The Sporkful

What did dinosaur eggs taste like? In what shape would Jane Austen likely have had her dessert served to her? What does one of the world's leading paleontologists think of the paleo diet? How do you get maggots out of boiled sheep in the Gobi Dessert? How do you make ice cream on an uninhabited island in Madagascar in the summer? And how many ancient Aztecs would have had better teeth if they'd learned to eat corn by listening to The Sporkful? Dan gets answers to these questions and many more when he interviews the curators of a special food exhibit at the American Museum of Natural History entitled, "Our Global Kitchen: Food, Nature, Culture." This episode originally aired on February 10, 2013, and was produced by Dan Pashman. The Sporkful team now includes Dan Pashman, Emma Morgenstern, Andres O'Hara, Nora Ritchie, and Jared O'Connell. Publishing by Shantel Holder. Every other Friday, we reach into our deep freezer and reheat an episode to serve up to you. We're calling these our Reheats. If you have a show you want reheated, send us an email or voice memo at hello@sporkful.com, and include your name, your location, which episode, and why. Transcript available at www.sporkful.com. Right now, Sporkful listeners can get three months free of the SiriusXM app by going to siriusxm.com/sporkful. Get all your favorite podcasts, more than 200 ad-free music channels curated by genre and era, and live sports coverage with the SiriusXM app.

If you look at any list of best-selling cookbooks, certain words come up over and over again: quick, easy, fast, effortless. But is it actually possible to deliver deliciousness in no time? Or are these recipes too good to be true? This week, we talk with intrepid journalist Tom Scocca, who exposed the dirty secret about caramelized onions; recipe-writing legend Christopher Kimball; and food writer (and mom) Elizabeth Dunn, who’s sick of feeling bad when a recipe turns out to be harder than she expected. And we ask: Why do recipes that look simple on paper turn out to be very different once you get into the kitchen? Tom Scocca is the editor of Indiginity, and you can read his Slate story about caramelizing onions here. Christopher Kimball is the founder of Christopher Kimball’s Milk Street. Elizabeth Dunn co-writes the newsletter Consumed. The Sporkful production team includes Dan Pashman, Emma Morgenstern, Andres O’Hara, Nora Ritchie, and Jared O'Connell. Transcript available at www.sporkful.com. Right now, Sporkful listeners can get three months free of the SiriusXM app by going to siriusxm.com/sporkful. Get all your favorite podcasts, more than 200 ad-free music channels curated by genre and era, and live sports coverage with the SiriusXM app.

Dan sits down with the one and only "Weird Al" Yankovic, the man behind "Eat It," "Fat," "My Bologna," and so many other classic food-related parody songs. What would be his ideal ratio of cookie to white stuff in an Oreo? And which does he prefer, the rye or the kaiser? Plus, Dan takes issue with Al's suggestion in "Eat It" that it doesn't matter whether chicken or pie is boiled or fried. Also in this episode, a concerned 16-year-old in Idaho calls in to ask Dan how to learn to love onions. This episode originally aired on March 11, 2014, and was produced by Dan Pashman. The Sporkful team now includes Dan Pashman, Emma Morgenstern, Andres O'Hara, Nora Ritchie, and Jared O'Connell. Publishing by Shantel Holder. Every other Friday, we reach into our deep freezer and reheat an episode to serve up to you. We're calling these our Reheats. If you have a show you want reheated, send us an email or voice memo at hello@sporkful.com, and include your name, your location, which episode, and why. Transcript available at www.sporkful.com. Right now, Sporkful listeners can get three months free of the SiriusXM app by going to siriusxm.com/sporkful. Get all your favorite podcasts, more than 200 ad-free music channels curated by genre and era, and live sports coverage with the SiriusXM app.

Happy anniversary to us! This week The Sporkful is celebrating our 15th anniversary with a special episode sharing the story of the show’s creation, and tracing its evolution. Dan started The Sporkful in 2010 — the Stone Age of podcasting — recording episodes in his living room, or borrowed studios that he sometimes had permission to be in. But what began as a show dedicated to dissecting food minutiae eventually grew to incorporate more serious conversations, in-depth interviews, globe-spanning investigations — and even a couple of original musical compositions. In this anniversary spectacular Dan tells that story with the help of his wife Janie (an all-time favorite Sporkful guest) and a whole bunch of classic clips. The Sporkful production team includes Dan Pashman, Emma Morgenstern, Andres O’Hara, Nora Ritchie, and Jared O'Connell. Publishing by Shantel Holder. Transcript available at www.sporkful.com. Right now, Sporkful listeners can get three months free of the SiriusXM app by going to siriusxm.com/sporkful. Get all your favorite podcasts, more than 200 ad-free music channels curated by genre and era, and live sports coverage with the SiriusXM app.

In honor of The Sporkful’s 15th anniversary, for our Friday Reheats this month we’re pulling especially old episodes out of the darkest recesses of the deep freezer. Today, we’re defrosting our very first Sporkful episode ever, along with our episode on sandwich science with Radiolab co-host Robert Krulwich. These episodes originally aired on January 15, 2010 and May 17, 2010, and were produced by Dan Pashman and Mark Garrison. The Sporkful team now includes Dan Pashman, Emma Morgenstern, Andres O'Hara, Nora Ritchie, and Jared O'Connell. Publishing by Shantel Holder. Every other Friday, we reach into our deep freezer and reheat an episode to serve up to you. We're calling these our Reheats. If you have a show you want reheated, send us an email or voice memo at hello@sporkful.com, and include your name, your location, which episode, and why. Transcript available at www.sporkful.com. Right now, Sporkful listeners can get three months free of the SiriusXM app by going to siriusxm.com/sporkful. Get all your favorite podcasts, more than 200 ad-free music channels curated by genre and era, and live sports coverage with the SiriusXM app.

What makes the taste of a Meyer lemon so special? And why is there a secret society in Louisiana that holds a giant omelet festival every year? This week our friends at the The Atlas Obscura Podcast — which celebrates the world’s strange and wondrous places — bring us stories that answer each of those questions. First up, professional taster Mandy Naglich tells us the twisty history of the Meyer lemon, from the eccentric man it’s named after to the role it played in a citrus epidemic. Then we visit Abbeville, Louisiana, to eat that giant omelet, and learn about the French culture and history preserved in that town. The Sporkful production team includes Dan Pashman, Emma Morgenstern, Andres O’Hara, Nora Ritchie, and Jared O'Connell. Special thanks to host Dylan Thuras and the rest of the Atlas Obscura Podcast team: Amanda McGowan, Julia Russo, Katie Thornton, Johanna Mayer, Doug Baldinger, Chris Naka, Kameel Stanley, Manolo Morales, Baudelaire, Gabby Gladney, Alexa Lim, Casey Holford, and Luz Fleming. The Atlas Obscura theme music is by Sam Tindall. Transcript available at www.sporkful.com. Right now, Sporkful listeners can get three months free of the SiriusXM app by going to siriusxm.com/sporkful. Get all your favorite podcasts, more than 200 ad-free music channels curated by genre and era, and live sports coverage with the SiriusXM app.

Why does eating alligator seem more manly than eating chicken? Is coffee more “masculine” than tea? This week, comedian Michael Ian Black talks with Dan about manliness, and how it relates to food — a conversation they have as Michael decides to order salad at a pizzeria. "Are we really still going through this dumb, ritualistic flexing of our masculinity over the fact that I just want some greens?" Michael asks. "It’s so representative of something so destructive." Michael also shares some controversial pretzel opinions, and Michael and Dan bond over dad life in the suburbs. This episode originally aired on August 6, 2018, and February 7, 2022. It was produced by Dan Pashman, Anne Saini, Aviva DeKornfeld, Rob McGinley Myers, and Dan Dzula. The Sporkful production team now includes Dan Pashman, Emma Morgenstern, Andres O'Hara, Nora Ritchie, and Jared O'Connell. Every other Friday, we reach into our deep freezer and reheat an episode to serve up to you. We're calling these our Reheats. If you have a show you want reheated, send us an email or voice memo at hello@sporkful.com, and include your name, your location, which episode, and why. Transcript available at www.sporkful.com. Right now, Sporkful listeners can get three months free of the SiriusXM app by going to siriusxm.com/sporkful. Get all your favorite podcasts, more than 200 ad-free music channels curated by genre and era, and live sports coverage with the SiriusXM app.

Despite being the best-selling nonfiction author in UK history, Jamie Oliver didn't read a whole book until he was 38. He's dyslexic, and writes by dictation. Growing up, school was a huge struggle for him. When he began cooking as a kid it was the first time he thought, "I'm good at something." Today, Jamie Oliver has one of the most impressive resumes in the food world: chef, TV personality, restaurateur, multi-cause activist, and author. This week, Jamie tells Dan about his life story, including finding a new direction after the core of his restaurant empire collapsed. If you sign up for our newsletter by January 20 you’ll be entered to win a giveaway for Jamie’s new book, Simply Jamie: Fast and Simple Food. You’ll also be entered to win all future Sporkful giveaways. Open to US and Canada addresses only. This episode originally aired on February 3, 2020, and was produced by Dan Pashman, Emma Morgenstern, Harry Huggins, with editing by Tracey Samuelson. The Sporkful team now includes Dan Pashman, Emma Morgenstern, Andres O'Hara, Nora Ritchie, and Jared O'Connell. Transcription by Emily Nguyen. Transcript available at www.sporkful.com. Right now, Sporkful listeners can get three months free of the SiriusXM app by going to siriusxm.com/sporkful. Get all your favorite podcasts, more than 200 ad-free music channels curated by genre and era, and live sports coverage with the SiriusXM app.

We follow a young truffle dealer as he hustles his way across New York City selling white truffles out of a styrofoam cooler in his car for thousands of dollars a pop. Then we try to figure out why people pay so much for this funky fungus. This episode originally aired on November 27, 2016, and was produced by Dan Pashman, Shoshana Gold, and Elizabeth Kulas, with editing by Dan Charles. The Sporkful team now includes Dan Pashman, Emma Morgenstern, Andres O'Hara, Nora Ritchie, and Jared O'Connell. This update was produced by Gianna Palmer. Transcription by Emily Nguyen. Every other Friday, we reach into our deep freezer and reheat an episode to serve up to you. We're calling these our Reheats. If you have a show you want reheated, send us an email or voice memo at hello@sporkful.com, and include your name, your location, which episode, and why. Transcript available at www.sporkful.com. Right now, Sporkful listeners can get three months free of the SiriusXM app by going to siriusxm.com/sporkful. Get all your favorite podcasts, more than 200 ad-free music channels curated by genre and era, and live sports coverage with the SiriusXM app.

What foods do Sporkful listeners resolve to eat more of in the new year, and why? And what’s Dan’s New Year’s food resolution for 2025? All is revealed in our annual year-end spectacular. We also replay one of the Sporkful crew’s favorite episodes of the year, with comedian Gary Gulman. Gary did so many food bits early in his stand-up career that he joked he was "a strictly food-based comic." But as his comedy started to evolve in new directions, the role of food in his act changed, too. Instead of observational humor, Gary now uses food in a more personal way — from talking about ice cream as a window into his clinical depression, to skewering income inequality through a discussion of Pop-Tarts. Gary joins Dan to discuss his personal and professional evolution over the past 30 years, through a survey of his three decades of food jokes. Plus Gary shares an entirely new joke about the word “spork.” The Sporkful production team includes Dan Pashman, Emma Morgenstern, Andres O’Hara, Nora Ritchie, and Jared O'Connell. Transcription by Emily Nguyen. Transcript available at www.sporkful.com. Right now, Sporkful listeners can get three months free of the SiriusXM app by going to siriusxm.com/sporkful. Get all your favorite podcasts, more than 200 ad-free music channels curated by genre and era, and live sports coverage with the SiriusXM app.

When comedian Hari Kondabolu isn't delivering incisive jokes about politics and identity, he's dreaming of being locked inside a magical bakery. Hari tells us why you shouldn't ask him about Indian food, and shares his take on whether famous food scenes with Apu on The Simpsons are racist or not. This episode originally aired on May 6. 2018, and was produced by Dan Pashman and Anne Saini, with editing by Peter Clowney. The Sporkful team now includes Dan Pashman, Emma Morgenstern, Andres O'Hara, Nora Ritchie, and Jared O'Connell. This update was produced by Gianna Palmer. Transcription by Emily Nguyen. Every other Friday, we reach into our deep freezer and reheat an episode to serve up to you. We're calling these our Reheats. If you have a show you want reheated, send us an email or voice memo at hello@sporkful.com, and include your name, your location, which episode, and why. Transcript available at www.sporkful.com. Right now, Sporkful listeners can get three months free of the SiriusXM app by going to siriusxm.com/sporkful. Get all your favorite podcasts, more than 200 ad-free music channels curated by genre and era, and live sports coverage with the SiriusXM app.

It’s time for our Salad Spinner Year In Review! On today’s show, we discuss the strangest and most surprising food stories from the past year with Joe Yonan from The Washington Post and Nikita Richardson from The New York Times. We share some of the biggest food trends of 2024—the ones we want to see more of, and the ones we wish would go away—and later, the best things we ate this year. This leads us in some unexpected directions, including demanding justice for seed oils and dreaming of a nap inside a pita. Joe and Nikita also discuss their last-minute gift recommendations and their New Year’s food resolutions. (By the way: don’t forget to send us your resolution by December 18! Send a voice memo to hello@sporkful.com with your first name, location, and what you resolve to eat more of in 2025 and why.) Joe’s new book is Mastering The Art Of Plant-Based Cooking, and Nikita’s newsletter is Where To Eat. The Sporkful production team includes Dan Pashman, Emma Morgenstern, Andres O'Hara, Nora Ritchie, Jared O'Connell, and Giulia Leo. Transcription by Emily Nguyen. Transcript available at www.sporkful.com. Right now, Sporkful listeners can get three months free of the SiriusXM app by going to siriusxm.com/sporkful. Get all your favorite podcasts, more than 200 ad-free music channels curated by genre and era, and live sports coverage with the SiriusXM app.

In 2020, Samin Nosrat, author of the bestselling cookbook Salt Fat Acid Heat, and Hrishikesh Hirway, host of the podcast and Netflix show Song Exploder, teamed up to create Home Cooking, a podcast where they answer listeners’ cooking questions, make lots of bad puns, and share their passion for cookies, among other foods. They join Dan this week and accept a challenge: How much time can the three of them spend analyzing the most minute details of cookies? Plus, Dan and Samin resolve their olive beef. Here's how to make the pan-bang cookies in the episode. This episode originally aired on November 2, 2020, and was produced by Dan Pashman, Emma Morgenstern, Andres O'Hara, and Tomeka Weatherspoon, with editing by Tracey Samuelson. It was mixed by Jared O'Connell. The Sporkful team now includes Dan Pashman, Emma Morgenstern, Andres O'Hara, Nora Ritchie, and Jared O'Connell. This update was produced by Gianna Palmer. Transcription by Emily Nguyen. Every Friday, we reach into our deep freezer and reheat an episode to serve up to you. We're calling these our Reheats. If you have a show you want reheated, send us an email or voice memo at hello@sporkful.com, and include your name, your location, which episode, and why. Transcript available at www.sporkful.com. Right now, Sporkful listeners can get three months free of the SiriusXM app by going to siriusxm.com/sporkful. Get all your favorite podcasts, more than 200 ad-free music channels curated by genre and era, and live sports coverage with the SiriusXM app.

Kristina Cho and Bryan Ford have a lot in common. They’re both children of immigrants, third-culture kids who got into food not through restaurants or culinary school, but by launching their own blogs. They dreamed of quitting their day jobs so they could write about food full-time. And when they took that plunge, they wrote debut cookbooks that explored baking traditions that have long gotten short shrift in American food culture. This fall, Kristina and Bryan have each released their second cookbooks, where they’re getting more personal, and more in-depth, about the subjects that matter most to them. Kristina’s new book is Chinese Enough: Homestyle Recipes for Noodles, Dumplings, Stir-Fries, and More, and Bryan’s book is Pan y Dulce: The Latin American Baking Book. We’re giving away one copy of each book! To enter to win, all you have to do is sign up for our newsletter by January 6. If you’re already signed up, then you’re already entered to win. Open to US and Canada addresses only. The Sporkful production team includes Dan Pashman, Emma Morgenstern, Nora Ritchie, Jared O'Connell, and Giulia Leo. Transcription by Emily Nguyen. Transcript available at www.sporkful.com. Right now, Sporkful listeners can get three months free of the SiriusXM app by going to siriusxm.com/sporkful. Get all your favorite podcasts, more than 200 ad-free music channels curated by genre and era, and live sports coverage with the SiriusXM app.

We learn about the holiday drink that’s the centerpiece of Puerto Rican Christmas celebrations, and we hear how Hurricane Maria changed Christmas for one Puerto Rican family. This episode originally aired on December 3, 2018, and was produced by Dan Pashman, Anne Saini, and Shoshana Gold, with editing by Dan Charles. The Sporkful team now includes Dan Pashman, Emma Morgenstern, Andres O'Hara, Nora Ritchie, and Jared O'Connell. This update was produced by Gianna Palmer. Transcription by Emily Nguyen. Every other Friday, we reach into our deep freezer and reheat an episode to serve up to you. We're calling these our Reheats. If you have a show you want reheated, send us an email or voice memo at hello@sporkful.com, and include your name, your location, which episode, and why. Transcript available at www.sporkful.com. Right now, Sporkful listeners can get three months free of the SiriusXM app by going to siriusxm.com/sporkful. Get all your favorite podcasts, more than 200 ad-free music channels curated by genre and era, and live sports coverage with the SiriusXM app.

The holidays are a time when many of us have a few extra drinks — or spend time with people having a few extra drinks. This week we’re talking with LP O’Brien, an award-winning mixologist in Washington, DC. A couple years back, she decided to quit drinking, a decision that she says made her better at her job. We find out how that’s possible, and how it led LP into the quickly growing market for non-alcoholic drinks. She also tells Dan how she first stumbled into the world of high-end cocktails while studying for her nursing degree, and she shares what she drinks during the holiday season now that she’s sober. For a recipe for one of LP’s signature NA holiday drinks, visit our Instagram. The Sporkful production team includes Dan Pashman, Emma Morgenstern, Nora Ritchie, Jared O'Connell, and Giulia Leo. Transcription by Emily Nguyen. Transcript available at www.sporkful.com. Right now, Sporkful listeners can get three months free of the SiriusXM app by going to siriusxm.com/sporkful. Get all your favorite podcasts, more than 200 ad-free music channels curated by genre and era, and live sports coverage with the SiriusXM app.

The comedy icon discusses the role food can play in comedy and drama. Plus, he tells us why learning a new part is like eating spaghetti and how he reacts when people in the audience bring food into the theater. This episode originally aired on October 30, 2017, and was produced by Dan Pashman, Anne Saini, with editing by Dan Charles. The Sporkful team now includes Dan Pashman, Emma Morgenstern, Andres O'Hara, Nora Ritchie, and Jared O'Connell. This update was produced by Gianna Palmer. Publishing by Shantel Holder and transcription by Emily Nguyen. Every other Friday, we reach into our deep freezer and reheat an episode to serve up to you. We're calling these our Reheats. If you have a show you want reheated, send us an email or voice memo at hello@sporkful.com, and include your name, your location, which episode, and why. Transcript available at www.sporkful.com. Right now, Sporkful listeners can get three months free of the SiriusXM app by going to siriusxm.com/sporkful. Get all your favorite podcasts, more than 200 ad-free music channels curated by genre and era, and live sports coverage with the SiriusXM app.

"I've always been a fan of food," comedian Fortune Feimster says in her 2020 stand up special, Sweet and Salty. She joined the swim team in grade school just for the snacks. As a chubby kid who became a chubby adult, she often played her body for laughs. But in recent years her approach to both comedy and food has evolved. Fortune talks with Dan about struggling to hold back when you really love to eat. She also shares the lesson she learned from her grandmother, and tells the story of the meatball sliders that almost made her and her fiancé break up. Fortune's new special, Crushing It, will be available December 3 on Netflix. This episode originally aired on March 2, 2020 and was produced by Dan Pashman and Emma Morgenstern, with editing by Tracey Samuelson and mixing by Jared O’Connell. The Sporkful team now includes Emma Morgenstern, Andres O’Hara, Nora Ritchie, Jared O’Connell, and Giulia Leo. Transcription by Emily Nguyen. Transcript available at www.sporkful.com. Right now, Sporkful listeners can get three months free of the SiriusXM app by going to siriusxm.com/sporkful. Get all your favorite podcasts, more than 200 ad-free music channels curated by genre and era, and live sports coverage with the SiriusXM app.

Tunde Wey learned to cook at home with his family in Nigeria. Sean Sherman grew up on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota. Today they're both using food to explore politics and educate diners about the world beyond the dinner table. "Food is a delicious tool," says Tunde, "but it's pointing to something bigger." This episode originally aired on January 29, 2018, and was produced by Dan Pashman, Anne Saini, with editing by Peter Clowney. The Sporkful team now includes Dan Pashman, Emma Morgenstern, Andres O'Hara, Nora Ritchie, Jared O'Connell, and Giulia Leo. Transcription by Emily Nguyen. Every other Friday, we reach into our deep freezer and reheat an episode to serve up to you. We're calling these our Reheats. If you have a show you want reheated, send us an email or voice memo at hello@sporkful.com, and include your name, your location, which episode, and why. Transcript available at www.sporkful.com. Right now, Sporkful listeners can get three months free of the SiriusXM app by going to siriusxm.com/sporkful. Get all your favorite podcasts, more than 200 ad-free music channels curated by genre and era, and live sports coverage with the SiriusXM app.

A couple years ago, Abigail Keel started having debilitating attacks of vertigo. Once she got a diagnosis, the treatment seemed simple enough: reduce your salt intake to 1500 milligrams per day. But that change upended Abigail’s life in ways she never expected, altering her relationship with food, and leading her to question the way we think about medical diets in the first place. After all that, would the treatment at least help her vertigo? The Sporkful production team includes Dan Pashman, Emma Morgenstern, Nora Ritchie, Jared O'Connell, and Giulia Leo, with production this week by Abigail Keel. Publishing by Shantel Holder and transcription by Emily Nguyen. Transcript available at www.sporkful.com. Right now, Sporkful listeners can get three months free of the SiriusXM app by going to siriusxm.com/sporkful. Get all your favorite podcasts, more than 200 ad-free music channels curated by genre and era, and live sports coverage with the SiriusXM app.