CONTEST COMPLETE AZ Cooks Your Grandma’s Best Recipes Contest Share a favorite, original recipe from your Grandma’s collection for a chance to win a great prize pack, a shout-out from Andrew Zimmern, and have your recipe prepared on AZ Cooks. Scroll down to enter! My grandmother only cooked a few dozen dishes on a regular… Read More →
Dry-Rubbed Fried Chicken Wings By Andrew Zimmern Do you want to be king of your chicken wing castle? Deep fry a batch of wings before tossing with your favorite dry rub and melted butter. Chicken wing supremacy is really that simple. Here, I’ve used two different types of dry rub—one with herbs, garlic and onion,… Read More →
Grilled Pineapple Salsa By Andrew Zimmern This chipotle-infused pineapple salsa pairs beautifully with grilled or fried fish. Grilling the pineapple brings out its natural sweetness while adding a rich, smoky flavor and caramelized texture. Watch Andrew make this recipe:
Pajarito Just over a year old, Pajarito’s contemporary Mexican cuisine is still satisfying a packed house every night. Located on St. Paul’s West 7th St. in the historic Glockenspiel building, it’s proven to be the right combination of quality ingredients, superb flavors, affordable plates, great service and a sophisticated, inviting atmosphere. I love a cheap… Read More →
Homemade Crispy Onion Rings By Andrew Zimmern With a light and crispy batter, these buttermilk fried onion rings are a perfect snack for game day, or as part of a backyard burger bash side dish. It’s a classic Southern-style recipe, with an extra flavor boost from my Lemon & Shallots spice blend and hot sauce. Make sure… Read More →
In my video series, AZ Cooks, I’m sharing cooking techniques and recipes inspired by my childhood, travels and experiences in the professional kitchen, all in the pursuit of culinary literacy. Thanks for tuning in, your support and feedback have made this venture a success! From classics like key lime pie and meatloaf to wok-tossed crickets and… Read More →
Grand Cafe Important restaurants keep exploding all over the Twin Cities. Grand Cafe joins the list that includes Spoon & Stable, Heyday, Bellecour, Corner Table and many new to the scene like Kado No Mise and Martina, that are proof positive Minnesota is ground zero for some of the best food in America. Photograph… Read More →
“I would like to say that what I fear are the challenges that stand in front of me, when in reality what I fear is the cowardice that lays within me.” – Craig Lounsbrough 2017 was a crazy year for me filled with ups and downs, mistakes made, tragedies big and small, successes and disappointments,… Read More →
Young Joni Young Joni’s presence on my list of must-try restaurants should come as no surprise. What chef Ann Kim and her team have accomplished is exceptional and worthy of all the national attention—which includes recognition from GQ and Eater as one of 2017’s best new restaurants in the country. And while this may be… Read More →
Rigatoni with Winter Squash, Sausage & Kale By Debi Mazar and Gabriele Corcos In Tuscany, cooks don’t have a lot of uses for hard-shelled winter squash. It is typically roasted as a side dish or turned into soup. At our Brooklyn farmer’s market in autumn and winter, the stands are filled with a huge variety of… Read More →
The Travail Collective When you hear 3-hour 20-course tasting menu, my guess is you are not envisioning a restaurant with giant stuffed animals in the rafters of the dining room, or one with a raucous atmosphere where the chefs are also the waiters and food runners, and often microphone-wielding MCs who encourage group participation in… Read More →
America the Great Cookbook I’m honored to be a part of America the Great Cookbook, a celebration of our country’s food scene with more than 100 recipes by chefs, producers and food heroes from every region of the United States. Flipping through the pages, you’ll notice that what makes America’s food American is its sheer… Read More →
Food Policy Action 2017 Scorecard Food Policy Action recently released their 2017 scorecard, revealing where members of Congress stand on important food policy issues in this country during a turbulent political climate. The 6th annual progress report shares objective information about votes taken and bills introduced by Congress on policies that affect everyone who eats,… Read More →
Roasted Olives with Lemon, Garlic & Herbs By Debi Mazar and Gabriele Corcos Olive trees are everywhere in Tuscany, and they are traditionally used for oil production and not eating. These olives are relatively small with concentrated flavor. So, the olives used for appetizers are actually from Southern Italy, where the olives are also cured… Read More →
Chicken, Merguez Sausage & Artichoke Tagine By Andrew Zimmern A hearty braise with an incredible blend of vibrant North African flavors, this tagine is one of my favorite quintessential comfort food dishes to make. Watch Andrew make this recipe: Like this recipe? Save it on Pinterest.
Sweet Martha’s Cookie Jar Buying a bucket of Sweet Martha’s cookies to share with your friends is a Minnesota State Fair must, and one of those food experiences that cannot be accurately replicated at home EVEN IF their dough is available for purchase in your grocer’s freezer. Few things can beat piping hot, messy chocolate… Read More →
Bellecour My friend Gavin Kaysen’s latest project, Bellecour, is an absolute stunner. The award-winning chef’s return to the Twin Cities in 2014 to open Spoon and Stable came with unprecedented buzz—a few years later and it’s still near impossible to score prime time reservations—but the announcement of Bellecour sent diners into a frenzy, with more… Read More →
Green & Black Chickpea Chaat By Floyd Cardoz, chef/owner of Paowalla in New York City
Pan-Fried Black Pepper Shrimp Chef Floyd Cardoz shares his recipe for simple pan-fried black pepper shrimp, adapted from his latest restaurant Paowalla. Located in NYC’s Soho neighborhood, Paowalla is a celebration of modern Indian cuisine specializing in the subcontinent’s vast library of breads (paowalla translates to “a person who makes and sells bread”), from the… Read More →
Partnering with All of Us Travel I spend close to 250 days out of every year on the road and I’m a strong believer in the transformative power of travel. Nothing challenges your perspective or opens your heart and mind to humanity like travel. We become our best selves on the road, culturally curious and acutely… Read More →
Ginger Scallion Noodles By Andrew Zimmern If you love to cook, you should learn how to recreate the tent poles of culinary wisdom from cultures around the world, starting with these addictive ginger scallion noodles. This recipe has the hallmarks of classic Shanghai-style scallion noodles mixed with Japanese-style charred scallion noodles with tsukemono pickles. It… Read More →
Bar La Grassa This ode to Italy isn’t your grandparent’s eye-talian eatery. With moody date-night lighting beaming from chandeliers, a steel pasta bar that provides the best seats in the house, and a broad range of shareable plates, Bar La Grassa is one of the great Italian restaurants in the Twin Cities with consistently good… Read More →
Brisket Nachos with Tomatillo-Avocado Salsa By Andrew Zimmern One of the easiest and most satisfying ways to utilize leftover brisket is to make a big platter of these insanely delicious nachos. Your friends will go crazy when you put these out on game day with a pitcher of margaritas…. be prepared to make a second… Read More →
The Best Latke Recipe By Andrew Zimmern Topped with leftover slices of brisket, these potato pancakes will blow your mind. For me, making latkes has always been a family activity. I first made these with my grandmother when I was 4 years old. I had my son squeezing potatoes for me when he was 3.… Read More →
Hearty Brisket Chili By Andrew Zimmern What do you do with leftover brisket? Make one of my favorite dishes, this hearty meal in a bowl. Watch Andrew make this recipe: Like this recipe? Save it on Pinterest.
Sausage, Potatoes, Onions, & Mushrooms en Papillote By Jacques Pepin I wanted to show Shorey how to make a great one-dish meal for dinner, so I chose this one featuring sausage, potatoes, onions, and mushrooms en papillote. Papillote refers to a wrapping of foil or parchment paper in which meat or fish is cooked. This… Read More →
Braised Brisket with Fennel & Onions By Andrew Zimmern This classic braised brisket is a riff on my grandmother’s recipe. It was one of the first dishes I helped my grandmother make and a staple at my family’s holiday table for generations. Braised in the oven with fennel and onions, it’s perfectly melting and tender.… Read More →
Esker Grove The Walker Art Center, a contemporary art mecca with a newly refinished sculpture garden, is one of the Twin Cities’ most beloved cultural assets. Add a beautifully designed restaurant with a menu from one of the country’s best chefs, and you have a winning combination, whether it’s date night, happy hour or brunch… Read More →
Kramarczuk’s Sausage Company Kramarczuk’s is an iconic Twin Cities restaurant and deli, serving Eastern European sausages and comfort classics for more than 50 years. Wasyl and Anna Kramarczuk moved to the United States from Ukraine in 1949. In the 50s, they bought an established butcher shop in Northeast Minneapolis, started making sausages and quickly became… Read More →
Gizmo Sandwiches I would rather be at the Minnesota State Fair than anywhere else in the world. Why? The people, the food, the sense of community and tradition. Carla Wood and her Gizmo sandwich embody everything I love about the fair. The Gizmo is a ground beef and Italian sausage sandwich covered in their secret… Read More →
