This season on FX and Hulu bearChicago is tastier than ever. Combining mouth-watering food photography with plenty of laughs and drama, Season 3 of the award-winning show features celebrity chef cameos and recipe inspiration in nearly every episode, including during the opening credits. As chefs Carmie (Jeremy Allen White) and Sydney (Ayo Edebiri) work to make their menu worthy of a Michelin star, viewers will get to see a variety of delicious dishes, from delicate fish and scallops to easy slow-cooker dinners.
Of course, some of these dishes would be pretty difficult to recreate in your own kitchen (for example, not many people would make béarnaise sauce, whip it into a whipped cream tub, and serve it with wagyu beef.) But some dishes, like Carmy’s little veggie tart and Tina’s pot roast, could be adapted for the home cook. So we’ve rounded up 16 of our favorite dishes for this season. bearPlus, we’ll share some easy recipes you can cook along with the show the next time you watch it.
Episode 1: “Tomorrow”
Spinach and scallop pie
This season of The Bear kicks off with a trip back in Chef Carmie’s past, which means we get to see a mouthwatering carousel of Carmie’s previous haute cuisine creations. One dish Carmie has worked on with fellow chefs is scallops wrapped in spinach and puff pastry. You can make your own version of this scallop wellington at home with tender scallops, frozen puff pastry, and seasoned spinach. But if you’re looking for a similar flavor but with an easier recipe, try Prosciutto-Wrapped Scallops and Spinach. This simple, crowd-pleasing appetizer is brightened with lemon juice and lemon pepper seasoning, and can even be turned into a main dish with sautéed corn and freshly baked whole-grain sourdough bread.
Sauteed fish with blood orange
This fish dish is a tricky one from Carmie’s past: His former boss insisted on serving the delicate fish with a touch of fennel, but Carmie did it his own way, coming up with a blood orange version of the dish, served with a beautiful citrus sauce. To recreate this dish at home, we suggest making your favorite flaky fish (like this seared cod) and pairing it with a light, fresh pomegranate-and-mint citrus salad.
Episode 2: “Next”
Rough Draft Scallops
In Episode 2, Carmie adapts Bear’s opening menu, which also includes seared scallops and grain small plates. You can emulate Carmie’s dish with much less stress by choosing the Scallop Risotto with Brown Butter and Parmesan. Pair it with a light, fresh salad such as the Zucchini Salad with Burrata and you’ll have a delicious meal on the table in under an hour.
Vegetable tart
Carmie’s revamped menu also features small, colorful tarts, chock-full of delicately sliced and plated vegetables. A few options help you recreate the magic of veggie pastries, like the Potato and Leek Tart with Gochujang and Honey, and the Tomato Tart with Burrata. These two dishes help you recreate the beautiful, colorful dishes Carmie presented to Sydney. What’s more, these two tarts (and others, like the Roasted Carrot Tart with Carrot and Green Pesto) can be transformed into mini tarts. Just shorten the baking time and keep a close eye on the tarts. With a mini veggie tart on everyone’s plate, your dinner guests are sure to be impressed.
Raviolo
Another of Carmy’s somewhat controversial changes to the menu is the replacement of traditional ravioli with one large raviolo: the raviolo in question is stretched by hand and stuffed with egg yolk. Food and Wine Get your pasta making adventure underway by rolling out the dough, separating the eggs, and getting started right away. Pair the pasta with its delicious companions, topped off with a delicious Caesar salad with crispy Parmesan, and you’ll have a mouthwatering meal.
Episode 3: “The Door”
Asparagus and duck eggs
Although this dish doesn’t appear on screen, it’s one of the courses during The Bear’s opening week. Chefs Carmy and Syd serve this dish with a potato puree, but we might serve it as a simple salad with a bit of delicate cured ham, like their Asparagus Salad with Eggs and Bayonne Jambon. Of course, you can use duck eggs instead of the standard eggs used in this recipe, but be aware that, like Carmy, this may stretch your budget a bit.
Ravioli with pea and parmesan mousse
Chef Carmie has decided that Bear’s menu should change daily, which is why ravioli will be making a return to the menu. One day, the ravioli was served with a fresh pea and Parmesan mousse, which reminded me of hearty lobster ravioli, with a light cream sauce, vibrant green peas and tender lobster. Of course, you can use homemade pasta instead of store-bought pasta for a more delicious experience while also making for a fun project.
Duck with apricots (or cherries or oranges)
The Bear’s duck dishes are always changing, which can leave you a little overwhelmed later in the season. Luckily, we offer several fruity takes on this rich, juicy duck, including Orange Roasted Duck and Pomegranate Duck, to help make your culinary dreams come true. Pair either with something like our Cherry Almond Farro Salad for a lighter side dish that captures even more of the flavor of Chef Carmie’s duck sauce.
Episode 4: “Violet”
Roast Chicken
While there isn’t much food in this episode, we do see Carmie teaching Tina how to make a roast chicken in Bear’s sparkling kitchen. There are endless ways to make a truly great roast chicken, but our favorite is Grandma’s Polish Roast Chicken recipe, which produces crispy skin and tender meat that pairs perfectly with your favorite veggies and classic side dishes, like Green Bean Amandine and Zucchini Bites with Pesto and Burrata.
Episode 5: “Children”
Beef cheek potato gnocchi
Unfortunately, viewers won’t get to see this last-minute menu addition, which will join The Bear’s other rotating dishes in the weeks following the restaurant’s opening. If you’ve never made homemade pasta, gnocchi is a great place to start. Homemade Potato Gnocchi has just a few ingredients and can be paired with an equally simple sauce like No-Crust Slow Cooker Marinara Sauce. For protein, try copying Chef Carmie’s Slow-Cooked Beef Cheeks and my friend’s Braised Cheeks recipe. All RecipesStarting your meal off with some veggies with a salad like this one-spoon chopped salad is sure to get rave reviews.
Episode 6: “Napkin”
Slow Cooker Pot Roast
In this flashback episode, future chef Tina hits the streets of Chicago to find a new job after being fired. Her busy job-hunting days always start and end the same way: in the morning, she packs her son’s lunch and prepares the slow cooker, and in the evening, when she opens the slow cooker, a delicious meal awaits inside. We often see Tina hard at work on her slow cooker dinners, but the only thing she can clearly see at dinnertime is a classic pot roast. We recommend this Instant Pot Roast Beef because it cooks quickly and with no hassle, but you can also use your slow cooker for a spicy tomato braised pot roast. Tina combines her slow cooker with spending time with her family, but you can also pair it with something creamy like garlic mashed potatoes or cheese polenta.
Episode 9: “Apology”
Lasagna with crispy edges
After Sugar (Abby Elliott) gives birth, Sydney drops by her house to drop off a ton of pre-cooked meals that Sugar and her husband Pete can depend on for a few days. One of Sugar’s favorites is lasagna with crispy edges, which you can easily recreate at home. Our easy lasagna is simple and delicious, plus you can bake it in a shallow dish or add a few minutes to the cooking time to get those overcooked edges she loves. Either way, be sure to check your oven carefully; no one wants burnt lasagna with burnt edges.
Beef Stew
Sid’s comfort food classics also include a fragrant beef stew. Make your favorites with recipes like Slow Cooker Beef Stew. This combination of beef shoulder with Yukon Gold potatoes and carrots is a flavorful, hearty dish that everyone will love. Plus, with a slow cooker, you can finish cooking the stew while you run errands, go to work, or just enjoy the day at home. There’s nothing quite like coming home to the smell of delicious stew simmering on your counter.
minestrone
Soup is a must-have in any frozen care package. Sid opts for minestrone, a simple and delicious combination of veggies, broth, beans, and pasta or rice. One of our favorite versions is this Mom’s Minestrone, a hearty vegetarian soup that’s sure to have you stirring and munching away at the bowl. Serve with some fresh bread, like our Crusty Wheat Boule, to sop up any soup your spoon can’t quite grasp.
Beef Bolognese
Sid’s final suggestion was a container of fresh pasta and a container of flavorful beef bolognese. It looked so good that Pete asked to heat it up right away. Making fresh pasta is a manual process, but making the sauce doesn’t have to be. Recipes like Slow Cooker Pork Sausage Bolognese (or Slow Cooker Vegetarian Bolognese) give you that familiar, complex slow-cooked flavor without the constant attention you need in the kitchen. If you want to fully enjoy fresh pasta and bolognese, try our Fresh Pasta and Quick Bolognese Sauce. You can cut the cooking time for the bolognese down to about 35 minutes, so you can enjoy this flavorful meat sauce on any weeknight.
Episode 10 “Eternity”
Waffles with caviar and crème fraîche
Few TV funerals are as fun and light-hearted as the one at Ever, a Chicago restaurant run by chef Terry (Olivia Colman). When the funeral turns into an afterparty at Sydney’s house, nearly all of the show’s characters unwind with drinks and late-night snacks, including freshly baked frozen waffles topped with crème fraîche and caviar. This dish is probably the easiest to recreate (depending on your caviar budget these days), as it only requires three ingredients. If you have any leftover waffles, use them to make sweet sandwiches, like these strawberry jam and goat cheese waffle sandwiches.
