Special Sauce With Ed Levine

On this week’s episode of Special Sauce, we talk about joyful music and an incredibly moving memoir with Michelle Zauner, the leader of the band Japanese Breakfast. She’s the author of the heart-rending Crying in H Mart. Plus, Kenji weighs in on the relationship between two of his favorite things, food and music. 

On this week’s Special Sauce, we’re joined by Colombiana author Mariana Velásquez who talks about the incredible cultural and culinary diversity of her beloved native country. Plus, Kenji shares his love of Colombia, gained from his many trips there with his Colombian wife, Adriana. There's much love for Colombia on this week’s episode! 

On this episode of Special Sauce, we’re joined by the incredible youtuber, podcaster and Cheese, Wine and Bread author Katie Quinn who says that metaphorically speaking, people ferment just like cheese wine and bread. Plus, Kenji adds his two cents about Katie and fermentation. 

On this week’s episode of Special Sauce, we’re joined by Reem Kassis, the thought provoking author of The Palestinian Table and her new book, The Arabesque Table. Plus, Kenji gives us some helpful tips of making falafel at home, courtesy of the chef Einat Admony.  Kenji’s falafel recipe video on youtube can be found here:  https://www.youtube.com/kenjisfalafelrecipe

On this week's Special Sauce, we're joined by NY State Senator and Colombian-American Jessica Ramos who talks about her fearless approach to food activism as she fights for both her diverse constituents and the rights of migrant farm workers.  Plus, Kenji weighs in on his Colombian-American wife Adri's favorite dish and tells us about Temblores, an NGO that monitors state violence in Colombia.

On this week’s episode of Special Sauce, we’re joined by the brilliant and hilarious comedian, actor, writer and producer Susie Essman. Essman explains how her pandemic cooking increased her husbands ardor, plus she gives us a special sneak peak of what’s coming up on the upcoming season of Curb Your Enthusiasm. 

On this week’s episode of Special Sauce we’re joined by Chef Nina Compton who talks about her experience working in fine dining as a woman of color, how her restaurants have grappled with the pandemic, and the imperiled hospitality industry in her beloved St. Lucia. Plus, Kenji stops by to share a nifty hack for making jerk chicken, one of Nina’s favorite dishes at home. 

On this week's episode of Special Sauce legendary food writer and television cook Nigella Lawson gets real about both her new book "Cook, Eat, Repeat," and the remarkable arc of her life and career. Then Kenji stops in to sing Nigella's praises and reveals what happened when Nigella cooked at his restaurant. 

On this week’s Special Sauce, we’re joined by the great pit master and James Beard Award-winning chef Rodney Scott and his coauthor Lolis Eric Elie talking about their new book "Rodney Scott's World of BBQ." They talk about whole hog BBQ, fathers and sons, and a whole lot more. Plus, Kenji weighs in with his approach to smoking a pork shoulder.

On this week's episode of Special Sauce, we're joined by TV and food writer Lolis Eric Elie who dishes on diversity -- or the lack thereof -- in Hollywood and tells us about the joys of eating in and out in his native New Orleans. Later, Kenji stops by to give us his helpful tips for cooking red beans with rice. 

On this week’s episode of Special Sauce, we continue our deep dive into the world of fast food. This time  Franchise Author Marcia Chatelain, Drive-Thru Dreams Author Adam Chandler, and Kenji discuss the unique good vs. evil duality of fast food. The new-ish made-to-order McDonald's Quarter Pounder and the Popeye's Chicken Sandwich are definitely on the menu.

On this week’s episode of Special Sauce, we ponder the highs and the lows of fast food culture with Marcia Chatelain, Georgetown University Professor of history and African American studies and author of Franchise, and Adam Chandler who wrote Drive-Thru Dreams. Then, Bill Oakley shares a few of his fast food reviews from instagram and later, Kenji stops by to share his recipe for Smash Burgers. 

When the ultra-talented chef Mashama Bailey collaborated with first-time restaurateur John Morisano to open The Grey in an old abandoned Greyhound bus depot in Savannah Georgia, they knew that their partnership was not going to be easy.  On this week's Special Sauce you will hear about the difficulties they encountered along the way related to race, class, and gender. The story of their unlikely partnership is beautifully rendered in their painstakingly honest joint memoir Black and White at The Grey. 

On this week's Special Sauce we talk to Grace Young, renowned Chinese cookbook author, self-described wok therapist, and New York Chinatown advocate  during the Pandemic #SaveChineseRestaurants. Plus, we check in with Kenji about Grace and his own upcoming Wok cookbook. 

On this week's episode of Special Sauce we celebrate one of the greatest food writers, Jessica Harris, who introduced many of us to the food of the African Diaspora. Jessica talks about her new book Vintage Postcards from the African World, her twelve cookbooks, and her friendship with Maya Angelou, James Baldwin, and Toni Morrison. For some added perspective on Jessica's extraordinary life and work we talked to another cookbook writer who focuses on the food of the African Diaspora, Red Rooster chef and owner Marcus Samuelsson. Finally, Kenji Lopez-Alt weighs in on one of Jessica Harris' favorite foods, French fries.

On this week’s episode, we talked with Washington Post food writer Tim Carman and his wife, spirits writer Carrie Allen, about their scary battle with the Coronavirus and the lasting impact it has had on them. Later in the episode, Kenji stops in to offer up a simple soup recipe to comfort them, and you.

On this week's Special Sauce, host Ed Levine talks to Brooklyn restaurateur (BK Jani) Sibte Hassan. Hassan contracted the Coronavirus in April, and his long road (including a 12 day stint in the hospital) to recovery and redemption takes him through both near-death moments and a surprising spiritual awakening.

This week, host Ed Levine is joined by the Baltimore-based baker Amanda Mack, who defied the odds when she opened up her family-inspired bakery, Crust By Mack, in the middle of the pandemic. Then, former journalist and podcaster turned Youtube food star, Adam Ragusea, talks about his own holiday-inspired traditions and offers some sage advice to home bakers. Later, Kenji participates in a holiday cookie swap—with a broken oven.

Kenji Lopez-Alt tells all about his new New York Times best seller children's book Every Night is Pizza Night on this week's episode of Special Sauce.  It turns out that for Kenji writing a 48 page picture book for his daughter was in many ways much more difficult to write than his 900 page mega-hit The Food Lab. Counterintuitive, right? Lucky listeners will also get a sneak preview of his next cookbook, which is about the joys of wok cooking at home. Kenji admitted that the manuscript he handed in was more than a thousand pages long! Finally, he and I discuss how the whole concept of gift giving this holiday season has been altered by the pandemic. 

Special Sauce, Serious Eats founder Ed Levine's podcast, is back to stay (with new theme music, no less) with a Thanksgiving episode that explores the seemingly antithetical nature of the pandemic and Turkey Day. After all, Thanksgiving is all about gathering around the table with people you love and sharing a meal with them. The pandemic on the other hand is all about minimizing contact and connections and sharing. J. Kenji Lopez Alt, NYT columnist Jamelle Bouie, Splendid Table host Frances Lam, Franchise author Marcia Chatelain, celebrated crime novelist Laura Lippman, and cookbook authors Jessica Harris and Nik Sharma, weigh in on this thought-provoking topic. One thing they all agree on: the pandemic has made us reexamine just what we all should be thankful for this year.