Deep-fry

Everyone loves onion rings, but having to fry them up just as the doorbell begins to ring is never a good thing. Miraglia Eriquez devised a way to make them ahead. Reheated in the oven at the last minute, they'll never give away the secret—and since they're breaded, not battered, they stay crisp even at room temperature.

These lacy, savory, funnel-cake-like squiggles, made with the mild Swiss cheese known as Appenzeller, are unbelievably light because of the carbonation of the beer in the batter. They are wonderful when hot — and they're still amazing at room temperature or even a few days later (if you can keep them around for that long).

Your guests will still be talking about these zingy, crunchy bites long after the party's over. A combination of tender rice, melting Cheddar, and a crisp bread-crumb shell, paired with a spicy vinegar dipping sauce that cuts right through the richness, these irresistible nibbles will disappear almost before you finish frying. It might seem a little unusual to cook the rice in a combination of water and milk, but it imparts a luxurious creaminess that makes the fritters all the more addictive.

Using a freshly made ricotta makes all the difference in these delicious fried morsels.

Egg whites give these quick, cheesy nibbles their exceptionally light texture. Bite-size portions make them the perfect mouth-popping accompaniment to an aperitif.

This recipe brings smoky paprika and a jolt of briny capers to fish and chips.

(Ground Beef Patties) My son Samir loves shami kebabs with pooris (deep-fried wheat bread). They are also very tasty with basmati rice and raita (yogurt sauce).

(Deep-Fried Pastry Stuffed with Spicy Potatoes)

Here, something savory becomes addictively sweet and salty. The confectioners sugar helps brown the eggplant, and panko adds crunch.

Yuquitas a la Huancaína
Think of this as the Peruvian answer to fries and ketchup. While huancaína sauce is usually served over sliced potatoes with boiled eggs and olives, Guillermo Payet finds it a great accompaniment to fried yuca, the potato-like root vegetable.

Fatty pork is the standout ingredient in these crisp spring rolls; it adds intense flavor and a tender texture to the crab and vegetable filling. Fresh ginger and a generous amount of cilantro add kick.

Cha gio are considered culinary treasures, delighting everyone who's tried them. Light and crispy, spring rolls are traditionally wrapped with rice paper. At Lemon Grass, however, we use a more durable type of spring roll wrapper made from wheat flour. Also used for Filipino-style lumpias, they are marketed under the Menlo brand and stocked in the frozen food department of Asian grocery stores. These 8 X 8-inch wrappers seal the filling so well that no oil can seep through during frying; this is not the case with rice paper.

This popular breakfast food is also a late-night favorite after a good "lime." "Lime" is the Trini term for "hanging out." On Friday and Saturday nights, smart doubles vendors take to their stations to serve hungry revelers seeking a midnight snack.

This fried chicken recipe is excerpted from The Dooky Chase Cookbook by Leah Chase.

Every Israeli has an opinion about falafel, the ultimate Israeli street food, which is most often served stuffed into pita bread.

Almost every restaurant in Israel features turkey schnitzel on the menu. Most homemakers buy it breaded and frozen and serve it preceded by hummus, tahina, and other salads for a quick main meal. As I went from table to table throughout Israel, I found the dish to be more or less the same, prepared with spice combinations that vary depending on the ethnic background of the cook. Yemenite Jews, for example, add garlic, cumin, turmeric, cardamom, and hawayij. Polish cooks often use matzoh meal. A classic schnitzel includes both butter and oil, which has been changed to just oil in Israel. Even in remote corners of Latin America, restaurants try to woo Israeli travelers by putting up signs in Hebrew saying WE HAVE SCHNITZEL.

This puffy deep-fried bread has a beautiful sheen and is wonderfully flaky. Its ravishing appearance is matched only by its exquisite flavor. This is why poori is generally served at parties, special dinners, wedding banquets, and most festive occasions. 

In the past two years, half of our food editors have traveled to Spain, where they tried a variety of croquetas (ham, fish, and vegetable) that left a very positive impression. Serve these potato croquetas with any combination of dried sausage, olives, nuts, and cheese.

This variation on steak frites spices up the steak and gives a garlic boost to frozen fries. You can use any packaged spice-rub mix for beef, but we use a combination of equal parts cumin and coriander, half that amount of salt and pepper, and one eighth that amount of clove. If your rub doesn't contain salt, you'll need to add some, to taste. This take on a classic meal is easy, but you will be searing the steak and frying the potatoes at the same time.

These are great with salsa.

Eaten with great gusto all over Quebec, poutine was once just a late-night diner staple. It is now served at some of the province's finest restaurants.