Food with Mark Bittman

We revisit Kate's conversation with the writer (and ex-Mario Batali employee and former assistant to Anthony Bourdain) Laurie Woolever, who talks about how (and if) kitchen culture has changed since the early-aughts heydey; why she never felt like a victim; her memoir, Care and Feeding; and how Anthony Bourdain put people at ease—and why people loved him so much.

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New Yorker writer Hannah Goldfield talks to Kate and Mark about "intentional drinking"; how, right now, it feels like everyone is taking a stance on where we land on the drinking spectrum; how bars and restaurants are making drinking (and not drinking) easier to navigate; and mini cocktails. 

Read Hannah's recent piece, "The Age of 'Intentional' Drinking": https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2026/05/25/the-age-of-intent...

Baker Paola Velez talks to Kate and Holly about why and how she started Bakers Against Racism and how its influence and warmth has spread—and continues to spread; ad-libbing baked goods and feeling passionate about getting others confident enough in the kitchen to do it, too; and how romance played a factor in her career choice.

We've got recipes from Paola's book, Bodega Bakes!

Chocolate Malta Cake: https://bittmanpro...

Revisiting our interview with Nasim Alikhani, the wildly popular Brooklyn-based chef, who talked to Kate and Mark about why the slow cook makes Iranian food special, the best way to enjoy a dinner party, and leaving Iran for the US in the 1980s.

Get Nasim Alikhani’s recipe for Date Scrambled Eggs on the Bittman Project:

https://bittmanproject.com/recipe/nasim-alikhanis-date-scrambled-eggs/

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The prolific writer talks to Kate and Mark about why her mom told her not to learn how to cook (and how the kitchen is now her happy place), the big problem with mainstream veganism (and the food that ended her vegan journey), and using food and cooking to manage loss.

Subscribe to Food with Mark Bittman on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you like to listen, and please help us grow by leaving us a 5 star review on Apple Pod...

In this revisiting of a 2025 episode, writer, chef, and TV star Alton Brown talks to Mark and Kate about fame, "then" and now; the problem with memory—and memoir; falling up the stairs; his farewell tour; and eating on the road, monastically. 

Head to the Bittman Project for a special excerpt from Alton's collection of essays, Food for Thought: https://bittmanproject.com/alton-brown-meals-that-made-me-part-i/

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Liz Carlisle is an associate professor in the environmental studies program at UC Santa Barbara, Aubrey Streit Krug is the director of the Perennial Cultures Lab at the Land Institute, and Leah Penniman is an acclaimed activist and farmer who co-founded Soul Fire Farm in Grafton, New York. The three joined Kate and Mark to talk about why perennial foods should be seriously considered as part of the solution to the climate cris...

In this revisiting of a 2022 episode, Mark talks to beloved chef Sheldon Simeon about learning to butcher chickens in first grade, the divide between Hawaiian natives and tourists, and cooking for three days straight.

Sheldon's on Instagram: @chefwonder, and you can get a bunch of his recipes on the Bittman Project!

Shoyu Chicken: https://bittmanproject.com/recipe/shoyu-chicken/

Loco Moco Gravy Rice: https:/...

God's Love We Deliver CEO Terrence Meck and Northwell Health's chief experience officer Sven Gierlinger join Kate and Mark to talk about how they're feeding clients and patients (respectively) carefully, and well. The two chat about how their personal medical journeys got them to where they are today, how making and serving good food can actually save health care dollars, and how the emotion behind all of it can be the best pa...

Dylan Alverson is the owner of Modern Times—now called Post Modern Times—in Minneapolis, a restaurant that stopped charging customers for food during the violent ICE occupation (and that will continue to be free). Jason Finder is the Executive Director of Good Food Works and Salad Days, which offers free grab & go salads to public spaces and high-need constituencies throughout New York City. The two joined Kate and ...

The historian and author of "Picky" talks to Kate and Mark about the history of "children's food," how pickiness is positioned at the intersection of biology and culture, generating a set of standards to get us back to a more pleasurable relationship with food (and why it'll feel counterintuitive), and the fear of parenting in "older ways" (and why people who are doing so tend to not talk about it). 

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Thousands of workers at the JBS beef plant in Greeley, Colorado, one of the largest US meatpacking facilities, have gone on strike over alleged unfair labor practices—the first major strike at a US beef slaughterhouse in 40 years. We're revisiting our conversation with journalist Ted Genoways, who last year reported on allegations of human trafficking at the JBS plant: the viral TikTok video that started it all, the thousands...

The chefs, and owners of Philly's much-loved Honeysuckle, talk to Kate and Mark about how they personally define a "Black" dish; the two very distinct formats behind the food that typically represents the US Black diaspora; why their original business model didn't work and how they fixed it—and learned from it; and their big love story.

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In this revisited episode, Mark talks to award-winning actress Laura Linney about fantastic female roles, the parallels between cooking and acting, and her memories of the iconic Truman Show.

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The Nashville-based chef talks to Kate and Mark about how and why he finally feels recognized, how his drag has served as both a crutch and a hindrance—in the food world and elsewhere, and the priceless support he grew up with from his hippie parents (and why so much of what he does comes from that). 

Read an excerpt—and get some recipes—from Arnold's book, Family Thai, on The Bittman Project:&nb...

The supremely talented and charismatic writers talk to Kate about mail ordering fancy ice cream, the beauty of "store food," and watching hours and hours of TV together.

Get the recipe for Sam's Tuna Noodle Casserole: https://bittmanproject.com/recipe/samantha-irbys-tuna-noodle-casserole/

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The mother and son duo—co-authors of Heartland Masala—talk to Kate and Mark about what it was like to tour to more than 40 cities together (and, specifically, why it was so wonderful); "mock" authenticity and further thoughts on the authenticity conversation in general, especially as it relates to second-generation immigrants; and "fusion" versus "traditional." Plus: deep thoughts about butter chicken. 

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The chef and activist talks to Kate and Mark about why, for the first time in 25 years, he's overhauling the menu at Craft; what makes a restaurant popular (even when it's not good); where all the good cooks have gone; and why he dislikes sous vide so much. Plus: some great cooking tips.

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Food policy expert Marion Nestle chats with Mark about their initial reactions to the new dietary guidelines: what's good, what's bad, and what's disturbing. Plus: Is the current protein craze just a marketing scheme that's done particularly well for the marketers, or should we all be jumping on the bandwagon?

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