Wanderlust Cooking: Adventurous ideas to fuel your foodie explorations.

We’re all longing to travel right now but there’s good news – we can still be adventurous in the kitchen, experimenting with exciting flavours and foodie inspiration from all around the world. Here’s a generous helping of ideas to fuel your taste adventures and brighten up your days at home.

What would most excite your taste buds right now? A fragrant curry packed with earthy spices, a sweet, fluffy, cream-filled tart, or a large bubbling pot of stew?

As we’re all spending more time cooking at home, why not try new flavours and new techniques to break up the routine and bring new variety to your meals? When you embrace inspiration from other countries and cuisines, every day becomes an adventure. Le Creuset is here to show you how to take nuggets of inspiration from around the world – an ingredient, a cooking technique, a tradition – and use them in unique and inventive ways at home. It’s time to shake things up and experience the wonder of food anew. Get set to make farflung inspirations your own.

Love baking? Look to French culture.

Want to serve up a memorable meal that feels unexpected? Confidently switching in a starter, main or dessert from another country is a great way to bring new ideas to the table, while keeping things streamlined. Adore baking delicious treats? Getting playful with puddings is always a good idea, especially when you look to the masters.

Classic, romantic and delightfully indulgent, French baking never fails to deliver. If you’re making a lighter starter and main, seize the opportunity to finish off with a deliciously different dessert, like Citrus Olive Oil Cake or Tart Tropezienne.

Want to keep it casual? Make like a Mediterranean.

Whether you’re cooking for two or ten, feasting needn’t be a fussy affair. If you want to relax, take a slower pace and appreciate every mouthful and every conversation, it’s worth borrowing from the ease of afternoons in Greece, when people get together to graze on delicious nibbles and simple but satisfying drinks. Or get inspired by the Spanish tradition of tapas and team tempting bowls of tasty morsels with a jug of sangria.

Take time to set the table with vibrant colour, using Le Creuset’s stoneware dinner plates, side plates and cereal bowls to serve tasty morsels for everyone to tuck into. Simple yet elegant glassware and wine accessories will help recreate the Mediterranean atmosphere too.

Serve up soul with a New Orleans buffet.

So often, the ethos and customs of a food culture entice us just as much as its flavours. Every country has a different point of view on food that’s embodied not just in what people eat, but how they serve it, when and for whom. Remember that alfresco lunch in the sun on the last day of your holiday, when the courses just kept on coming? Or that late night, laid back, help-yourself feast that made you feel right at home?

Looking to another continent entirely, why not be inspired by the warm embrace and hospitality of New Orleans? Whatever you’re serving, create an abundant spread and invite everyone in your household to help themselves to a hearty plateful. Serving food directly from the cookware you prepared it in adds to the informal atmosphere. Make a succulent Sweet Potato & Smokey Pepper Gumbo stew in our 3-ply stainless steel sauteuse, then pop it on the table with a trivet underneath, and let everyone ladle it for themselves. Serve Corn Cobs on a cast iron grill, and dish up a baking tray brimming with beautiful Crayfish.

Craving bright flavours? Reach for Asian spices.

You can welcome new inspiration without having to create an entire dish. Discovering new flavours and finding inventive ways to bring them into your cooking is transformative, and easy to do. Once you get to grips with zesty Asian flavours, you won’t want to turn back.

Steaming fish? Simply add some Thai lemongrass to your cooking parcel for a fresh and fragrant twist on a classic supper. Or spice up a midweek evening with an easy Thai Red Chicken Curry. It all starts with flavour. Blitz all sorts of tantalising spices to create a vibrant curry paste that will have you excited for dinnertime. This dish is all about layering fabulous flavours, all in one pot. It’s so cheering, it might even become your new go-to.

Stretch your skills. Embrace new-to-you techniques.

Are you a seasoned cook who loves a challenge? Give another cuisine’s techniques and tools a go, then embrace them in your everyday cooking. It’s a sure-fire way to make prep more playful, expand your culinary horizons and build your skills. The results will be delicious too.

Moroccan cooking revolves around the traditional tagine – the ingenious design means moisture falls back into the food, retaining succulence, flavour and nutrients for perfectly cooked meals. Invest in a cast iron one, then use it for all sorts, staying true to the basic principles of layering, combining and seasoning. Spain’s paella pan is just as versatile. Why not make a classic rice base, then make a veggie or vegan version?

Keen to eat healthy? Go East.

As any cook knows, humble leftovers can inspire the best ideas. They encourage us to get creative. When you’re faced with a fridge shelf full of feel-good roast, steamed or raw vegetables, try giving them a nutritious new lease of life with a helping hand from Indian spices. To make a Buddah bowl, just combine your vegetables with your favourite Eastern flavours, layer them in a high-rimmed bowl, and top with a bold dressing and a scattering of zesty herbs. Want to master the art? Give our Roasted Curried Cauliflower & Butternut Squash Buddha Bowl a try. Packed with flavour, textures and colour, it’s a feast for the senses and perfect for a quick and healthy lunch.

Another idea from the East that’s good for mind, body and soul? Make your own Vietnamese Rainbow Rolls with Peanut Dipping Sauce using a combination of traditional ingredients like fresh herbs, shredded raw vegetables and spicy sauce. We’ve focussed on simple veg in our recipe but you could bring in your food favourites, including leftovers from your fridge. Sliced roast chicken, gently spiced chickpeas or caramelised root vegetables would all work a treat.Drawn from a diverse mix of countries and cuisines, these ideas are just the beginning. Use them to set you off in delicious new directions, and you’ll soon start gathering dishes, flavours and techniques you’re excited to make your own.

We might not be able to travel at the moment, but your kitchen holds a world of inspiration. Your wanderlust cooking adventure starts here. Bon voyage!