The holidays are for roasting. There’s something about it that just feels like home. Maybe it’s the comforting smell or the snap and crackle that escape from the oven or the rich flavors of the browned crust. Whatever the reason, a holiday wouldn’t be complete without a roasted turkey, prime rib or pork loin—not to mention roasted veggies—in the oven. 

We have early man to thank for our love of roasting. He discovered fire, and in the blink of an eye, was spit-roasting a wildebeest to a perfect brown. Today we do it all in the oven, which helps control the elements, but the technique is strikingly similar.

The tips below are divided into sections for meat and vegetables to help you get the most out of anything you roast. But first, a few principles to keep in mind:

1. Roasting requires pretty high heat. This is where roasting differs from baking, which happens at lower heat and doesn’t brown with the same gusto.

2. Keep the roasting pan uncovered. Covering the roasting pan with a lid or aluminum foil will cause the food to stew in it’s own juices.

3. Roasting requires fat. It can be part of the food, such as the layer of fat that covers a pork loin, or added by tossing veggies in olive oil, for instance. But the fat isn’t negotiable—without it roasted foods turn out dry and rubbery.

Meat

• The best cuts for roasting are tender, such as loins and sirloins and poultry, as they stay juicy in the dry heat. Tougher cuts of meat need more time to break down their connective tissue, so stick to braising or other moist cooking methods for those.

• Bring meat to room temperature before roasting.

• If roasting lean meats, cover with salted bacon or fatback, which keeps it moist and adds amazing flavour.

• For extra flavour, score the exterior fat and add coarsely chopped garlic, herbs and sea salt.

• Salt and season the roast well before putting it in the oven. You’ll use less salt in the end and build deeper flavours during roasting.

• When roasting whole poultry, try brining. Soaking it in a salt/sugar mixture helps give the bird flavour and keeps it plump and juicy.

• Brown smaller cuts like chops, chicken breasts and fillets of fish in a pan on the stovetop before finishing in the oven. It’s a fast and easy way to get that roasted flavour for a smaller group.

• If you have a roasting rack, great, but I prefer to sit the roast directly on top of a bed of thickly sliced vegetables. They give the pan drippings a great flavor and they can be eaten afterwards.

• A roast will keep cooking even after you take it out of the oven, and the internal temperature can rise as much as 15 degrees. To prevent overcooking, take the roast out of the oven before it reaches the desired temp.

Watch how to create the perfectAussie-style pork crackling here. 

Veggies

• Roast different veggies together. Combine earthy vegetables like Brussels sprouts and turnips with sweet ones like beets, carrots and parsnips.

• Cut vegetables into uniform-sized pieces to make sure they cook evenly. If you’re in a rush, go for a smaller cut, which will roast faster.

• To increase browning, cut vegetables on the bias to increase the surface area.

• Don’t overcrowd the pan. Veggies that are too close together will steam, rather than brown. Pick a pan that’s big enough to allow the vegetables to spread out.

• Most vegetables roast perfectly at 450 degrees F (232 degrees C). Tender vegetables like asparagus and zucchini will need 15 to 20 minutes, while broccoli and peppers will take 5 to 10 minutes more than that. Heartier root vegetables require 40 minutes or longer.

• Garlic adds amazing flavour to roasted veggies, but it will burn if kept too long in a smoking hot oven. Add it in the last 30 minutes of roasting.

• Vinegar and citrus are also flavour-boosters, but they slow down browning, so add at the end.

• Conventional wisdom is to toss the veggies once or twice during roasting for even browning. But don’t be a slave to this though. Turnip and winter squash can be perfect with just one side browned.

The world is your roasted oyster, so experiment. To whip up a delicious holiday meal, start with this Roasted Prime Rib with Fresh Horseradish and Roasted Butternut Squash with Pine Nuts and Sage.

It’s summer in Australia, which means the endless bounty of beautiful seasonal veggies need little more than a sprinkle of salt to show off their delicious sun-soaked flavours. Back in the States, it’s a different story. Winter vegetables have to work a little harder to stand out. But with a little love, the cold season’s heartier offerings can become the centerpiece of your dinner table. 

Let’s start with kale. A member of the cabbage family, kale is the quintessential winter vegetable as its flavour takes on a deep sweetness only after the first frost. You’ll find kale in many varieties. Some are grown just for ornamentation (note the stuff on the salad bar), while the edible types range from dark green to a stunning purple. Two of the most common are curly kale with its ruffled edges and a rich green colour and Tuscan kale (aka dinosaur kale or cavolo nero), which sports green-black leaves and a bumpy texture similar to a Tyrannosaurus.

Beautiful to look at, kale is even more striking for it’s nutritional value. Off the charts in vitamins K, A and C, this hearty winter green has been shown to lower cholesterol, fight inflammation and reduce your risk of cancer.

How to buy

Look for richly coloured kale with firm, bouncy leaves. The smaller leaves will cook more quickly, but the larger size holds up nicely to slow cooking.

How to store

Store in a plastic bag on the bottom shelf of the fridge where it’s coolest. Use the dark leafy green within 2 to 3 days. The longer it sits around, the more bitter kale becomes.

How to cook

Unless your kale is very young and tender, the center stalk will be tough and not very tasty. So cut the leaves away from all the fibrous ribs before cooking. Kale works beautifully sautéed, baked into chips, braised or tossed in a soup. You can also chop it up into an amazing winter salad. Keep in mind that raw kale can taste strong. To tone down the bitterness, give it a massage. I swear I’m not kidding. After you remove the ribs, take bunches of kale in each hand and rub together. The kale will take on a darker color and become silkier—in texture and taste.

Give this dark green beauty a try in this warm winter Zuppa Ribollita.