CLICK HERE FOR THE RECIPE I USED This was good. It didn't knock my socks off but it was a satisfying meal. And I will enjoy the leftovers but I don't know if I'll make it again. I liked the tomato and paprika sauce but something just didn't work for me 100% and I think I may have to admit to myself that I don't actually like cooked carrots that much and I am not wowed by what they add to soups or stews. If I like a food that contains carrots, it is in spite of the carrots and never because of the carrots. Sorry, cooked carrots, it's not you, it's me.

CLICK HERE FOR THE RECIPE I USED I had a little difficulty finding a Cambodian recipe. There were so many things that looked amazing but I just could not get the ingredients locally or from a trusted online source. Then I stumbled upon this Lok Lak recipe and the only special purchase I had to make was for the Kampot Pepper*, which I found easily on Amazon. Everything else I either already had or could buy locally. Hooray! When I initially read the ingredients, I was taken aback by the amount of fish sauce, the salt, and the amount of limes. Fish sauce is salty enough that I omitted the additional salt and did not notice that it wasn't there. The fish sauce is very present, you really don't need more salt. I made no other changes and it was absolutely DELICIOUS. All of the elements work together to create a meal just bursting with wonderful flavors. You need the crisp freshness of the lettuce to add texture, the tomatoes add coolness and balance out the flavors of the meat. The lime sauce adds an acid kick to even further balance it all out. And the rice catches all the juice and liquid that escapes from the rest of the meal. So so good! I will definitely eat this again. *I later found other recipes that just used regular ground black pepper and I'm sure that works just fine, maybe providing a little more "bite" to the dish. Kampot pepper is milder and has a slightly eucalyptus-ish/minty-ish scent and flavor. Those flavor notes were not that detectable in the final meal but the scent was very noticeable when grinding up the peppercorns.

CLICK HERE FOR THE RECIPE I USED I was worried that this might be very similar to the Ibiharage from Burundi because this is also a rice and beans meal but the seasonings (and different beans) kept it interesting. And delicious! There's really not a lot to say other than I enjoyed it and would eat it again. There is a lot of smoked paprika in it so, if you're not a paprika fan, this is not for you. I've discovered through cooking meals from all over that I am a paprika fan. I now have three different kinds of paprika in my spice cupboard. (Hot, Smoked, and just plain ole' paprika.) I am running out of cupboard space due to all the new spices and seasonings I've tried over the past few months. And I love having all of these flavor options at my fingertips! It has made life more interesting and enjoyable! I look forward to each new dish!

CLICK HERE FOR THE RECIPE I USED Burundi is a very poor nation where meat is often a luxury not a regular part of a daily diet so I opted to make Ibiharage which is sort of a bean stew that relies heavily on onions for flavor. And some garlic. I, as usual, added more garlic than the recipe called for because 2 cloves is not enough for anything, IMO. And it was tasty! I felt it could be a little bit tastier though, so I added some Berbere seasoning to it which made it perfect! Berbere is an Ethiopian spice blend that can vary in heat but contains "warm" spices like cumin and cinnamon. It's made up of more than that and adds warmth but not necessarily heat to a dish. It can be spicy but the blend I use is not super hot. Because I'm a wimp. 😄 Would I make this again? Yes!

CLICK HERE FOR THE RECIPE I USED I've made a lot of chicken and rice dishes since embarking upon this culinary adventure and I think this is my favorite of them all. So far. I did make a couple of adjustments. I cannot handle the heat level of Habanero peppers so I substituted with Serrano peppers instead. I really like the flavor of Serranos and they have just the right amount of heat for me. I also added more garlic than the recipe called for. Three cloves just didn't seem enough. I am a garlic fiend, so, what I think is enough garlic is probably what others would feel is a bit more than enough. I have no regrets though, it turned out wonderfully flavorful. I will definitely make this again!

CLICK HERE FOR THE KYUFTE RECIPE I USED CLICK HERE FOR THE SHOPSKA SALATA RECIPE I USED The kyufte (meatballs) were good. They were easy to make and the ingredients were readily available. I enjoyed them but I don't know if they are something I would crave or make again. The Shopska Salata (Bulgarian tomato salad) was awesome. It was so fresh and crisp and BRIGHT. I can see this becoming a staple salad in our house in the summertime. I will definitely make this again!

CLICK HERE FOR THE RECIPE I USED This was good. It didn't knock my socks off but I enjoyed it. The chicken had a nice flavor (turmeric, cumin, coriander) and the sauce was very peanuty. I ended up adding a little more coconut milk to the sauce to balance out the strong peanut flavor and that worked very well. Not sure I'd make it again. It was good but not amazing. There are too many other recipes I've enjoyed more and want to make again. And a lot more countries still to explore!

CLICK HERE FOR THE RECIPE I USED. Yes, another chicken and rice meal. And I loved it! There are many different versions of this online and, it seems like, how you prepare it depends on what part of Brazil you grew up in. I liked the way this one looked so I went with it. No regrets! Marinating the chicken breast in a little lemon juice before cooking gave this a really nice fresh taste. The dish itself has a light flavor and I think this would make a really nice spring/summer meal. I would definitely make it again.

CLICK HERE FOR THE RECIPE I USED I did not like this. I'd never had anything polenta-like before and I probably never will again because the flavor of the Bogobe/polenta was not one I enjoyed. Not even a little bit. The meat was bland and the texture unappetizing. I tried seasoning the meat and eating it over other starches but, NOPE. I actually feel kind of nauseous now so this one was definitely a flop. I will not make this again.

CLICK HERE FOR THE RECIPE I USED This was a lovely and hearty beef and cabbage soup. (If you do not like cabbage this is not the recipe for you.) The ingredients were easy to find locally and most of the effort went into chopping up the vegetables. Once everything was chopped, I layered everything in a big pot as directed in the recipe and mostly left it alone. Easy! And really quite nice. I enjoyed it very much and found it comforting on a cold wintry day like today. I would definitely make this again.

CLICK HERE FOR THE RECIPE I USED So many countries have their own versions of stewed chicken and, so far, all of the ones I've tried have been tasty and unique in their own way. I'm drawn to stewed chicken recipes because I like really like chicken and a pot of stewed chicken simmering on the stove is a nice thing at the end of the day. I did have to order aji panca paste online for this one since I can't get my hands on it locally but Amazon had it at a reasonable price. I did see some versions of the recipe use cayenne pepper instead of aji panca but, to me, cayenne seems to add heat but not a lot of flavor. Maybe other people are able to detect more layers of flavor in cayenne than I can. I was a little worried that aji panca would be the same but it actually had a deep rich flavor that was quite nice. It was a little spicy but not overwhelmingly HOT and the peas added a nice pop of freshness to go along with the spice. Picante de Pollo is another winner of a chicken dinner! I would definitely eat this again.

CLICK HERE FOR THE RECIPE I USED Are you congested and would like to breathe through your nose? This stew will help you achieve that goal. It's spicy and pretty gingery and garlicky. I liked it but I think I probably would have liked it more with 1 less pepper and maybe a tiny bit less ginger. This wasn't a fail, it tastes good, and I will happily eat the leftovers but, outside of unrelenting congestion, I'm not sure I'd make it again. Maybe with the alterations mentioned above and without leeks since, while shopping for the ingredients for this recipe, I discovered that our grocery store doesn't carry leeks anymore! (I think there were only two people buying them. Me and a guy I haven't seen around in a while.) So, I ended up violating one of my rules for this experiment. Ingredients need to be either purchased locally or from an online source. No special 3+ hour trips to a larger town with more grocery options for the sake of an ingredient. Part of the challenge is in making it work with what I have regular daily access to. But my husband happened to be in a large city for his job when I discovered I couldn't buy leeks locally anymore. No one had to make a special trip, he was already there and already shopping so I'm not sure how badly the rule was broken. 🤔