Dishes outside the traditional canon, like this Korean fried chicken, are making waves nationally as well as in and around Denver.

The Ethniche column began in May 2014 as a deep dive into the city’s international culinary scene, with each month devoted to four or five restaurants serving the cuisine of a specific country, region or culture. After a year, though, I changed tactics, looking instead for less common foods, whether traditional dishes from little-represented countries like Sudan (you can find unique egg and bean dishes at Aurora’s Sudan Cafe) or dishes from well-known countries that are rare here (like the champurrado I found at Tarasco’s New Latino Cuisine); I also compared different versions of dishes at several similar restaurants (an exploration of Sichuan peppercorns at three Chinese restaurants gave me an appreciation for numbing heat).

As 2015 came to a close, I realized that although I’d eaten my way through Hawaiian Spam rolls, Korean fried chicken, Jamaican oxtail and Southern barbecue in its many permutations, there is still plenty that Denver and its suburbs have to offer that I haven’t even touched — and plenty more coming our way on the culinary horizon.

I’m not a fan of New Year’s resolutions (the pile of unread books at my bedside and receipts for unused gym memberships will serve as evidence), but when it comes to food, I generally find a way to follow through on promises, inspiration and self-motivation. Many Americans have just committed to new diet and exercise regiments that they may or may not uphold, but I’m going in the opposite direction: I vow to eat more than ever in 2016 — not more calories, but with more variety, and from a greater variety of sources.