Any egg, be it hard-boiled, soft-boiled, seasoned, or poached, is welcome in a bowl of ramen, but the king of the genre is ajitsuke tamago, soft-boiled eggs that have been marinated in soy sauce and other flavorful friends. They’re often referred to as “ramen eggs,” but you don’t need a bowl of noodles to enjoy them -- they make a great breakfast (smash ‘em on some toast), umami-packed salad topper, or simple snack.

The BLT is a simple sandwich, but simplicity demands excellence. Each component plays an important role, and maximising the crisp saltiness of the bacon, the crunch of the lettuce and the juicy sweetness of the tomatoes is what makes the sandwich truly magnificent.

Besides the act of properly dicing an onion, few food things have been written about as much as the roasted chicken. The reasons for this are obvious — it’s a homey, comforting source of protein that can be riffed on before it goes in the oven, and repurposed for the entire week after. It’s pretty easy to make a good roast chicken, but it’s also not incredibly difficult to make a mediocre one.

There are many ways to roast a chicken, and many of them are good. There are so many, in fact, that I rarely roast a chicken the same way twice, though I think that’s all about to change, as I am now obsessed with smearing whole chickens with the strained, cream cheese-like yogurt known as “labneh.”

While steak enthusiasts are eager to bend your ear about home dry-ageing experiments or that massive tomahawk they splurged on, it’s medium-rare to hear someone rave about chuck steak. Talk about a missed opportunity: Chuck is an incredibly flavorful, versatile and affordable part of the cow. Treat it right, and there’s nothing it can’t do.

Maybe it’s because I like a martini with my steak dinner, but salty, savoury, slightly fruity olives have always seemed like a natural flavour partner for a butter-basted piece of beef. Topping one with a tapenade is very fine and dandy, but using puréed olives as a marinade is next level.

If I had to pick my favourite ingredient of 2018, it would be shio koji.

This traditional Japanese paste — which is made from fuzzy, inoculated rice, salt, and water — adds savoury depth and miso-like umami to anything you smear it on, and an overnight hang in the stuff will do wonders for your (uncured) pork.

Mushrooms are the meatiest vegetable — both in texture and flavour — which is why it shouldn’t be surprising that they take quite well to a marinade. And, unlike meat, the sponge-like ‘shrooms absorb flavour fast, which is always good news for the impatient.

The success of a meal plan can only be judged by the percentage of it that’s consumed. It may sound obvious, but the execution of a good meal plan requires planning meals you are excited to eat. Picking the right proteins, vegetables and sides is important, but picking the right condiments — I’m talking sauces, marinades and pickled things — is even more so.

No matter what your local Grilling Enthusiast Bro says, marinade mixology ain't rocket science. At a bare minimum, all you need is a good bit of salt, probably some fat, and a smidgen of acid for basic flavour enhancement and tenderising action. Sweet, spicy and/or funky elements are optional, but never unwelcome.

Most short rib recipes usually call for hours in the oven braising, but you can get super tasty and tender results by treating them like a steak: Season and throw them on the grill.

The more I use miso, the more I become convinced that other flavouring agents are simply not needed. Not only does it render soups, dips and desserts totally addictive, but it makes one heck of a delicious marinade.

Miso is a wonderfully salty paste made from fermented soybeans that packs a ton of savoury, umami flavour into a teaspoon. It's most commonly used in miso soup, but the funky seasoning can be used in a variety of delicious applications, from chip dips and sandwich spreads, to caramels and cake frostings.