Eric Ripert

Roast Monkfish in Sake Broth

A dish like this, combining deeply flavored ingredients (turnip, miso) with delicate ones (monkfish), calls for a wine that's neither too subtle nor too bold.

Octopus with Black Bean-Pear Sauce

Chef Eric Ripert is a master at weaving together unexpected ingredients, like this tender charred octopus with a sauce of salty fermented black beans and sweet pear. Finding a wine pairing for such a complex dish, however, is a challenge. "It needs a very aromatic wine, just to stand up to all the flavors,"says wine director Aldo Sohm.

Seared Tuna with Chimichurri Sauce and Greens

Lemon Confit

"I add lemon confit to so many dishes—from broiled fish to pork and beans," says Eric Ripert of New York City's Le Bernardin. He blends his lemon confit with butter to add a pleasantly pungent flavor to broiled snapper. Before broiling, he dots some of the lemon butter on the fish, then serves more lemon butter on the side. Lemon confit can be refrigerated for several months, but if you don't want to make your own, jarred Moroccan preserved lemons are a fine substitute.

Scallops with Orzo, Tomatoes and Ginger

Banana Soufflés

These simple, airy soufflés are the perfect marriage of Puerto Rican ingredients and French technique. In Puerto Rico, Eric Ripert pulled a couple of bananas off a tree to make this dessert.