With multiple city-wide lockdowns keeping us inside and our favourite restaurant dining rooms temporarily shuttered throughout much of 2020, many Torontonians found themselves cooking at home more often than ever this year. We aimed to make the transition a little easier for restaurant lovers by sharing recipes developed by some of Toronto’s top chefs and restaurants.
DaiLo’s fried Cambodian-style chicken wings
With many of us turning to comfort food to soothe our souls during this troubling year, chef Nick Liu’s fried Cambodian-style chicken wings were exactly the ticket. These crispy wings are served with a delicious dipping sauce made from lemon and lime juices, as well as fish sauce.
El Rey’s take on authentic Mexican tortilla soup
This spicy, comforting soup from El Rey chef Rodrigo Aguilar is topped with tortilla strips for a little crunch. Enjoy it as a starter or side dish to accompany a Mexican-influenced dinner, or top the soup with some pulled chicken to savour it as a complete meal on its own.
David Lee’s recipes for sensational vegan barbecue sides
Even a pandemic couldn’t disrupt the ever-growing trend towards vegan and vegetarian dining. Planta chef David Lee helped us make the most of the summer barbecue season with a trio of vegan recipes for BBQ cauliflower with tahini dressing; fried rice and banana leaf; and smoked peppers with lemon shallot vinaigrette (they might even be worth firing up the barbecue to make over the winter).
Montecito’s chicken with salsa verde
Although Montecito sadly closed its doors for good in November 2020, a piece of the restaurant’s California-influenced cuisine lives on in this fresh, flavourful recipe for chicken with salsa verde from then-executive chef Guillermo Herbertson.
Marben’s sticky toffee pudding
Doused in butterscotch sauce plus optional toppings of ice cream, gelato or whipped cream, chef Chris Locke’s sticky toffee pudding delivers the kind of sweet, simple pleasure that helped many of us make it through this difficult year.
