Christopher Kimball’s Milk Street Radio

According to journalist Zoë Schlanger, your garden isn’t just full of plants that are alive, but plants that can think—like the rice plant, which recognizes its own family members. Schlanger takes us inside a hotbed of scientific controversy: the study of plant intelligence. Plus, the Washington Post’s Joe Yonan masters the art of plant-based cooking; Grant Barrett and Martha Barnette help us wrap our heads around food wor...

Food writer Tim Hayward shares the juicy history of the steak. We take a peek inside the secret beefsteak societies of England and New York, learn a classic Argentinian salting method, and even try a steak from a 25 year-old-cow in Spain. Plus, Kenji López-Alt goes on a quest for the perfect teriyaki; Sara Moulton and Chris take your cooking calls; and we prepare a Sunflower Hummus from Georgia.

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This week, your favorite apples get ranked, mercilessly. Find out which apples comedian Brian Frange deems “horse food” and “indigestible filth,” and which crisp, glorious apples rise to the top of the heap. Plus, reporter Katie Thornton joins us to discuss the history and ingenuity of the Frankfurt Kitchen, the blueprint for space-saving kitchen design; Adam Gopnik revels in the alchemical wonder of stovetop cooking; and ...

We explore the cooking of Colombia with Mariana Velásquez, from homemade arepas to sweet panela that tastes like almost-burnt caramel. Plus, we learn about the secret world of creating food emojis with artist Yiying Lu, Adam Gopnik ponders the elements of dinner, and we present a recipe for Spicy and Sour Julienned Potato Salad with Sichuan Pepper. (Originally aired July 23, 2021.)

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In this special episode, we’re sharing an extended cut of our interview with Samin Nosrat. We discuss everything from fame and family to her current culinary obsessions. She shares her favorite salad dressings, go-to snacks and treasured old recipes, alongside exciting new flavors and techniques (whipped tahini! burnt honey!). Plus, hear how she found the sublime in food processor pesto.

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Following her 2017 hit—“Salt Fat Acid Heat”—Samin Nosrat is back with her second book, “Good Things”. We talk about fame, family and what she’s cooking; her favorite new flavors and techniques (whipped tahini! burnt honey!); and how she found the sublime in food processor pesto. Plus, James Ooi shares secrets from the Chinese supermarket and Chris and Sara Moulton are back and ready to take on more of your cooking question...

When Justin Davies cuts into a piece of wood, he wonders what it tastes like. Today, he shares his adventures in crafting desserts out of trees, from the bark infusion that made his tongue go numb to the ice cream concocted from an infamously smelly tree. Plus, Lidia Bastianich returns to answer your questions on pasta and pesto; we eat through the backroads of Vietnam with chef Anaïs Ca Dao van Manen; and writer Jenny Lin...

Is airplane food bad on purpose? Historian Richard Foss takes us through the turbulent history of food in flight, from extravagant meals aboard zeppelins, to the flaming Baked Alaskas once served en route to Singapore, to the truth about mediocre food service on planes today. Plus, Rebecca Rupp tells us how carrots won the Trojan War, Amanda Herbert shares a recipe for the world’s first macaroni and cheese, and we head to ...

For this special bonus episode, we share a story from the Points North podcast about blue moon ice cream—it's a wacky, surprisingly delicious and very blue ice cream flavor beloved in the Midwest. But no one knows what the flavor actually is, and ice cream makers are notoriously secretive about it. We hear about Morgan Springer's quest to find out more. Plus, we share a few of our all-time favorite ice cream stories: Journ...

This week we’re joined by Noor Murad—longtime recipe developer at the Ottolenghi Test Kitchen. She’s here to share cooking inspired by her home country, Bahrain. We talk about the magic of tahini dates, lamb with fenugreek, and spiced rice. Plus, Meathead is back to take more of your barbecue and grilling calls, from the rules of ribs to whether bones actually make your meat taste better; we learn how to eat like a Greek w...

Cowboys work hard—which means they need to be fed well. This week, hear how ranch cook Kent Rollins feeds cowboys out of his chuck wagon, serving up his famous coffee, steaks and “burger dogs.” Plus, Tove Danovich introduces us to Mike the Headless Chicken, as well as her brood of mail-order chickens and their complex emotional lives; Martha Barnette and Grant Barrett of “A Way with Words” make lemonade out of lemon idioms...

He cooked for the czar of Russia, the Rothschilds, and he even made Napoleon Bonaparte's wedding cake. He invented the chef’s hat and published the first recipes for soufflé and meringue, but you’ve probably never heard his name. This week, it’s the story of the world’s first celebrity chef: Marie-Antoine Carême. Plus, we’re joined by one of today’s best chefs, Enrique Olvera; Kenji López-Alt returns with a brand-new way t...

It's a very happy hour of Milk Street Radio: Chef Edward Lee returns for a tour of Kentucky’s bourbon distilleries, where the water is sweeter, the barrels are (accidentally!) charred, and the rickhouses are sacred territory. Plus, Gary Shteyngart recounts his wet, dry, twisted and dirty martini tour of New York City; Grant Barrett and Martha Barnette of “A Way With Words” reveal the surprising origin of the word “cocktail...

Adam Gopnik takes us on a tour of great food writing from the New Yorker in celebration of the magazine's centennial. We hear A.J. Liebling’s tip for finding a good restaurant in Paris, M.F.K. Fisher’s fantasy about potato chips and Calvin Trillin’s obsession over constructing the perfect bagel. Plus, Matt Goulding shares why paella is a hotbed of controversy; we explain why a cold oven is the secret to the best creme brûl...

Forget the bedroom: the kitchen is where relationships are made and broken. Journalist Ella Quittner reveals the many ways the kitchen causes problems in our love lives, and what psychologists say we can do about it. Plus, listeners call in with their own culinary feuds; writer Crystal Wilkinson recalls the kitchen ghosts and family recipes of her Appalachian childhood; and we make Pakistani-style Potato Stuffed Naan at ho...

We’re covering everything you've ever wanted to know about grilling and barbecue. First up, a road trip with Daniel Vaughn, barbecue editor at Texas Monthly. We taste whole-hog barbecue in Greenville, coffee-rubbed brisket in Nacogdoches and cow-eye tacos in Brownsville. Then, Meathead joins Chris on the phone lines for your toughest cookout questions; Kenji López-Alt makes the case for his favorite backyard dinner; and Gr...

Fire up the grill: This week, we’re covering all of your July Fourth favorites. We unravel the history of the hot dog with author Bruce Kraig and hear from Hot Dog Ambassador John Champlin about one unforgettable frankfurter. Plus, Ken Zuckerman of the National Mustard Museum touts mustard as the ultimate condiment; J. Kenji López-Alt takes grilled corn to the next level; and Rose Hattabaugh shares new ideas for an old fav...