At Food & Wine, chefs are family. That's why, for over three decades, our editors have devoted countless hours and thousands of meals to scouting and discovering the most talented up-and-comers in America. Our roster — now with nearly 400 names — includes some of the country's greatest culinary minds, and we're proud to say we put as much effort into identifying these chefs as we do in helping them grow their sensational careers. For us, it's an honor to help share the vision of so many iconic chefs.
One of our favorite (and certainly most fun) ways to do this is to bring their brilliant recipes — all tested and approved by the F&W test kitchen — into the kitchens of home cooks around the globe. Here, we've chosen our favorite Best New Chefs' recipes from the last 30+ years. You'll find everything from elegant crisps topped with smoked salmon (from 1988 F&W Best New Chef Thomas Keller) to over-the-top prime rib with sour cherry conserva (from 2017 F&W Best New Chef Angie Mar). Make these recipes and become inspired by some of America's most amazing chefs.
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Smoked Salmon Crisps
Thomas Keller's salmon cornets (tuiles shaped into tiny cones and topped with crème fraîche and fresh salmon) are a famous kickoff to his luxe and whimsical meals. The original recipe appears in The French Laundry Cookbook. Shaping the tuiles into cones is tricky and involves working very quickly with a cornet mold. Instead, leave the tuiles flat, like crackers, and top them.
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Spanish-Style Pasta Salad with Tuna and Marinated Tomatoes
Spanish pantry staples like mildly spicy and sweet piparra peppers and tangy sherry vinegar bring bold flavor to this hearty pasta salad from 2015 F&W Best New Chef Katie Button."I love this pasta salad because it incorporates fresh summer ingredients, like tomatoes and herbs, with staples I already have on hand in the pantry," she says. "It's a perfect low-cook dish that you can make ahead in large batches and eat all week; it keeps getting better with time."
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Brioche with Prosciutto, Gruyère, and Egg
“I love a good frisée salad,” says 1999 F&W Best New Chef Suzanne Goin. “And of course I love toasted, buttery bread, with big slabs of melted cheese and prosciutto and an egg on top.” Her sumptuous open-face sandwich, a staple at A.O.C. wine bar since the place opened in Los Angeles in 2003, combines all her favorite foods.
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Tuna Poke on Nori Crackers
At Liholiho Yacht Club in San Francisco, 2016 F&W Best New Chef Ravi Kapur serves his super-delicious take on the Hawaiian classic tuna poke on crispy, deep-fried nori crackers. A dollop of seasoned aïoli is the perfect finish. Kapur makes his aïoli, but he says any good-quality mayonnaise is a fine substitute.
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Louisiana Red Beans and Rice
"Everyone with roots in southern Louisiana, where red beans and rice is a staple, thinks that their mom makes the best version," says 2019 F&W Best New Chef Kwame Onwuachi. "But I'm the only one who's right. Growing up, my mom used this recipe as a base, sometimes adding in smoked turkey necks or smoked, spiced, and cured tasso ham, in addition to the ham hocks and andouille sausage that impart their smoke, fat, and spice to the holy trinity (celery, bell peppers, and onions) and, of course, the sturdy red kidney beans."
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Black and White Pici Pasta with Squid and Shellfish
2014 F&W Best New Chef Eli Kulp prepares this dramatic seafood pasta dish with freshly made black and white noodles, which he tosses with a big, briny seafood sauce and finishes with spicy pickled cherry peppers.
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Chickpeas and Kale in Spicy Pomodoro
2010 F&W Best New Chef Missy Robbins of Brooklyn’s Lilia restaurant swaps chickpeas for pasta in her version of spicy pomodoro. She finishes the dish with a shower of fresh herbs and salty pecorino cheese.
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Black Cod with Miso
A signature at Nobu restaurants, this sweet-savory fish dish has been cloned by chefs all over the world. 1989 F&W Best New Chef Nobu Matsuhisa marinates the black cod in a good deal of the sake-miso marinade for two to three days, but the fish is also spectacular if you marinate it only overnight in just enough sake and miso to coat.
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“Espaghetti” with Poblano Cream and Crab
At Mi Tocaya Antojería in Chicago, 2018 F&W Best New Chef Diana Dávila’s “espaghetti” with poblano cream and crab sums up the essence of her cooking. It’s based on a dish her mom used to make, with broken and fried noodles. Dávila turns it up to 11 with sweet crabmeat, crunchy shaved cauliflower, and an oozy egg. The poblano cream sauce stays vibrantly green thanks to the addition of fresh spinach and cilantro.
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Mixed Mushroom Ragout
2011 F&W Best New Chef Stephanie Izard's rich, chunky mushroom ragout is great on everything from seared halibut to sautéed scallops and pasta. Use vegetable stock instead of chicken stock for a great vegan sauce.
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Soft-Scrambled Eggs with Smoked Sablefish and Trout Roe
2000 F&W Best New Chef Andrew Carmellini's luxurious, creamy eggs are heavenly on their own, but serving them with smoky sable, briny roe, and rich sour cream puts them over the top.
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Tofu Salad with Chestnuts and Apple Dashi
This light and elegant no-cook dish features custardy silken tofu in an ultra-refreshing broth. Here, 2006 F&W Best New Chef David Chang uses umami-packed shiro dashi, a bottled Japanese stock, as the savory base for the broth, stirring in Fuji apple juice for just the right amount of sweetness.
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Mexican-Style Fideos with Chorizo
2013 F&W Best New Chef Alex Stupak believes that his style of modern Mexican food is the result of reverse colonization. "It's what happens when Mexico settles in New York," he says. His version of fideos is spicy, smoky, deliciously creamy, and a snap to make.
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Snapper Escovitch
2017 F&W Best New Chef Nina Compton of Compère Lapin in New Orleans makes the most delicious version of Jamaican escovitch, combining the classic crispy pan-fried fish with a sweet and spicy pepper sauce.
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Curry-Coconut Clam Chowder, Papi-Style
One of 2010 F&W Best New Chef Roy Choi’s first chef jobs was at an L.A. country club where he made New England clam chowder every Friday. This lighter version includes green curry paste, coconut milk, and plenty of lime juice.
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Tajarin with Grilled Kale Pesto
A combination of kamut and 00 flour makes this pasta extremely tasty and gives it a great texture. The number of egg yolks called for may sound extreme, but they’re what really make tajarin unique. 2016 F&W Best New Chef Kevin Fink’s smart, simple grilled-kale pesto would also be stellar on any store-bought pasta.
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Jumbo Brownies
"Like all great desserts, these brownies have only three pertinent flavors: chocolate, butter, and walnuts," says 1995 F&W Best New Chef Anne Quatrano who runs a small empire of restaurants throughout Atlanta.
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Crudités and Fermented Soybean Dip
For her Crudités and Fermented Soybean Dip, 2018 F&W Best New Chef Katianna Hong keeps it simple, pairing just-picked vegetables with a thick, tangy soy dip. This dip is the perfect way to show off whatever fresh vegetables you can get your hands on.
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Chilled Spring Pea Soup
1988 F&W Best New Chef Daniel Boulud puts this deliciously light and clean-tasting soup — a mix of sweet peas, favas, pea shoots, snap peas, and snow peas — on the menu each spring. The recipe appears in the Café Boulud Cookbook. For this easier version, skip the labor-intensive fresh favas, as well as the snow peas and pea shoots. Instead, swap in sugar snaps and frozen baby peas.
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Golden Chicken Thighs with Charred-Lemon Salsa Verde
Ristorante Masolino in Panicale, Italy, has served chicken with lemon and capers for years. 1990 F&W Best New Chef Nancy Silverton makes the dish even better by roasting lemon slices, so they’re lightly charred, before stirring them into a piquant salsa verde. The sauce is an excellent accompaniment to these crisp-skinned chicken thighs, but it’s also great with roasted fish and vegetables.
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Crispy Pork Belly with Kimchi Rice Grits and Peanuts
2002 F&W Best New Chef Hugh Acheson makes an ingenious version of the Southern classic by swapping rice grits for the traditional corn and stirring in kimchi to go with crispy pork belly.
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Bucatini with Clams and Red Peppers
1993 F&W Best New Chef Jody Adams’ rendition of pasta with clams features strips of sweet roasted pepper, toasted walnuts, and fresh herbs along with Middle Eastern flavors like pomegranate molasses and cumin.
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Garlicky Roast Pork Shoulder
This Puerto Rican classic pernil is extra-flavorful because 2013 F&W Best New Chef Jose Enrique marinates the pork in lime and orange juices, as well as plenty of garlic, before roasting until the meat is caramelized and crispy. It can be carved, shredded, or pulled into large pieces for serving.
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Grilled Fruit with Honeyed Lemon Thyme Vinegar
For this super-simple summer dessert, 2002 F&W Best New Chef Dan Barber infuses honey with lemon thyme vinegar, then drizzles it over grilled summer fruit.
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Braised Chicken Thighs with Marinated Artichokes
To ensure maximum flavor, 2009 F&W Best New Chef Naomi Pomeroy doesn’t just roast chicken thighs. Instead, she crisps the skin, then braises the pieces in a savory mix of marinated artichokes, olives, sherry, garlic, lemon, and thyme.
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Spicy Grilled Shrimp with Yuzu Kosho Pesto
Yuzu kosho is a hot, spicy, and aromatic Japanese condiment made from hot chiles and ultra-citrusy yuzu zest. It's the key to this simple and utterly delicious recipe from 2011 F&W Best New Chef Ricardo Zarate of Mo-Chica in Los Angeles.
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Pork-Kimchi Dumpling Pancakes
San Francisco star 2012 F&W Best New Chef Corey Lee ingeniously reinvents pan-fried dumplings by adding a batter that turns the dumplings into one round, crisp pancake.
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Prime Rib with Sour Cherry Conserva, Truffle and Chocolate
2017 F&W Best New Chef Angie Mar is a master with meat, like this enormous, over-the-top, and completely fabulous dry-aged beef rib roast. Mar’s trick is to take the meat out of the oven for 30 minutes during its overall cooking time, which creates evenly cooked and perfectly juicy meat throughout the roast.
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Ultimate Buttermilk-Marinated Fried Chicken Breasts
2019 F&W Best New Chef Caroline Glover butterflies chicken breast for a quick and even cook. She gives it an initial soak in a simple brine and a second soak in buttermilk to deliver juicy, perfectly seasoned chicken that fries up incredibly crispy. This recipe is delicious all by itself; if you like, take it to the next level by using it in Glover's Fried Chicken Sandwiches with Anchovy-Garlic Dressing.
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Basque Cheesecake
2020 F&W Best New Chef Tavel Bristol-Joseph bakes a perfectly creamy cheesecake, without a water bath and with no risk of a cracked or sunken top, by incorporating whipped cream cheese with heavy cream in the batter. To make the cake properly, you're going to have to burn it. The more caramelized it gets, the sweeter and creamier the batter becomes, intensifying the flavor.
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Pancit Miki Bihon
"Pancit is a catch-all term for noodle dishes in the Philippines — and there are so many variations of pancit," says 2021 F&W Best New Chef Carlo Lamagna. This pancit combines two types of noodles: bihon (long, thin noodles usually made from rice flour or cornstarch) and miki (egg noodles).
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King Oyster Mushroom Steaks with Pesto and Almond Aillade
2018 F&W Best New Chef Julia Sullivan employs buttery roasted almonds to balance the sharper notes of garlic and lemon in this rustic French sauce that tops seared mushroom steaks at Henrietta Red in Nashville. Follow her technique for tenderness with crispy edges.
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Poached Salt Cod Salad with Sweet Peppers
2004 F&W Best New Chef Melissa Perello features pieces of slightly sweet, pleasantly chewy poached salt cod in this hearty salad of sweet peppers, purslane, herbs, and cherry tomatoes. After soaking in water to rehydrate and remove salt, the cod fillets get poached in a bath of olive oil, garlic, bay leaf, and thyme, infusing them with flavor and giving the fish some succulence. The cooled oil and aromatics are then strained and used in a parsley puree to dress the salad and to blister the sweet peppers, layering flavor into every element of the dish.
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