You may recall I completed a year-long recipe challenge a couple years back. I started the Food & Wine Cover Recipe Challenge in 2013 with a few other bloggers, but I was the only one to complete it, something I am super proud of.

But I have to be honest with you:  The recipe challenge posts are the least read posts on The Food Girl in Town.

Womp. Womp.

Seriously, it’s sad how few people read about the blood, sweat, and onion tears that went into the monthly dinners I prepared with my friends. But, I don’t care. I loved completing the challenge: I learned new cooking skills, acquired some awesome kitchen gadgets, and stocked my spice cupboard like a baller.

This year, instead of depending on the cover recipe of a magazine, I’m going to focus on the cuisine of a different country each month of 2017.

Introducing…

A monthly recipe challenge devoted to exploring the world, one plate at a time!

Each month, I’ll scour cookbooks, history books and websites to find traditional recipes best representing the country of choice. The list is tabulated, but I won’t reveal the country until the beginning of each month. Sorry guys, there will be no pasta or butter chicken for this recipe challenge. Right off the bat, I eliminated the three top cuisines I cook on the regular: Italian, French and Indian. I’m really comfortable with dishes from these countries, so I have dared myself to work with cuisines unfamiliar to me, I don’t cook, or that I’ve never even tasted before!

This recipe challenge is all about learning through eating (my favourite way to learn). If you’ve spent any time following my social media or reading the blog, you’ll know I travel to eat. Despite all the horrible things that happen in this changing world, one of the constants is food. Feast or famine isn’t a term grabbed out of the thin air. Sitting down to a meal together is ubiquitous in any culture in every corner of the world. By cooking these recipes, I hope to learn more about cooking, culture and the world we live in.

So what country is first for the January recipe challenge?

CHINA!!!!!

In honour of the Chinese New Year, I’ve decided the first recipe challenge will be focusing on the one of the most diverse cooking cultures on the globe. What will I be making? How will I chose? You’ll have to wait and see until the end of the January, when I will be preparing a traditional Chinese meal.

While the list is complete for the year, I’m totally open to shaking things up if you are dying to see me fumble through the recipes of a particular region.

I’m also all about readers cooking the recipes along with me!

Give me your best shot!