Sometimes when I make a grilled cheese sandwich, I deliberately load the bread with far more cheese than it can handle, knowing full well that as the sandwich cooks, the cheddar or Emmentaler will ...

This bowl of rice noodles tossed with shrimp balls, cabbage, and snow peas in a rich sauce is savory and comforting. The crushed chicharrones on top lend each bite some crunch, while the cilantro ...

Instructions: In blender combine fresh tomato, bell pepper, onion and cilantro until completely blended. Place in a large stock pot and bring to a boil. Continue cooking for 5 minutes. Blend in the ...

If there aren’t any deviled eggs at a cocktail party, did the party really happen? I have a friend who is adamant that a celebration is not a celebration without a platter of deviled eggs. And she isn ...

WE LOVE FRIED PORK RINDS for their crunch, but it’s worth getting to know their softer side, too. In his second Slow Food Fast recipe, Houston chef Hugo Ortega calls for simmering the savory snack, ...

Victor Escobedo studies the wispy, blond puff of chicharron between his fingers. “It’s very delicate, translucent. It looks very nice,” he says. “In theory this is excellent.” The chicharron combines ...

Did you all watch the Super Bowl this past Sunday? Well, you probably did, and here’s hoping that your team won (since I’m writing this prior to the big game, it’s all a mystery to me). Sunday wasn’t ...

The phone’s persistent ringing is what finally got me out of bed. It was early on a Friday morning. I was taking advantage of my shift starting a little later on Fridays and was sleeping in. “Ani?” It ...

The early bird gets the beef cheek on Sunday mornings in Houston's northside. Or so I found out on a recent weekend when my friend and colleague Loida Ruiz took me on a long-promised chicharrones ...

Omnipresent in Latin cuisine, chicharrones are rendered, dried and deep-fried swatches of pig skin. They’re typically shorn of all fat and meat, but some butchers like to leave a little of both on the ...