29 Comfort Food Recipes You'll Want To Make On Repeat

Travel without even leaving your kitchen.

Part of the beauty of cooking at home is that you can make different dishes from cuisines all around the world — and travel by way of your dinner table. As the weather gets cooler, give these globally-inspired comfort foods a try. 🌍

1. Slow Cooker Cuban Ropa Vieja

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This Cuban shredded beef dish — slow cooked in beef broth, diced tomatoes, apple cider vinegar, and lots of spices — is best served with a side of rice. Make a big batch! It makes for great leftovers.

Recipe: Slow Cooker Cuban Ropa Vieja

2. Portuguese-Style Baked Eggs

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The best thing about eggs is that they're perfectly acceptable to eat any time of day. These Portuguese-style eggs are baked in spicy mixture of tomatoes, onions, and peppers. Then the whole thing is topped with ricotta, cheddar, and Parmesan until the eggs are cooked through and the cheese is melty and bubbly.

Recipe: Portuguese-Style Baked Eggs

3. Vietnamese Pork Meatballs (Bun Cha)

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Traditionally these Vietnamese meatballs are made with ground pork, but you can use beef, chicken, or turkey too. The meatballs are mixed with lemongrass, garlic, and scallions, shaped into mini burger patties, and pan-fried. Serve them over rice noodles with nuoc cham, a Vietnamese dipping sauce made with fish sauce, vinegar, lime juice, and chilis.

Recipe: Vietnamese Pork Meatballs (Bun Cha)

4. Jamaican Jerk Chicken

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Transport yourself to warmer weather with this Jamaican jerk chicken dish. You probably already have most of the ingredients for this slightly spicy, super zesty marinade in your pantry.

Recipe: Jamaican Jerk Chicken

5. Polish Stuffed Cabbage Rolls

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This eastern European comfort food is made with cabbage leaves stuffed with a savory mixture of ground beef, eggs, breadcrumbs, and rice. They're simmered in a vinegar-y tomato sauce until tender.

Recipe: Polish Stuffed Cabbage Rolls

6. German Spaetzle With Mushroom Gravy

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If you've never tried spaetzle, they're tiny German dumplings made from a batter of flour, eggs, and milk. Here, they're tossed in a creamy sauce of sliced mushrooms, white wine, tomato paste, and butter.

Recipe: German Spaetzle With Mushroom Gravy

7. Instant Pot French Onion Soup

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Using your Instant Pot seriously cuts down on the time needed to make this cheesy, rich soup. You can make a big batch and freeze it for later, just be sure to separate the onion soup from the bread and cheese before placing it in the freezer.

Recipe: Instant Pot French Onion Soup

8. Spanish Shrimp In Garlic Sauce

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This shrimp dish is so easy but so decadent. You'll want some crispy bread to sop up the sizzling hot garlic sauce seasoned with paprika, chili powder, and cayenne.

Recipe: Spanish Shrimp in Garlic Sauce

9. African Peanut Soup

The Modern Proper / Via themodernproper.com

Any soup made with creamy peanut butter is guaranteed to be delicious. This West African comfort soup combines peanut butter, sweet potato, chickpeas, garlic, ginger, and tomatoes into one decadent meal.

Recipe: African Peanut Soup

10. Korean Glass Noodle Stir-Fry (Japchae)

Introducing your new favorite stir-fry recipe. It starts with sweet potato starch noodles. Add your favorite veggies like spinach and peppers plus a protein (tofu, thinly sliced beef, and shrimp all taste great). The three-ingredient sauce comes together with soy sauce, maple syrup, and toasted sesame oil.

Recipe: Korean Glass Noodle Stir-Fry (Japchae)

11. Korean Scallion Pancakes

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These crispy pancakes are easy to make, affordable, and super customizable. Keep things basic with scallions, or add more veggies or seafood (such as shrimp) to make it more filling. Don't forget a side of kimchi and dipping sauce!

Recipe: Korean Scallion Pancakes

12. Finnish Salmon Soup (Lohikeitto)

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This decadent and rich chowder is deceptively easy to make, and with only a handful of simple ingredients. Grab some potatoes, leeks, salmon, fish broth, cream, and butter, and you're half way to dinner.

Recipe: Finnish Salmon Soup (Lohikeitto)

13. Peruvian Lomo Saltado

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This Peruvian take on stir fry starts with sliced sirloin, plum tomatoes, onion, soy sauce, vinegar, and spices. The traditional way to eat it is over a bed of French fries, and how can you go wrong with that?

Recipe: Peruvian Lomo Saltado

14. Instant Pot Vietnamese Pho

The Woks of Life / Via thewoksoflife.com

This rice noodle and beef soup requires a bit more time and effort than your average weeknight dinner, but the result is worth it. You'll need to toast the spices and prepare the bone broth, but your Instant Pot does the majority of the cooking for you.

Recipe: Instant Pot Vietnamese Pho

15. Swedish Meatballs

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These meatballs freeze beautifully, so you can make a big batch one night and keep them for future lazy meals. Just make sure to freeze them separately from the beef gravy. Serve these beef and pork meatballs on top of mashed potatoes or egg noodles.

Recipe: Swedish Meatballs

16. African Chicken Jollof Rice

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This dish of stewed tomatoes and rice is popular in many West African countries from Nigeria to Senegal. This version, which is sautéed and then baked in the oven, calls for chicken thighs and bell pepper.

Recipe: African Chicken Jollof Rice

17. Tuscan Ribollita

Proper Foodie / Via properfoodie.com

This rustic Italian white bean soup is the perfect pantry recipe for when you don't have much in your kitchen. It pairs perfectly with a drizzle of olive oil, a bit of Parmesan, and a big glass of Sangiovese.

Recipe: Tuscan Ribollita

18. Japanese Tonkotsu Ramen

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Making ramen from scratch might sound seriously intimidating, but it's easier than you think! If you can find miso paste, pork belly, and ramen noodles, you're well on your way. If you can't get you hands on tonkotsu broth, just use your favorite bone broth instead.

Recipe: Japanese Tonkotsu Ramen

19. Red Thai Curry Vegetables

Nora Cooks / Via noracooks.com

This recipe is totally meatless and loaded with veggies, but the best thing about curry is the way you can customize it with whatever ingredients you have on hand. Toss in your favorite protein and chow down.

Recipe: Red Thai Curry Vegetables

20. Mapo Tofu

The Woks of Life / Via thewoksoflife.com

Creamy silken tofu, tender ground pork, and a seriously spicy broth of spicy bean sauce, Sichuan peppercorns, and dried red chilies make this Sichuan dish totally irresistible.

Recipe: Mapo Tofu

21. Middle Eastern Lamb Kofta

A Cozy Kitchen / Via acozykitchen.com

This meatballs are made of lamb, parsley, and a mixture of pine nuts, smashed garlic, onion, and spices. Serve them over couscous, in pita bread, or on an Israeli salad with hummus and pickles.

Recipe: Middle Eastern Lamb Kofta

22. Classic Beef Bourguignon

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In the hierarchy of cold weather comfort foods, classic French beef Bourguignon is in a league of its own. Beef and veggies simmer in a deep and fragrant broth made of beef stock, red wine, Cognac, tomato paste, and herbs for a seriously feel-good meal.

Recipe: Classic Beef Bourguignon

23. Mexican Pork Carnitas Tacos

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There's no getting around it: making carnitas from scratch takes a long time. But if you use your trusty slow cooker, you can prepare the pork, set it, and forget it.

Recipe: Mexican Pork Carnitas Tacos

24. Instant Pot Moroccan Lamb Tagine

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Tagine is usually cooked in a ceramic pot called, well, a tagine, but we're perfectly happy using an Instant Pot to whip up a speedier, weeknight-friendly take on this North African stew. Serve it with couscous for sopping up all the delightfully spiced sauce.

Recipe: Instant Pot Moroccan Lamb Tagine

25. Argentinian Choripan With Chimichurri

Foodal / Via foodal.com

Meet your new favorite sandwich: baguette topped with sliced chorizo and a tangy, herby chimichurri sauce.

Recipe: Argentinian Choripan With Chimichurri

26. Crispy Persian Rice With Spiced Chickpeas (Tahdig)

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Who knew ingredients as simple as rice and chickpeas could come together into such a flavorful dish? Turns out butter, yogurt, and a handful of spices go a long, long way.

Recipe: Crispy Persian Rice With Spiced Chickpeas (Tahdig)

27. Thai Chicken Coconut Soup (Tom Kha Gai)

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This soup is so indulgent, you'll never believe there's no cream. Rather, it gets its creaminess from red curry paste and coconut milk. This recipe calls for chicken, but you can easily make this soup totally vegetarian or even vegan with a few simple swaps.

Recipe: Thai Chicken Coconut Soup (Tom Kha Gai)

28. Greek Moussaka

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Imagine a lasagna loaded with meat, veggies, and layered with a creamy béchamel sauce. Yeah, it's as good as it sounds.

Recipe: Greek Moussaka

29. Easy Cacio e Pepe

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Imagine a grown-up, Italian take on mac 'n' cheese where spaghetti, grated Pecorino Romano, and pepper is really all you need.

Recipe: Cacio e Pepe