Pork

This Asian-style stew features egg linguine, an easy substitute for Chinese egg noodles. Look for Chinese five-spice powder and hoisin sauce in the spice aisle or the Asian foods section of the supermarket.

If you are making the creamed grilled corn and are using a charcoal grill, grill the corn first, then add more briquettes to keep the fire hot while you finish up the corn dish on the stove. Then keep the corn warm, covered, over low heat while grilling the grilled scallions with lemon and pork.

Brining results in moist, tender meat. Be sure to use a large center-cut loin, which cooks more evenly than two smaller pieces tied together. Begin this recipe one day ahead. What to drink: A medium-bodied fruity red, such as Merlot, or a fruity white, such as Australian Sémillon.

Serve with warm corn bread or spoon over steamed rice. What to drink: Pale ale or Mexican lager or dark ale, such as Bohemia or Negra Modelo.

You just cannot do this one wrong. You don't have to drain the sauerkraut. You don't even brown the ribs; they brown without your help. The recipe was handed down to Camille MacKusick by her father-in-law, from the family archives. All sorts of magical juices ooze out of everything. When the last finger is licked and the last lip smacked, everyone will weep.

This innovative dish from Susanna Foo, the Philadelphia restaurant that takes its chef-owner's name, combines Asian and southwestern influences. Serve it with rice.

(Chipotle-Marinated Grilled Pork Ribs) The Caribe Indians on the island of Hispaniola taught the Spanish how to use green wood lattices to make barbacoa — or what we now know as barbecue. A staple of the islanders' diet was the wild hog. The locals called the animals boucan, and that French word eventually came to be applied to many of the wild seafaring island men: buccaneers. Barbecue has become one of the world's favorite foods; few culinary subjects stir such rabid debate, from Texas to Memphis to South Carolina and on down to the Caribbean and South America. Barbecue as we have come to love it — using marinades and/or sauces and carefully slow-cooking — was perfected in the Caribbean. But some food scholars theorize that barbecue may have originated by accident in China many centuries ago, when a devastating fire burned down a barn, and the pig farmers, who had previously never cooked meat in a fiery fashion, smelled solace in their loss and as a consequence ate well that night. No less an authority on food than Waverly Root stated that cooking in this fashion was "so natural under primitive circumstances that it would practically invent itself everywhere, especially in societies accustomed to living outdoors most of the time." If you aren't familiar with country ribs, this recipe will introduce you to the cut, also known as split blade chops. You'll love them for all manner of dishes calling for pork ribs, barbecued or otherwise. This is a very easy recipe, though you need to allow the ribs to marinate overnight.

María A. Alvarado-Gómez of Erie, Pennsylvania, writes: "I came to the United States as an exchange student, after spending the first 18 years of my life in Mérida, Yucatán. On school vacations I would go home and cook with my mother and sisters so that I wouldn't lose my touch. My mother was a skilled cook, and I was lucky to have learned at her side. Her food was so popular in our neighborhood that she sold portions of our daily meals to other families. With nine well-fed kids, she said we were her best advertisement. "I still take great pride in the food of my homeland. Yucatecan cuisine is known for its Mayan influence, and the essential ingredients we use — limes, spices, avocados, tomatoes, peppers — make for wonderful flavors. Now that ground spices are readily available and vegetables can be quickly chopped in a food processor, preparing traditional Mexican dishes is easier than ever." This dish is the Yucatecan version of huevos rancheros.

Serve with: Spanish rice and grilled mixed bell peppers drizzled with citrus vinaigrette.

This dish, or some form thereof, can be found in most Scandinavian countries. The apples and prunes are usually stuffed inside the pork roast, but here we've put them in the sauce.

These hors d'oeuvres—a dressed-up version of shrimp toasts—are adapted from a recipe by Chinese cooking authority Nina Simonds, a longtime contributor to our pages.

Similar to the Latin posole, this stew would be terrific with yellow rice (there are several supermarket choices) and an avocado, grapefruit and red onion salad. Cinnamon-spiced brownies make a good dessert.

Velvet restaurant in SoHo serves a pork tenderloin that is the best I've had in this city," says Erika Ferszt of New York, New York."I would like to make it at home."

Voli are marbles, the multicolored little balls that were so popular with kids during my childhood. But unlike the glass versions, which were quite expensive, the ones we used to play with were made of clay and colored in various bright, glossy shades. They were fragile, and their glaze would crack, revealing their dark red insides, similar in color to these delicious meatballs with bulgur. This recipe comes from the island of Rhodes, and bulgur is probably the grain originally used. Later, in the stewed meatballs of the mainland, it was replaced by rice.

Start with crudités and dip, and accompany the entrée (opposite) with sautéed carrots.

Marinating the pork in citrus juices gives it a flavor that is perfectly complemented by the slightly spicy sauce. If you cannot find plantains, use ripe bananas.