MAIN INGREDIENTS
This thick and aromatic fish curry originated in southern Thailand. The base of the dish is prepared with tai pla—fermented fish entrails—and a spicy curry paste consisting of chili peppers, galangal, shrimp paste, turmeric, shallots, and lemongrass.
Other additions usually include dry fish, diced eggplant, bamboo shoots, string beans, or other vegetables. Because of its intensity and strong, pungent aromas, kaeng tai pla is best served with steamed rice on the side. Traditionally, this Thai curry was only prepared with fish, and most varieties do not use coconut milk.
Oil down is the national dish of Grenada, a humble dish from a humble country and a flavorful one-pot meal consisting of local vegetables, starchy tubers, green bananas, salty meat, and a blend of various seasonings. The ingredients are all combined in a big pot and cooked in coconut milk, giving the dish its name, referring to the coconut milk as it simmers and gets absorbed by all the other ingredients until only the coconut oil remains on the bottom of the pot.
The preparation of this dish is important as the dish itself, because it is traditionally cooked over an open fire on the beaches where families spend their whole days and everybody pitches in to help so that a true communal feeling emerges while the dish cooks for a few hours.
MOST ICONIC Oil down
MAIN INGREDIENTS
Khoresh kangar is a traditional stew originating from Iran. The stew is usually made with a combination of acanthus (the tender white part of the plant's stalks), onions, tomato paste, saffron, lime juice, turmeric, oil, salt, pepper, and meat such as beef, veal, lamb, or chicken.
The meat is browned in oil with sautéed onions, and it's then seasoned with turmeric. The tomato paste is added to the pot, the mixture is seasoned with salt and pepper, and then simmered over medium heat until the meat is tender. The acanthus is fried and added to the pot with lime juice and saffron.
MAIN INGREDIENTS
Kaeng hang le is Northern Thai curry variety that was modeled on a similar Burmese dish. The dish consists of a curry base that is usually made with dried chili peppers, lemongrass, galangal, shrimp paste, garlic, and shallots, while other ingredients usually include pork, mainly pork belly, tamarind juice, peanuts, pineapple, and shallots.
Variations of the dish are found throughout the region, and they may even include other types of meat or seafood. Before it is served, this traditional curry is usually garnished with thin strips of freshly sliced ginger.
Khoresh lubia sabz is a traditional stew originating from Iran. The stew is usually made with a combination of green beans, chicken or lamb, onions, garlic, tomatoes, cumin, cinnamon, turmeric, red pepper flakes, lime juice, oil, salt, and pepper.
The onions and garlic are sautéed in oil, then mixed with the meat that's seasoned with turmeric, salt, pepper, cumin, and red pepper flakes. The tomatoes are added to the pan and the mixture is covered with water and simmered over low heat.
The green beans are sautéed and added to the pot with cinnamon and lime juice. The stew is cooked for a bit more until the sauce becomes thick and the meat and green beans become tender.
MAIN INGREDIENTS
Faves a la Catalana is a traditional dish originating from Catalonia. The dish is made with fava beans (broad beans) that are cooked in stock with a bit of botifarra negra (blood sausage). Apart from those key ingredients, the dish also contains bacon, onions, garlic, tomatoes, white wine, olive oil, and paprika.
Faves a la Catalana was prepared since ancient times, and some of the recipes date back to the mid-19th century. Nowadays, this hearty stew is typically consumed during the harvest season (from February to late June), and it's traditionally served in an earthenware dish.
Khoresh kadu is a traditional stew that combines meat and zucchinis. Most recipes call for lamb as the meat of choice, but it can be replaced with beef or chicken. There are also some versions of this dish that don’t include meat at all. When preparing the stew, the meat is fried in vegetable oil with onions, garlic, tomatoes, and dried lime.
The dish is seasoned with salt, pepper, and turmeric. Before they’re added to the stew, the zucchinis are usually gently fried. This thick stew is usually served with steamed Persian rice.
Kaeng om is a light herbal curry originating from northern Thailand. Unlike the creamy curry varieties, this version does not employ coconut milk. The meat stock is water-based and enriched with a pungent fish sauce known as pla ra, kaffir lime leaves, dill, various vegetables, as well as a fragrant curry paste which usually combines chili peppers, shallots, garlic, and lemongrass.
Although it is usually prepared with chicken, the dish can also incorporate other types of meat or fish. Kaeng om can be enjoyed on its own as a healthy, nutritious soup, but it can also be served with rice or noodles on the side.
Escudella de pagés is an Andorran soup with a consistency so thick that it could also be classified as a stew. It is made with white beans, ham bone, veal or beef marrow bone, chicken, veal, cured ham, cabbage, potatoes, rice and pasta. Unlike many other soups and stews, this one is believed to be good only on the day it was made, so it should be served immediately.
MAIN INGREDIENTS
Kapuska is a Turkish stew made with cabbage as the main ingredient. The stew can be enriched with additional ingredients as there are many variations of the dish - with meat, bulgur, rice, or beans. The cabbage is typically stewed with onions, tomatoes, olive oil, and ground black pepper until fully tender.
In its basic version, kapuska is considered a dish for the poor, but when enriched with additional ingredients, it can become a gourmet meal.
TasteAtlas food rankings are based on the ratings of the TasteAtlas audience, with a series of mechanisms that recognize real users and that ignore bot, nationalist or local patriotic ratings, and give additional value to the ratings of users that the system recognizes as knowledgeable. For the “100 Worst Rated Stews in the World” list until March 26, 2025, 35,590 ratings were recorded, of which 20,721 were recognized by the system as legitimate. TasteAtlas Rankings should not be seen as the final global conclusion about food. Their purpose is to promote excellent local foods, instill pride in traditional dishes, and arouse curiosity about dishes you haven’t tried.