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If you’d like to serve a sauce alongside, strain 1/4 cup of the cooled pickling liquid, and whisk it with 1 cup of mayonnaise. For ease, the shrimp are left unpeeled; if you peel them before cooking, leave the tails on.

Makes 8 servings.

INGREDIENTS

• 2 1/4cups water
• 3tablespoons rice vinegar
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh lemongrass*
• 1 1/2tablespoons pickling spice
• 1tablespoon salt
• 1teaspoon whole black peppercorns
• 2pounds uncooked medium shrimp, unpeeled, rinsed
• 1/2cup plus 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
• 4small green onions, chopped (about 1/2 cup)
• 3tablespoons minced pickled ginger,* 2 tablespoons ginger brine reserved

DIRECTIONS Place first 6 ingredients in medium pot. Add shrimp. Cover; bring to boil. Uncover and boil until shrimp are just cooked through, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in 1/2 cup chopped cilantro, green onions, pickled ginger, and ginger brine. Cool 1 hour. Chill uncovered until cold, then cover and chill at least 4 hours and up to 1 day.Using slotted spoon, transfer shrimp to medium bowl. Sprinkle with remaining 2 tablespoons cilantro.*Available at Asian markets, specialty foods stores and some supermarkets.

Makes 4 servings.

INGREDIENTS

• 3/4cup orzo (rice-shaped pasta)1 1/2tablespoons olive oil
• 1medium white onion, thinly sliced
• 6garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 2jalapeño chiles, thinly sliced
• 3/4pound skinless boneless chicken breasts, cut into matchstick-size strips
• 5cups low-salt chicken broth
• 1/4cup fresh lime juice
• 1large tomato, seeded, chopped
• 1/4cup chopped fresh cilantro
• fresh cilantro sprigs

DIRECTIONS Cook orzo in pot of boiling salted water until just tender. Drain well.

Heat oil in large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion, garlic, and chiles. Sauté until onion begins to brown, about 4 minutes. Add chicken; sauté 1 minute. Add broth, lime juice, and tomato. Simmer until chicken is cooked through, about 3 minutes. Mix in orzo, then chopped cilantro. Season soup with salt and pepper. Ladle soup into 4 bowls. Garnish with cilantro sprigs.

We’ve substituted Cornish game hens (which are much easier to find) for the squab used at Gary Danko in San Francisco. At the restaurant, the squab is stuffed with a mixed-grain pilaf. We suggest serving this with couscous or rice pilaf.

Makes 4 servings.

INGREDIENTS

• 1tablespoon cumin seeds
• 1tablespoon coriander seeds
• 2teaspoons cardamom seeds (from about 11/2 tablespoonscardamom pods)
• 2teaspoons fennel seeds
• 1teaspoon whole cloves
• 1/2cinnamon stick, broken into pieces
• 1bay leaf
• 1/4cup orange juice
• 2tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 2garlic cloves, minced4cornish game hens (each 1 1/2 to 1 3/4 pounds), rinsed, patted dry
• 1pound carrots, peeled, cut diagonally into 1/2-inch-thick slices
• 1/2cup chicken stock or canned
  low-salt chicken brothorange-honey sauce

DIRECTIONS Preheat oven to 400°F. Finely grind first 7 ingredients in spice grinder or coffee grinder. Transfer to small bowl. Whisk in orange juice, oil and garlic. (Spice mixture can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and chill.)
Rub spice mixture all over hens; place hens in large roasting pan. Sprinkle hens inside and out with salt and pepper. Tie legs together to hold shape. Arrange carrots in pan around hens. Sprinkle carrots with salt and pepper. Roast 30 minutes. Add stock to roasting pan. Roast hens until juices run clear when thickest part of thigh is pierced and carrots are tender, basting hens occasionally with pan juices, about 35 minutes longer.Place 1 hen on each of 4 plates. Arrange carrots alongside. Spoon warm Orange-Honey Sauce over and serve.

Poquitos are small, pinkish-brown beans indigenous to the Santa Ynez region. Dried pink beans are a good substitute.

Makes 8 to 10 servings.

INGREDIENTS

• 1pound dried poquito beans or pink beans1pound smoked bacon, chopped
• 1large red onion, chopped
• 1tablespoon ground cumin
• 2cups orange juice
• 1tablespoon minced canned chipotle chilies*1large red onion, thinly sliced

DIRECTIONS Place beans in large bowl. Pour enough cold water over to cover beans by 1 1/2 inches; let stand overnight.

Cook bacon in large pot over medium heat until crisp, about 12 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer bacon to paper towels. Transfer 3 tablespoons bacon drippings to small bowl. Heat remaining drippings in pot over medium-high heat. Add chopped onion and cumin; sauté 5 minutes. Stir in juice and chilies; boil 5 minutes. Add beans and soaking liquid; bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium. Cover partially; simmer 2 hours. Uncover; simmer until beans are tender and liquid thickens, about 30 minutes. Stir in bacon. Season with salt and pepper.

Combine reserved bacon drippings and sliced onion in large skillet. Sauté over medium heat until brown, about 25 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Transfer beans to large bowl. Top with caramelized onion and serve.

* Chipotle chilies canned in a spicy tomato sauce, sometimes called adobo, are available at Latin American markets, specialty foods stores, and some supermarkets.

Editor’s note: The recipe and introductory text below are excerpted from chef Neil Perry’s book Rockpool. Neil also shared some helpful cooking tips exclusively with Epicurious, which we’ve added at the bottom of the page. For your convenience, we’ve converted the measures — with as much accuracy as possible — from Australian to American. For those who have metric equipment and wish to follow Neil’s recipe to the milliliter, we’ve included the original measures too.

To read more about Neil and Australian cuisine, click here.

This dish is a take on a Korean salad of raw beef with a sesame-oil dressing, raw egg yolk, Chinese cabbage and a combination of sesame seeds and pine nuts. The beef is almost frozen, and the crisp texture is offset by the silkiness of the egg yolk and the creaminess of the pine nuts. This dish is so good that in the old days Greg Frazer, Barry McDonald and I have been known to start with one and have another for dessert at the end of a meal. I decided to do a tuna dish inspired by this, and since it was raw and used an egg yolk, I called it Korean Tuna Tartare. The times I have taken it off the menu have been met with firm resistance from regular customers.

Serves four as a starter.

INGREDIENTS

• 2 medium carrots
• 4 spring onions
• 1 400 g (1 lb) piece fresh yellowfin tuna
• 1 small chinese cabbage heart, finely shredded (about 1 cup)
• leaves from 1 bunch coriander (cilantro)
• 3 tablespoons roasted pine nuts
• 1 recipe sesame dressing
• 4 egg yolks
• 2 tablespoons sesame seeds, toasted
• freshly ground white pepper

DIRECTIONS Cut the carrot and spring onions into a fine julienne and soak in ice water for half an hour.

Place the tuna on a chopping board, and remove the skin. Cut it into rounds of 0.5 cm (1/4-inch) thickness, then cut it lengthwise into strips of about 0.5 cm (1/4-inch) square.

Place the tuna, carrots, spring onions, cabbage, coriander, pine nuts and dressing in a bowl. Toss to dress and divide between 4 plates. Make a little well in the centre of each, and place an egg yolk on top. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and grind over some pepper. Serve immediately.

Chef Neil Perry shares his tips with Epicurious:
• The dressing for this salad must stand for 30 minutes to let the flavors mingle. Since the salad must be served immediately once assembled, be sure to make the dressing first.
• The dressing calls for Chinese sesame paste. Tahini can be substituted, but this will change the flavor somewhat (tahini is made from raw sesame seeds, while the Chinese paste is made from roasted seeds). Chinese sesame paste can be found at most Asian grocery stores.