Our 20 most popular recipes of 2018

Persian chicken

Also known as fesenjan, this Iranian dish of chicken braised in walnut sauce is both piquant and comforting. The secret? Pomegranate molasses. We can’t get enough of it and clearly nor can you.

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Lamb shoulder ragù with gnocchetti

Mike Eggert, the chef behind Pinbone’s Italian pop-up Mr Liquor’s Dirty Italian Disco and now Totti’s, let us in on this hit pasta dish in our April issue and it’s been on high rotation ever since.

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Lemon delicious pudding

Bethany Finn, chef at Adelaide restaurant The Mayflower, shared her mum’s recipe for this tangy pudding featuring plenty of cream in May, and it’s no surprise it inspired many of you to get baking.

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Indian spiced yoghurt chicken with cardamom-coconut pilaf

This heavenly flavour combo is a clear favourite this year; the gently-spiced chicken thighs are marinated in yoghurt and served with fluffy pilaf that’s studded with cardamom and currants, with a lick of coconut milk.

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Snapper curry with green beans and coriander

Creamy and comforting, this Southeast Asian-ish fish curry saw us through winter. Haven’t given it a run yet? Our tip is to gently toast the yellow curry powder to bring out the full fragrance and flavour.

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Chocolate and buttermilk slab cake

This lush cake is a super-simple melt-and-mix number that made our April issue – and has been baked many times since. Buttermilk is secret weapon here, adding a subtle tang to the sweet frosting and contributing to an ultra-tender crumb in the cake itself. It’s just as good a few days after baking, too – although we’ve never had the willpower to test this.

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Avocado-chocolate mousse

It’s the fruit that made headlines in 2018 and while avocado might not scream “dessert”, it adds creaminess and body to this chocolate mousse, keeping the whole thing dairy-free, and reducing the setting time. Win.

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Jewelled rice

Even sides got a look in this year, such as this buttery rice which appeared in our first Middle Eastern themed issue in June. It’s based on the Persian dish of tah-dig where rice is cooked until it sticks to the bottom of the pan, providing a wonderful mix of fluffy and crunchy elements in the same mouthful.

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Red lentil soup with yoghurt and coriander

Having also won you over in June is this lentil soup that’s inspired by shorbat adas, a dish often served during Ramadan, and has many variations across the Middle East.

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Cardamom nut cake

Another June hero is this fragrant, nutty cake which has a lot of moisture and richness to it. It’s not a Persian love cake, but we couldn’t help throwing a few rose petals on top for a romantic touch – and it clearly won your love.

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Chicken noodle salad with turmeric-lime dressing

We started the year off with this light and deceptively easy-to-make salad that was right up your alley. This dish recalls pad Thai but is far lighter and much simpler to throw together. The dressing also pairs beautifully with seafood straight off the barbecue.

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Lamb meatballs with tahini and pine nut sauce

Also from our June issue, this meatball recipe which riffs on the Palestinian lamb siniyah, a dish of lamb baked with tahini. We turned the lamb into meatballs and added crushed pine nuts to the tahini sauce for some more texture, and it was a cool-season hit.

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Pan-fried ocean trout with cauliflower, almonds and brown butter

Sometimes a quick and tasty weeknight meal is enough to impress just as this dish, from our April Indulge issue, did. A drizzle of brown butter is all it needs to turn it into something special.

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Cauliflower curry with lime and coriander

Cauliflower made a comeback in 2018 so it’s no surprise this fast yet flavourful weeknight curry made the list. Keep this one filed away for next year, it’ll be just as satisfying.

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Tarragon chicken thighs with crisp prosciutto, fennel and cabbage

Our March issue was all about fast food, not of the takeaway variety but dishes that can be on the table in a hurry. This chicken dish was right on, and you can make it even easier by skipping the frying step, wrapping the chicken thighs in the prosciutto and throwing them straight in the oven.

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Spaghetti and meatballs

You can’t go past classic comfort food and it doesn’t get much better than the spaghetti and meatballs which appeared in our July issue dedicated to – you guessed it – modern comfort food. There’s plenty of room for variation with the meatballs in this version – mixing in pancetta or ricotta, say.

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Vanilla custard and burnt-toffee tart

Is it any wonder this had you all clicking? The photo itself is a thing of beauty, and makes you imagine cracking the brittle caramel top and sinking your spoon into blissfully smooth custard. A dessert which certainly deserves a re-run before the year is out.

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Beef koftas with green couscous and pistachio nuts

Whether cooked under the grill or on the barbecue, you can have this hearty Middle Eastern meal ready in 30 minutes. Despite the short cook time, these koftas made a lasting impression on many of you.

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Hwayej-spiced chicken thigh cutlets

Another dish from our popular Middle Eastern issue, this tray-baked chicken is topped with a heady spice mix from Yemen, featuring caraway seeds, cumin, cardamom and more. Easy and effective.

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Casarecce with pork sausage, cavolo nero and chilli

There’s no beating a warm, comforting bowl of pasta. Classic Italian flavours – pork, fennel, cavolo nero and chilli – do the trick here and make sure this dish goes down as unforgettable.

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