This recipe comes together pretty quickly. If you boil your pasta while you chop the vegetables, you can easily have the whole meal done in under 40 minutes. I personally like skipping the tomato-based sauce in this one – the sausage and white wine give it plenty of flavor without making it too heavy. But hey, if you’re a sauce person, you can totally add some store-bought or homemade sauce and keep the rest the same.

Leftovers also last a few days and heat up great at work. Enjoy!

Fusilli with Spicy Sausage & Broccolini

Serves: 2-4 | Time: 40 Minutes

Ingredients

• 1lb Spicy Italian Sausage

• 1lb of pasta of your choice (but I love fusilli lunghi)

• 1 bunch of Broccolini, chopped

• 1 Yellow Onion, diced

• 4 Cloves of Garlic, minced

• 0.5 Cup of White Wine

• 2.5oz of Spinach

• Parmesan Cheese

• 0.5 Lemon Juice Squeeze

• Salt, pepper, paprika, red pepper flakes to taste

Instructions

1. Prepare the Pasta and Ingredients

   • Boil the pasta according to package instructions.

   • While the pasta cooks, dice the onions, mince the garlic, and chop the broccolini (or your vegetable of choice) into large 2-inch pieces.

2. Cook the Sausage

   • In a large skillet over medium heat, crumble the sausage and cook until browned and firm, about 6–8 minutes.

3. Sauté the Vegetables

   • Add the diced onions and chopped broccolini to the skillet with the sausage. Cook for 3–4 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are slightly browned. Add paprika, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes.

   • Add the minced garlic and cook for another 2 minutes.

   

4. Add Spinach and Wine

   • Stir in the spinach and white wine. Cook until the spinach wilts and the wine is mostly evaporated, about 2–3 minutes.

5. Combine and Finish

   • Once the wine has cooked off, add the cooked pasta to the skillet.

   • Stir in 1 tablespoon of butter, lemon juice, grated parmesan cheese, and a dash of olive oil. Toss everything together until well combined.

6. Serve

   • Serve immediately and enjoy!

The biggest lift of this recipe is the prep work, which could take up to 10-15 minutes. There’s a good amount of chopping/dicing/mincing that needs to occur before you start cooking, but once the pans are on the heat, it only takes a few minutes to get the finished product.

You can either serve Fried Rice as a side dish, along with a protein or some vegetables, or add those same proteins and veggies to the stirfry early on so they’re a part of the rice. We’ve made chicken fried rice, kimchi fried rice & more by making very minor tweaks to the below recipe.

I hope you enjoy and use this as a jumping-off point to find your own personal favorite fried rice recipe!

Fast & Delicious Bacon Fried Rice

Serves: 2-4 | Time: 30 Minutes

Ingredients

• 2-3 Cups of Cold Rice (I usually cook the night before & store in the fridge overnight)

• 4 Slices of Bacon, diced

• 4 Eggs, whisked

• 1/2 Yellow Onion, chopped

• 4 cloves of Garlic, minced

• 4 Green Onions, sliced

• 3-4 Tbsp of Soy Sauce

• 1 Tbsp of Butter

• 1 Tsp of Sesame Oil

• Pinch of Seasame Seeds

• Salt to Taste

• Pepper to Taste

Instructions

1. Prepare your Onions (chopped roughly), Garlic (minced finely) & Green Onions (sliced) on a cutting board and set aside separately. Whisk together the four eggs in a bowl and season lightly. Scramble eggs in a pan and remove from heat.

2. Dice your bacon into bite-sized pieces and add to a hot pan. Fry for 1-2 minutes, until the bacon barely starts to crisp, and then add Onions, Garlic & Sesame Seeds. Cook until fragrant and Onions are transparent.

3. Add Rice to the pan, and use a spatula to break it apart. Add half of your soy sauce and continue breaking apart the rice and mixing the ingredients in the pan. Add the Butter, the remainder of the Soy Sauce, the Seasame Oil, and the Scrambled Eggs - and continue to mix.

4. Once the color of the rice looks consistent throughout the pan, add salt & pepper to taste and remove from heat. Mix in Green Onions and serve!

   

So today, we’re tackling an abridged version of the Chicken Bellagio, ideally using store-bought pesto (though you’re free to make your own as well). In addition, we’re going to bake the chicken breasts, rather than breading & frying them, to make the recipe slightly healthier.

This is one of my favorite things to make at home and serves as very filling comfort food. It’s also super easy to scale depending on how many heads you’re planning to feed.

The crux of this recipe is preparing your chicken & vegetables all in one pan, and depending on what seasonings you add, you could easily serve this over rice with soy sauce or teriyaki sauce, or serve with potatoes. The choice is yours!

Baked Chicken Breast with Pesto Bucatini, Topped with Arugula & Prosciutto

Serves: 2-4 | Time: 40 Minutes

Ingredients

• 1 lb of Chicken Breast

• 1 oz of Baby Arugula

• 1 lb of long pasta (I prefer Bucatini or Thin Spaghetti)

• Thin sliced Prosciutto

• 1 Tbsp of Butter

• Pesto (I like this one from Trader Joe's)

• Vegetable of your choice (I used asparagus)

• Parmigiano Reggiano or Parmesan Cheese

• Paprika to taste

• Salt to Taste

• Pepper to Taste

• Lemon Wedge

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Slice chicken breasts in half lengthwise and pound thin until the breasts are equal thickness all around. Drizzle lightly with olive oil & season with Salt, Pepper, Paprika & any other preferred spices.

2. Lay parchment paper or tin foil on a baking pan, add vegetables of your choice, and season (I’m using asparagus), and then add prepared Chicken Breasts on top. Place in the oven for 15-20 minutes. The internal temperature of the chicken should read 165 degrees, but make sure you don’t overcook it! Once finished, remove and set aside.

   

3. While the chicken is baking, salt a pot of water & boil on the stove. Cook pasta of your choice to al dente and remove from heat. Add butter & pesto and mix in. Set aside.

4. Place the arugula in a bowl. Top with olive oil, a squeeze of lemon, salt, pepper & grated parmesan. Toss carefully.

   

To Serve

1. First, make a mound of pasta in the center of your plate and lay asparagus on top

   

2. Then, place chicken breast askew on top of the pasta mound and asparagus, and lay prosciutto on top of the chicken

   

3. Finally, place a bunch of arugula salad on top, to top it off!

   

That’s why I’m here today with a much easier Pork Belly recipe, one that requires about 15-30 minutes of prep time, and about 1 hour of unattended cook time. Perfect for when you want to eat a filling meal, but don’t want to make a mess of the kitchen or worry about burning anything.

This is a Japanese-style Char Siu preparation of Pork Belly, and it’s pretty similar to something you might find as an appetizer or a rice dish at an Izakaya or Ramen shop. Char Siu is Pork Belly roasted in a sweet & savory sauce, which I slice thinly and place on top of a bowl of rice & assorted vegetables. It’s very good, I promise.

Also, wanted to give a quick shout-out to everyone who took the time last week to prepare my Salmon Teriyaki recipe - keep sending me photos if you make anything! That’s now my most viewed recipe so far, so hopefully, you’re enjoying these as I send them each week. And as always, follow me on TikTok & Instagram for videos, reels, etc. Until next week!

Pork Belly Char Siu Bowl

Serves: 2-4 | Time: 75 Minutes

Ingredients

• 1lb Pork Belly

• 2 Stems of Green Onions; Additional Green Onions to garnish

• 1 Onion, Quartered

• 8 Cloves of Garlic, Smashed

• 1 In of Sliced Ginger

• 3 Cups of Water

• 1/2 Cup Sugar

• 1 Cup Soy Sauce

• 1 Cup Mirin

• 1 Tablespoon of Chinese Cooking Wine

• Salt to taste

• Pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Using a fork, poke holes in the block of Pork Belly with a fork - about 5 times on the top & bottom. Season block of Pork Belly with Salt & Pepper. In a high heat pan, cook Pork Belly on each side until cripsy & browned.

2. In a large pot, combine Water, Soy Sauced, Sugar, Chinese Cooking Wine, Mirin, Pork Belly, Green Onion Stems, Onion & Garlic. Boil for 1 hour over medium high heat, the Pork Belly should turn a dark brown color.

   

3. Remove Pork Belly from the pot, and slice for serving. Keep the remaining liquid on the stove and boil into it thickens to a consistency of your liking. You're ready to serve!

   

To Serve

1. Personally, I like to serve this dish with white rice, some sauteed spinach & fried egg.

2. Fill a bowl with some fresh rice & drizzle with some sauce, add a layer of spinach next, then top with Pork Belly. Drizzle with more of the sauce.

3. Place the fried egg on top & garnish with green onions

Often after work, I’m looking for a *relatively* healthy dinner option, that is

1. not going to require more than 30 minutes of prep & cook time, combined

2. relatively healthy

3. has plenty of flavor

That’s where Salmon Teriyaki comes in.

I’m not traditionally a teriyaki guy, but Salmon Teriyaki is the exception. In my experience, teriyaki sauce almost always overpowers the protein & vegetables in a dish and leaves it a sort of sweety, syrupy mess. Salmon is the perfect canvas for teriyaki sauce, due to its unique texture & taste.

Quickly searing the salmon to Medium, gives the fish a perfectly flaky texture, but you can cook the fish longer if you prefer. I hope you enjoy this recipe, and hopefully, it provides you with a solid, low-stress dinner option!

Salmon Teriyaki

Serves: 2-4 | Time: 30 Minutes

Ingredients

Salmon

• 1lb of Atlantic Salmon

• Olive Oil

• Salt to taste

• Pepper to taste

Teriyaki Sauce

• 1/2 Cup Soy Sauce

• 4 Tablespoons Brown Sugar

• 1 Tablespoon Corn Starch

• 1/2 Cup Water

Instructions

Salmon (15 Minutes)

1. Slice Salmon into 4-6 filets, depending on your preferred serving size. Season lightly with Salt & Pepper.

2. Heat oil on high heat in a large skillet or saute pan.

3. Add Salmon to the pan skin side down, and avoid moving for 4-5 minutes.

   

4. Flip Salmon and reduce heat to medium. Cook for 4-5 more minutes to serve Medium. Cook longer for preferred temperature.

   

5. Transfer from heat. Your Salmon is ready to eat!

Teriyaki Sauce (10 Minutes)

1. Combine Soy Sauce & Brown Sugar in a sauce pan on medium heat.

2. Combine Corn Starch & water in a separate bowl to make a slurry. Slowly add into sauce pan to thicken sauce.

3. Continue to cook until Teriyaki Sauce has your preferred consistency, remove from heat and serve with Salmon.

To Serve:

I typically like to plate salmon in vertical layers. Start by spreading a thin layer of rice, laying your choice of veggies on next, and finally topping with the Salmon. Get those restaurant-quality flicks off!

eighteightsix

A post shared by @eighteightsix

They also point out “IT'S SORT OF VERY GOOD.” I can confirm, it’s excellent. Unfortunately, this is probably a tough dish to find outside of NYC at the moment, so I decided to take a stab at the dish myself. And it came out very well.

This is the perfect dish if you’re craving the spicy flavor of Taiwanese Beef Noodle Soup, but it’s a little too hot in your six-story walk up studio apartment in the Lower East Side that doesn’t have air conditioning. This is a dish you can enjoy without sweating (depending on how much chili you add in).

I personally prefer using a Pressure Cooker to prepare this dish, which speeds it up substantially, but I’ve also included instructions to cook on the Stovetop or in a Crockpot, whatever works best.

As always, if you are in NYC, make sure to stop by 886 and support local restaurants!

Please feel free to respond to this email or leave any comments or suggestions below. Be sure to tag me on IG @jakestandley if you make this dish. Enjoy!

Dry Braised Beef Noodles

Serves: 4-6 | Time: 3 hours

Ingredients

Beef

• 2lbs Beef Shank

• 3 lbs Beef Chuck Roast

• 1 Tomato

• 1 Onion

• 6 Cloves of Garlic

• 2 In of Ginger

• 3 Green Onions

• 3/4 Cup of Soy Sauce

• 3/4 Cup of Chinese Cooking Wine

• 1 Chinese Seasoning Packet (Came with my noodles), but if you can't find something similar, read this)

• 1 Teaspoon of Tomato Paste

• 1 Teaspoon of Spicy Bean Paste

• 1 Teaspoon of Sugar

• Salt to Taste

Garlic Scallion Oil Noodles

• Noodles of your choice! (Traditionally served with wider noodles, but I personally enjoyed it more with thin noodles)

• 6 Cloves of Garlic

• 3 Green Onions + any extra to garnish

• 4 Tbsp of Vegetable Oil

• 3 Tbsp of Broth from Beef

• Chili Flakes to taste

• Soy Sauce to taste

• Salt to taste

• Chili Oil to taste

• Cilantro to garnish

• Seasame Seeds to garnish

• Baby Bok Choy (however much you want to eat!)

Instructions

Beef (Pressure Cooker) [1 hour 40 minutes]

1. Slice Beef Shank & Beef Chuck Roast into mid-sized cubes & season with salt.

   

2. Heat Oil in Pressure Cooker while on sautee. Add Beef Shank & Beef Chuck Roast and sear all sides until brown; 6-8 minutes.

3. Remove Beef from heat & add more Oil if necessary. Add Ginger, Garlic, Green Onions & Onion to the pot, and sautee until the Onion is transparent

   

4. Add Beef back to the pot. Then add Tomato Paste, Spicy Bean Paste, Sugar, Soy Sauce & Chinese Cooking Wine to the pot. Stir.

   

5. Add 6 Cups of water. Then pour in the Seasoning Packet.

6. Close the Pressure Cooker, and Choose the Stew setting for 60 Minutes. Ensure the valve is set to "airtight", so that the steam releases naturally

7. Wait about 30 minutes after the timer ends, so the steam can release naturally

8. Remove Beef from the pot & set aside

9. Use a blender or an immersion blender to blend remaining liquid in the Pressure Cooker.

10. The Beef is ready to serve!

Beef (Stovetop) [3 hours]

1. Slice Beef Shank & Beef Chuck Roast into mid-sized cubes & season with salt

2. Heat Oil in Large Pot. Add Beef Shank & Beef Chuck Roast and sear all sides until brown; 6-8 minutes

3. Remove Beef from heat & add more Oil if necessary. Add Ginger, Garlic, Green Onions & Onion to the pot, and sautee until the Onion is transparent

4. Add Beef back to the pot. Then add Tomato Paste, Spicy Bean Paste, Sugar, Soy Sauce & Chinese Cooking Wine to the pot. Stir.

5. Add 6 Cups of water. Then pour in the Seasoning Packet.

6. Put the lid on and bring to a simmer. Then, lower the heat so it is lightly bubbling

7. Cook for 2 hours, then remove lid & simmer for 30 more minutes.

8. Remove Beef from the pot & set aside

9. Use a blender or an immersion blender to blend remaining liquid in the Pressure Cooker.

10. The Beef is ready to serve!

Beef (Crockpot) [8 hours]

1. Slice Beef Shank & Beef Chuck Roast into mid-sized cubes & season with salt

2. Heat Oil in Large Pot. Add Beef Shank & Beef Chuck Roast and sear all sides until brown; 6-8 minutes

3. Remove Beef from heat & add more Oil if necessary. Add Ginger, Garlic, Green Onions & Onion to the pot, and sautee until the Onion is transparent

4. Add Beef, Ginger, Garlic, Green Onions & Onion to your Crockpot. Then add Tomato Paste, Spicy Bean Paste, Sugar, Soy Sauce & Chinese Cooking Wine to the pot. Stir. Then pour in the Seasoning Packet.

5. Put the lid on and turn to low heat (you can use high heat for 4 hours, but the meat will not be as tender)

6. Cook for 8 hours, remove Beef from the pot & set aside

7. Use a blender or an immersion blender to blend remaining liquid in the Crockpot.

8. The Beef is ready to serve!

Garlic Scallion Oil Noodles (10 minutes)

1. Cook Noodles according to package instructions & plate in a bowl. I typically blanch some Baby Bok Choy during the last 2-3 minutes of the noodles cooking

2. Add Garlic, Chili Flakes, Green Onions, Soy Sauce & Taiwanese Black Vinegar on top of the noodles

3. Combine Oil & Beef Broth in a small pot & turn the heat to high

4. Once smoking, pour-over Noodles & aromatics

5. Stir noodles around so the Oil & ingredients are all mixed together

To Serve

1. Add Baby Bok Choy on top of the Noodles

2. Add a few pieces of Beef on top of the Noodles

3. Garnish with Cilantro, Chili Oil & additional Green Onions

Notes

• I used an Elite Platinum pressure cooker, but an Instapot, or a crockpot would work as well.

  

Sources & Inspiration

• Taiwanese Beef Noodle Soup (InstaPot)

• Garlic Chili Oil Noodles

I recommend reading through the entire once before starting. While the broth does take up-to four hours, you can start on the other pieces you want to serve with the bowl of soup while the broth is simmering. That way, you can still serve the broth hot!

Speaking of which - don’t feel any pressure to use the same toppings that I did. Prefer a fried egg or a soft-boiled egg? Do it. Want to include whatever vegetables you have laying around? Do it. That’s the best part about this broth. It’s super flavorful, but complements the majority of ingredients you might find lying around.

Anyways, I’m excited to bring you a noodle soup recipe that I am very confident in! I combined ingredients & approaches from multiple recipes to create a broth that's super flavorful and relatively low effort to make.

Please feel free to respond to this email or leave any comments or suggestions below. Be sure to tag me on IG @jakestandley if you make this dish. Good luck!

Chicken & Pork Bone Broth Ramen

Serves: 2-4 | Time: 4-5 hours

Ingredients

Broth

• 2 Skin-on Chicken Breasts

• 2 Chicken Legs

• 1.5 Pounds of Pork Baby Back Ribs

• 1 Yellow Onion

• 3 Cloves of Smashed Garlic

• 2 Inches of Peeled & Sliced Ginger

• 3in by 6in piece of Kombu

• 1/2 of a Napa Cabbage

• 1 Green Onion (for broth)

• 2 Green Onion (for garnish)

• 1 Tbsp of Butter

• 2 Slices of Smoked Bacon

• 20 Peppercorns

• Salt

• Pepper

Broth Seasoning

• 1 Tbsp of Lemon Juice

• 3 Tbsp of Shoyu (Soy Sauce)

• 1 Tbsp of Sake

• 1 Tbsp of Mirin

• 1 Tbsp of Salt

Onsen Egg

• 4 Large Eggs

Sauteed Spinach

• 5oz of Spinach

• Olive Oil

• Salt

• Pepper

Roasted Napa Cabbage

• 1/2 of a Napa Cabbage

• 1/4 Cup of Seasame Oil

• 1/8 Cup of Shoyu

• 3 Cloves of garlic

• 1 Tbsp of Lemon Zest

• 1 Tsp of Yuzu

• 1 Tsp of Rice Vinegar

• Salt

• Pepper

Noodles of your choice!

Instructions

Broth (3-4 Hours)

1. Preheat oven to 375 Degrees. Put Chicken Legs, Chicken Breasts, Quartered Yellow Onion, Ginger & Garlic onto baking pan, season, and bake for 30 minutes.

   

2. Run Kombu under cold water and add to stock pot with water. Turn heat on high. Once boiling, reduce to a simmer for 10 Minutes. Fish out kombu.

3. Add Peppercorns, Chicken Breasts, Chicken Legs, Quartered Yellow Onion, Ginger & Garlic into the stock pot. Put on the lid, partially ajar. Keep the broth at a gentle simmer and skim any foam that rises to to the top. Replenish water if needed to keep ingredients fully covered. While Chicken & Vegetables simmer, preheat oven to 350 degrees.

   

4. Put Pork Baby Back Ribs in a large pot and fill until water covers Pork Baby Back Ribs by 1 Inch. Put on high heat. Once the water boils, reduce to a simmer for 20 minutes, while skimming any brown foam off the top. Put Pork Baby Back Ribs in the oven for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside.

5. Remove Chicken Breasts and Chicken Legs from broth after 40 minutes or when meat pulls from bones. Shred Chicken Leg meat. Slice Chicken Breast off of the bone. Set aside Chicken meat and add bones land chicken skin back into broth.

   

6. Add Pork Baby Back Ribs and slices of Bacon into the water. Put on the lid, partially ajar. Keep the broth at a gentle simmer and skim any foam that rises to to the top. Replenish water if needed to keep ingredients fully covered.

7. After one hour, remove Bacon from water. Add Napa Cabbage, Green Onion & Butter in with the Pork Baby Back Ribs and Chicken Bones. Put on the lid, partially ajar. Keep the broth at a gentle simmer and skim any foam that rises to to the top. Replenish water if needed to keep ingredients fully covered.

   

8. After 1 hour, remove all ingredients from the stock pot and set aside. Shred Baby Back Rib Meat. Strain broth carefully and add back to the pot.

   

9. Mix together ingredients for seasoning. Microwave for a few seconds if necessary to dissolve salt.

10. Pour about half of the mixture to the broth, and adjust to taste.

Onsen Egg (30 Minutes)

1. Bring 4 cups of water to a boil in a small sauce pan. Once boiling, remove from heat.

2. Add 1 cup of cold water & immediately and carefully add the eggs. Cover and keep off heat for 17 minutes

3. After 17 minutes, remove eggs and set aside for at least 5 minutes

Sauteed Spinach (10 Minutes)

1. Add Olive Oil to a non stick pan. Once heated, add spinach

2. As the Spinach cooks down, season with a small amount of salt and pepper

Roasted Napa Cabbage (20 Minutes)

1. Pre-Heat oven to 450 Degrees

2. Combine Sesame Oil, Shoyu, Rice Vinegar, Garlic, Lemon Zest & Yuzu in a Food Processor and Blend. Brush the Cabbage with the mixture & season with salt & pepper

3. Bake in the oven for 10 minutes. Flip Cabbage. Bake for an additional 5 minutes.

4. Remove from oven and slice across the grain into strips. Use as a garnish in Broth.

   

Noodles

1. Boil your favorite ramen noodles. Remove from heat about a minute before fully cooked. The warm broth will continue to cook the noodles after serving.

To Serve

1. Lay the noodles into the bowl in one direction.

2. Add Vegetables and Meat on top of the noodles.

3. Pour soup over the noodles.

4. Garnish with green onions, sesame seeds, etc.

Notes

• Pork Baby Back Ribs should be 185 degrees

• Chicken should be 165 degrees

Sources & Inspiration

• Roasted Napa Cabbage with Garlic

• Onsen Tamago

• How to Make David Chang's Momofuku Ramen at Home

• Pork Bone Broth (Stove Top or Pressure Cooker)

• Ramen with chicken bone broth, pork shoulder, soft-boiled egg & greens

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