The most successful cooks at home and at top restaurants alike know that good dishes don’t always come from meticulously measured recipes. With some dedicated thought to the unique flavors and textures of ingredients readily at hand or fresh at the market, you can create delicious meals without needing to buy ingredients for a recipe you’ll only use once. Mark Bittman eloquently describes how he put together a meal one night, surprising himself and friends with the results of his culinary imagination.

Read the article at the New York Times.

Photo by Yunhee Kim for The New York Times. Food stylist: Megan Schlow. Prop stylist: Megan Hedgpeth.