Since recipes aren’t usually subject to copyright, every dish has potential for nuance and creative interpretation. Dishes come alive when they’re tweaked and adapted to new environments to suit the taste or preferences of different individuals. This evolution is what takes a recipe from mere formula to lasting memory.

Let’s not use the F-word; instead, let’s say that cuisines and identity are fluid and evolving — fusing with other influences at times and standing out at others. The five dishes this month are just that: alive with interpretation, expression, and sometimes a unique twist, where diners can, for the span of a meal anyway, experience a place, connect to a community, and get to know their neighbors. 

First Piroshky, Now Pinoyshki

When Alyssa Anderson took over the former Piroshki on 3rd in 2016, she brought some of her familiar Filipino flavors to piroshkies, which had always reminded her of Filipino empanadas. The marrying of the two led her to coin the name “Pinoyshki”, a Filipino piroshky. The bakeries earned acclaim and recognition for her garlic beef “asado” pinoyshki, and the team recently opened a second location in Capitol Hill on East Pine. For summer, Anderson is featuring grilled liempo pinoyshki, inspired by the summers she spent around her Tita’s food stall. 

Photo courtesy of Pinoyshki Bakery, Cafe & Bar

“She’d be grilling all kinds of street snacks (like) smoky BBQ skewers, crispy pork belly. The smell alone pulled in half the barangay. One of my favorites was always the pork belly, especially when paired with a side of atchara,” says Anderson. 

The pinoyshki wraps a savory-sweet grilled pork belly with a tangy atchara, pickled papaya, in a tender dough envelope for memories of a summer barbecue on the go. 

A Better Butter Chicken (or Paneer)

Keep an eye out for the butter chicken or butter paneer special debuting this month at Spice Waala just in time for Indian Independence Day. 

Photo courtesy of Spice Waala

“When I was in boarding school, there was one restaurant everyone went to on their day out, which served the best butter chicken,” says Uttam Mukherjee, who owns and runs Spice Waala with his wife Dr. Aakanksha Sinha. “If you weren’t allowed out, someone brought it back. It was the best treat ever. Ever since, we’ve tried to create our recipe for butter chicken.” 

Their recipe became one rich in spices. Unlike most butter chicken, Spice Waala’s does not use nuts to thicken the sauce. Mukherjee wants to add — for the chicken tikka masala loyalists — that this is not an Indian dish, and the couple believes that butter chicken is a better representation of India. 

A True, Sweet Alchemy of Turning Milk Tea to Ice Cream

We hear a lot about Salt & Straw, but I have a soft spot (sweet spot?) for Sweet Alchemy, our homegrown ice cream shop that does not shy away from playing with flavors. My favorites have always been the flavors inspired by popular Asian beverages, like the makgeolli and dalgona coffee. For the rest of the summer when I can’t decide between my usual milk tea and dessert, Sweet Alchemy gives me both. Its milk tea ice cream uses fragrant and slightly floral Assam tea. It’s part of a series of rotating special flavors, which also includes seasonal favorites like blueberry lavender and black sesame. 

Photo by Tiffany Ran

When I stopped in the shop recently, I was hit with the smell of strawberries. The team was busy processing over 30 flats of strawberries. I’m guessing an incredible strawberry ice cream is on its way. 

A Taste of Yemen

Newly opened Taste of Yemen in Kent is likely Washington’s first Yemeni restaurant, and because of this, the anticipation for its opening was palpable on local halal foodie pages. Playing to its audience, the restaurant’s Instagram page teased with photos of its large mandi rice platters —  tender, oven-roasted proteins on a bed of spiced and seasoned rice. 

With so many variations, it’s hard to commit, but the classic lamb haneeth — heavily spiced, bone-in, slow roasted lamb on a bed of mandi rice — is a good start. At first sight, you’ll think you’re getting an unconquerable dish. But as the juices from the fork-tender lamb drip into the rice below, you’ll dine gleefully and find that you’ve reached the bottom of the plate in no time. 

Photo courtesy of Taste of Yemen

A Simple Bowl at Lucky’s

In 2014, Duckho Ahn took a huge leap and left his office job to pursue his passion for cooking. After working in prestigious restaurants in New York, Ahn and his wife, Eva Cheng, had the opportunity to take over Lucky’s Pho in Fremont. Despite buying the business with recipes in hand, Ahn took on the challenge of adjusting the pho recipe, testing various iterations before settling on the current one at Lucky’s. He also simplified the menu so that Lucky’s, much like many small shops in Asia, can focus on its pho and banh mi. 

Lucky’s pho, the pho chin, is deceptively simple, with a clear broth that cooks longer than eight hours but still retains the distinct brightness of herbs and spices. In a simple bowl of noodles — one that can be found in many parts of the city — this bowl bears the story of one chef’s journey. 

Photo courtesy of Lucky’s Pho

Tiffany Ran is a writer and the chef behind Babalio Taiwanese Pop-Up, a Taiwanese food pop-up, and the food editor of TaiwaneseAmerica.org. Much of her food exploration includes jumping between catering, restaurants, and the pop-up world. Her writing has been featured in Vice Munchies, Lucky Peach, Goldthread, JoySauce, Northwest Asian Weekly, and more.