The Splendid Table: Conversations & Recipes For Curious Cooks & Eaters

When it comes to cooking, do you follow a recipe to a T, or do you do a little improv? This week, we learn a lot about cooking by feel with the star of the Peabody and Emmy-award-winning show A Chef’s Life, Vivian Howard. She talks to Francis about how she “deprogrammed’ herself from precision cooking and started thinking outside of a written recipe. Plus, she sticks around to help answer your cooking questions. Vivian’s latest book is This Will Make It Taste Good. Then, we take advice from the scientist-turned-cook Nik Sharma, author of The Flavor Equation, on how to be intuitive with our food. Broadcast dates for this episode: January 22, 2021 (originally aired) January 28, 2022 (rebroadcast) November 1, 2024 (rebroadcast) When you shop using our links, we earn a small commission. It’s a great way to support public media at no extra cost to you! Celebrate kitchen companionship with a gift to The Splendid Table today.

Cookbook season is back, and we talk to the authors of some of our favorite picks. We're joined by Carolina Gelen, who talks to us about learning how to cook, her favorite Romanian dishes, and how she comes up with her signature recipes like Butter Beans alla Vodka, a fast, one-pot dish inspired by the famous vodka pasta sauce. Carolina is the author of Pass the Plate: 100 Delicious, Highly Sharable, Everyday Recipes. Then, Sonoko Sakai tells us how to “wafu” our food! Wafu means Japanese in style, and Sonoko takes familiar dishes and adds a little Japanese flair. Check out her recipe for her Pasta with Miso Bolognese Sauce. Sonoko is the author of Wafu Cooking: Everyday Recipes with Japanese Style. Then, Jody Eddy talks to us about the incredible food she found and cooked in religious communities around the world. She walks us through some of her favorite recipes, from condiments and Chicken soup in Tibet to a recipe she learned from a Minnesotan monastery, Honey Glazed Turkey Tinga. Jody's book is Elysian Kitchens: Recipes Inspired by the Traditions and Tastes of the World's Sacred Space. Broadcast dates for this episode: October 25, 2024 (originally aired) Sign up for our Weeknight Kitchen newsletter here and enter to win one of the incredible cookbooks featured in this episode. Donate to The Splendid Table today and we will show our appreciation with a special thank-you gift.

This week, we sit down with two chefs at the top of their craft. First, we talk to legendary baker Richard Hart about the inspiration behind his new book, Richard Hart Bread: Intuitive Sourdough Baking. He fills us in on why he thinks that humble bakers are the best bakers, how he really is just a simple “yeast farmer” and he shares his realistic thoughts on how to keep a sourdough starter. Check out his amazing recipe for Rye Wrapped in Fig Leaves. Then, we talk with chef Ashleigh Shanti about her connection to Southern food, from its complex regional histories to the culinary traditions of her beloved Appalachia. She leaves us with her take on a classic green bean recipe, Leather Britches. Ashleigh is the author of Our South: Black Food Through My Lens and owns Asheville’s Good Hot Fish. Broadcast dates for this episode: October 11, 2024 (originally aired) Donate to The Splendid Table today and we will show our appreciation with a special thank-you gift.

This week, we sit down with Evie McGee Colbert to talk about her latest book, co-authored with her husband, Stephen Colbert. She tells us about the dynamics in her family’s kitchen, the joys and challenges of cooking together during the pandemic, Charleston food traditions, and we take a listener question from one special caller! Evie’s latest book with her husband, Stephen Colbert, is Does This Taste Funny?: Recipes our Family Loves. She leaves us with her recipe for Salt and Pepper Wings. Then, we hit the road with musicians Alex Bleeker and Luke Pyenson to talk about their latest book, a collection of essays and interviews with musicians about life and eating on the road. They talk about their most memorable meals while on tour and the deep connection between musicians and food. Alex and Luke are the authors of Taste in Music: Eating on Tour with Indie Musicians. Broadcast dates for this episode: September 27, 2024 (originally aired) Generous listeners like you make The Splendid Table possible. Donate today to support the show

This week we’re sharing an episode of Food Network Obsessed, the official podcast of Food Network. On each episode, host Jaymee Sire welcomes your favorite chefs, food influencers and Food Network personalities to talk about how they started their food careers, who inspires them and what it’s like to cook on Food Network. On this episode, Jaymee is joined by Food Network Star winner and Outrageous Pumpkins personality, Damaris Phillips. She talks about her Kentucky upbringing in a family of home-chefs, the labor-of-love attitude at the heart of Southern hospitality, and introduces us to the iconic food and fanfare of the Kentucky Derby: the masks, the bourbon, everything! Plus, get inside details about how she developed her close friendship with her Food Network Star mentor, Bobby Flay and hear about the new challenges that will spice up this season of Outrageous Pumpkins.

This week, we talk with two incredible chefs about their culinary connections to their homes. First, chef Nini Nguyen talks about growing up in New Orleans and her connection to her tight-knit Vietnamese community. She shares the delicious Vietnamese foods she grew up eating and talks about how that upbringing shapes her cooking today, Nini is the author of Dǎc Biêt: An Extra-Special Vietnamese Cookbook, and she leaves with her recipe for Grilled Rice Paper. Then, we head to Ukraine with chef Yevhen Klopotenko to talk about his work rediscovering traditional Ukrainian dishes that were once suppressed under Soviet rule. He tells us about his work, providing recipes online that have reached thousands of schools and getting traditional recipes like Borsch, finally recognized as Ukrainian. Yevhen is the author of The Authentic Ukrainian Kitchen, and he left us with his recipe for Syrnyky, delicious Farmer cheese pancakes. Broadcast dates for this episode: September 13, 2024 (originally aired) Donate to The Splendid Table today and we will show our appreciation with a special thank-you gift.

This week, we talk about cuisines from opposite ends of the world. We start by diving into the first, traditionally-published cookbook about Salvadorian cuisine with Karla T. Vasquez. She collected traditional recipes and techniques while documenting stories from the hands that made the dishes. Karla is the author of The SalviSoul Cookbook: Salvadoran Recipes and the Women Who Preserve Them. She left us with her recipe for a delicious Salvadoran Quesadilla. Then, we explore Southern Thai regional cuisine with author Austin Bush. Austin researched the diverse and unique cuisine of Southern Thailand through travel and cooking alongside local cooks He’s the author of The Food of Southern Thailand and he leaves us with a recipe for Simple Thai-Style Rice Salad - Khaao Yam. Broadcast dates for this episode: August 30, 2024 (originally aired) Donate to The Splendid Table today and we will show our appreciation with a special thank-you gift.

This week, we take a deep dive into pizza with the co-author of the voluminous Modernist Pizza, Nathan Myhrvold. We get into the history, culture, and techniques behind great pizza. We hear stories from his worldwide travels and deep dives into pizza cultures and traditions. Plus, we hear about the culinary lab research devoted to making the best pizza ever, and he sticks around to answer your pizza-making questions. He is the founder of the Modernist Cuisine Lab. Then, we tune into our Family Kitchen series and hear from Journalist Liana Aghajanian about her childhood visits to Chuck E. Cheese and how she felt it was a magical food portal to America. Broadcast dates for this episode: September 24, 2021 (originally aired) September 30, 2022 (rebroadcast) August 23, 2024 (rebroadcast) Your support is a special ingredient in helping to make The Splendid Table. Donate today

This week, we’ve got delicious cooking ideas to brighten your summer. First, author Jess Damuck talks to us about her vegetable-forward food inspired by the 1970s health-food culture. She talks about revamping 1970’s health-food classics and re-working recipes with a modern eye to make them taste great. She leaves us with her recipe for Lentil Loaf. Jess Damuck’s latest book is Health Nut: A Feel-Good Cookbook. Then, we head to North Carolina to catch up with Chef Ashley Christensen. She takes on listener questions with Francis and shares some mind-blowing thinking around working with seasonal produce, including an idea a delicious, simple corn cob stock. Ashley is the chef at Poole’s Diner and Death & Taxes in Raleigh, NC, and author of the cookbooks Poole’s and It’s Always Freezer Season. She left us with a delicious recipe for Charred Summer Squash. Broadcast dates for this episode: August 16, 2024 (originally aired) When you shop using our links, we earn a small commission. It’s a great way to support public media at no extra cost to you! Donate to The Splendid Table today and we will show our appreciation with a special thank-you gift.

This week, we have stories centered around food, love, and legacy. First, we talk with author Michaele Weissman about meeting her husband's family for the first time, tasting his mother's bread, and later learning its significance and how it represented her husband's life. Her latest book is The Rye Bread Marriage: How I Found Happiness with a Partner I'll Never Understand. Then, we sit with Barkha Cardoz to remember her husband, the late Chef Floyd Cardoz. We talk about their meeting in culinary school in India to admiring how he would add flavor to everything he cooked. In his honor, she is releasing the masala spice blends they created together to continue his legacy. Then, we feature a segment from our sister podcast, The One Recipe, where Chef Pierre Thiam, author of the latest book, Simply West African, talks to host Jesse Sparks about the first time he introduced the love of his life to his aunt and the one recipe that ultimately passed the test, Sauce Feuille. Broadcast dates for this episode: August 18, 2023 (originally aired) August 9, 2024 (rebroadcast) When you shop using our links, we earn a small commission. It’s a great way to support public media at no extra cost to you! Celebrate kitchen companionship with a gift to The Splendid Table today.

This week, we take a close look into what makes a national cuisine. Anya von Bremzen talks about her most recent book, National Dish: Around the World in Search of Food, History, and the Meaning of Home. We get into the history, culture, and theories behind the popularization of dishes, from researching the “correct” way to make pot-au-feu in France to looking at the “pizza effect” and the role of borsch in her family’s history. She shares her mom’s recipe for Super-Quick Vegetarian Borsch. Then we get into what may be the Argentinian National drink – mate with Mate & Co.’s sommelier, Tomás Martín Sanchez. He explains the production process, its unique flavor, and the community it brings together with its communal drinking ritual. Broadcast dates for this episode: August 4, 2023 (originally aired) August 2, 2024 (rebroadcast) Generous listeners like you make The Splendid Table possible. Donate today to support the show

This week we have everything you need for summer. First up, it’s Stacey Mei Yan Fong with her new book, 50 Pies, 50 States. Stacey decided to commemorate all 50 states in the most American way she could imagine-through their pies! Everything from fruity to savory to salty pies, and she left us with her take on the Minnesota state pie, a Corn Dog-Hotdish Pie with Savory Funnel-Cake Topping. Then we talk to comedian and writer Jamie Loftus about her cross-country hot dog adventure. She takes a deep dive into its culture and history and ranks her top three hotdogs nationwide. Her latest book is Raw Dog: The Naked Truth About Hotdogs. Then, we head to an asada, a Mexican-American cookout, with Bricia Lopez. She talks about the must-haves for your bbq party this summer, from salsa spreads to beer cocktails and her favorite cuts of meat to grill. She leaves us her recipe for Citrus and Oregano Pollo Asado. Her latest book is Asada: The Art of Mexican- Style Grilling. Broadcast dates for this episode: July 21, 2023 (originally aired) July 26, 2024 (rebroadcast) Donate to The Splendid Table today and we will show our appreciation with a special thank-you gift.

Listen on: Apple Podcasts | Stitcher | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Pandora This week, we talk about life and food in Southern France. First, we sit down with Steve Hoffman to talk about his latest memoir, A Season for That, about his journey from Minnesota to the South of France with his entire family to live a romanticized French life. It turned out to be a complete culinary and culture shock that ended up inspiring his appreciation for the local food culture and its winemaking traditions. Steve Hoffman's latest book is A Season for That: Lost and Found in the Other Southern France. Then, we talk with author Rebekah Peppler about her connection to the South of France and its Provencal cuisine, which is the inspiration for her cookbook, Le Sud: Recipes from Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur. She walks us through Provencal dishes from tapenades to bouillabaisse, and she leaves us with her recipe for Mussels in Aioli. Broadcast dates for this episode: July 19, 2024 (originally aired)

This week, we're talking about the unique cuisine of Greece. Diane Kochilas, author and star of the public television show, My Greek Table joins us from Athens to talk about Greek regional cooking and explore the history and cuisine of the Greek American community. She also lets us in on her favorite dishes to prepare from her garden. Then, we sit with Tara Q. Thomas, who tells us all we need to know about Greek wine, from her favorite producers to the evolution of the pine resin in retsina wines. Then, we head to Queens to listen in on a Greek American family as they prepare their favorite stuffed cabbage, sarmades. Broadcast dates for this episode: July 9, 2021 (originally aired) July 8, 2022 (rebroadcast) July 12, 2024 (rebroadcast)

This week, we're all about two summer traditions. First, we meet photojournalist and documentarian Kate Medley to talk about her decade-long project documenting gas stations all across the South. She has stories about the amazing cast of characters, their diverse selection of foods, and their impact on their communities across the South. Kate Medley is the author of Thank You Please Come Again: How Gas Stations Feed & Fuel the American South. Then, we talk to the chefs behind Kismet, an award-winning vegetable-forward restaurant in Los Angeles. Sara Kramer and Sarah Hymanson bring us fresh ideas for your summer cookout, including their modern must-haves for your grill, like their Springtime Chicken Skewers. Sara Kramer and Sarah Hymanson's latest book is Kismet: Bright, Fresh, Vegetable-Loving Recipes. Broadcast dates for this episode: July 5, 2024 (originally aired) Your support is a special ingredient in helping to make The Splendid Table. Donate today

This week, we're exploring the history of women and beermaking. First, Theresa McCulla, curator of The Smithsonian's American Brewing History Initiative, explains why beer is a great lens to examine American history and shares the story of Patsy Young, an early American brewer and fugitive from slavery. Then, Atinuke Akintola Diver talks about her feature-length documentary This Belongs to Us, which follows Black women brewers in the American south and finally, beer Journalist Stephanie Grant of Good Beer Hunting shares her favorite beer and food pairings. You can find her newsletter, The Share, here and on Substack. Broadcast dates for this episode: September 9, 2022 (originally aired) September 15, 2023 (rebroadcast) June 28, 2024 (rebroadcast) Celebrate kitchen companionship with a gift to The Splendid Table today.

This week, we look at modern food and culture from two popular cuisines. First, we sit down with acclaimed food writer Khushbu Shah to talk about her debut cookbook, which is all about Indian home-cooked dishes. She shares ingenious hacks and delicious Indian-inspired recipes that can come together in a pinch using everyday pantry items, and teaches Francis how to make her Chili Cheese Toast. Khushbu Shah is the author of Amrikan: 125 Recipes from the Indian American Diaspora. Then, we are off to Korea with Deuki Hong and Matt Rodbard. We talk about why Korean cuisine has taken the world by storm, their travels to Korea to document modern Korean cooking, and how regional Korean dishes are showing up in many parts of Korea. Deuki Hong and Matt Rodbard’s latest book is Koreaworld: A Cookbook. They left us with their recipe for Sauteed Rice Cakes with Gochujang & Cream. Broadcast dates for this episode: June 21, 2024 (originally aired) When you shop using our links, we earn a small commission. It’s a great way to support public media at no extra cost to you! Donate to The Splendid Table today and we will show our appreciation with a special thank-you gift.

This week, we talk to two award-winning food writers about how to make the most of your vegetables and leftovers this summer. First up, award-winning vegetarian writer Hetty Lui McKinnon joins us to talk about her latest book Tenderheart, A Cookbook About Vegetables and Unbreakable Family Bonds. She talks to us about her father’s influence on her early life and how it inspired her vegetarian cooking career. She walks us through some of her favorite Chinese-inspired dishes made with a vegetarian twist, like her Sesame Mushroom Toast and Eggplant Char Siu and she sticks around to answer your cooking questions. Then, Tamar Adler, author of The Everlasting Meal Cookbook, brings fresh eyes to leftovers, from super quick ideas to elevate your cooking, like adding coconut water to your rice, and even ideas on what to do with your overcooked fish and those Cheeto crumbs at the bottom of the bag. Broadcast dates for this episode: June 9, 2023 (originally aired) June 14, 2024 (rebroadcast) Generous listeners like you make The Splendid Table possible. Donate today to support the show

This week, we spend an hour with one of Francis’ heroes, Chef Martin Yan. He talks about growing up in China, the time he spent working in the legendary wet markets, and how helping his mom in the kitchen gave him a lifelong lesson in seasonal cooking. From his journey to Hong Kong where he famously learned how to bone-out a chicken in 18 seconds, to his move to attend college in the US, to becoming a trailblazing culinary food show host of Yan Can Cook, his is a story full of determination, achievement, and his trademark humor. He is the author of over twenty cookbooks and is currently the host of Martin Yan, Quick and Easy Broadcast dates for this episode: August 27, 2021 (originally aired) September 2, 2022 (rebroadcast) June 7, 2024 (rebroadcast) Celebrate kitchen companionship with a gift to The Splendid Table today.

When it comes to seafood, frozen is the new fresh. We talk to seafood industry expert, Jennifer Bushman about how technology has improved the quality of frozen fish and how to make the most of canned seafood from your local grocery store. Her latest project is Sea Pantry, how to keep your pantry stocked up with ingredients from the sea. Then, Senior Editor of New York Times Cooking, Genevieve Ko brings us her best at-home seafood cooking tips and recipes. Broadcast dates for this episode: April 9, 2021 (originally aired) April 8, 2022 (rebroadcast) May 31, 2024 (rebroadcast) Generous listeners like you make The Splendid Table possible. Donate today to support the show