title: Best American Side Dishes (Best Recipe)
author: Editors of Cook's Illustrated
description: Sweet three-bean salad, creamy coleslaw and cheese straws shine under the scrutiny of America's Test Kitchen in this latest addition to the Best American cookbook series. Most of the book's recipes offer variations on potluck basics- like deviled eggs, stuffed zucchini and potato salad-but all go through the same "scientific" taste panel test that made Cook's Illustrated famous for producing simple, agreeable (though sometimes a tad boring) flavors. For example, after determining that the best way to cook broccoli is by steaming (boiled broccoli absorbs too much water and becomes "soggy tasting and mushy"), the editors perfect the techniques of uniform floret cutting and offer a series of variations on the theme: e.g., Steamed Broccoli with Sesame Vinaigrette, Steamed Broccoli with Balsamic-Basil Vinaigrette, Steamed Broccoli with Spanish Green Herb Sauce. Next they perfect the techniques of Stir-fried Broccoli, Sauted Broccoli, Broccoli and Cheese Casserole, and Broccoli Rabe. Each side dish presented in the book benefits from this meticulous step-by-step method. A few more unusual recipes are also included in the volume, like Savory Noodle Kugel with Caramelized Onions &amp; Cauliflower, and Pissaladire, a kind of French olive tart. But there's no snobbery here: the Pissaladire is followed by a four-page discussion of nachos, including the results of a tortilla chip tasting. Insets with illustrations examining different equipment, techniques and ingredients get down to the nitty-gritty of cooking. What can of beans to use? How to cut up butternut squash? Like a mini-cooking school, the detailed instructions and illustrations insure that even the most inexperienced cook can follow these recipes with success. <br />Copyright  Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
zlib_text:  2 Quick Tips
   
   
  Quick and easy ways to perform everyday 
  tasks, from labeling food storage containers to 
  organizing your spice rack.  
  COMPILED BY ANNIE PETITO
   4 Fixing Glazed Pork Chops
   
   
  The best way to produce tender, juicy chops  
  with a stay-put glaze is to take it slow. Bonus: 
  You’ll have built-in time for making a side dish.  
  BY LAN LAM
   6 Cast Iron Pan Pizza
   
   
  Allow us to reacquaint you with your favorite pie: 
  thick, plush, crisp, and extra-cheesy. And novice 
  bakers, take note: There’s no rolling, stretching, 
  or baking stone required. BY LAN LAM
   8 Occasion-Worthy Rice
   
   
  Pilaf makes a great side dish, but Uzbekistan’s 
  revered beef-and-carrot-studded plov can be the 
  centerpiece of your table. BY ANDREA GEARY
   10 Fried Calamari
   
   
  Squid is inexpensive, requires almost no prep,  
  and cooks in minutes. So why aren’t you frying it?  
  BY STEVE DUNN
   12 Lion’s Head Meatballs
   
   
  Don’t let their ferocious name intimidate you. These 
  giant, savory, tender-yet-springy p