette with broccoli and bacon.
If you’re a gnocchi lover, try my pan fried pumpkin gnocchi with brown butter sage sauce, asparagus, mushrooms and bacon gnocchi, creamy tomato pasta sauce with gnocchi recipe and basil pesto with gnocchi recipe. For more quick and easy pasta recipes, see our canned tuna pasta with scallions, capers and fresh herbs, my penne Bolognese recipe for a ‘cheat’s Bol’, cherry tomato feta pasta recipe, basil pesto pasta with potatoes and green beans recipe, and canned sardine pasta with gremolata and pangrattato.
Crispy Pan Fried Gnocchi Recipe with Broccoli and Crunchy Bacon
Spring Chicken Salad Recipe with Cabbage, Greens and Fragrant Herbs
This spring chicken salad recipe makes a fantastic year-round salad with what are traditionally considered spring vegetables, such as sugar snap peas, cucumbers and cabbage. Fragrant with fresh mint and dill, drizzled with a garlicky lemony Middle Eastern style yoghurt dressing, and sprinkled with sesame seeds and sumac, this salad uses leftover rotisserie chicken, but you could always use poached chicken.
If you’re a fan of shredded chicken salads – and if you are, we have loads of shredded or pulled chicken recipes, such as this bang bang chicken salad and chicken salad with peanut sauce, peanuts, sesame, and coriander, some of our best chicken breast recipes and some of our most popular chicken recipes – you’ll love this spring chicken salad with vibrant spring green vegetables, such as sugar snap peas, crisp juicy cucumbers and crunchy purple cabbage.
I’ve been using leftovers from a rotisserie chicken, which I buy once a week, as mum doesn’t have a working oven. We eat warm juicy chicken legs the first night with one of my potato salads – such as this warm German potato salad or potato salad with anchovies, capers and chives. Then I’ll slice the chicken breasts up to use in a salad – such as this fig, prosciutto, buffalo mozzarella, and chicken salad – or use two forks to pull apart the chicken breast meat.
I use the leftover pulled chicken in grilled cheese sandwiches the first day for lunch, then split the rest between shredded chicken salads, or use the pulled chicken in a soup, such as this wonderful rice soup with green vegetables I’ve been making recently, or a Southeast Asian style rice soup or congee or chicken noodle salad. We have lots more leftover rotisserie chicken recipes here, as well as poached chicken recipes if you have leftover poached chicken breasts.
Spring Chicken Salad Recipe with Cabbage, Greens and Fragrant Herbs
Please let us know in the comments below if you make any of the recipes in this collection of our most popular recipes of August 2025 on Grantourismo, as we’d love to hear how they turn out for you.
