June 2013

Smoked salmon recipes, with their smoky, rich taste and silky, supple texture benefit from some contrasting flavors. Our "Smoked Salmon Platter" sauce recipe uses a base of homemade mayonnaise and incorporates many of the garnishes that are commonly served on a smoked salmon platter, such as hard-cooked egg, capers, and dill.

Our smoked salmon recipe combines the best elements of cold-smoked salmon (it’s cooked very slowly over a low fire to yield supple, moist fish) and hot-smoked salmon (it’s cooked over a hotter fire to yield a flaky, drier fish with tons of smoke flavor). To prepare the salmon for smoking, we quick-cure the fish with a mixture of salt and sugar to draw moisture from the flesh, which firms it up, and we season it inside and out. We then cook the fish indirectly over a gentle fire with ample smoke to produce salmon that is sweet, smoky, and tender.

For potent garlic flavor in our grilled potato recipe, without bitterness or charring, we needed to introduce the potatoes to the garlic-oil mixture not once but three times. So in our final grilled potato recipe we brushed on the garlic mixture before cooking, after parcooking in the microwave, and after grilling.

All Things Considered's Found Recipes series isn't just about food. It's about drinks, too — including those that require a valid form of ID.

And the best cocktail is one that's well-balanced, according to bartender Chad Phillips. It will "leave you feeling completely satisfied and better about your life than the second you sat down at my bar," he says.

Phillips tends bar at the Social Club at the Surfcomber Hotel in Miami Beach, Fla. On the Miami bar scene, he's known for his culinary and creative approach to bartending.