You don’t have to love Buffalo wings to love spicy, snackable finger food.

By Tejal Rao

One of the things I miss most about my prepandemic eating habits is the casual intimacy of sharing food. I don’t just mean passing things around, but eating them with my hands: tearing from the same big piece of injera, or scooping the same bowl of curry with sticky rice.

I’m so ready for the party vibes ahead of this Super Bowl weekend, even if it won’t involve a big communal dish. I have a vision of Kay Chun’s hot tofu sliders on my kitchen counter — the crisp pieces of tofu dripping with spicy butter — and everyone reaching for one, unable to talk properly because their mouths are full. Next to it, there’s a platter of Zainab Shah’s pea and potato-filled samosas and some green chutney.

And we definitely need something doused in Buffalo sauce: Ali Slagle has a wonderful and very simple recipe for Buffalo cauliflower that involves the broiler — you don’t have to bother with frying! — and a bit of Ranch dressing made with yogurt. And these grilled Buffalo-sauced mushrooms are delicious (if you can’t grill, you can also get them crisp under the broiler, just keep a close eye because once they start to brown, they go really fast!).

I love to make a menu in my head only to completely deviate from it. I might just go to the farmer’s market and see what’s good, then make something spontaneously to have with crispy chickpea pancakes. I got so into baking these recently, putting all sorts of different things on top of the olive-oil-soaked, crispy-edged base.

I think it’s an ideal dish for a small gathering because you can make the pancakes ahead of time, then set them up with any topping you like: seared radicchio and cheese, a mix of roasted vegetables with salsa verde, or just a heap of aloo masala under cilantro and crushed cashews. All food can be finger food if you’re good at eating with your hands!

Nashville-Style Hot Tofu Sliders

Go to the recipe.

Aloo Samosas (Potato Samosas)

Go to the recipe.

Buffalo Cauliflower

Go to the recipe.

One More Thing!

Some good reads for you: I loved this deeply researched dive into the world of flour by the writer and baker Dayna Evans, as well as this profile from Esther Mobley of Mai Nguyen, a farmer who grows rare heirloom wheats in California (I happened to buy into her flour share last year, splitting it with a friend, and it was such a joy). Speaking of good bread, if you happen to be near Long Beach, Calif., and you haven’t visited Gusto Bread yet, what are you waiting for? Thanks for reading, and see you next week!

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