The Sporkful
The Sporkful is a James Beard Award-winning podcast that explores food not just as sustenance but as a lens to understand human behavior and culture. Hosted by Dan Pashman, the inventor of the viral pasta shape cascatelli, the show delves into the quirks and stories behind what we eat. It's designed for eaters, not just foodies, and has been named one of TIME's 100 Best Podcasts Of All Time.
Episodes
The Table Freda Built At Ebony Magazine
For decades starting in the 1940s, Ebony was one of the only magazines created by Black people that spoke directly to Black people. It showed Black Americans falling in love, playing sports, dressing in style, gathering together – and eating. Freda DeKnight was the magazine’s first food editor, publishing recipes that were international and sophisticated, challenging the stereotype that Black Amer
Rachel Maddow Fixed The Pina Colada (Reheat)
Piña coladas are way better in theory than in practice. Take it from MSNBC host Rachel Maddow. "The tragedy of the piña colada is that it was never wholesome. From the very start the piña colada was built on something horrible, which is Coco Lopez," she says, referring to the canned cream of coconut junk that's long been the stomachache-inducing base of the drink. This week Rachel tells us how she
Why Would Someone Run 31 Miles While Eating Taco Bell?
Last year we got an email from a young woman named Eleanor Sigel that said: “I’m training for the Taco Bell 50k. With ten Taco Bell stops in thirty miles, it should be a fun run, so I thought I'd invite you to join me.” While Dan had absolutely no interest in running 31 miles, eating that much Taco Bell, or combining the two endeavors into one, we decided to follow Eleanor as she took on the chall
Reheat: What's "Poor People's Food"?
Nicole Taylor went through a phase where she rejected the soul food she grew up with. She called it all "slave food." Truth is, we all make judgments about what food is for which people, whether or not we realize it. Why are we willing to pay more for Italian and Japanese food than Chinese and Mexican? As we find out in this week's Reheat, it has nothing to do with the ingredients. And in the seco
Live: Why Is Massachusetts So Obsessed With Dunkin’?
Matt Shearer, aka Reporter Matt, has made a name for himself with his social media stories about some of the quirkier denizens of Massachusetts. One of his most famous is about the massive public outcry over the closure of both locations of Dunkin’ in Stow, MA -- which led to a surprising development. Reporter Matt joins us live on stage at WBUR CitySpace in Boston, along with cookbook author Omi
How A Community Garden For Hospitality Workers Came To Life
Is mulch really necessary in the garden? How should you keep pests away from your strawberries? What’s the best way to keep your tomatoes from toppling over? As the weather warms up, we answer your most pressing gardening questions, with Keyatta Mincey. She’s the founder of A Sip of Paradise, a community garden for people in the hospitality industry in Atlanta. Keyatta tells us how she got this ga
Which Restaurant Serves The Best Free Bread In America?
Caity Weaver is a journalist who lives for a food quest. Her latest adventure has her crisscrossing the country in search of the best free restaurant bread in America. Now, after polling hundreds of people and traveling 13,000 miles, she’s convinced she’s found it.
Read Caity’s cover story in The Atlantic: “I Found It: The Best Free Restaurant Bread In America.”
The Sporkful production team includ
Are The Jell-O Heirs Cursed? (Reheat)
Allie Rowbottom’s great-great-great uncle bought the patent to Jell-O from its inventor in 1899 for $450, then sold it in the 1920s for $67 million — nearly a billion dollars in today’s money. Lately, Allie’s been obsessed with how all that Jell-O money shaped America, and her own family. It’s funded generations of Rowbottom women, including Allie, but it’s also been a shadow they can't escape. Je
This Afghan Restaurant In Houston Tastes Like Home
Over the past few years, Houston has taken in more Afghan refugees than any other American city. When refugees arrive, Omer Yousafzai is there to welcome them. He owns The Afghan Village restaurant, which has become a community hub and gathering place for Afghans and non-Afghans alike. This week Dan heads to Houston to share a meal with Omer at his restaurant. Over palau and kabobs — cooked with t
Mo Rocca Likes Big Ravioli, And He Cannot Lie (Reheat)
Humorist, CBS Sunday Morning correspondent, and former Cooking Channel host Mo Rocca joins Dan to talk about his grandma, debate whether square or round ravioli is better, and tell us which variety is the Kenny G of ravioli. Plus Mo and Dan debate Latin grammar, and Mo tells us about a meal that almost killed him.
This episode originally aired on September 22, 2014, and September 19, 2016, and was
When In A Relationship Can You Double Dip Without Asking?
Do you need to ask your partner if you can double dip? How guilty should you feel about not eating leftovers? We’re taking your calls and helping you settle your food disputes! Joining Dan to help are Ham El-Waylly, author of Hello, Home Cooking, and Pailin Chongchitnant, who just released a tenth-anniversary edition of her book Hot Thai Kitchen. We also puzzle through questions about when to take
Can Natasha Leggero And Moshe Kasher Save Dan's Marriage? (Reheat)
First up in this Reheat double-header: The comedian and podcast host Phoebe Robinson tells us how to navigate a big meal in tight jeans, who should pay on a first date, and what it’s like to go out to eat when you’re in an interracial relationship. In the second half: Husband-and-wife comedians Natasha Leggero and Moshe Kasher co-host a podcast and often perform standup together. In their Netflix
Eva Longoria Is A Huge Food Nerd
Eva Longoria is a household name for her work as a TV star, director, and producer. But when she sits down with Dan, she reveals another side of her personality: She’s a huge food nerd. She explores this side in her new CNN show, Searching for France, and on her podcast Hungry for History. This week, Eva shares some of the most surprising things she’s learned in the Searching For series, from how
What Makes A Sandwich A Sandwich? (Reheat)
Is a buttered roll a sandwich? What about a hot dog? Is it still brunch if it’s 2pm? Should sparkling water be called water? Dan debates food and language with Peter Kim, formerly of the Museum of Food and Drink in NYC, and Helen Zaltzman from The Allusionist podcast.
This episode originally aired on April 27, 2015, and was produced by Dan Pashman and Anne Saini. The Sporkful team now includes Dan
A Rare Look Inside Food At Disney World
Years ago, when Dan was at Disney World with his family, he saw a gumbo recipe on the wall in the queue for Tiana’s Bayou Adventure. Since then, he’s wondered: Is the recipe real? Where did it come from? This week, he finds out the answer, and much more, when he gets a rare look behind the scenes at Disney World. Dan meets several Imagineers, the designers behind so many of the magical elements at
The REAL Sausage King Of Chicago (Reheat)
Live on stage from Chicago! Hot Doug explains why he turned down millions and closed his famous sausage shop. Plus, filmmaker and food writer Kevin Pang talks about his documentary, For Grace, about Chef Curtis Duffy. Chef Curtis joins us to discuss his journey to the top, and to reveal his favorite candy.
This episode originally aired on August 3, 2015, and was produced by Dan Pashman and Anne Sa
The Mysterious Case Of Alpha Gal
For the first 40 years of her life, Amy Pearl was a card-carrying member of the meat club; she literally had a credit card from the famous Brooklyn steakhouse Peter Luger. Then one day she ate a porterhouse steak, and nearly died. This week we join forces with our friends at Radiolab to tell the story of how Amy's mysterious allergy was identified by scientists. Plus, she tells us how the allergy
Live: Kenji López-Alt No Longer Calls His Recipes “The Best” (Reheat)
Chef, YouTuber, and cookbook author J. Kenji López-Alt joins Dan on stage at Swedish American Hall in San Francisco to celebrate the release of Kenji's new book, The Wok: Recipes and Techniques. It wouldn't be a Kenji interview without some science, so we delve into what's happening, thermodynamically, when you cook with a wok. But we also go deep on how Kenji became the internet cooking science g
Live: Kenji Lopez-Alt And Judy Gold Debate The State Of The Bagel
Should bagels ever be toasted? Why does the restaurant industry have so many scandals? And what could possibly possess someone to feed their baby a straight-up stick of butter? We answer all these questions and more in this very special live edition of the Salad Spinner — our rapid-fire, roundtable discussion of all the biggest and buzziest food news of the moment. Joining us in the Spinner are be
A Passover & Easter Doubleheader (Reheat)
We ponder the question that Jews have been pondering since they crossed the desert: Can matzoh be salvaged? We also discuss techniques for dipping your egg into salt water, and trivia that will make the Earl of Sandwich tremble in his grave. Plus, in preparation for Easter Sunday, we debate whether spiral cut ham represents one of humanity's greatest achievements or its impending downfall. Co-host
The Seafood Proxy Battle Between China And Japan
Last year, in the midst of a political spat between China and Japan, China enacted a ban on importing Japanese seafood and warned Chinese citizens that visiting Japan was unsafe. But the impact of these policies hasn’t been quite what China intended. This week Dan visits Tsukiji Market in Tokyo with reporter Kurumi Mori, then eats at one of Beijing’s many sushi restaurants with local food experts
Beer Serving Techniques (Reheat)
How much foam is too much? Bottles or cans? Pint glasses or tulip glasses? Plus we discuss beer-filled guitars and absurd beer packaging gimmicks.
This episode originally aired on September 13, 2010, and was produced by Dan Pashman and Mark Garrison. The Sporkful team now includes Dan Pashman, Emma Morgenstern, Andres O'Hara, Kameel Stanley, and Jared O'Connell. This update was produced by Gianna
What Happened When China Legalized Restaurants
In the 1980s and ‘90s, China went through a massive economic transformation. New government policies allowed everyday people to open their own businesses and accumulate wealth. Rural folks moved to cities in huge numbers in search of opportunity. And for the first time, privately-owned restaurants were allowed to open. In the 40 years since, an entire restaurant scene has been created — something
Padma Lakshmi Was An Ice Cream Mule (Reheat)
Is Padma Lakshmi a model-turned-TV-star who's grown accustomed to the finer things? Or a down-to-earth mom who reuses takeout containers for her leftovers? Is she warm and hospitable, the kind of person who's excited to share her food with you? Or is she frank and snarky, the kind of person who compares her favorite dish to old bong water? Is she an Indian who grew up partly in America, or an Amer
No Somali Artifacts Were Harmed In The Making Of This Cookbook
Somali cuisine is a mixture of many traditions, from meat prepared according to nomadic customs, to a spice mix made possible by medieval Indian Ocean trade routes. There are even pasta dishes, owing to Italian colonization until 1960 – and you’ll often find a banana served on the side. Ifrah F. Ahmed has made it her mission to document and preserve the food of Somalia in her new cookbook, Soomaal
Breaking The Ramadan Fast In A Cab At 50 MPH (Reheat)
Dan fills a taxi full of food and takes it to JFK Airport at sundown to break the Ramadan fast with Muslim cab drivers. What could go wrong? Plus a Texan talks about embracing her Muslim roots after 9/11 and fasting on Ramadan for the first time when she was in her thirties. And Arab-American teens reveal the best and worst parts of Ramadan.
This episode originally aired on June 29, 2015, and was
Asma Khan Says Women Shouldn't Cook For Free
The London restaurant Darjeeling Express is the place to go for an outstanding mutton kebab, and for celebrity sightings. But the chef behind this hotspot has no formal culinary training. Asma Khan started her cooking career hosting secret supper clubs in her apartment, when her husband was traveling for work. Now she's staffed her restaurant entirely with women, all of whom learned to cook as hou
Danny Trejo, From Lockup to Donut Shop (Reheat)
Danny Trejo is a Hollywood legend. He's been in nearly 400 films, often playing the kinds of characters you wouldn't want meet in a dark alley. When he was in his seventies, his career took a turn: The L.A. native became a successful restaurateur. This new chapter is especially surprising considering that 50 years ago, Danny was a drug addict who couldn't stay out of prison. In this show taped liv
When ICE Came, This Minnesota Restaurant Stepped Up
El Burrito Mercado has been a bedrock of West Side community in St. Paul for nearly 50 years. It’s changed a lot over that time, evolving from a small grocery store into a restaurant, deli, bakery, and so much more. Now, it’s had to change again, as thousands of federal immigration agents have descended on this Twin Cities neighborhood over the past few months. Milissa Silva, the co-owner and CEO
How To Read A Taco (Reheat)
Professor Steven Alvarez believes you can read a taco. Look at the meat, the spices, and the tortilla. Each ingredient has a story that unlocks something about Mexican and American history and culture. This idea is the basis for Steve’s “Taco Literacy” course at St. John’s University in New York City. This week, we go on an end-of-semester taco crawl with Steve’s class. Turns out, you can judge a
Catching The Codfather
For decades, Carlos Rafael owned the biggest fleet of boats in the most valuable fishing port in America: New Bedford, Massachusetts. He was so powerful in the fishing industry there, he became known as The Codfather. That is, until an IRS sting brought it all crashing down. This is the first episode of a brand new series from Ian Coss and WGBH News called Catching The Codfather. Episode 2 is up n
Till Pork Do Us Part (Reheat)
Dan and his wife Janie are both white and Jewish, both raised in the New York area. In many ways it's an easy fit. But not so much with food, because Janie grew up kosher and Dan didn't. In this episode, they talk about navigating food tension in their relationship and ask Janie's mom how she feels about the choices they've made.
This episode originally aired on August 10, 2017, and was produced b
Is Halal Pork… Possible?
The writer Aymann Ismail, a practicing Muslim, grew up not eating pork. But as he got older, he became curious about why eating pork was a line that even less observant Muslims wouldn’t cross. So when a new loophole product hit the market, Aymann was faced with a choice — one that brought up questions of faith, tradition, and whether changing your food habits changes who you are.Aymann’s memoir is
Lunchtime With The Simpsons (Reheat)
Dan’s dreams come true when he visits The Simpsons writers’ room to talk about the role food plays on the show and behind the scenes. Turns out the writers are just as obsessed with food as all of the show’s food jokes suggest. Plus, Simpsons creator Matt Groening explains how new technologies have changed the show’s food jokes over time.This episode originally aired on August 13, 2018, and May 30
Sporkful Dating Game: Suitcase Full Of Cheese Edition
This week, The Sporkful plays matchmaker! We put out the call for Sporkful listeners looking for love, and many of you responded. We used our proprietary algorithm (i.e. a producer looking at a spreadsheet) to set up and record two blind dates — one in New York and one in Chicago. Will their love smolder like a kebab on a hot grill? Or will they repel each other, like oil and vinegar in a salad dr
How Prison Ramen Saved My Life (Reheat)
When Gustavo “Goose” Alvarez was 18, he was sent to prison for the first time. When he arrived, the other incarcerated men wanted to know if they could trust him — so they handed him a plate of cheesy tacos, and got to know him over that shared meal. From there, Goose learned all kinds of prison cooking tips, including how to use razor blades to boil water and the recipe for a coffee drink called
The Great Super Bowl Snack Debate
Michael Ian Black and Tom Cavanagh are great comedic actors and friends who love to analyze snacks in extreme detail on their podcast, Mike and Tom Eat Snacks. In this special crossover episode ahead of the Super Bowl, Dan tells Mike and Tom about the time his overly ambitious Super Bowl snack idea went very wrong. They also get into a fiery debate about chicken wings and put different shapes of t
2 Chefs And A Lie: Canadian Prime Minister Edition (Reheat)
Dan gives up the hosting chair and becomes a contestant in our most popular (and only) Sporkful game show, 2 Chefs And A Lie! The game is simple. Dan talks with three “chefs.” Two are real, and one is a faker with a made-up resume. Dan gets five questions per chef to determine who’s legit, and who doesn’t know their bass from their elbow. The best part: You can play along! Can you spot the fake ch
Tom Papa Quit Vegetarianism After One Visit To An Italian Deli
Veteran comic Tom Papa’s love of food began as a kid, when his dad recruited him for over-the-top food challenges — including eating a massive steak that won Tom a t-shirt. As an adult he became obsessed with bread baking after his daughter gave him a sourdough starter for Christmas. Tom explains how baking bread is like comedy, and what his fridge says about his current stage of life. Plus, he an
Elle Simone Scott Brought More Compassion To The Kitchen (Reheat)
Elle Simone Scott recently died of ovarian cancer at the age of 49. This week's Reheat is our conversation with Elle from 2021.Elle once said that a food stylist’s job is to tell the story of the food — and in her work on shows for Bravo, Food Network, and America’s Test Kitchen, she went to great lengths to do just that. Combing through boxes of cereal for the best-looking cornflakes? Check. Thro
At 90, Jacques Pépin Is Still Teaching And Learning
Jacques Pépin just turned 90, and he’s spent his career defying expectations. By 1958, at the age of 23, he had cooked for three French presidents. But he left that life to work at a high-end restaurant in New York, then gave that up to cook at Howard Johnson’s, making food for the masses. After a life-altering accident, Jacques found his next love: teaching other people how to cook. By the early
Is It OK To Eat All Your Popcorn Before The Movie Starts? (Reheat)
The Sporkful Family Food Court is back in session. A husband and wife debate when to eat movie popcorn, and a mother and daughter argue over whether eating salad dressing makes you an adult. This episode originally aired on February 8, 2016, and was produced by Dan Pashman and Anne Saini, and enginnered by Bill O'Neill. The Sporkful team now includes Dan Pashman, Emma Morgenstern, Andres O'Hara, K
Is It Wrong To Eat Popcorn At The Movies?
French podcaster Samia Basille loves going to the movies. And she enjoys popcorn. But she doesn't think the two should ever be combined. (Many other French people feel the same way.) When Samia spent a few months living in New York, it left her wondering: Why do Americans insist on chowing down on popcorn while watching a movie? This simple question sent her on a quest to understand the history of
Katie's Year In Recovery (Reheat)
We follow one woman's attempt to recover from an eating disorder and hear what it’s like to wake up each morning and have to fight a battle not only with food, but more importantly, with yourself. It's a rare look inside one person’s struggle. We also hear from her husband and explore her decision, early in recovery, to become a baker.If anything this episode sounds familiar, you can get more info
Why Are Root Beer Floats Special? Because Science!
Should you rinse ice before you pour a carbonated drink over it? What’s the best way to store fresh bread? And is there a reason to drink room temp water between bites of ice cream? Daniel Gritzer, editorial director of Serious Eats, and Swetha Sivakumar, who writes a food science Substack, join Dan to answer your food science questions. They also help Grace in Minneapolis, whose fresh bread dispu
Cold Case: Office Fridge Food Theft Edition (Reheat)
It’s Elkhart, Indiana, 2001. Two inches of Heather Coleman's turkey club disappear from her office fridge. The thief is nowhere to be found. And Heather’s life will never be the same. In this tribute to the hit podcast Serial, we investigate the shocking true story of an office fridge food theft.This episode originally aired on March 12, 2015 and May 9. 2022. It was produced by Dan Pashman, Anne S
Stanley Tucci Always Keeps A Martini Kit On Set
Stanley Tucci nearly broke the internet in 2021 when he made a Negroni on Instagram. But long before that, the award-winning actor built his career around his love of food. He created the iconic food film Big Night, he’s written best-selling cookbooks, and now he eats his way through Italy on the show Tucci In Italy. In 2021 he released a memoir, Taste: My Life Through Food, which includes the rev
A Hip Hop Track Inspired Bryant Terry To Go Vegan (Reheat)
“So often when we talk about veganism, we don't imagine Black people,” says Bryant Terry, the James Beard Award-winning cookbook author, chef, and educator. But Bryant sees veganism as deeply rooted in Black communities and traditions. And, he points out, veganism is growing faster among Black Americans than among any other group. After publishing another popular vegan cookbook in 2020, Bryant rel
New Year's Food Resolutions 2026
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 2026? All is revealed in our annual year-end spectacular. We also replay one of the Sporkful crew’s favorite episodes of the year. Scott Wiener, founder of Scott’s Pizza Tours, has made a name for himself as one of the most knowledgeable and passionate pizza experts in
Elevating Airplane Food To New Heights (Reheat)
This episode is chock full of strategies for making your way in one of the world's most barren food wastelands. We cover both the airport and airplane, short domestic flights and long haul international flights, snacks, entrees, and more. We'll tell you how to mix your cocktail, how to use your pretzels to improve your other food, how to get served first, and how to end up with enough beverages to
How Do You Steal A Truckload Of Tequila? (Salad Spinner Year In Review)
From a moisturizer made of beef fat, to bartenders hating on Gen Z, to tariffs, a lot happened this year. (How do you get away with stealing 100,000 eggs and a truckload of Guy Fieri’s tequila?) We cover the biggest and strangest food stories of 2025 in our Salad Spinner Year in Review! Helen Rosner, staff writer at The New Yorker, and Yasmin Tayag, staff writer at The Atlantic, join us to discuss
Patti LaBelle Says She Cooks Better Than She Sings (Reheat)
Patti LaBelle is not just a music icon, she’s also a food icon. She’s written best-selling cookbooks, hosted a food TV show, and even cooked for Elton John, The Rolling Stones, and Prince. She talks with Dan about touring the segregated South in the ‘60s, the viral video that made her sweet potato pie a Walmart sensation, and the one recipe in her cookbook that’s perfect for women going through me
Samin Nosrat’s Success Looked Different Behind Closed Doors
It’s been eight years since Samin Nosrat published her smash-hit cookbook, Salt Fat Acid Heat. She says her whole adult life was on a trajectory toward that book. But in the aftermath of its success, Samin ended up in a dark place, struggling to understand why achieving her goals didn’t fix her problems. This week she tells us about that time, and how it eventually led her to write her new book, G
Can We Go Viral On TikTok? (Reheat)
TikTok is the wild west of the food media world. It’s less professionalized than Instagram and YouTube, and it holds the promise of virality from the very first time you post. So we wondered: What actually makes a food TikTok go viral? To find out, we consult Bettina Makalintal, a food journalist and culture critic (who also makes her own TikTok videos), and Professor Emily Contois, who studies fo
Seed Oils Are The Latest Battle In The Cooking Fat Wars
In America, the cooking fat you use — lard, butter, shortening, oil — has long been a signifier of health, virtue, and class. What is it about fat that gets us so riled up? Reporter Adwoa Gyimah-Brempong looks at four battles over cooking fats in America over the last 150 years, starting with lard vs. Crisco, all the way to our current panic over seed oils. What do these battles tell us about food
What Should Be The Last Cheese On Earth? (Reheat)
This week we’re reheating two call-in episodes from 2015. First: Two Sporkful listeners call in to debate the best way to make enchiladas: flat (lasagna style) or rolled. Can Dan's advice restore peace and save Enchilada Party Night? Next up: Adam and Jonathan in L.A. call in to debate a dystopian future with only one cheese and to explain why cheddar is like Hugh Grant. Then Erica in Illinois pon
What’s It Like To Cook With A Brain Injury?
How does a traumatic brain injury affect the way you cook and eat? Filmmaker Cheryl Green, who has a brain injury, satirizes her own experiences in the kitchen in a short video called “Cooking With Brain Injury.” This week Dan talks with Cheryl about what it means to live with an invisible disability, how it affects her cooking, and why asking for help can be a beautiful thing. Plus, Cheryl record
Hosting Thanksgiving With Amy Sedaris (Reheat)
Amy Sedaris offers advice on dealing with family members who are drunk or confrontational at the holidays. Plus, Robert Krulwich (formerly of Radiolab) on the time a turkey fell in love with his wife.This episode originally aired on November 21, 2014, and was produced by Dan Pashman, Kristen Meinzer, and Anne Saini. The Sporkful team now includes Dan Pashman, Emma Morgenstern, Andres O'Hara, Kamee
The Last Meal Roy Wood Jr. Made For His Father
Roy Wood Jr. has long used humor to discuss topical issues and get at deeper truths. As a correspondent for The Daily Show, and now as the host of Have I Got News For You on CNN, he brings his own unique sensibility to political comedy. In his new memoir, The Man Of Many Fathers, he goes deep on his complicated relationship with his father, and the role food played in crucial moments of his childh
In The Test Kitchen With Dan Souza & Lisa McManus
Today we’re bringing you a conversation Dan had on the new podcast In the Test Kitchen, from America’s Test Kitchen. Hosts Dan Souza and Lisa McManus welcomed Dan into their Boston studio to dive deep into the world of pasta design, exploring what makes a perfect noodle and how texture, sauce-holding power, and mouthfeel come together in the ultimate bite. Plus, the ITTK hosts get into gear testin
What Is Colorado Style Pizza?
We all know the classic regional pizza styles: New York, Chicago, Detroit. But Colorado? If you haven’t heard of that one, you’re not alone. Paul Karolyi, a reporter and executive producer of City Cast Denver, spent six years trying to uncover the story of how Colorado style pizza was invented, and why more people don’t know about it. This week we hear the tale of his epic quest, and enlist pizza
Phil Rosenthal Has A Menu Strategy (Reheat)
Wherever Phil Rosenthal goes, he wants to eat — which explains the name of his Netflix show, Somebody Feed Phil. He travels the world with wide eyes, an empty stomach, and a bottomless supply of delight at the people and food he encounters. And before Somebody Feed Phil and his new podcast Naked Lunch, Phil created the hit sitcom Everybody Loves Raymond, which used food as a key source of tension
How Did Tony Shalhoub Learn To Play A Chef On Screen?
Tony Shalhoub is an actor whose roles skew towards the quirky and neurotic — and his characters’ quirks often come out through food. In the classic 1996 film Big Night, Tony plays an uncompromising Italian chef whose Jersey Shore restaurant is on the brink of failure. In the TV show Monk, he plays a detective with OCD who has many strong opinions about how he wants his food. In The Marvelous Mrs.
A Comprehensive Candy Treatise For Halloween (Reheat)
This week we're talking about a number of key candy issues with special guests in time for Halloween. You'll hear from a Colorado-based Eater whose highly comprehensive candy treatise is on our blog and a candy blogger who has a Kit Kat eating technique that is bound to cause sustained widespread controversy or at the very least an significant uptick in chocolate-smeared fingers.This episode origi
What Makes Dorie Greenspan’s Recipes So Good?
Ask folks in the world of food and cookbooks, “Who writes the best recipes?” and you’ll hear one name more than any other: Dorie Greenspan. "Dorie does rock solid recipes," says Chandra Ram, who judges the prestigious IACP Cookbook Awards. So what's Dorie doing that makes her recipes better than others? This week, we travel to her home in Connecticut to find out. We watch her test a recipe, and ge
How Did Staying Hydrated Become A Thing? (Reheat)
To say that hydration is an invention is only a slight exaggeration. Water bottles have become a crucial accessory — a status symbol. How did that happen? This week we bring you an episode from our friends at the Slate podcast Decoder Ring. They investigate how bottled water transformed itself from a small, European luxury item to the single largest beverage category in America. It took savvy mark
How Does Paul Hollywood Dunk His Cookies?
On The Great British Bake Off, Paul Hollywood is known for his tough but fair judgments, his piercing blue eyes, and his handshake, which he offers to a contestant only when they really impress him. But before he was ever a TV judge, he was a baker. When he first started doing TV appearances, it was nothing more than “icing on the cake” of his baking career. But all that changed when he got the ca
Nadiya Hussain, From “Great British Bake Off” To Elbows Out (Reheat)
When Nadiya Hussain competed on The Great British Bake Off in 2015, it seemed like all of Britain — from self-proclaimed #Nadiyators to the prime minister — was rooting for her. Since then, she’s hosted TV shows, written best-selling books, and become a household name in the UK. But the transformation we focus on in this conversation is the one that has taken place within her. She talks with Dan a
Why Would You Put A Recipe On Your Gravestone?
Rosie Grant was already obsessed with cemeteries when she came across her first gravestone recipe. The headstone was carved into the shape of an open cookbook with a cookie recipe on it. Rosie made the cookies, posted about it on TikTok, and overnight she became the gravestone recipes lady. She tracked down dozens more gravestone recipes, meeting the families of the deceased and cooking the recipe
Can I Wipe My Oily Hands On My Legs? (Reheat)
We open the phone lines to settle your most contentious food disputes this week. Eliza wants to wipe her oily hands on her bare legs — is her boyfriend Connor right to object? Then, Natalie thinks she’s entitled to half of what her husband Josh cooks, even though he’s generally hungrier. What’s the fairest way to divvy up meals? To answer these questions, Dan enlists the help of Drew Magary and Da
What's In Taylor Swift's Signature Cocktail?
Are chicken tenders having a renaissance? Are lit candles in restaurants worth the risk of a few people’s hair catching on fire? And when Taylor Swift designs a signature cocktail…what’s in it? We cover all these questions and more in this edition of the Salad Spinner — our rapid-fire, roundtable discussion of all the biggest and buzziest food news of the moment. Joining us in the Spinner are best
How Ketchup Got Its Name (Reheat)
Ketchup started as a far different product from what’s on the shelves today. A lot of its evolution can be traced to an early government agency and a group there called “The Poison Squad” that tested the safety of different chemicals -- by eating them. We hear that story. Then a linguist explains why the name “rocky road” actually makes the ice cream taste better. This episode is a special collabo
What Can McDonald’s Tell Us About Black America?
Growing up as a Black kid in Chicago, Dr. Marcia Chatelain says she learned more about Black history from McDonald’s than from her fancy prep school. Now, she’s a professor of Africana studies at the University of Pennsylvania. In her Pulitzer Prize-winning book, Franchise: The Golden Arches in Black America, Dr. Chatelain explores the role that McDonald’s has played in Black communities since its
Celebrating Shabbat At Wendy’s (Reheat)
Shabbat — the Jewish Sabbath – begins every Friday at sundown with a meal. But in all the years that Jews have been having Shabbat dinner, there’s no record in the rabbinic texts of it happening at the fast food chain Wendy’s. Until, that is, a group of seniors in Palm Desert, California, made it their weekly tradition. This week Dan joins in on the Friday night festivities, and the seniors tell h
What’s A Jewish Tavern And House Of Learning?
Josh Foer and Rabbi Charlie Schwartz set out to create a new kind of Jewish space, one that would be welcoming, thought-provoking, delicious, and even cool. The result is Lehrhaus — a Jewish tavern and house of learning. This week Dan visits Lehrhaus in Somerville, Massachusetts, where he takes a tour of their “magical Jewish objects,” checks out the room where they host events on everything from
Is The Future Of Bourbon Female? (Reheat)
Bourbon's growing popularity is changing an industry with deep roots in Kentucky. We travel there to learn what that means for one of the oldest and one of the youngest bourbon masters.This episode originally aired on January 14, 2019, and was produced by Dan Pashman and Anne Saini, edited by Gianna Palmer and Emma Morgenstern, and mixed by the Reverend John DeLore. The Sporkful team now includes
Why Does Cracker Barrel Keep Making People So Mad?
A few weeks ago, Cracker Barrel announced it was changing its logo — removing the old man in overalls and the barrel, updating the font, and removing the words “Old Country Store.” Longtime Cracker Barrel fans went nuts, decrying the “sterile” look. Conservative commentators tied the change to a “DEI regime” and called the new logo “woke.” Even the president weighed in, and within a week Cracker B
How To Host Your Own Porkapalooza
This week, we’re ringing in fall tailgating season with a barbecue, featuring three different cuts of pork: ribs, pork chops, and bratwurst. The grillmaster in charge of it all is Jimmy Tchinnis, owner and executive chef at Swallow Kitchen and Cocktails and L’uccello Pizza and Italian Fare in Greenlawn, NY. Jimmy started out cooking in high-end restaurants in New York City before eventually realiz
Soju, Snacks, And Ramen: How To Party Like A Korean
This week’s show is a raucous Korean-style night out, all on a weekday afternoon. Dan heads to Orion Bar in Brooklyn to learn how to drink like a Korean with Irene Yoo and Peter Kim. Irene is the owner of Orion Bar and author of Soju Party, a book of drink and food recipes that’s also a guide to Korean drinking culture. She shows Dan some drinking games and explains the importance of never pouring
Writer Samantha Irby Is Having Fewer Over-The-Sink Moments (Reheat)
Best-selling author Samantha Irby specializes in wringing comedy out of her own personal tragedies. Among her favorite topics: poop (she’s got Crohn’s disease), depression (which she also has), and sex. Throughout her writing, food is a recurring character. You can often gauge where she's at in life by what she's eating at the time. This week she takes us from the Oatmeal Creme Pies that got her t
